[Papa_lecki]

We keep the cleaning lady coming to the house up north. She does light cleaning, water plants, etc - may not be necessary every week, but every 2 or 3.

In FLA, home watch. Need someone you trust.

[Smalley]

Originally Posted by VTrunner

My wife and I are looking to move to The Villages as soon as we find the home that meets our needs. We are planning to keep our current home for summer use, at least for a couple years.
While this is an exciting time, I am a little nervous about leaving the current home for 5-6 months over the winter months. We live in Vermont and have relatives that can look in on the house as well as having cameras etc. setup.
Leaving the house in TV I would engage a service to watch but I was curious if anyone had experiences they could share on leaving a home in the frozen north?
We've factored in the added expenses of a second home but it is more about any unknowns that could come up when leaving a home empty for six months?

Thanks for any tips anyone may have, good or bad.

We tried to be snowbirds and gave up after less than one year. It was the worrying and the details and the trips back and forth that convinced us to sell up north and buy here. For us, a great decision. We didn't have family to call upon and we didn't want to take advantage of neighbors. The burglar alarm was a pain up north. There were 2 false alarms. Maybe getting rid of the alarm system would be a good idea if you live in a low crime area. Maybe the cameras are all you need.

[daca55]

I live in southern NH and own a home in the Villages. I downsized from a house to a condo in NH. Leaving the condo is easy as I don’t have to worry about snow removal. I shut the water off and bleed pressure at every fawcet. I leave the temp at 55. I monitor the temp and if it gets down to 45 I call someone to check furnace. I have been doing this for about 10 years now and never had a problem. I doubt I will ever sell my condo in NH because I have to many friends and family here and I like getting away from the heat in FL in the summer.

[LuvNH]

We have a home in Concord NH. Will never part with it, beautiful area and right now it is still in the 80s up here with no humidity, of course that will change soon. We have all but one of our family in the area and will end up here when the time is right. We did try full time in TV, but the summers are getting unbearably hot and I had to get out in the summer.

I almost forgot the reason I replied to your question. You have had some good information on closing your home for winter so let me say the emotional things. Right now you are drinking the kool aid and loving getting out of the Vermont winter. Do not make any sudden decisions until you have been in TV for a few years. You are young, but as you get older home and family mean an awful lot more than a winter in Florida.

[LoisR]

Originally Posted by VTrunner

My wife and I are looking to move to The Villages as soon as we find the home that meets our needs. We are planning to keep our current home for summer use, at least for a couple years.
While this is an exciting time, I am a little nervous about leaving the current home for 5-6 months over the winter months. We live in Vermont and have relatives that can look in on the house as well as having cameras etc. setup.
Leaving the house in TV I would engage a service to watch but I was curious if anyone had experiences they could share on leaving a home in the frozen north?
We've factored in the added expenses of a second home but it is more about any unknowns that could come up when leaving a home empty for six months?

Thanks for any tips anyone may have, good or bad.

Turn off the water, set the heat at a temp you like, have someone check the house periodically, reroute your mail, then head south and enjoy.
We also have various home sensors that allow us to check in on the house.

[rustyp]

Don't sell your home up north. You will love changing your lifestyle twice per year (and despise summer heat in Fl). If you are at all close to family after 10 - 15 years in TV there is a high probability you will move back up north to complete the circle of life.

[Bay Kid]

Originally Posted by LoisR

Turn off the water, set the heat at a temp you like, have someone check the house periodically, reroute your mail, then head south and enjoy.
We also have various home sensors that allow us to check in on the house.

Don't forget to turn off your ice maker and hot water heater.

[kendi]

Originally Posted by UpNorth

All the above.
Cameras are the best devices you can add. The next best thing to "being there". You will have to keep your internet service active, but it is well worth it. Set your heating temperature down to 55 degrees, unplug everything that's not needed, and turn the water off at the sinks and bathrooms. Make sure your driveway gets plowed and your mail is forwarded. And have a neighbor or relative come in and check around at least once a month. It will take a year or two for you to feel comfortable being a snowbird.

And don’t forget to protect any plumbing that is on the outside walls. Insulate and/or leave cabinet doors open that holds the plumbing.

[kendi]

Originally Posted by rustyp

Don't sell your home up north. You will love changing your lifestyle twice per year (and despise summer heat in Fl). If you are at all close to family after 10 - 15 years in TV there is a high probability you will move back up north to complete the circle of life.

Agree. Thought I’d spend the rest of my years in TV. Now I know my last years will be up North.

[dougawhite]

Originally Posted by VTrunner

We live in Vermont, I was curious if anyone had experiences they could share on leaving a home in the frozen north?

An unattended home way up north can rapidly deteriorate. My home in NH developed HUGE ice dams all along the 80' of roofline. And I was only living 45 minutes away at the time! See this video my son shot of me chopping through the 18" thick ice!
https://youtu.be/ZUIvv6qTDwM?si=pvQSITXT0Xnvf6tS
Then there's also the rodent invasion... Yikes, better to sell it and rent an Air BnB if you want to return for a long visit.

[Topspinmo]

Too big of headache for me, I would just rent till I decided to move. After couple years renting you may change you mind or sell and move?

[rustyp]

Originally Posted by dougawhite

An unattended home way up north can rapidly deteriorate. My home in NH developed HUGE ice dams all along the 80' of roofline. And I was only living 45 minutes away at the time! See this video my son shot of me chopping through the 18" thick ice!
https://youtu.be/ZUIvv6qTDwM?si=pvQSITXT0Xnvf6tS
Then there's also the rodent invasion... Yikes, better to sell it and rent an Air BnB if you want to return for a long visit.

5.5 million US households own vacation homes. How do they prevent rapid deterioration ?

[Lisanp@aol.com]

Do you have a central station alarm system? If so, add flood detectors to a few areas of the house. Mine are in the basement by the water heater and in a 2nd floor bathroom directly under the air handler in the attic.

[psjordan]

Lots of great advice in this thread. We own a lake home in NY and a home here in TV. The four things that make leaving our home in NY unattended a no-brainer are:
Permanent standby generator
Cameras
Remote thermostat
Great neighbors

To each his own, but we have no plans whatsoever to sell the lake house. It's beautiful in the summer months, we have friends we'd miss and lake activities would be sorely missed.

The only downside we've come up with so far is that we are (were) both active outdoors in the winter/snow (XC skiing, snowshoeing, hiking, etc.) and we do miss a good snowstorm and getting outside in the cold air for the day (laying out by the pool in TV is a great consolation prize however). We may be the only bozos in TV that check the weather back north in order to fly back to catch heavy snow.

Otherwise you'll figure out the mechanics of coming and going, and you'll have to decide if it's a "pain" or "too much work". For us, we love both places and the opening/closing/worrying is way, way down the list of concerns. That may change as we age, but if we get there, well we'll address it then.

[mamahaffen]

We are concerned about the winter months as well. The current plan is to sell the house and buy a condo...no worries about upkeep (plowing, mowing, etc) and any HOA fees are cheaper than our tax bill. Allows us to be up ANY time with the kiddos and not have as many worries. Will still invest in a camera system.