[davem4616]

excluding covid-19 constraints...here's my take on what summer is like in TV:

Summer in Florida is just mirror reverse of winter up north...up north you go from heated house to hopefully heated car and dash from car to wherever you're going in the cold. During the summer in TV, we go from the A/C'd home to the A/C store (or whatever) in our A/C cars and back again. Just like you avoid outdoor yard work up north in the winter, we do the same here during the summer unless it's absolutely necessary. Folks still mow their own lawns, though not during the heat of the day.

The pools are nice, sometimes just wet...but still refreshing. You go to the movies during the day, you eat inside the restaurants during lunch more often than not...in the evening if it's cooled down you head down to the squares...or go to the Savannah or The Sharon to catch a show...or one of the many entertainment venues outside TV. You take an evening ride in your golf cart. Many of the clubs have suspended their meetings during July-September. We go on picnics to the beach...and we also will escape to visit family or do a little traveling. 4th of July those of us here have a block party at the end of our Cul de sac.

if you play golf you try to get an early or late tee time...if you enjoy target practice you go to Shooter's World...the gyms are open

[mike1921]

You do become somewhat acclimated to the heat if you go out in it. If you stay inside all the time you will be very uncomfortable when you go out. The group I play golf with always play in the afternoon. We do have some uncomfortable days but for the most part it is not to bad...Keep a cold towel around and drink lots of fluids. You just can't be adverse to sweating. You also need to make sure you exercise enough to stay in a health condition.

I also agree with an earlier poster about owning two homes...it just seems like there is constant concern about the home you are not it.

[OhioBuckeye]

Originally Posted by skarra

I'm interested in hearing of peoples experiences in living in TV year round vs returning home wherever that may be in the summer months.

Do you continue with all your usual activities in the summer, or do you tend to remain inside where there is A/C? And how did things change once you made that commitment to live year round in TV.

Thanks for all replies.

Oh man the winter months when there’s not as many snow birds, everything is pretty much open for doing or getting to do everything, like golf. But the percentages are getting bigger with people being full time residents. No big crowds anywhere!

[Curtisbwp]

1st, study the historic climate in the various parts of Florida. The Villages is in central maine. If you were to live below tampa you have entered into the tropical part on the state where it gets hot hot hot. I continue with my normal activities. Been here 17 yrs.

[Mhollowaygleasom]

We have owned in The Villages for 3 years and originally planned to have 2 homes when we retired. As retirement drew closer, we decided the responsibility of 2:homes (after owning 2 Homes for 3 years) was more trouble than it was worth. We sold our NH home and moved here full time in January. The original plan was to travel (within the US) during the hot summer months. Well, that didn’t happen due to COVID-19. Neither of us are big fans of heat and humidity, but I’m happy to say we survived one of the warmest summers in years.
In NH, we spent the bulk of colder months inside, unless skiing or clearing snow. Florida, is the reverse. More time is spent inside during the summer. Golfing, yard work (if you enjoy it) and other outdoor activities are done earlier in the day. We thought it would be much more difficult this first year with Covid, activities closed and no travel, but it really wasn’t terrible.
We do have a pool home here and believe it’s been a real blessing. Most of our summer was spent lounging at our pool, enjoying life and retirement.
The virus definitely put a twist in plans for our first summer of retirement. By doing this, it allowed us to really get to know our neighbors (from a distance) and form amazing friendships. We took car rides to no where ( not exiting our vehicle) for a change of scenery on a few occasions and cart rides to explore unfamiliar areas of The Villages. When golf reopened, we carefully played as early as possible.
As it turned out, we were very grateful to be “stuck” here. It’s definitely a beautiful community and people make the best of any situation, good or bad. Had we been in NH, we wouldn’t have had as many options or encounters with neighbors making us very isolated.
We have no regrets and are happy with our decision. Life is what you make it, even when it throws you a curve.
Do some serious soul searching, it’s a huge personal decision. That being said, regardless of your decision you can always amend your plans later if you feel the need.
Best of luck!

[davem4616]

Originally Posted by mike1921

I also agree with an earlier poster about owning two homes...it just seems like there is constant concern about the home you are not it.

ditto...when in FL my wife would worry about the house up north and vice versa...no matter how many times I said 'relax, we have insurance'.....and opening and closing both homes is a pain too. There's also the humorous element to it...every time we'd relocate to one or the other that first morning we had to pause and think about what cabinet the coffee cups were in.

there were years that we were 'snow bunnies' hopping back and forth every few weeks for elder care duties and work....often my wife would be looking in the freezer for an item she wanted to cook, only to realize that it was in the other house's freezer.

consolidating to one house certainly simplified our lives (of course we couldn't part with any of the kitchen tools...so we still have 2 of everything)

Airbnb and similar sites make it very easy to rent a nice house for as many weeks as we need when we decide to escape TV to visit family (we love them all but, prefer to have a little independence by staying in a rental)

[Stu from NYC]

Originally Posted by davem4616

ditto...when in FL my wife would worry about the house up north and vice versa...no matter how many times I said 'relax, we have insurance'.....and opening and closing both homes is a pain too. There's also the humorous element to it...every time we'd relocate to one or the other that first morning we had to pause and think about what cabinet the coffee cups were in.

there were years that we were 'snow bunnies' hopping back and forth every few weeks for elder care duties and work....often my wife would be looking in the freezer for an item she wanted to cook, only to realize that it was in the other house's freezer.

consolidating to one house certainly simplified our lives (of course we couldn't part with any of the kitchen tools...so we still have 2 of everything)

Airbnb and similar sites make it very easy to rent a nice house for as many weeks as we need when we decide to escape TV to visit family (we love them all but, prefer to have a little independence by staying in a rental)

That is why for years was against owning two homes. Hard enough to remember where stuff is with one home let alone with a second.

[STLRAY]

Does anyone have a reasonable estimate of the portion of villagers who are full time vs. snowbirds?

[Veiragirl]

Originally Posted by skarra

I'm interested in hearing of peoples experiences in living in TV year round vs returning home wherever that may be in the summer months.

Do you continue with all your usual activities in the summer, or do you tend to remain inside where there is A/C? And how did things change once you made that commitment to live year round in TV.

Thanks for all replies.

Snowbirds taste like chicken

[NavyVet]

Full time here since 2003, moved here from South Florida, ironically, to get away from terrible traffic. LOL
Before Florida, spent a number of years in Memphis. No amount of being in the heat has helped my heat tolerance, had a few close calls with heat stroke, so even more susceptible now. I don't last 5 minutes outside. Early morning humidity is just as brutal as the rest of the day. Thank goodness for a/c.
3 years ago, we finally got a house with a pool. We have 10 ceiling fans (including bathroom!) and have thermostat set at 73 which keeps master bedroom at 74 but other end of house is 80 (which sucks.)
I go outside only in winter and wear shorts/tank tops YEAR ROUND. I think we had the heat on once in the past 3 years. Where everyone else brings sweaters and jackets to restaurants, I am comfortable. You can always add layers if chilly. It's still better than worrying about pipes freezing, driving on snow/ice, etc. LOL

[jimjamuser]

Originally Posted by skarra

I'm interested in hearing of peoples experiences in living in TV year round vs returning home wherever that may be in the summer months.

Do you continue with all your usual activities in the summer, or do you tend to remain inside where there is A/C? And how did things change once you made that commitment to live year round in TV.

Thanks for all replies.

My advice is don't stay here for the summer. Get a small home up north or get an RV and explore the northern US states and / or Alaska. Of course you have to find some ways to avoid the fires and smoke, which this year have been worse than the Florida hurricanes.

[IndianaJones]

I've been in Florida on and off for 39 years now - you can acclimate to the heat, but this summer has been unusually brutal - the humidity has been relentless. However, like folks say, that's why A/C was invented in Florida, and why it's prevalent. Look at it this way - beats bundling up to go out in 30 degree weather to go to a restaurant where the thermostat is on 80, so you have to unbundle to enjoy yourself. Wear shorts and shirts that breathe, drink plenty of H2O, stay mostly inside (if you need to) between 10am-4pm. It's doable and again to me, much better than cold rain/snow/sleet/etc. Bring on the heat!

[Stu from NYC]

Originally Posted by Veiragirl

Snowbirds taste like chicken

Fried???

[Topspinmo]

Originally Posted by skarra

I'm interested in hearing of peoples experiences in living in TV year round vs returning home wherever that may be in the summer months.

Do you continue with all your usual activities in the summer, or do you tend to remain inside where there is A/C? And how did things change once you made that commitment to live year round in TV.

Thanks for all replies.

If you’re active plan on two or three showers day and have good washing machine. I average 2 showers day and if I add any yard work 3 showers day.

As far as A/C I can’t have it below 77, my lungs want to fill up with fluid and makes it’s hard to breath. When it rains I bump it up to 78 or 79. Use ceiling fans to move the air around.

[Topspinmo]

Originally Posted by STLRAY

Does anyone have a reasonable estimate of the portion of villagers who are full time vs. snowbirds?

In my villa it’s 70% full time and 30% snowbirds. Closer you get to square I would imagine it’s much higher for snowbirds/rentals?