[Indy-Guy]

Article from Orlando Business Journal.

Monday, July 7, 2008 - 2:00 PM EDT
The Villages sees 17.8% jump in new home salesOrlando Business Journal
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The Villages on Monday reported new home sales surged 17.8 percent in the first part of this year.

New home sales totaled 905 between February and May of this year, which compares with 768 sales in the same period a year ago, according to a news release. Additionally, more than 2,400 homes total sold last year and the master-planned community gained 5,000 new residents, bringing total population to nearly 70,000, the release says.

The Villages also reported a 0.05 percent foreclosure rate for 2007, which has caught the attention of retailers, the release stated.

The Villages reported 20 new tenants joined its retail line up in the first quarter of this year, while existing retailers at Lake Sumter Landing Town Center reported an increase of 14 percent in sales volumes in that same period.

The Villages, a self-contained retirement community, includes 80 restaurants, four hotels, two movie theaters, two town centers, eight shopping centers and a total of 2.5 million square feet of retail and commercial space.

[tkret]

New home sales by TV means more competition for those selling their resales.

[Indy-Guy]

Originally Posted by tkret

New home sales by TV means more competition for those selling their resales.

GLASS HALF EMPTY OR HALF FULL

Gee just when I was thinking that this is a good thing. Perhaps the prospects that are here to see The Villages may help
1. The amount of people that look at used homes and new homes.
2. Perhaps the market may be on the up side.
3. A turn to the up side in home values for those of us who are already here.
4. More retailers looking at The Villages for expansion.
5. The fact that The Villages is doing so much better than the rest of the country.

I for one am thankful that I live in a community that the developer didn't roll over and drop dead in this market.

If I were selling my home I would rather be selling my used home in The Villages than anywhere else that I could think of. However my home is not for sale.

[tkret]

Good morning Indy Guy,
Those are very good points you make. My point is that housing is like any other commodity; it's a supply and demand issue. As TV management builds and sells more homes it just makes it more competitive for the resale market. Prices will have to be adjusted to be more in line with what a new home is being sold for. It is true that the existing homes have items, such as landscaping, already in place whereas the purchaser of a new home must still invest in those things; however, many people moving into a place like TV want new. Currently, I would suggest that with the resales AND the new-builts, supply is outstripping demand at this time. Yes, if I had a home for sale, TV would be the place most likely to have it listed fewer days on the market than homes elsewhere in the country (with the exception of Manhattan and Charlotte). When prices in the rest of the country bottom out and sales increase, activity in TV will be brisk or shall I say even more brisk. Until that day, however, the buyer will have more to choose from because of both new and resales and price will be the deciding factor.

[Indy-Guy]

tkret,

Well said.

Have a good day,

Indy