Why would anyone post they were duped by the developer only to be belittled and minimized?

I really don't care how Florida law chooses to define requirements for disclosure in real estate transactions. Florida law, for me at least, is not the definitive arbiter of what is honest and ethical behavior. And marketing an 8 year old home occupied by multiple different occupants over those years as a "new home" is simply NOT honest. If the many heirs of Mr Morse wish to risk obtaining a reputation of dishonest marketing, then I guess that is their decision.
Certainly the homes will sell and at whatever price the market will bear, but this fact in itself does not make the sales practices ethical. I have nothing against free enterprise and the making of money, but sometimes greed is just greed.
Just my opinion.

I will assume that changes to reflect a different definition of a “new” home are not going to be made. One of the ten “new” houses up for sale may be sold. Let’s hope that the purchaser is made aware of how the house was used in the past seven or more years. I suppose I shouldn’t be concerned except that I like this place and don’t want anyone to feel snookered.

Feeling no compunction to correctly identify the listings, The Villages now lists 27 (new) homes for sale just around the corner from Lake Sumter Landing. However, we know what they actually are. :icon_wink:

How The Villages markets their homes seem to be very successful. Many people have bought the homes that had been used for lifestyle visits in the past and I doubt ANY of them were worried about being snookered and we haven't heard of anyone complaining about buying a lifestyle home either. All of the homes at Lake Sumter Landing, on the lake were Lifestyle homes. These homes were not previously owned by anyone but the developer so how they are marketed is either new or used. I have never heard of anything that would make anyone worry that being used as a lifestyle rental was kept hidden when it was sold. Why don't you go and ask at an open house and report back to us.

Look around you at all of the lifestyle homes that were sold in the past. Not a peep from anyone about being snookered. Go to an open house of a lifestyle home and ask the agent what they have been used for since they were built and tell us what the agent said.

Right.

Worse--in today's DS supplement, they are marketed as "newly constructed." Blatantly deceptive IMO. I'm very surprised at this.

Bait and switch is typically the domain of unscrupulous business marketeers with no integrity. Using the term lifestyle has little meaning in this context. These houses are eight years old, the ad's in the Daily Sun are misleading. I'm sure they consulted with their legal people first. Unfortunately many people are naive and/or have selective hearing.

[QUOTE=RickeyD;1290239]Bait and switch is typically the domain of unscrupulous business marketeers with no integrity. Using the term lifestyle has little meaning in this context. These houses are eight years old, the ad's in the Daily Sun are misleading. I'm sure they consulted with their legal people first. Unfortunately many people are naive and/or have selective hearing.[/QUOTE]

When someone builds a better mousetrap and succeeds big time, then they have to suffer from envy and jealousy from folks who thinks it was all so easy.

How many people tell their kids," Study hard, Try hard, work hard, you may have to risk your own money, but for heavens sake don't succeed and make a whole lot of money." Do not be a successful developer and use new homes for lifestyle visits and market them as new. I would rather see you be a drug dealer....................

[QUOTE=graciegirl;1290267]
The marketing is deceptive, pure and simple.

The drug dealer analogy, and I say this respectfully, makes no sense whatsoever and IMO does not justify situational ethics.

There are business and personal practices that, while perhaps legal, are morally wrong IMHO.

As I've said before, I am surprised to see this departure from truth in advertising and do not think we would have seen this two or three years ago.

[QUOTE=Villageswimmer;1290285]You are right. I looked at the paper and it does say "newly constructed" and they are not newly constructed and that is deceptive.





I always tell my grandchildren to be drug dealers because I want them to make a lot of money so I can live off them. Thank heavens they have an amazing sense of humor.

[QUOTE=graciegirl;1290298]Wow...

Perhaps they are defined by The Villages developer as new homes because the salespeople of The Villages receive new home sales commissions and the prices are not negotiable?

I'm sure these homes were well maintained so as to create a favorable impression with lifestyle visitors (in fact I believe we stayed in one on out lifestyle visit). In addition they should sell for a good price simply based on their location in close proximity to Lake Sumter Landing town square. So why risk yor reputation for integrity by deceptively marketing them as "newly constructed"?
How about "relatively newly constructed"?