[DAVES]

Originally Posted by Seasonal

Within the next year, the wife and I plan to retire and purchase a second home in Florida. Another set of snow birds, yeah!

We have driven through the Villages and love the new homes available online but we have one thought that keeps us away. I wanted to ask about this to see if our thought is correct or way off base.

"Oh the humanity!" is our thought. Once we left our new Village home, all we would encounter is a crush of people. Decide to go food shopping, crowds. Golfing or swimming, people everywhere. Enjoy a beer and music on the square and it's like a day at Disney. Wherever you are standing, you are in the way.

We are are looking to slow down some. Enjoy the warm weather with our little dogs without giving up all privacy.

We will certainly rent something in the Villages and other areas in Florida for a month or two prior to purchasing anything but the thought around the crowds is our concern.

I've read this forum for years and enjoy the conversation. Thought I would state our concern, seeking comments.

We cannot choose for you. Everywhere has pluses and minuses. I just re-established
contact with an associate that I've not heard from in many years. Far different from the Villages he and his brother bought 168 acres in North Carolina and they live in the woods.

Making a choice is not easy for most people. I would suggest since it is not an inexpensive, easy to reverse choice, I suggest, you spend some time here. The sales dept has inexpensive short term rental programs. We did it 3x before we bought. If I recall the second time you do not get a free movie or diner. We were not here for a free movie or a free? diner. We bought 8 years ago and are happy with the choice we made

[Tmarkwald]

Originally Posted by wm_farrell

My wife and I are a couple years ahead of you. We did the Lifestyle visit in Brownwood and really liked what TV has to offer. We bought just south of Lake Sumter last year. Our solution to the crowds? We rent the place at high-season rates and travel. Mexico is perfect in January/February.

This is a perfect plan.. what do you do with personal things... that you don't leave out when renters move in?

[rmd2]

The very best thing you are doing is renting. I rented for about a year before buying and I'm glad I did. By then I knew what area of The Villages I liked best and where was spending my time. I live off of 466 and 10 years later I still love this location. Close to 2 town squares, 441 with lots of shopping, Publix, Fresh Market, Walmart, banking and restaurants.

[John_W]

Originally Posted by dhdallas

I am only here in TV because my wife insisted. This is not her opinion; she loves every little thing about it. For me though other than the warm winter weather, it sucks. Driving anywhere is a pain. Way too much traffic and it will continue to get worse as they are continuing nonstop developing. Homes are crammed together. Heavy golf cart traffic is ridiculous and dangerous. I ride my bike on the cart paths and it is scary. Read The **************.com for all the latest drunk cart driving accidents and crimes.

I am more prejudiced than most because I don’t play golf, I don’t like games or clubs, I don’t like to socialize, I don’t swim or like pools, and would rather be around animals than people. I’ve been here 3 months and haven’t even needed or would use a TV ID card for anything. I prefer solitary pursuits, cycling, hunting, fishing, kayaking, reading, television, sitting on a beach, etc.

TV is a marvel of cookie-cutter overpriced homes in town that reminds me of The Twilight Zone episode where a couple woke up in this picture perfect town only to find out everything in it was fake and they were in a giant being’s terrarium. The place is just plain weird.

Get outside TV and this central part of FL is pretty darn ugly. Swamps, brush & scrubs, ugly trees, trashy homes, dumpy house trailers with plenty of crime & drugs to go around. I carry a legally concealed handgun pretty much everywhere I go.

Last year we stayed at Navarre Beach which is near Pensacola and absolutely gorgeous. Sugar white sand with the turquoise water of the Gulf on one side of Santa Rosa Island and the sound on the other. It is in the Central Time Zone. No bugs or alligators (at least on the island).

There is 20 miles of protected seashore with wind swept dunes and sparsely populated beaches with a bike/hike trail almost the entire length of the island. At one end of the island is a historic fort dating back to the civil war and toward the eastern end is a Marine Science Station. Golf carts are used by some residents but really very few. Overall traffic is extremely light on the island. The 4-lane on the mainland can be busy but there are no roundabouts and traffic moves right along.

There are many fresh seafood, authentic southern BBQ restaurants and local markets (as in real markets, not the imitation overpriced ones in the TV pretend town squares). Navarre Beach is NOT a tourist trap. The summers there are bearable too, not 100 degrees in the shade like here.

Beautiful homes and condos (some <$300k) on the waterfront at reasonable prices (2019). The condo amenities/fees are next to nothing compared to TV. From our rental condo's bedroom window, we could watch porpoises playing in the water. I thought Navarre was a slice of heaven. I wanted to buy there but my wife insisted on TV. I got my summer lakefront home though for most of the year so all is not lost.

I admit, I am not the typical TV resident and my comments will generate plenty of “Yankee go home” comments but you asked for opinions so there you go...to each his own.

You have a valid point about, I'm not into clubs, I was in car club but quit after 3 months. I don't use the rec centers, it's the golf courses that brought me here, and since I've arrived I'm trying to make up for lost time, when I discovered MVP at Brownwood. I only wish I had worked out the rest of life instead sitting on my butt.

I also like the panhandle, I lived in Pensacola for six years in the late 70s and early 80s and built 3 houses during that time. I discovered Panama City Beach in 1970, I went through Army school at the Ft. Rucker, Alabama, which is just a 2 hour drive north just across the state line. I was there during summer and every weekend was down at PC.

You would not believe how much PC has grown. The entire commercial area was about ten blocks long in '70 and five of us would rent a cottage for $15 a night right on the strip. Only if I was smart enough to have bought land back then, it's now 30 miles of condos, amusement parks, restaurants, and then wait til spring break, it's get wild. I went to PC during spring break '86 and I don't remember the bar, but it was on the beach with the biggest deck I ever seen. The guy that sang "Key Largo" Bernie Higgins was singing on the deck with his guitar. It was great and hundreds of women.

My best friend lives in Navarre, we were in the Army together 50 years ago and worked in the FAA at Pensacola together. He lives in Navarre, bought a masonry home with a 2 car garage, 3 BR, 2 BA and swimming pool in 1990 for $98,000, today it's worth about $275K. The biggest problem with the panhandle and one of the reasons I settled in TV, besides the golf here, is hurricanes. In just my 6 years of living there I went through two hurricanes. The one in '79 I rode out in the hallway and winds at the airport a mile from my house reached 100 mph. No damage to speak of except for a million pine cones in my pool, we don't have birdcages because of the hurricanes.

My neighbor who lives and loves golf even more than me, I shot a 78 yesterday at Cane Garden and he shot a 70. Him and his wife go the beach at least 3 weekends a month. Monday he's leaving for a week in the Florida Keys. In the past 12 months, he's been to Destin, St. Pete Beach, Siesta Key and his favorite Venice Beach about 20 times. He doesn't mind driving, to me, I rather never have to drive again.

Hang in there, if you don't like golf, try pickleball. Look to see when they have the 101 classes, I took that back in 2013 and it's really a neat sport. I also enjoy music when things are normal, the Hooligans, Uncle Bob, the classic rock bands I enjoy going to see. Movies, it's neat to go the theater and there's not a million kids and their mothers there to see some cartoon in the other theater. That's one of reasons I like it here, now that I'm 70 I rather be around people my own age than young people.

Traffic here, I grew up in St. Petersburg, and when I go there the traffic is 20 times worse and I remember when there was hardly anybody. Traffic here is really nothing. Condos are cheap in PC, maybe get a vacation condo for $200K and then rent it out when you're not there. The heat, I lived up north before moving here and in Maryland it would hit 100 degrees 15 days in the month of August. At the beach we got constant thunderstorms, they were really more over the city. I remember being on Pensacola Beach a few times in beautiful sunshine and looking back at Pensacola and seeing dark clouds and lightning. However, the storms didn't last long, the air over the gulf meeting the air over the land you get thunderstorms just about every afternoon. So for that reason, I really don't mind the heat here.

You could own something like this in PC and rent it out for $250 a night when you're not there.





BTW, Jaws 2 was filmed at Navarre Beach in '77, I went several days during shooting and saw the sharks sitting on the trailers, didn't see any actors but did see the director setting up shots. Base camp was at the Holiday Inn Navarre, beautiful motel with a Holidome and indoor pool, the movie's opening scene with the band playing was shot inside the Holidome, however that motel was destroyed in a 2005 hurricane and wasn't rebuilt.

[airstreamingypsy]

Ask yourself, if you are golfers and/or joiners. To me, if you are social, and a joiner, then move to The Villages. If you don't golf, pickleball, swim... and you don't want to join clubs...... there are plenty of places in Florida the are less crowded.

[Mhollowaygleasom]

We landed in TV to escape the long NH winters and because my husband is a golf enthusiast.
He absolutely loved TV from the moment we first visited. I was not as excited about purchasing here and thought it to be a bit Stepford. That being said, we visited numerous times (in TV and basically everywhere else of interest to us in FL) and purchased a home here almost 5 years ago.
We were snowbirds for 3 years and visited numerous times throughout the year. I grew to love TV as much as my husband, over the years. Our initial plan was to keep both homes and enjoy the best of both worlds. We fully retired January 2020 and decided to sell our northern home. It was a major decision but neither of us have any regrets.
The Lifestyle of TV, can’t be beat.
We chose our home based on our particular needs and wants. Like you, we wanted our home to provide us with the peaceful setting we were accustomed to, (for privacy and alone time) yet centrally located for ease of getting where we wanted to with as much ease as possible. Life does get crazy here during peak season but not enough to discourage us. The activities we enjoy are still within easy reach, shopping, dinning and entertainment require a little more planning but remain just as enjoyable. Traffic in and around the squares is heavy but no more of an issue than Cape Cod during summer months. You will eventually learn the best times to shop and venture out without too much difficulty. It’s a learning curve. Crowed squares can be a major source of entertainment as you never know what you will see. Regardless of where you purchase, FL is crazy in season. It’s up to you to figure out how to deal with it.
Realistically speaking, there is no perfect place to live. There are however places that meet more of your needs than others.
Like everywhere else, it’s all about location and fulfilling your needs. You can easily find your slice of heaven here if you know what you want.
No kissing lanai’s for us, a quiet side street that doesn’t connect to busier streets, a large corner lot with pool and privacy hedge, no cart path or busy road behind us and we couldn’t be happier. We can go days without socializing with neighbors or engage several times a day if we wish. Most people are likeminded and basically seek the very things you are looking for.
Best of luck in your search. Stay true to yourselves and you won’t be disappointed.

[mikemalloy]

As Yogi is reported to have said "No one goes there anymore, it's too crowded."

[Carlsondm]

Peak season in Jan thru March brings more visitors and traffic. Seniors have time to arrive very early at popular events so plan accordingly. Parking is limited at the squares. Planning for large events definitely was not on the radar. All TV can do is encourage golf carts so two can park in one space.
If you are a swimmer or diver, pools are shallow in TV. Only two that I know of are deep enough for those 5’5” and more to do water aerobics in: Mulberry and Laurel. Pools in the new home areas toward the south are 3’6” - shallower than above ground pools back home. No indoor pools at all. I mention this because we left two regulation size pools with deep ends back home and expected at least a few down here. We maintained two pools for years, so don’t even mention building or buying one unless it comes with a pool boy/gal.
Golf is plentiful, just plan ahead. Maintenance can be an issue, but with crowds that is expected.

[lloydkuczek]

My wife and I considered purchasing a home in TV. Based on on-line research, I thought it would be the perfect place. We rented a home for a month and I was disappointed. I loved the concept, but was very disappointed with the shape and condition of the golf courses. The other significant negative was the expense - both overall general home costs, golf fees and everything else including groceries. I also found the area (outside of TV to be far from attractive). We are still looking but haven't landed on where to purchase yet. Nothing is perfect.

[Pricey]

Originally Posted by dhdallas

I am only here in TV because my wife insisted. This is not her opinion; she loves every little thing about it. For me though other than the warm winter weather, it sucks. Driving anywhere is a pain. Way too much traffic and it will continue to get worse as they are continuing nonstop developing. Homes are crammed together. Heavy golf cart traffic is ridiculous and dangerous. I ride my bike on the cart paths and it is scary. Read The **************.com for all the latest drunk cart driving accidents and crimes.

I am more prejudiced than most because I don’t play golf, I don’t like games or clubs, I don’t like to socialize, I don’t swim or like pools, and would rather be around animals than people. I’ve been here 3 months and haven’t even needed or would use a TV ID card for anything. I prefer solitary pursuits, cycling, hunting, fishing, kayaking, reading, television, sitting on a beach, etc.

TV is a marvel of cookie-cutter overpriced homes in town that reminds me of The Twilight Zone episode where a couple woke up in this picture perfect town only to find out everything in it was fake and they were in a giant being’s terrarium. The place is just plain weird.

Get outside TV and this central part of FL is pretty darn ugly. Swamps, brush & scrubs, ugly trees, trashy homes, dumpy house trailers with plenty of crime & drugs to go around. I carry a legally concealed handgun pretty much everywhere I go.

Last year we stayed at Navarre Beach which is near Pensacola and absolutely gorgeous. Sugar white sand with the turquoise water of the Gulf on one side of Santa Rosa Island and the sound on the other. It is in the Central Time Zone. No bugs or alligators (at least on the island).

There is 20 miles of protected seashore with wind swept dunes and sparsely populated beaches with a bike/hike trail almost the entire length of the island. At one end of the island is a historic fort dating back to the civil war and toward the eastern end is a Marine Science Station. Golf carts are used by some residents but really very few. Overall traffic is extremely light on the island. The 4-lane on the mainland can be busy but there are no roundabouts and traffic moves right along.

There are many fresh seafood, authentic southern BBQ restaurants and local markets (as in real markets, not the imitation overpriced ones in the TV pretend town squares). Navarre Beach is NOT a tourist trap. The summers there are bearable too, not 100 degrees in the shade like here.

Beautiful homes and condos (some <$300k) on the waterfront at reasonable prices (2019). The condo amenities/fees are next to nothing compared to TV. From our rental condo's bedroom window, we could watch porpoises playing in the water. I thought Navarre was a slice of heaven. I wanted to buy there but my wife insisted on TV. I got my summer lakefront home though for most of the year so all is not lost.

I admit, I am not the typical TV resident and my comments will generate plenty of “Yankee go home” comments but you asked for opinions so there you go...to each his own.

I'm glad you got your slice of heaven, and that your wife got her wishes, too.
We're all such different creatures from each other. What pleases one won't always please another. It's nice to see the compromise, and I can see the happiness and nature appreciation in the solitude as well as the social pleasantries of the other.
G-d bless you!

[oemsp1]

Originally Posted by Seasonal

Within the next year, the wife and I plan to retire and purchase a second home in Florida. Another set of snow birds, yeah!

We have driven through the Villages and love the new homes available online but we have one thought that keeps us away. I wanted to ask about this to see if our thought is correct or way off base.

"Oh the humanity!" is our thought. Once we left our new Village home, all we would encounter is a crush of people. Decide to go food shopping, crowds. Golfing or swimming, people everywhere. Enjoy a beer and music on the square and it's like a day at Disney. Wherever you are standing, you are in the way.

We are are looking to slow down some. Enjoy the warm weather with our little dogs without giving up all privacy.

We will certainly rent something in the Villages and other areas in Florida for a month or two prior to purchasing anything but the thought around the crowds is our concern.

I've read this forum for years and enjoy the conversation. Thought I would state our concern, seeking comments.

Your concerns are valid.

[kenoc7]

Originally Posted by Seasonal

Within the next year, the wife and I plan to retire and purchase a second home in Florida. Another set of snow birds, yeah!

We have driven through the Villages and love the new homes available online but we have one thought that keeps us away. I wanted to ask about this to see if our thought is correct or way off base.

"Oh the humanity!" is our thought. Once we left our new Village home, all we would encounter is a crush of people. Decide to go food shopping, crowds. Golfing or swimming, people everywhere. Enjoy a beer and music on the square and it's like a day at Disney. Wherever you are standing, you are in the way.

We are are looking to slow down some. Enjoy the warm weather with our little dogs without giving up all privacy.

We will certainly rent something in the Villages and other areas in Florida for a month or two prior to purchasing anything but the thought around the crowds is our concern.

I've read this forum for years and enjoy the conversation. Thought I would state our concern, seeking comments.

If you want to avoid a crush of people choose the lovely north end near CR 42.

[stebooo]

Don't know of course what you are coming from so it's kind of hardto advise. You do and go where you want. You have an incredible amount of options, from a solo walk to a popular concert. You have a off season, May through Dec. Considerably less people. And a high season, jan through April. A 40%swell.

So you can see it's up to you. Are you a social person or a introvoted hermit. If the later, you could come but maybe should buy a hut in the country . You can be in the villages but maybe wouldn't be so happy

[Seasonal]

I wanted to sincerely thank everyone that posted a comment. I've read all of the comments and will continue to read and research.

We will have to spend some time thinking about what we enjoy in life and how that fits into TV lifestyle.

Thanks again!

Bruce...

[emb2458]

Look at DEL WEB just down the road from The Villages on 441 going towards Ocala. Won't have the new construction and cost of living in The Villages