Talk of The Villages Florida - Cost of living /month in the villages

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Quote:

Originally Posted by IRISHGIRL3US (Post 1920710)

Hello, please forgive me if I am not proceeding correctly I am new at this.
I am considering buying a home and would like to know what extra cost per month there are.
ORHER THAN .
Mortgage, bond, electric, insurance. Can someone help?
Kate

Just some friendly advice. Your bond payment is over a 30 year period and if I remember correctly it's at something like 6%. The interest you're paying is NOT tax deductible on your federal income tax. If you can borrow that much, take out a home equity loan, probably at a much better interest rate, pay off the bond and you CAN deduct the interest on that home equity loan. Every little bit counts! :welcome:

Potentially welcome, Irishgirl3US, John W (sage) gave a pretty succinct breakdown of his expenses. Depending on the type of house and size, your financial obligations probably won't be similar. Your area of purchase will somewhat influence what your expenses could be. I've been here about 4 years, and was leery of expenses initially, but found out quickly you are better off than you think.

If you purchase in the northern portion of TV, your bond will be much lower or paid off, but you have an older house with potential home improvements or upkeep looming. A new house in southern portion will have a new bond attached to the fees, but worry free house issues for awhile. Potential younger crowd in the south with new purchase. As far as I can tell, taxes are not the same in the 3 counties TV cover. A concrete house does not need power washing as a wooden structure with vinyl siding. Lawn care is up to owner, mow on your own or outsource to one of many lawn maintenance crews (monthly fees vary).

Regardless, if you are moving down here and selling your northern home, you really should have no financial issues. Your mortgage company will make certain you can readily afford your mortgage. The other potential fees are not out of line. You will be fine.

Quote:

Originally Posted by John_W (Post 1920905)

There isn't much in my extras I found. My amenities, garbage, water (both irrigation & drinking) and sewage comes on one bill every month and averages about $235. I have a masonry 2BR CYV built in 2011 that I bought new.

Electric last bill was $85, it's usually between $80 to $95.

I paid cash for my home, so I have no mortgage and when I pay my taxes, usually in November the bond is included with the taxes. My bond was $14,000 so I pay $1100 every year for the bond. In addition there is a yearly maintenance fee and mine was $450, that is also included on the tax bill.

I do my own yard maintenance, since I have a CYV I was able to remove all my grass and have just shrubs, palm trees and gravel. I trim my shrubs myself, fertilize and just yesterday I power-washed my back patio, and I will do my driveway this afternoon. I bought Ryobi Power-Washer with a buffer attachment type head at Home Depot. CYV are great for those who want less yard work and a privacy fenced backyard.

I have Directv and that $135 a month. I have Century Link for internet and home phone, the internet if 100 mbps and the phone is a regular type phone with unlimited long distance included. That's $90 a month. I'm going soon get rid of the home phone and go with two Consumer Cellular smart phones for $45 a month and the internet will then be $49 a month guaranteed for life.

My homeowner's insurance I bought through The Villages Insurance Agency, they are located at each square. I was with American Integrity in 2011 and it was $505 a year, by 2018 it had risen to $985. I switched to Cabrillo Coastal and in 2019 it was $565 and in 2020 it was $619. That includes catastrophic ground collapse and sink hole with 10% deductible. Living in this section of Florida, it's referred to as 'sink hole alley', don't buy insurance without sink hole coverage.

I generally don't carry or have much cash on hand. I buy gas, all food, all restaurants and most everything else with my Master Card and I get one bill at the end of each month. That's really my biggest expense, the day-to-day living costs. I buy my gas at the Walmart at Colony and I buy my groceries at the Walmart at Colony and occasional items at Publix that Walmart might out. Also by using a charge, I get 2% back on all purchases from my CC. I purchase some items on Amazon and eBay, once again the CC is used.

One of my biggest expenses was the MVP Gym membership at Brownwood. My first five years I paid $109 a month in for my wife and me, but since 2018 it has been included free with my United Health Medicare Advantage plan. United Health plan is one of two plans accepted by TV Health Care System, so that good to have since you'll see their medical buildings throughout TV. There is no premiums for the plan, your Medicare pays the costs. So once you're 65 it really doesn't cost you anything. I also have VA Medical coverage and we a large fairly new (built in 2010) medical center in the north end of TV that covers 16,000 veterans.

Honestly I don't know why so many people pay so much for extras, my monthly expenses run about $600 to $800 not counting my credit card. I have no loans, paid cash for the home, paid cash for the golf cart, paid cash for the car. I say, when retire be lean and clean. That's what I do. Here's the home I pay these expenses for, it will be ten years old next month and this photo was taken in 2019.

https://scontent-atl3-2.xx.fbcdn.net...66&oe=60839424

Thanks for the info. It was very informative and I for one appreciate the time you took to write this article. Thanks again. Rick Stone

Here is a list of all my costs (I have no bond):

Per month:

Mortgage $1280 (15 year at 2.85% - I chose not to pay off due to low percent)
Electric: $87 (each month, they "level" costs per month)
Gas $34 (each month, leveled)
Cable/Internet/Phone $146 (I like a "land line", e.g. VOIP, adds $20 to this bill however)
Property Tax $317 ($3800 per annum...include "village only taxes" of about $500)
Homeowner's Insurance $89
"LSSA" (similar to HOA...include water, trash, "amenities", etc.) $221
Lawn and Pest (necessary here) $80

Total: $974 without mortgage, $2254 with mortgage

I have small, 2 bedroom "courtyard villa".

You could cut expenses by not having a mortgage, and by having no cable TV or landline, but otherwise, you should plan to spend this much or more.

Also, local stores, e.g. the local Publix, typically charge 10-20 percent more than stores 15 miles away. The think we are all rich.

Quote:

Originally Posted by John_W (Post 1920905)

Such a beautiful home - love the color of your house and landscaping. :bigbow:

I'm seriously considering a move to TV from Tennessee in approximately 3 years. I'm impressed with the available activities, the weather, and especially with the low crime rate of TV. All of the responses are awesome; I thank everyone who responded because I had the same questions. I do have a few more questions that you may be able to answer...

I read there is a penalty for paying off a mortgage in under 2 years. Is this a set amount or a percent of the financed amount? If I pay off the house after 25 months the penalty no longer applies, right?

How is the bond determined? Is it a set rate or based on the property sales price? What should I expect the cost will be for a 350K home?

The amenity fee... Does this go up annually or is it a fixed price from the date of sale? Am I correct that the amenity fee and lawn management are the only different/additional costs over having property outside of TV?

Can I have tomato or other plants in the back yard? Please give me a general idea of the rules for the outside part of the property.

I used to live one mile from the coast in NC so I am familiar with hurricanes. In the past have you have had significant damage from hurricanes or are you far enough inland that the winds and flooding usually isn't a major concern there?

Anything may happen in three years but after about a year of weighing options TV is ahead of other places. Perhaps I can come down and rent for a week this summer.

Quote:

Originally Posted by John_W (Post 1922713)

After I made that comment about getting permission, someone posted that they were glad their villas never got approval, they couldn't stand to get up everyday and look out their window and see a green villa. I might of thought than when I was in the Army, but nowadays I think it's very tropical looking and blends with shrubs. Here's the original color.

What the heck is wrong with people??!! Even if I hated the color of your house -- which I don't, I think it looks very nice -- I certainly would not volunteer that opinion on a public web site. I just don't understand some people. Didn't his/her mother teach them to say something nice or keep quiet??

kathy

Quote:

Originally Posted by IRISHGIRL3US (Post 1920710)

Other than the items you mentioned, it's so difficult to give a meaningful estimate. So much depends on you and your life style. Do you mow your own lawn ? (many many lots here are very small, no need for riding mower at all). Are you willing to attach a bottle to your hose and spend 20-30 minutes twice a year hosting it down ? Or, would you prefer to use that half hour for a shuffleboard game ? Most homes here are one story on a slab; so, are you willing to wash your own windows ? Only you can decide what you are willing to do. Some will hire people to just sit on the ground and pull weeds from flower gardens once every few weeks, others enjoy this necessary task themselves and "pay" themselves the $15 or so an hour. Only you can determine your expenses past the basics you mentioned. Always check out beforehand what your property taxes will likely be, definitely check out the price of insurance on the property you expect to purchase, and if you are not willing to do any kind of work yourself, begin now calling and getting a realistic look at what it will cost to have your bushes and trees trimming, your lawn mowed, you house washed, your sprinkler system maintained with new filter screens, cleared of roots and grass (it is NOT inexpensive to have all this done for you), and any other routine things you want to pay for. It's the only way you'll really know what to expect.