[pzjay]

Hi, Coming for a Lifestyle Preview in 2/10. Curious about options offered with houses. Are they flexible in choosing interiors or must you stick to their combinations? Trying to choose between Sun City, Hilton Head and TV..any thoughts?
Thanks so much. Really enjoy reading all the posts...very helpful info!

[LELANDJANE]

I think if you'll visit all three and check out the amenities you'll not have any problem knowing that you're a villager wannabe!

[Russ_Boston]

They now provide various combination of options but you can't get real picky (i.e. "I'll have that granite with that flooring" etc.). But I'll bet that you can put together something that will work for you. I found their designers to have great opinions.

[GEORGE J]

First of all TV beats Sun City, Hilton Head by far. We moved here from Charleston, SC. We checked Sun City serveral times and nothing can compare to TV. It was the best move we ever made. Also, SC has a state income tax, FL doesn't. They tax you on your pension even if was earned in another state.

[Army Guy]

First, I agree with all the other posters. We had been looking for the past 5 years from Williamsburg, VA on down the coast. NOTHING compares to TV. Yes, some will tell you that you can get more "house" for your money elsewhere, and that is probably true. BUT, you do not get the lifestyle and that is what TV is all about.
Now, options. It depends what you buy. Homes you pretty much, as has been said, can do most as long as not to picky. We were interested and bought a CourtYard Villa, due to several reasons. But, they only come "spec" so we bought strictly on locationa dn then gutted the inside and redid it totally. As Gracie has posted on here, TV is missing out by not building designer or premier CourtYard Villas, that would allow custom things to be done and upgrades!

Army Guy

[katezbox]

Hi,

We love South Carolina - have a place at Tidewater Plantation in North Myrtle Beach - but it and Sun City - are VERY different from TV. I urge you to spend some time in each - I think many folks living in Sun City (SC, FL, AZ) all think they made the best choice. One factor to consider is we are an hour from a major international airport - you get to many places with NO connection and 1 hour and 1/4 from another large airport (Tampa). Sun City is about 1 hour from Savannah - connecting almost always through Atlanta or Charlotte.

That said, there are other threads comparing the two - so it may be worth your time to search.

What you can and can't choose in TV changes from time to time. For example, we bought in January and could pick a couple of different tile configurations, cabinets, counters separately from the cabinets, paint (interior and exterior), front elevation, and some expansions. The cabinet hardware and light fixtures went with the cabinets and couldn't be changed. Our new neighbors closing next week got more choices - including upgraded landscaping.

Some of the choices vary model to model - i.e. this is available in a Lantana but not in a Gardenia.

I hope you take some time to look this place over - and you give yourselves enough time to do it. A day or 2 is not enough. If you can, do as much research as you can online - here and on the TV website. Good luck with your search.

k

[otherbruddaDarrell]

We have a very old friend of ours that lived in Sun city for many years. She still has the Condo, but only comes down about a month a year now.
The dues are very high depending where you live. We looked at some homes there last year and found several nice pool homes and they were priced very nice.
Sun city is now an older community and if you are in the age group that I am (60) you will find that you are the "kid" on the block.
They have well kept homes, nice people,decent activities and shopping....BUT...there is no way they can come close what TV has to offer.
The last time we had been at TV was in 2001 and was amazed at how much it has grown.
There was no comparison, we bought a CYV in TV for more then we could have bought the pool home we wanted at Sun City, BUT....location,location,location!
There are so many things available here that were not available there.
We could have bought a new home here for less then we paid for our used cyv, but we like the block-stucco, neighbors and location.
My wife would have liked to have a pool but I had one before and that is a lot of extra upkeep and we have a pool 1-2 blocks from us here.
Just a tip:
Make sure you have an ouside real estate agent as well as a villages agent show you homes. Outside agents will show all the multiple listings and not TV listed properties. TV agents will only show new homes and Villages listed properties.
There are many good agencies to check with. We were very happy with ours.

[sschuler1]

We are closing on our new home on Nov. 5th. We were able to make quite a few choices, but they come as packages. The interior package includes your light fixtures, plumbing fixtures, door handles, cabinet hardware and paint color. The tile package includes your tile choice, carpet and how the showers get tiled. (ie..the trim and orientation of the tile in the shower) You can pick from a wide variety of cabinets, but your countertop choices are a little more limited. The choice of granite that you choose determines the edging you will get. I thought that was a little weird! Your exterior package is pretty much limited to what you see on any of the models. You see a color combination that you like, and that is what you get unless some other home in your neighborhood already has that combo and they aren't far enough away from your house. Then you have to pick something else. Good luck with your decision. Everything that they have to pick from is really very nice, so you would be hard pressed to not be able to find something that you really like. It will probably come down to a choice of communities for you, and my opinion is that you really can't find anything like The Villages anywhere. Friendly people, so much to do, and warm weather....what's not to like?

[pzjay]

You guys are the best! Thanks for all the replies - very helpful info from very nice people. We were at TV last year and my husband fell in love! I am somewhat reserved on the privacy issue. We did have lots of fun there and everyone we spoke to was so forthcoming and friendly! Maybe I'm used to the "Yankee stoicism" up here in the frigid (snowing now) northeast. We look at TOTV all the time and have learned so much. I'm amazed at how much everyone loves the lifestyle there. We are so determined not to be sedentary in retirement that it seems to be the perfect place!! Thanks again to you all!

[katezbox]

Originally Posted by pzjay

You guys are the best! Thanks for all the replies - very helpful info from very nice people. We were at TV last year and my husband fell in love! I am somewhat reserved on the privacy issue. We did have lots of fun there and everyone we spoke to was so forthcoming and friendly! Maybe I'm used to the "Yankee stoicism" up here in the frigid (snowing now) northeast. We look at TOTV all the time and have learned so much. I'm amazed at how much everyone loves the lifestyle there. We are so determined not to be sedentary in retirement that it seems to be the perfect place!! Thanks again to you all!

PZJ - My mother in law still drives every year from Milford to Bethlehem to mail her Christmas cards - she is 86!!!!

k

[pzjay]

To katezbox: That's a pretty far trek for an 86 yr old...bless her! Yes, we do get very busy at Christmas. Our "little Town" of 3500 transforms to a semi-busy metropolis at the holidays.