54 and thinking about the big Retirement

[Bob1520]

Hi all -
My name is Bob, I'm from Massachusetts and am thinking about what I'm going to do in a few years.
My wife just came back from visiting with a friend in "Yhe Villages" in Florida - and she's in love with it.
I'm aving some problems witht eh Villages - It is so far from the water - I have a small (27 foot) sailboat sailboat on a mooring here in our local harbor, and I love the ocean. I'd actually buy a larger one - probably in the mid 40 foot range - when I retire because I want to be frequently in the West Indies, and the 27 footer is not really rigged for open ocean sailing.
Anyway, the ocean/baot thing is a concern. Also concerned about HOA rules - I've heard so many nightmare stories about restrictive HOA - is there one at the Villages? I'm an active recreational shooter and occasional hunter - will I be able to bring my guns to the Villages? (I've heard that some HOAs prohibit firearms - and boats, and boat trailers, etc...)
I guess I'm just having potential buyer's remorse before it happens -
does anyone have any idea about restrictions at the Villages?

Thanks - looking forward to the next phase of my life - just want it to go correctly!

 

[Notmuchlonger]

Hi Bob

Older discussion on The Villages you might find handy.

http://www.early-retirement.org/forums/f29/villages-florida-33249.html

 

[haha]

Hi all -
My name is Bob, I'm from Massachusetts and am thinking about what I'm going to do in a few years.
My wife just came back from visiting with a friend in "Yhe Villages" in Florida - and she's in love with it.
I'm aving some problems witht eh Villages - It is so far from the water - I have a small (27 foot) sailboat sailboat on a mooring here in our local harbor, and I love the ocean. I'd actually buy a larger one - probably in the mid 40 foot range - when I retire because I want to be frequently in the West Indies, and the 27 footer is not really rigged for open ocean sailing.

Well Bob, you do have a problem. My Grandfather and Grandmother had a similar problem. He wanted to spend a lot of time in the West Indies (that sounds so romantic today) and she wanted to stay close to her church which I can assure you was not in the West Indies.

So he did what he wanted and moved to Cuba -this was prior to Fidel- and she did what she wanted and stayed near her church, which was maybe about 1000 miles away. They often got together on Christmas. He would bring gifts to us kids like conch shells and hunks of staghorn coral. He told us we could hear the ocean by putting the conchs to our ears, and we did.

I remember feeling very strongly that of the two GPs, he made the wise choice. Interestingly, not long ago I met a woman whose Grandfather did a similar thing, although he schucked his stateside wife and took on a companion mas caliente.

So be of good heart, there is always a happy solution!

Ha

 

[Moemg]

Welcome , While the Villages is a great place to visit I'd rather live in Disneyworld. Here is a link to the HOA rules
The Villages -- Homeowners

 

[Villager]

Some info about The Villages

Hi!

I have lived in The Villages for almost 7 years and I just came across this forum and am enjoying the discussions about The Villages.

Obviously The Villages isn't for everyone. The nice thing about The Villages is that there is a lot to do if you are interested in the variety of things that are offered here. However, you pick and choose what you want to participate in and a person can be very happy doing none of the organized activities if that is your choice.

A couple of pieces of information to clear up a few statements made about The Villages:

• The Villages is controlled by a Florida special purpose governmental unit called a Community Development District (CDD). The amenities are owned by the 2 central community development districts. There are no homeowners associations (HOAs) controlling the amenities or deed restrictions. (There are 2 opposing home owner organizations that some confuse with HOAs. They control nothing in The Villages. The VHA was created by the developer after the developer was at odds with the original homeowners group - the POA.)

If the developer were to go out of business today, the CDDs would continue on in perpetuity and amenities would not be affected since they are owned by the CDDs and are paid for by amenities fees paid to the CDDs.
​

For more information on the ownership of the amenities in The Villages you can go to the following link:
​

The Villages, Florida: Who Owns The Recreation Centers & The Executive Golf Courses In The Villages?
​

• There approximately 70,000 people now living in The Villages. When The Villages is completed somewhere around 2010 there is going to be approximately 100,000 plus folks living here.

While this sounds like a lot of people, you really don't feel like you are living in anywhere near that large of a community. Because the development is divided up into lots of small neighborhoods called Villages, traffic is normally not a problem. Golf carts are good forms of transportation here and because of the golf cart access to restaurants, stores and amenities, it is possible to keep you car parked most of the time.
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• For those concerned about such things, many of the new residents in The Villages are professional, white collar workers. There is a very interesting mix of people living here in The Villages and we have made many friends since moving here almost 7 years ago. While not perfect, we find it a great place to live.
• By the way, the STD issue that is mentioned frequently about The Villages is way overblown. However, The Villages is no different than any other cross section of the U.S. population and you will find all kinds of behavior in a community of 70,000 plus residents.
  
  Here is a link to a web site that has a lot of information about news coverage in The Villages:

The Villages, FL - News, Weather & Information - www.thevillagesfl.us
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The Villages is worth looking at if you are looking for a 55-and-older community. However, it isn't for everyone.

 

[Villager]

One more thing

I forgot to reply to the original post in this thread:

There won't be a problem with owning guns and bringing them to The Villages.

As far as rvs, boats and trailers go, there are deed restrictions preventing the permanent parking of such vehicles at your residence unless you have a garage built to house it. There are recreational vehicle parking facilities at The Villages where you can pay a monthly fee to park your boat or RV while you aren't using it.

 

[haha]

There approximately 70,000 people now living in The Villages. When The Villages is completed somewhere around 2010 there is going to be approximately 100,000 plus folks living here.

While this sounds like a lot of people, you really don't feel like you are living in anywhere near that large of a community. Because the development is divided up into lots of small neighborhoods called Villages, traffic is normally not a problem. Golf carts are good forms of transportation here and because of the golf cart access to restaurants, stores and amenities, it is possible to keep you car parked most of the time.
​

This current size of 75,000 is about equal to the population of Las Cruces, NM. That is a city. Who provides water sewer, road maintenance, emergency services, fire and police?

How far to a real hospital with 24 hour trauma care, emergency surgery and ICU?

It is awfully hard to imagine getting around a city of 100,000 in a golf cart.

Ha


​

 

[Villager]

This current size of 75,000 is about equal to the population of Las Cruces, NM. That is a city. Who provides water sewer, road maintenance, emergency services, fire and police?

How far to a real hospital with 24 hour trauma care, emergency surgery and ICU?

It is awfully hard to imagine getting around a city of 100,000 in a golf cart.

Ha


​

Water, sewer and trash pickup are provided through the central Community Development Districts. The Villages has its own full-time fire department and does a pretty good job providing fire and medical response services. The Villages is actually located across 3 counties and police services are provided by the respective counties.

If you live in the Lake and Sumter County portions of The Villages, road upkeep is handled by those counties because they own the roads. The roads in the Marion County portion of The Villages are owned and maintained by the residents.

One other point of information: Even though The Villages have gated entrances, it is not really a gated community. Because the roads in Lake and Sumter Counties are owned by the counties, anyone can enter The Villages. Many of the gates have closed circuit tv cameras and record the license numbers of those entering.

The Villages has its own hospital - it currently has 198 beds with plans to expand to over 300 beds.

About The Villages Regional Hospital

The Villages is approximately 12 miles in length from its north boundary to its south boundary. Golf cart travel is a very workable form of transportation because of golf cart access to many stores, businesses, restaurants, etc.