Hi all. My husband and I have been reading this website for a few months now and enjoying it immensely. When we sold our home in Michigan in October, 2005, we were considering full timing but decided to move to The Villages, Fl. instead. Now we're having second thoughts and are once again exploring the full timing thing. We have a LOT of unanswered questions and things to iron out first...so we really enjoy learning how others have overcome the hurdles.
Howard told me in a return e-mail that he has met a lot of people on the road who are full timing now but plan to move to The Villages when they're done. It's a wonderful place, indeed, but our "wanderlust" is getting the better of us.
We're considering a pre-owned Newmar Mountainair if we decide to do this. We'll keep reading and thinking and planning.
Janenne
Skeetshooter said
05:20 PM Dec 5, 2006
Just sold our Villages home in March. Bought there in 1994 and used it for vacations and golf. Had it in a rental program for most of the time.We did live in it for five months when we built a home at DeBary Golf and Country Club located between Orlando ano Daytona.
We now live in The Woodlands Texas north of Houston. Since we bought the RV we can take our vacation home with us. A good friend of mine is the publisher of the Daily Sun your local newspaper, he also is in charge of the other media companies owned by the Morris family who owens The Villages.
We also moved to Florida from Michigan, we lived in Troy for many years. Two daughters and four grandkids still live there.
We were gone 93 days in our RV this summer some of it spent in Michigan, had a great time. Heading back to Florida December 16 to take the kids and grandchildren to Disney for Christmas.
Get an RV and head out for the summers, many in the Villages do just that. They have a active RV club.
Ted Rogers, aka skeetshooter
Fly Buoy V said
09:35 PM Dec 9, 2006
Thanks for the reply. Unfortunately, we can't afford to live here AND own a RV and travel. IF we go the RV route...it will be fulltimimg after we sell this place...or maybe I should say, IF we can sell this place. Things are really slowing down here in the real estate industry.
-- Edited by Janenne at 22:36, 2006-12-09
TheBobGuy said
11:04 AM Jan 30, 2007
Hi Janene,
We are new to this forum but have been RVing and on other forums for several years. We live in eastern Virginia near the Chesapeake Bay but we crave warm weather in the winter!! (We are not full timers)
Seeing that you live at The Villages, we were wondering how you like the area, if you don't mind sharing. We have purchased lots in the new RV community located in Centre Hill (or really it seems more in Webster to us!) called Florida Grande, and will be coming down in Feb for our first useage. Do you know the outlying areas and if so can you tell us a little more about them?
We have been to Leesburg, although not into much of the town itself, and of course Wildwood, and there's not much in Webster but the Flea Market, and of course, now Florida Grande. How are the winters, i.e. weather, traffic, crowds? We know it's not as warm as farther south but there is also ALOT less traffic, from what we can tell. Any recommendations for dining, grocery stores, etc? I know there is a farmers market but haven't been there.
So, anything you can offer will be appreciated! Many thanks!
Molly
Fly Buoy V said
07:59 AM Feb 1, 2007
Hi Molly:
Nice to hear from you. I'm not sure where Centre Hill or Webster is but I can tell you that the area around The Villages is wonderful and virtually "self-contained". I honestly can't think of anything you could want or need that isn't here or within a half hour. Any kind of shopping...in fact every kind of shopping is all right here. In fact, I wish The Villages would build their own RV Village. It would be sooooooo perfect. They just do everything 1st Class and I know people would buy into it. The "outlying" areas are not much to write home about as they say...but they are trying to clean them up...especially the Wildwood area because The Villages will eventually expand as far as 44A and that's considered Wildwood. I must say they have a ways to go though. The new shopping area on 466A is nearing completion and a new Town Square (the 3rd in The Villages) will be on 44/44A and has a projected completion date of 2009 I think. That will be MORE shopping. The only problem we notice is at this time of year if we have to go out on 441/27 the traffic can be HORRIBLE. Not unbearable....but traveling slows right down to a crawl. We try to avoid that area during daytime hours this time of year.
NOW...tell me about this new RV Park called Florida Grande you just bought into. We thought we knew all the RV communities around here but have never heard of this. We'd be interested in going to look at it.
Hope I answered your questions. As for restaurants...no worries....there are literally 100s of them all over the place and lots of good ones. We haven't found a bad one yet. If you're close to The Villages, all of the Country Club restaurants are absolutely WONDERFUL!!! Give us a call if you need any help finding something when you're down here. We're in the book...or send me a private email.
Fly Buoy V said
08:06 AM Feb 1, 2007
Molly:
I forgot to mention the weather. It's great. We don't get the humidity or hurricanes that the coastal areas do. It does get hot and humid in the summer 95ish!!! and the past few days it's been cool here but it was cool in Miami too!!! Good think about the cool weather is that it makes for a nice change of pace and doesn't last very long and we DEFINITELY don't have to ever shovel !!! Lots of golf and outdoor activities. My husband just returned from a 9 mile bike ride. A little windy today but there is almost always a breeze in this area....which is good. We're at quite a high elevation for Florida so it tends to be breezy. All in all...a VERY nice area. Let me know if you have any more questions I can help with. Anxious to hear about Florida Grande.
Janenne
Fly Buoy V said
07:31 PM Feb 1, 2007
Molly:
We went to Florida Grande today to check it out. It's going to be WONDERFUL when it's done. I sent you a private e-mail today. Janenne
TheBobGuy said
08:50 PM Feb 1, 2007
Hi Janenne!
Wow, thanks for the great info! And since you found Fl Grande I guess I don't have to tell you where it is!! How was the construction progress?? We have not been down since November to see how it was going. We will be down the end of Feb so it should be exciting to see it.
We haven't been into The Villages but it is on our list of places to check out and I know we will do so on our next trip after hearing what you have said. It really sounds lovely! An RV area does sound like it would be a perfect addition!!
I will check my email!
Thanks so very much!
Molly
-- Edited by TheBobGuy at 20:54, 2007-02-01
Fly Buoy V said
10:28 AM Feb 3, 2007
To all of you who have sent private e-mails to see if we were OK after the tornado hit Lady Lake and The Villages yesterday...we thank you. It's so wonderful to know that people you've never met and who don't know you are concerned for your well being. We are fine and so is our house and neighborhood. The tornado first hit about 3 blocks from us and the worst devastation is about 1/2 mile from us here in The Villages. When we look at the aerial views, it's like our neighborhood was a safe oasis in the middle of disaster!! We truly feel blessed. There is a very large RV Resort just down the road from us called Recreation Plantation that of course is full this time of year. We've not been able to get out but have not heard that anyone there sustained any damage. We're also grateful for that.
Again, thanks to everyone for your prayers and well wishes.
Roger and Janenne Powlison
Postalpair said
12:36 PM Feb 3, 2007
Janenne,
Glad to hear that you are fine after those horrible tornados.....keeping all of those that lost everything in our prayers.
Hi all. My husband and I have been reading this website for a few months now and enjoying it immensely. When we sold our home in Michigan in October, 2005, we were considering full timing but decided to move to The Villages, Fl. instead. Now we're having second thoughts and are once again exploring the full timing thing. We have a LOT of unanswered questions and things to iron out first...so we really enjoy learning how others have overcome the hurdles.
Howard told me in a return e-mail that he has met a lot of people on the road who are full timing now but plan to move to The Villages when they're done. It's a wonderful place, indeed, but our "wanderlust" is getting the better of us.
We're considering a pre-owned Newmar Mountainair if we decide to do this. We'll keep reading and thinking and planning.
Janenne
Just sold our Villages home in March. Bought there in 1994 and used it for vacations and golf. Had it in a rental program for most of the time.We did live in it for five months when we built a home at DeBary Golf and Country Club located between Orlando ano Daytona.
We now live in The Woodlands Texas north of Houston. Since we bought the RV we can take our vacation home with us. A good friend of mine is the publisher of the Daily Sun your local newspaper, he also is in charge of the other media companies owned by the Morris family who owens The Villages.
We also moved to Florida from Michigan, we lived in Troy for many years. Two daughters and four grandkids still live there.
We were gone 93 days in our RV this summer some of it spent in Michigan, had a great time. Heading back to Florida December 16 to take the kids and grandchildren to Disney for Christmas.
Get an RV and head out for the summers, many in the Villages do just that. They have a active RV club.
Ted Rogers, aka skeetshooter
-- Edited by Janenne at 22:36, 2006-12-09
We are new to this forum but have been RVing and on other forums for several years. We live in eastern Virginia near the Chesapeake Bay but we crave warm weather in the winter!!
(We are not full timers)
Seeing that you live at The Villages, we were wondering how you like the area, if you don't mind sharing. We have purchased lots in the new RV community located in Centre Hill (or really it seems more in Webster to us!) called Florida Grande, and will be coming down in Feb for our first useage. Do you know the outlying areas and if so can you tell us a little more about them?
We have been to Leesburg, although not into much of the town itself, and of course Wildwood, and there's not much in Webster but the Flea Market, and of course, now Florida Grande. How are the winters, i.e. weather, traffic, crowds? We know it's not as warm as farther south but there is also ALOT less traffic, from what we can tell. Any recommendations for dining, grocery stores, etc? I know there is a farmers market but haven't been there.
So, anything you can offer will be appreciated! Many thanks!
Molly
Nice to hear from you. I'm not sure where Centre Hill or Webster is but I can tell you that the area around The Villages is wonderful and virtually "self-contained". I honestly can't think of anything you could want or need that isn't here or within a half hour. Any kind of shopping...in fact every kind of shopping is all right here. In fact, I wish The Villages would build their own RV Village. It would be sooooooo perfect. They just do everything 1st Class and I know people would buy into it. The "outlying" areas are not much to write home about as they say...but they are trying to clean them up...especially the Wildwood area because The Villages will eventually expand as far as 44A and that's considered Wildwood. I must say they have a ways to go though. The new shopping area on 466A is nearing completion and a new Town Square (the 3rd in The Villages) will be on 44/44A and has a projected completion date of 2009 I think. That will be MORE shopping. The only problem we notice is at this time of year if we have to go out on 441/27 the traffic can be HORRIBLE. Not unbearable....but traveling slows right down to a crawl. We try to avoid that area during daytime hours this time of year.
NOW...tell me about this new RV Park called Florida Grande you just bought into. We thought we knew all the RV communities around here but have never heard of this. We'd be interested in going to look at it.
Hope I answered your questions. As for restaurants...no worries....there are literally 100s of them all over the place and lots of good ones. We haven't found a bad one yet. If you're close to The Villages, all of the Country Club restaurants are absolutely WONDERFUL!!! Give us a call if you need any help finding something when you're down here. We're in the book...or send me a private email.
I forgot to mention the weather. It's great. We don't get the humidity or hurricanes that the coastal areas do. It does get hot and humid in the summer 95ish!!! and the past few days it's been cool here but it was cool in Miami too!!! Good think about the cool weather is that it makes for a nice change of pace and doesn't last very long and we DEFINITELY don't have to ever shovel !!! Lots of golf and outdoor activities. My husband just returned from a 9 mile bike ride. A little windy today but there is almost always a breeze in this area....which is good. We're at quite a high elevation for Florida so it tends to be breezy. All in all...a VERY nice area. Let me know if you have any more questions I can help with. Anxious to hear about Florida Grande.
Janenne
We went to Florida Grande today to check it out. It's going to be WONDERFUL when it's done. I sent you a private e-mail today.
Janenne
Wow, thanks for the great info! And since you found Fl Grande I guess I don't have to tell you where it is!! How was the construction progress?? We have not been down since November to see how it was going. We will be down the end of Feb so it should be exciting to see it.
We haven't been into The Villages but it is on our list of places to check out and I know we will do so on our next trip after hearing what you have said. It really sounds lovely! An RV area does sound like it would be a perfect addition!!
I will check my email!
Thanks so very much!
Molly
-- Edited by TheBobGuy at 20:54, 2007-02-01
Again, thanks to everyone for your prayers and well wishes.
Roger and Janenne Powlison
Glad to hear that you are fine after those horrible tornados.....keeping all of those that lost everything in our prayers.
The Postalpair