YOUR questions answered! - June edition

[@bearcreekgirl6967]

I used to play golf, and loved it. I physically can't really play anymore. Are there accommodations there for handicap golfers?

[@thevillages365]

There are! I am going to insert a link that explains using a handicap placard. www.golfthevillages.com/whatsnew/Cap2021.pdf I also believe they rent carts which are specifically designed for handicapped golfers. Thank you for watching!

[@lauralampe1664]

Thank you for answering my question about the Iowa club! Always enjoy your question & answer videos.

[@thevillages365]

💕

[@susanchristie9322]

Yes…..Florida is warmer, cheaper, and LESS CRAZY than New York! I’m speaking from experience! 😂

[@thevillages365]

😂 thanks Susan!

[@lesann1896]

I just stumbled upon you two- when you introduce each other - remind me of the SNL Sweeney Sisters skit! LoL

[@thevillages365]

🤣

[@LoomerK]

How is the current homeowner insurance situation "really" impacting residents of The Villages? We are looking to potentially relocate but it does make us a little nervous seeing the exponentially increasing insurance rates. Curious to hear what you "insiders" have to say... Enjoy the show, keep up the good work!

[@thevillages365]

Well, in 2021 we paid about $1300 or so per year for our homeowners insurance. 2022 our bill went up to $2500! We aren’t due again until the fall, so we will see from there. It definitely went way up. The question will be if it remains steady now or continues to increase. That will kind of be a tell for a lot of people. If it remains fairly level, at least you would know what to plan. Thanks for the kind words and hope that helps a little. If you check back with me toward late fall, I will have had our latest bill and can give you a better idea then.

[@LoomerK]

@@thevillages365 Thank you for the insight! I will keep an eye on the situation from here in rainy Washington State

[@marywilson1948]

Y’all have such a terrific back and forth dialogue… it lends itself to just a really relaxing and refreshing video experience! Your friendship comes through and is such a plus!! You seem to know what each other is thinking and can assist with rounding out those thoughts!! ( that’s a true buddy😁)

[@thevillages365]

Thank you Mary for your kind words and for watching! Enjoy your weekend!

[@terryf484]

Enjoy your show. Always interesting questions and answers. Thanks!

[@thevillages365]

Thanks so much for watching!

[@TheShadowIG]

Thank you for the clarification. I own a pub and all my customers are 55 and over, so the age is not an issue. The main reason I want to move to the Villages is the weather and activities. I'm live in Idaho and you can't be outdoors all the time, so I tend to recluse more often. The community, tennis, and pickleball had me sold. While I will miss the mountains and the cold, I think a change of scenery would be great. Best regards, IG

[@thevillages365]

Thank you for watching IG! Have a great weekend!

[@noahschechtel8979]

I'm doing the same in ny area.. for the same reasons..next life chapter!

[@happycamper4ever873]

This random internet stranger encourages your decision! I watched my parents become isolated due to the cold and ice during our severe winters. The long dark days are not the best environment esp as we get older. One fall on ice can be life changing. All of the friendly people, activities and great weather help keep people moving and engaged all year long!

[@stephanieewart6940]

Hi, are there any areas in the Villages that does NOT allow long term rentals or short term rentals?

[@thevillages365]

Hi Stephanie! There are so many areas of TV and each has their own Decs and Bi-laws. That would be a question best answered by a realtor. We can recommend a couple if you are in need. That said, we did a video with Kim (a local realtor) and in that video she did mention that there are sections of Fenney that do not allow rentals. Thanks for the question and for watching!

[@stephanieewart6940]

@@thevillages365 Thank you for the quick follow up. I appreciate it.

[@suz165]

Florida is not only warmer and cheaper then the northeast…. But the people are happier and nicer I find!

[@thevillages365]

That is nice to hear! Must be the ☀️! Thanks for watching!

[@haz6491]

Are there Africans living in the villages? A couple in Leesburg said they were not welcomed and treated as such.

[@thevillages365]

Hi Haz! I am guessing you were asking about African Americans? The breakdown of the ethnicity in TV is 97% white and other races are the remaining 3%. That said, I personally do have some black friends in The Villages and they have never said that they don’t feel welcome. I guess that would be a personal question needing to be directed at an individual. Thank you for watching!

[@napervillerealestatelifewi5148]

I love Iowa!! I didn't see any cooking or decorating clubs.

[@thevillages365]

www.districtgov.org/images/documents/Clubs-Listing.pdf Here is the list of clubs! I did a quick look and there was a cooking healthy and a home decorating club. There may be others with different names, but I just glanced alphabetically. Hope that helps! Thanks for watching!

[@pilotguy1597]

We just bought in Newell and both my wife and I are under 55. I will be 55 in October. The sales agent had to call someone and get an okay for us to buy the house. We didn't have to sign anything, etc.

[@thevillages365]

Good to know! Yes, I bought in 2001. I am sure things keep changing. Thanks for watching and welcome to TV!

[@CEDesigns]

Thanks for your content. Lovely to watch. QUESTION: Do any vegans live there? Are there any whole food plant based restaurants? We are “health nuts” and want to find a retirement community that might be a good fit for us.

[@thevillages365]

Thank you! Honestly, I can’t say that there are any vegan restaurants here that we are aware of. That said, TV does have markets that source locally grown items. Hope that helps a little! Thank you for watching!

[@mighty_01]

Hello! I had a question; however, you did answer it w/o having to discuss it. Being a good human comment says it all!! We enjoy the Villages conservation, and we look forward to your content and future videos!! Have a great weekend!

[@thevillages365]

🥰 thank you for watching!

[@danacaro-herman3530]

Why do people get fined for feeding birds in Fla? Im sorry I'm not from there, so I don't understand why

[@thevillages365]

Overall they discourage anyone feeding any of the wildlife because they start to rely on people for their food and stop being able to hunt for themselves. Then, unfortunately, if no one feeds them, they can’t take care of themselves and become victims in the wild. If you feed gators, you can also be fined. They don’t want gators near the humans. Unfortunately we had a really large gator here that had to be removed because he got so used to people feeding him. The fear with the gators is they may decide the people are the food and then we have bigger problems. Overall, we have so much wildlife here (you can put out bird feeders by the way) it is so enjoyable to just watch them from afar! The sandhill cranes are pretty big birds that walk around a lot (not like robins or cardinals who mainly fly and are usually a little skiddish), so people tend to want to throw bread out etc for them. Hope that kind of clears it up?? Thanks so much for watching!

[@danacaro-herman3530]

@@thevillages365 Well, I understand not feeding alligators!!! And I know there would be dummies that feed them, but I wasn't sure about the birds😂. Actually we inherited a place in South Florida 3.5 years ago but we're hardly ever there. I'd never dream of feeding an alligator!!😅. We thought about selling and buying to live full time in TV but all I'm hearing is now TV is Air BNBs and VRBO city. So depressing. Who wants to live in a neighborhood of all renters. Truly that would be very depressing for us. And we can't afford a half a million for a home for a true neighborhood there, so I guess we'll look at other places. Thank you for your channel. You both are lovely kind ladies.

[@thevillages365]

@@danacaro-herman3530 if you are interested in TV, come look sometime for yourself and don’t rely on all of us youtubers! Some people have agendas 🙃. Jan and I have lived here (well actually owned since 2001!) full time for 12 and 8 years respectively. We both live north of 466 and we are not having any of those issues. We both love it here! It seems to be more concentrated in the southern sections. Fingers crossed it won’t creep up by us. Also, some of the districts are trying to figure out how to stop the short term rentals. My personal opinion is that the developer is certainly seeing this too. If it hurts their ability to sell homes, they will probably take some sort of action as well. Anyway, here or somewhere else, hope you find your paradise!

[@danacaro-herman3530]

@@thevillages365 That's where we wanted up North!! Thank you for the information. It would be great to have neighbors like you ladies. My husband and I only want affordable, clean, safe and quiet🙏. Thank you for the valuable information. I listen to a particular realtor who's always pushing for investors to buy on her channel in TV. Thank you again ♥️

[@sherrysandstrom9654]

Hi Debbie & Jan - Happy Friday! Thank you for taking the time to provide all of this great info! You ladies are the Best! I am looking forward to my scheduled lifestyle visit at the end of July. May I ask about the neighborhood block parties? How are the block parties planned? Do owners need a special permit to have bands in their garages or driveways? Are all neighbors invited? Are food trucks permitted? What is the process?

[@thevillages365]

Hi Sherry! So, I can really only speak for my neighborhood. We have one lady on our block that is kind of the organizer. She keeps up on everyone’s emails addresses and phone numbers etc. She is the one who has planned dates and times with another neighbor. They just email everyone and invite them in. I don’t think I have ever seen anyone bring a food truck in, but obviously it could happen! I think if I hired a food truck, I would put it on them to determine if a permit is required or not. Our block does invite all of the neighbors, and I would recommend that anyway. You may get some grumbles about noise etc if people are excluded. You would want to check you decs and bylaws for the area you end up in about specifics on noise and time etc. Many of the neighborhoods have different rules, so it is hard to make a blanket statement. Most of the driveway parties that I have seen tend to end the music a 8 or 9 out of courtesy to their neighbors. For our block, we only have a block party once a year, so we have never heard anyone complaining. Hope that helps a little! Enjoy your visit!!!

[@sherrysandstrom9654]

@@thevillages365 Thank you, thank you, thank you!! :) :) :) This is fantastic information and makes so much sense! For our upcoming visit, I took note of all the restaurants you both described in your "Great places to eat in The Villages!" video. We live in Madeira Beach now and are ready to escape the incredibly high insurance rates in this area.

[@thevillages365]

@@sherrysandstrom9654 well, we hope you enjoy your visit!

[@stonecrestquilt]

My husband and I have been married for 34 years but I am younger than him. I would get mad if someone gave me the stink eye because I’m younger than 55.

[@thevillages365]

And hopefully no one would! We both moved here before 55 and got the occasional stink eye. That is their problem, not ours! 😄😄. Thank you for watching!

[@christinemowbray6116]

Hi ladies ! Can you please do a video on how folks made the decision to leave their children and grandchildren to move to the villages ? I’m struggling to live the life I ( think ) I want to live in The Villages in my 60’s while being so far from my daughter and new grandchild 😮. I’m having severe separation anxiety.😢 Thanks

[@thevillages365]

We will put that on our list. For both of us, it is hard. On the good side, the kids love coming down to visit. Also with being retired, we have more time to travel so we can go visit them. It is still hard though. No doubt about it. Thank you for watching and enjoy your weekend!

[@susanchristie9322]

I’ve lived in The Villages for 4 months (snowbird for now), and all three of our adult sons (one from NY, one from CA, and one from MN) have already visited!! There’s so much for our kids and Grandkids to do here or nearby (Disney, the beaches, etc). With the phone, FaceTime, and the ability to travel, I’ve found it no problem at all. We’re definitely living our best lives!! Wish we’d moved there sooner!! Good luck to you!

[@laurab2141]

Thanks for another interesting and informative video. I really appreciate all the work that goes into making them for us. I know there’s a difference in the rate of property taxes depending on which county different villages are in. Do you know county Eastport will be in? Thanks!

[@thevillages365]

Looks like it should be Sumter County! Thanks for the kind words!

[@teresajamison8060]

❤

[@thevillages365]

Thank you for watching!

[@markschmidt9227]

Can a person be ticketed for walking on the wrong side of the road in Florida?

[@thevillages365]

You should always walk toward traffic, but I can’t find anything saying you can get a ticket if you don’t. Thank you for watching!

[@dally8399]

Thought you had to be 55

[@thevillages365]

80% of the residents need to be 55, which allots for 20% to be under. You are not permitted any children under 19 years of age. Thanks for the question and for watching!

[@dally4905]

@@thevillages365 thank you for the answer so quickly! I just love your videos 😊