Very good information, thank you. I live in Naples and one of the reasons I am considering The Villages for retirement is because of the cost of living here is getting ridiculous. $179 per month is cheap!
Thank you for posting this. That is a ton of things covered for less than $200 a month. The Country Club I belong to in New York is $22,000 a year and only 1 golf course.
I just backed out of the purchase of a decent 1900 sf 3/2/2 single-family home (built in 2005) in a very nice, upscale, 55+, 24-hour guard-gated community (1500 homes) on FL's east cost; 8 miles from the beach; very nice amenities including large resort-style heated pool. I just could not swallow the $4000/yr HOA fee plus $6000/yr property tax. A little disappointed, but I'm going to move forward with a remodel of my nearby non-HOA, low-tax, 70-year old home.
Great breakdown. I agree with you. So many people bitch about the Villages fees rather than appreciate all we have in The Villages. I looked at Dell Web Spruce Creek and I think their HOA fee was over $400 and that was 6 years ago.
Anyone who complains about the ammenities fee in The Villages is crazy. We get about $50,000 worth of stuff in a year and we pay a little over $2,000 a year.
Yes, it is somewhat similar to a condo fee except none of it goes towards maintaining any of the individual properties. Just the community. A condo calls it "Common Area" but it is the same basic idea.
You say that the amenity fee covers the costs of maintaining the squares? Other youtube channels say that the squares are privately owned (by some company relatednto the villages development companies) and that they are maintained by the landlord or commercial tenants, not as part of the amenity. Similarly, the music / evening entertainment (and seating?) In the squares is paid for by the county tourist office. So can each county decide when, and if, to change / reduce the live entertainment in the squares? Difficult to determine what streets, walkways, round-abouts, & grass areas were "publicly dedicated" making them "public property" & the responsibilty of the local municipality (versus thru the amenity fee).
Both are true. A lot of the maintenance is hired out but a lot of it is still done by The Villages. The outside company has to be paid. The Villages isn't picking up that tab. We, the residents are through our Amenities Fee. The Community Watch it very active there because where you have alcohol, you have people misbehaving. I called The Villages Administrative Offices before quoting any information. The Villages also provides all the chairs that are there. For things like which streets are maintained, the actual street is often maintained by the County but the landscaping, flowers and things are not. An easy way to see that is look at the streets in The Villages that are in the City of Wildwood but not part of The Villages. Same for Lady Lake. Both cases the actual street is maintained by Sumter and/or Lake County but only The Villages has the beautiful landscaping and flowers. The County does not pay for that. We do.
This is the best and most detailed answer I have heard regarding the fees. Thank you,
Good factual information and easy to understand details.
Thanks Maeve. I'm glad you liked it.
Hello Gary Thank you for the information, looking good.
Thanks Chris. I'm glad you liked it.
Very good information, thank you. I live in Naples and one of the reasons I am considering The Villages for retirement is because of the cost of living here is getting ridiculous. $179 per month is cheap!
It's gone up to $189 now but still can't beat it for what you get.
Thank you for the very detailed breakdown. I never saw all of the things we get packed into one conversation. Very well presented.
Thank you. I am glad you enjoyed it.
Thank you for posting this. That is a ton of things covered for less than $200 a month. The Country Club I belong to in New York is $22,000 a year and only 1 golf course.
Very right you are. I think the $179 is the best bargain in Florida Real Estate #TheVillages
This is the most simple to understand description I have heard of the Villages fees. Like a Villages for Dummies book.
Thank you for the compliment. I love the Dummies Series. Before TH-cam that book line was my go to for anything I needed to learn.
I just backed out of the purchase of a decent 1900 sf 3/2/2 single-family home (built in 2005) in a very nice, upscale, 55+, 24-hour guard-gated community (1500 homes) on FL's east cost; 8 miles from the beach; very nice amenities including large resort-style heated pool. I just could not swallow the $4000/yr HOA fee plus $6000/yr property tax. A little disappointed, but I'm going to move forward with a remodel of my nearby non-HOA, low-tax, 70-year old home.
I couldn't believe all the things we get when I was given a list.
It really is a great price when you figure what we get for what we pay.
Great breakdown. I agree with you. So many people bitch about the Villages fees rather than appreciate all we have in The Villages. I looked at Dell Web Spruce Creek and I think their HOA fee was over $400 and that was 6 years ago.
I agree Jeff. Dell Web Spruce Creek's fees are just about double what The Villages is and they only have 1 golf course and 3 pools.
Great information, loaded with facts. Can I suggest you get an external microphone? You sound very echoish. #Villages #TheVillages
Thank you for the advice. I did actually buy a great microphone and I love it. Big difference.
Anyone who complains about the ammenities fee in The Villages is crazy. We get about $50,000 worth of stuff in a year and we pay a little over $2,000 a year.
I couldn't agree more. I pay over $179 to play golf one time in Key West and the golf course there is terrible.
Great detail. Makes the Amenities Fee seem cheap.
We really do get a lot things for not a lot of money.
Now everyone knows that the button opens the gates.
I think everyone knew that before. The Villages was required by law to put them in.
How many Publix’s do you have in the villages?
Great breakdown. Sounds like Amenities Fee is similar to the Condo Fees I pay in Miami?
Yes, it is somewhat similar to a condo fee except none of it goes towards maintaining any of the individual properties. Just the community. A condo calls it "Common Area" but it is the same basic idea.
$179 x about 70,000 homes? That’s a lot of cheddar every month!
Yes it is but still very cheap for what we get. The fee has gone up to $189 since I did that video.
You say that the amenity fee covers the costs of maintaining the squares?
Other youtube channels say that the squares are privately owned (by some company relatednto the villages development companies) and that they are maintained by the landlord or commercial tenants, not as part of the amenity.
Similarly, the music / evening entertainment (and seating?) In the squares is paid for by the county tourist office. So can each county decide when, and if, to change / reduce the live entertainment in the squares?
Difficult to determine what streets, walkways, round-abouts, & grass areas were "publicly dedicated" making them "public property" & the responsibilty of the local municipality (versus thru the amenity fee).
Both are true. A lot of the maintenance is hired out but a lot of it is still done by The Villages. The outside company has to be paid. The Villages isn't picking up that tab. We, the residents are through our Amenities Fee. The Community Watch it very active there because where you have alcohol, you have people misbehaving. I called The Villages Administrative Offices before quoting any information. The Villages also provides all the chairs that are there. For things like which streets are maintained, the actual street is often maintained by the County but the landscaping, flowers and things are not. An easy way to see that is look at the streets in The Villages that are in the City of Wildwood but not part of The Villages. Same for Lady Lake. Both cases the actual street is maintained by Sumter and/or Lake County but only The Villages has the beautiful landscaping and flowers. The County does not pay for that. We do.