View Full Version : How long have you been a Villa Owner
I will never be lucky enough to be able to buy a villa (unless I win on the lottery, don't hold your breath) but I spend hours looking at sites like Realtor and checking the for sale section on this site, where people seem to be selling after only a couple of years. Just wondered how long everyone had owned there villas
floridadreamvilla.co.uk
15-02-2005, 21:36
Since 2001 for us.
I would not say owning a villa is that lucky as they cost a fortune to run and it's a second job dealing with them and your guests - we spend 2-3 hours EVERY day on our villas - sometimes a lot more. There is a lot to be said for just renting someone else's villa if you ask me [msnsmile]
search66
15-02-2005, 21:47
I'm not sure how it works in the UK (which prompted me to post), but do you all get tax credit for rental properties? I know in the US, we can wright-off rental income for tax purposes (well, at least the interest on the mortgage).
1999 and I second what John's just said! I'd love to have just a holiday in Florida too!
orlandobabe
15-02-2005, 22:03
We've had our 5 years next month.
I was lucky enough to go out for a month in Jan/Feb and stayed for the first three weeks in my friend's villa.
It was absolute bliss to have a holiday-before spending the last week in my own!
heathercobbett
15-02-2005, 22:19
We bought on a whim in 1999 (my excuse was jetlag)We thought we would take a look at new builds and thought they were all great and then saw our model on Westridge and fell in love
The realtor said we would have nothing to do as owners,it would all be done by an mc but as has been stated ,that was baloney and had I realised it was essentially a part time job,we would have run away
Have we got any regrets?No! Each time we help people through the booking process it is so satisfying,particularly as we get a lot of first timers.And when our guests return and we get the ecsatic phone call or letter it makes it all worthwhile
However,nobody should be as feckless as we were.If you are thinking about buying,research,talk to owners and weigh it all up.Do not just take the word of your salesman
The OV owners are a particularly savvy lot and make a success of a difficult venture.However,a lot of owners have had their fingers burnt.
We mostly have to rent another owners house for part of our stay and that is when we really have a proper Florida holiday!
E. Cosgrove
15-02-2005, 22:32
We put a deposit down on a plot last January, building started in Sept and we got the keys January 5th. We are looking forward to staying there for the first time at Easter.
I thought I had done my research, and believe me I'd done plenty, but I knew nothing compared to the things I have learned since I joined this site. The administrators, owners, and experienced villa owners on this site have been a mine of information and For that I am eternally grateful, I continue to learn something new everyday.
As for never owning your own home Lyn, that's what I used to think but here I am, proud villa owner, so don't give up if it's your dream, just make sure you do your research and that you can afford to subsidise it even if you don't get bookings.
Good Luck with your dream.
We have owned ours 7 years in July. You do have to be prepared to spend a good proportion of your 'holiday' in the likes of Home Depot. Sometimes its hard to get the balance between home ownership / holiday-maker right, especially if you have children with you. Although I think for us that part has got easier as they have got older. They have 'done' the parks a lot, and are happy to laze around why we do the HomeDepot type things. We have just started to go on our own (first time last Dec.) so that is also an asset as we can spend time on the villa without worrying about the children at all. Chloe
We were 2 years in December. I tell Dan all the time, that I don't need a part time job when the children are all in school, the villa takes up all the spare time I have!
stavros47
15-02-2005, 23:12
Only owned since October 03. I and I would say Im still learning something new everyday[msneek]
chrizzy100
15-02-2005, 23:27
I find it hard work and I don't even rent.....how you all fit in repairs upgrades and holidays I'll never know.......
I've owned 1 year one mouth and around one week.....
Ray&Sarah
15-02-2005, 23:41
We have owned our villa for just over 18 months, hard work but we wouldn't change it.[msnsmile2]
Finally got the keys in September 2001 because it took 13 months to get the plans approved and for them to build our home. So have owned for 3 years and 5 months. I love every minute of it.
Now that the kids are much older and don't need looking after, I'll sometimes pop over to Florida on my own to do a few jobs on my home, fitting into odd days in between guest bookings. I've gained lots of new friends too; some Americans, some owners and some guests. It's a great life.[msnsmile2][msnsmile2][msnsmile2]
Calamity Jane
16-02-2005, 00:33
Since May 1999,
Like Carla we love every minute of it too, not only does it give you a purpose in life, you reap the benefits albeit you're out there working when you are over but you can always make time for a little R&R.
Since December 2000. A lot of work, a lot of time, sometimes frustrating and sometimes cursing. We still love it and the disappointments are far outweighed by the pleasure we get from it.
Mike and Kath.
April 04 as said before it's hard work but worth it. Just came back from Florida after having a fantastic time. Already booked the flights for May
We are just coming up to our first year on Feb 27th . I think the thing all the owners have in commom that you get to know on the forum here is that evry single one of them are passionate about their villas and no matter how much work , worry and stress they cause you it doesn't make a bit of difference we still love our homes and Florida.[msnsmile2]
feathersonline
16-02-2005, 03:42
April 04 for us as well. What did we do with our time before owning in Florida?:D[msnsmile2]
I closed in October 2004, literally the day before I flew to Oz to watch England win the world cup!
The whole plan originally started as a property investment back in 2001 as an alternative to a pension. Somewhere along the lines, with lots of discussion, lots of homework, lots of research and lots of driving and flights, it morphed into the villa I now own.
Am I pleased I bought it? Yes. Absolutely. Without any doubt whatsoever!
Would I do it again? Hmmmmmm. That'a a tougher question. I'd need to think about that an aweful lot!
One way to look at it Lyn, is that I don't own the villa. The bank does. If I work hard at it and do all the sums correctly it should be mine in 28 years and 9 months time. On October 23, 2033, everyone is invited over to my place. It's going to be some party !!!
ctgirlscout
16-02-2005, 07:06
It was two years for us in December. I agree with Karen--the villa takes up all my spare time!
resorthomerentals
16-02-2005, 07:39
We closed in May 04. Like everyone else has said, it takes up all our spare time. But we love it, and wouldn't trade it!
floridadreamvilla.co.uk
16-02-2005, 08:45
We are in Los Angeles on vacation at the moment and I have to say we are thorougly enjoying being on vacation and not having to worry about doing jobs on the villa.
We feel obliged to travel to Florida at least twice a year to keep the villas up to the very high standard we expect for our guests and it does get you down a bit as you spend the whole 2 weeks cramming in jobs and then when not doing jobs wondering what job you are supposed to be doing on the villas instead of enjoying yourselves.
Having said that we would not swap our villas for anything and love them all dearly [msnsmile]
heathercobbett
16-02-2005, 12:13
John,I am sure you would agree, there is a world of difference doing some diy with the sun streaming in the window (but feeling beautifully cooled by the air con) and nipping out for the odd swim.
And tootling up the OBT to Home Depot sure beats flogging up to Wickes!
And there is no better feeling at the end of your stay leaving yhe villa looking BETTER than it did when it was new!
Andy & Arlene
16-02-2005, 12:35
Owned since June 2000. A lot of hard work, but the feeling you get when you walk in the front door of your villa makes it all worthwhile. Even though (as everyone has said above) you know you're not there for a nice relaxing holiday, but a DIY excursion instead. [msnsad][msntongue]
pieman790
16-02-2005, 13:39
We closed on ours in May 04. We didnt buy ours the normal way. We decided one Sunday afternoon in March 04, we were going to buy a property in florida as an investment as the dollar against the pound was good and house prices were cheap compared to either the UK or Spain. We started looking around via the internet but every time we rang up about a villa it had been sold. Villas were going within hours rather days of been listed.
One of my friends had a villa already in Kissimmee and he put me onto a good realtor. The realtor knew what we were looking for and looked at many houses for us. On several viewings of other houses 12 people or more turned up to view and began a bidding war. He came across our villa by chance. It was less than 5 years old and needed a fair bit of work doing to it. Without us even seeing it we put an offer in which was accepted. We went out at Easter for 3 days and did the legal side of things. We closed a few weeks later and in the space of less than a week we had the whole place painted, old furniture moved out, and a complete new package brought in. We had a new pool heater fitted, fans lights etc, still cant believe they did it all in such a short time.
We returned in May after the work was done it looked totally differant. Looking back on it we were lucky as all the work was done on target and we were not ripped off.
Cannot decide if i would do the same again as its always nice to choose the place you buy, but the realtor found us a great place on a fantastic community, as well as sorting out all the work for us.
heathercobbett
16-02-2005, 16:35
Neil and Cathy,you will never get as much done in a week again.Some kind of superhuman strength seems to invade you in those circumstances
We only had 1 week when we closed and we look back and cant believe what we achieved.
I cant believe buying sight unseen,but I guess you got good photos and a floor plan.I wonder if there will be a buying frenzy again and I wonder if buying enquiries soar after one of these programmes
pieman790
16-02-2005, 17:06
<blockquote id="quote" class="ffs">quote:Originally posted by heathercobbett
Neil and Cathy,you will never get as much done in a week again.Some kind of superhuman strength seems to invade you in those circumstances
We only had 1 week when we closed and we look back and cant believe what we achieved.
I cant believe buying sight unseen,but I guess you got good photos and a floor plan.I wonder if there will be a buying frenzy again and I wonder if buying enquiries soar after one of these programmes
[/quote]
We didnt even have time to take a look at photos before we made the offer. We had to trust the realtor. We did get some photos later before were arrived. When we were over at Easter we took a quick look round the place and i was little shocked. How could a place get so bad in less than 5 years. The walls were dirty, the furniture was bad (So bad we only got US$400 for the lot at auction) but it was amazing to see the place after the work was done. since then we have done loads more to it including the games area and having the floors tiled and new carpets.
We have owned since June 2004 and agree with everyone that it is hard work. As John said there are always bits to do or plan for next time. But it is enjoyable and love the home.
We closed on our home in Oct 04 so we are still in the honeymoon period I guess, but I have to say, it has been one of the most enjoyable things we have done and we just love our new home [msnsmile2]
Michelle
16-02-2005, 19:05
We closed on our first 3 bed villa. 1998, the 2nd 3 bed villa closed 2002 and the 5 Bed villa 2001.
We do all our own bookings, so can take take up alot of our time, but would not change anything. It is all worth it, especially when we go out our selves a couple of times a year, and we read the guests remarks in our Visitors book, makes us forget all about some of the frustrated times.
We closed in September 1999 after putting our deposit down in July 98 when our UK house purchase fell through. I wanted to buy in France and Chris wanted to buy in US so you can see who won! The only holiday we have had since then was a week in Dubai for our silver wedding anniversary. Still, we are here at the moment, and I can tell you sitting on the lanai in a swimsuit reading takes alot of beating knowing what the weather is like back home! Himself is gardening and I am picking the plants:D. However, today he is playing golf (coming back via Home Depot of course) and I am powerwashing the front, painting the doorstep, getting rid of cobwebs, and trimming the sago palm that is leaving green marks on one of the windows. Enough of this though, I am off to sit by the pool for a while and then start the work!
E. Cosgrove
16-02-2005, 20:05
Glad you were well enough to get out there Fiona, enjoy the rest of your "holiday"<blockquote id="quote" class="ffs">quote:Originally posted by fiona
We closed in September 1999 after putting our deposit down in July 98 when our UK house purchase fell through. I wanted to buy in France and Chris wanted to buy in US so you can see who won! The only holiday we have had since then was a week in Dubai for our silver wedding anniversary. Still, we are here at the moment, and I can tell you sitting on the lanai in a swimsuit reading takes alot of beating knowing what the weather is like back home! Himself is gardening and I am picking the plants:D. However, today he is playing golf (coming back via Home Depot of course) and I am powerwashing the front, painting the doorstep, getting rid of cobwebs, and trimming the sago palm that is leaving green marks on one of the windows. Enough of this though, I am off to sit by the pool for a while and then start the work!
[/quote]
julieanne
16-02-2005, 20:16
Same from me Fiona.
Don't work too hard - look after yourself.
Julie
Ray&Sarah
16-02-2005, 20:48
Hope you are enjoying the sunshine too Fiona as well as doing that long list of jobs.[msnsmile2]
luckylady
17-02-2005, 00:47
we closed on our villa 22ND September 2004 I am at the honeymoon stage as well
any regrets no way, is it hard work.yes bl***yhard work
would I do it again yes already done it again close on second at the end of this year
this was my dream I am glad we bought when we did buying now would be a different kettle of fish
In fact we could'nt afford to buy the villas now the prices have gone silly
I wonder how many villa owners now, will have sold up in 5 years time?
Barbara
We've owned our villa since March of 2002. My Florida vacations haven't been the same since. As John said, it's a lot of work keeping your property to a high standard! But, I love owning the villa and I do really enjoy all the jobs we do when we're there, but I always feel like I need a vacation when I come home!
We signed the dotted line in April 2003, closed in June 2003, and we've loved every minute. Even spending virtually all of 2 weeks the first time we went out to OUR home, scrubbing,painting, diy, adding features. But made a point of going out every evening to a restaurant or just wander around somewhere like downtown disney just to soak up the atmosphere.
Would we do it again, most certainly.
stephen williams
17-02-2005, 01:57
April 1993, and enjoyed every minute.
steve
christina
17-02-2005, 11:41
We have owned for just over 5 years and absolutely love it. We are off there on Tuesday for a month and it is our intention to spend the winters in Florida before too long now we have our 6 month visa. It is sometimes hard work and is certainly like having part time job getting the bookings but the pleasure of owning and being able to go there when we please, out weighs the work involved. In fact during our visit this time we may well look at selling our villa and buying a new one again but we cannot imagine not owning at all.
[clap][clap]
linda allen
17-02-2005, 12:24
We decided to take our boys to see the mouse last May for the first time.(for them not us we had been many times before)
Our very close friends had a villa on Cumbrian Lakes and after owning it for over a year they had decided to emigrate there, so we rented the villa next door to them for 2 weeks. Before we got to Cumbrian Lakes we had a week at St Pete beach in a lovely hotel.
We had a fantastic holiday, staying in a villa we really relaxed, so different to a hotel where you worry the kids are being too noisy etc.
With 2 days left to go we decided we wanted to buy a villa.
The rest as they say is history, we came home did lots of research, hooked up with a good realtor over here in the UK who had offices in Orlando too.
Once we found our villa we were put in touch with their agent over there who turned out to be an old friend of mine from years ago.
We close on our villa next month, we are so excited, but boy, its a really steep learning curve and hard work, but I love every minute.
and we have the forum for help[msnwink]
I think Barbara is correct when she says the prices have gone silly, they seem much more expensive than when I first started checking them out, I have been on a lot of sites and it would appear that I would need at least £30,000 not dollars as a deposit, and than I would need to check out furnishings etc. it would just be out of the question.
We bought our two houses On Highlands just over 12 months ago and then 6 months ago found the villa right next door to them was for sale - well.......... we HAD to have it didnt we!!! Even shopping over here is not the same - we cant go anywhere without someone saying "Oh, that would look great in one of the villas, pity its too big to get over!!"
I closed on mine in October or November 2003. I can't remember the exact date but I do know I was on a plane over to Oz to watch the world cup 2 days later. I bought it, if that's the right term, a year earlier in October 2002 and put the original deposit down on the plot in July 2002 I think. I remember the mad weekend in Orlando going out to sign all the paperwork in October 2002, which seemed like a great idea on the way out, but not such a great idea on the way back when I had to drive straight from Gatwick to an 8am meeting with my client in Tunbridge Wells.
Looking back, I do wonder if all this was in some way a prelude to the ups and downs that come with owning a villa. I did once ask the question if people had known years ago what they know now, would they still have bought their villa. I think my answer is pretty representative. I could best describe it as a guarded yes. Certainly not a yes at any cost, and certainly not without a lot of thought and planning. But definitely a yes.
We close on our home December 30th 2003 and we have not looked back.
Yes it is hard work and takes up a lot of time but I love it all the same. Our villa is also part of the family pension plan and as such we wil be looking to buy another villa in the near future.
Another great upside of villa ownership has been meeting lots of other people in the same boat as us who have become good friends. I love visitng my villa and don't even mind the DIY although it is still a balancing act as we have young kids and they like to do the theme parks too while we are there.
We bought our villa in September 1999 and it was finished in 2000 and then came 911 which just about finished the rental market for quite a time.
Like previous owners when we bought we were under the impression that the MC would help with most of the bookings, well that never happened, so I had to learn very quickly the in and outs of websites etc. and I am still learning. It takes up a great deal of my time and unfortunately my husband runs his own business so I get no help. Fortunately I now only work part-time so the rest of my time is spent, cooking, cleaning and villa work. Would I change it, yes when I get stupid requests from rentors but most of the time - NO - I love the people I meet on the forums and we have made so many friends with other villa owners and everytime we visit we just love it. I would say I probably have a 50/50 Love/Hate relationship with our Florida villa.
Val
zerotone
19-02-2005, 13:24
We closed on our villa Dec 2003. At the moment I am erring on the side of wish we hadn't done it, but that is just because I am in the middle of collating figures for our first tax return[msnscared][msnsad][msncry]. However, the thought of our visit to villa in 3 weeks 2 days keeps me going. I even enjoy all the hard work maintaining it. After a hard days painting etc we get to relax in our spa with a glass of wine and watch the sun set over the lake[msnsmile]. I just feel that we are very lucky to be able to have 2 homes especially as 1 of them is in fantastic sunny Florida.
Jane
Steve and Dawn
20-02-2005, 04:19
About 3 weeks....lol[msnsmile2]
Cruella DeVilla
21-02-2005, 15:04
Oh, well we bought 30 December 2003, waited donkeys for it to be built and took possession on the 26th November 2004, so only a matter of months I suppose.
We only closed in December on our villa on Terra Verde, we think it's great having a home in Orlando at the moment... Ask me again after 12 months of renting [msnwink][msnwink][msnwink]Hope we still feel the same[msnsmile2]
LiesaAnna
21-02-2005, 17:34
Lynne, after 12 months of renting maybe villa number 2 will be on the cards???? you have made such a lovely job of the first one........[msnwink]
I closed on mine and moved in (well for 8 days) on April 18th 2002. That still seems like yesterday and I love every minute of it. Mirroring what has been said above I enjoy helping first time and experienced renters, and mainly enjoy the many trips over to Orlando myself.
Luckily I've been in a position where I can get to Orlando at least once every 3 months so can keep on top of things over there without it having to spoil a vacation buy doing DIY 24/7 whilst over there (although I do enjoy doing that too), but I know I lurve sitting round the pool with a cool drink in hand:D:D:D
Matt
We closed on ours on Glenbrook in May 2004, we didn't realise just how much would be involved.
I can't get my head round the tax things that have just come in and I don't even know what some of the are!
Apart from that I love have a home in Florida, I just wish I didn't have to rent it out. Luckily when we were there last week it still looked as good as new and even still had that 'NEW' smell.
My bookings have suddenly shot up for the next few months and I wonder what it will be like after?
Got to remember it's a business.............[msncry]
Kaz
Newhomebuyer
23-02-2005, 19:30
We put a deposit down in August 2003 and closed in Feb 2004.
I have been over to stay 4 times and can't wait to go back. We have been full for 75% of the time so I can't complain but I thought the stair carpet already looked a bit worse for wear when I was there at Christmas.[msnsad]
greenpete
23-02-2005, 22:26
We closed in June 2004. Have been over twice since closing, always ending up doing so many jobs with little time left for 'holiday'. We hate leaving our house, can't wait till April when we go out for two weeks. This time we will definitely have a 'holiday'. Pete spends about 3 hours a night answering enquiries, bookings, updating website etc etc. But we just love it.
Sue and Jere
27-02-2005, 18:01
We closed in March 2004. Still so much to learn, finding the forum very helpful. We have been to our villa twice since closing and we also hate to leave. On our next visit in May, we intend to do a little updating. Need to hire a bigger car[msnwink]
njstringer
28-02-2005, 02:39
Got the keys to our new house in April 2001.
Boy what a rapid learning curve from the first day onwards. Love the villa, love working on the villa, would not change a thing.
All we need is more time out there.[msncry]
We have been villa owners for exactly 3 years now and we still get a buzz from it.
I love every minute of it. I especially love buying new things for the villa and decorating it.
We bought in July 2001 and after having the pool/spa custom built started renting it out in January 2004. I wish I had realised that it would take over my life and the amount of time it would need to keep things going but I would still have gone ahead:)We now usually try to have at least a week in someone else's villa during our time on holiday, and we also like to spend time at the Gulf coast, just to make sure we feel like we have had a holiday;)