homes in the villages fl: A Tour of Rose Plantation, Fruitland Park, FL
- 06/08/26 11:08 AM
I have shared about Rose Plantation in the past in articles but wanted to share even more with a video. My first time there was an invitation from a client that I had sold their home. There were very happy with the results of the sale, but there is more, this home had a 1,400-wine cellar and he was a collector. They picked Rose Plantation because they could bring their own wine and champagne and pay a small corking fee. I must admit I did sneak pictures of the wine and champagne bottle so I could look it up later.
Rose … (3 comments)
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homes in the villages fl: Lake Griffin State Park, Just East of The Villages
- 06/03/26 02:09 PM
In case you haven’t noticed I am trying to get you outside the bubble. The bubble is what we call The Villages, Florida, it isn’t because we don’t love the bubble I want to share about short trips to see the real Florida! Lake Griffin State Park is located less than 4 miles east from Colony Plaza on 466a, many don’t even know it is there! The fee to enter the park is $5 per vehicle and $4 if by yourself, what a deal! So, what all is there?
According to their website:
www.floridastateparks.org/parks-and-trails/lake-griffin-state-park
Boat Tours, Geo-Seeking, Picnicking, Camping, Hiking, Wildlife Viewing, Fishing … (4 comments)
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homes in the villages fl: This Week in The Villages, Recap 5/27 to 6/2
- 06/02/26 07:44 PM
Welcome to Hurricane Season 2026, let’s hope for an extremely quiet year like last year! The real estate market is still busy going into the summer, folks making the decision The Villages, Florida is where they want to be.
Time for the top three, coming in at number three “Little History of Real Estate, Part 1.” Wasn’t sure when I was writing this 5-part series how it would be received, 4 more to go so we will see! Finishing second was “This Week in The Villages, Recap 5/20 to 5/26,” my weekly recap video finished third last so moving on up! … (1 comments)
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homes in the villages fl: The Goblin Market Restaurant & Lounge
- 06/01/26 01:07 PM
Occasionally I get contacted by someone looking for that very special place for dinner to celebrate maybe an event or anniversary. My first question is inside The Villages, Florida or outside, if outside I have a short list and The Goblin Market Restaurant & Lounge in Mount Dora is on my list. The restaurant is about 25 miles from the center of The Villages and well worth the drive.
I was surfing Facebook the other day and noticed Goblin Restaurant posted their 30th anniversary and decided to share about them. Been there done that and have enjoyed the experience! If you plan … (1 comments)
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homes in the villages fl: Most Water Damage Claims in July, Really?
- 05/29/26 10:01 AM
I was reading an article the other day and was surprised that July leads the way for insurance claims for water damage, mostly from inside the home. My neighbor had a water leak and called somebody after he got a huge water bill, the friend unlocked the front door and water came out, not a good thing! Turns out a broken water pipe in the home cause major damage including drywall and of course floors. Heat can cause pipes to expand causing leaks and even pipes bursting, think about Florida heat in the garage or on outside walls so it can … (4 comments)
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homes in the villages fl: Ladies Groups in The Villages, Florida
- 05/28/26 04:30 PM
I shared the other day about marital status of buyers which lead to a discussion about single female buyers. Out of curiosity I went to the VCDD website and did a search for ladies. Almost 70 clubs listed for ladies including: coffee, billiards, board games, book clubs, bridge cards, bunco, cards bakers dozen, canasta, ladies night out, crafts sewing bears, darts, fun ladies, Christian books, mah-jongg, golf, Sunday tea, Saturday social club, and support for Parkinson.
There was also maybe 25 to 30 neighborhood ladies groups which if you are interested visit the VCDD website for a complete list. Simply do a … (6 comments)
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homes in the villages fl: Saharan Desert and Florida Sunsets
- 05/28/26 11:06 AM
Florida is known for our sunsets, they are particularly outstanding in the summer, there is a reason why. The connection between Sierra dust storms and Florida sunsets is rooted in the Saharan Air Layer (SAL)—a massive plume of dry, dusty air that travels over 5,000 miles from the Sahara Desert in North Africa across the Atlantic to Florida. While the term "Sierra dust storms" is usually associated with the Sierra Nevada in California or the Sierra Madre ranges, the famous desert dust arriving in Florida originates across the Atlantic.
When these fine dust particles hang in the atmosphere over Florida, they scatter … (6 comments)
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homes in the villages fl: Watching Thunderstorms, Family Tradition
- 05/28/26 08:55 AM
Growing up dad was a big fan of watching thunderstorms, him and I would sit on our under-roof porch and watch the storms approaching. To this day I still do but not in Pennsylvania but here in The Villages. This time of year, many of our thunderstorms are moving south to north which is perfect from our south facing lanai. Move a few pieces of furniture a few feet away from the screens, make sure all the lights are off, grab a beer and have a seat, the show is about to begin!
The first lightning you see is In Cloud and … (6 comments)
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homes in the villages fl: This Week in The Villages, Orange Blossom Opry
- 05/27/26 02:54 PM
Just outside of The Villages, Florida is the Orange Blossom Opry, which many Villagers might not know about! From their website: www.obopry.com
Welcome to the Orange Blossom Opry (OBO), a state-of-the-art sound and lighting venue designed to deliver an exceptional live music experience. Located in Weirsdale, Florida, our intimate 522-seat theater provides a listening room environment, ensuring that every guest enjoys the highest quality sound and visuals. With acoustically tuned settings, water-based haze effects for select concerts, and adjustable stage lighting, OBO is the perfect place to experience live music in a truly immersive way.
The Orange Blossom Opry has been a cornerstone … (3 comments)
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homes in the villages fl: Little History of Real Estate, Part 5
- 05/26/26 02:59 PM
If you didn’t read part 1, 2, 3, and 4 you need to go back and read them. This is the final chapter, need to share what happened at the beginning of Covid in February of 2020. My career was personal appearances all my bookings canceled. Already a real estate instructor in Florida, got my Florida real estate license and became a Realtor. That brings us to today, I shared about the change from brick-and-mortar franchises to cloud-based brokerages and the expected move by so many agents.
Today there are mergers, acquisitions weekly, big brand names including REMAX merged with Real Brokerage … (1 comments)
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homes in the villages fl: Little History of Real Estate, Part 4
- 05/26/26 02:46 PM
If you didn’t read part 1, 2 and 3 you need to go back and read them. The year is 2009 I heard about a start up company called eXp Realty founded by Glenn Sanford as the first cloud-based, agent-centric real estate brokerage. What does that mean? Simple the business model of brick-and-mortar franchises are not needed in every town or city. The beginning of remote working agents with maybe one brokerage office per state. Oh, it had it doubters that is not the way we have done business the past 100 years. 17 years later it is still thriving growing … (1 comments)
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homes in the villages fl: Little History of Real Estate, Part 3
- 05/26/26 02:33 PM
If you didn’t read part 1 and 2 you need to go back and read them. The year was 2001 I was teaching Realtor Palm and Tech classes all around the Mid Atlantic Region. The phone rings one day and it’s Supra calling from Salem, Oregon, they want me to come to Oregon and teach classes at the headquarters for Supra. Wait a minute, why? I soon learned why, they wanted to contract me to cover North America teaching Realtors. That was the beginning of 180 flights a year and 250+ nights in hotel, said goodbye to my previous career and … (2 comments)
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homes in the villages fl: Little History of Real Estate, Part 2
- 05/26/26 02:24 PM
If you didn’t read part 1 you need to go back and read it. The year was 2000 I was a national sales manager based on the west coast living in Pennsylvania. I had bought my first computer in the late 1980’s and my first Palm Pilot vx in 1999. Reason I bought a Palm I could sync to my computer with my contacts, calendar, and other information when away from my computer.
This is when a Realtor friend of mine approached me about teaching Palm and tech classes at the local association of Realtors. Didn’t know anything about Realtor associations … (3 comments)
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homes in the villages fl: Little History of Real Estate, Part 1
- 05/26/26 01:05 PM
I wanted to share a little history about an industry I have been part of for 26 years. There is a current reason to share but wanted to go back in time before where we are today and explain major changes happening today. At one time brick and mortar brokerages displayed homes they had for sale on their store front windows. By the 1950’s most area brokers got together and started publishing a weekly book with local listing and shared with Realtors. This was the way homes for sale were listed until the 1990’s when digital online databases came to be. … (3 comments)
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homes in the villages fl: This Week in The Villages, Recap 5/20 to 5/26
- 05/26/26 10:36 AM
Happy summer, living “Up North” Memorial Day was the unofficial beginning of summer, not so much here in Florida! This is the season for overnight lows being 72º to 75º with tropical breezes, yes lanai weather at it’s best! It is also the beginning of hurricane season, there is a small disturbance currently in the Gulf but way to early to think about!
A video came in number three for the week, which is great. Started these videos a year ago and viewers has been growing, number three was “This Week in The Villages, Recap 5/13 to 5/19.” Number two was “DIY … (1 comments)
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homes in the villages fl: Weeki Wachee Springs State Park
- 05/25/26 12:23 PM
Here is a day trip you should consider taking, just a one hour drive from Brownwood Paddock Square. There is so much around us as far as old Florida and so much more than theme parks. Here is a quote from their website: “Skip the Theme Park Line: Why Hernando County’s Weeki Wachee Beats a $150 Orlando Day. When most families plan a Florida trip, the default choice is Orlando. Big parks, big crowds, and even bigger prices. But what if you could spend a full day outdoors.”
The main attraction is the Mermaids of Weeki Wachee perform underwater feats from the … (2 comments)
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homes in the villages fl: Bocce in The Villages, Florida
- 05/23/26 04:28 PM
With 128 locations with Bocce Courts in The Villages, Florida with many having several courts it is quite the sport for many locals. First thing first what the heck is Bocce? In Bocce, the goal of each player is to roll his/her Bocce balls closer to the Pallina — the target ball — than the other players. The player scores a point for each ball that is closer to the Pallina than its opponent’s balls on the court, which is enclosed by walls.
Bocce dates to the Roman Empire and is one of the oldest yard games. The modern version was started … (4 comments)
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homes in the villages fl: A Picture Worth a Thousand Words
- 05/23/26 03:30 PM
Michelle and I were going through our phones looking for a picture of a friend and she sent me one from about 2014. It was Kevin my neighbor and I dropping the birdcage on the back of our house. Yes we had a birdcage with a dirt/grass floor. I was told shortly after our home was built they changed the rule must be concrete. I always enjoyed demo day when we bought the house, five walls, flooring, popcorn, gutting bathrooms, kitchen and knocking down the birdcage.
Of course, after demo comes putting things back together which is time consuming and can be … (5 comments)
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homes in the villages fl: Better Go Now The Weekend is Coming!
- 05/23/26 06:51 AM
The other day I mentioned to Michelle I needed to go to Total Wine and pick a few things up, she said “Better Go Now The Weekend is Coming!” I thought about it for a minute and said to her every day is a weekend here what difference does it make? I shared before how here in The Villages we get confused as to what day it is after maybe 40 to 50 years of having a work or school schedule. We have 52 Sundays the other 313 days are weekends for most of us!
My schedule is even more difficult to … (5 comments)
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homes in the villages fl: Hand and Foot Card Game
- 05/21/26 08:20 AM
Hand and Foot is a popular, high-scoring North American card game closely related to Canasta. It is typically played by four players in partnerships of two, though it can easily accommodate two to eight players either individually or in teams. The ultimate objective is to be the first to rid yourself of all your cards from both your "Hand" and your "Foot" by creating sets of matching cards known as melds or books.
Setup & The Pack
The Cards: You use one more deck of standard cards (including Jokers) than there are players. For a standard 4-player game, use 5 decks shuffled … (2 comments)
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