The Villages
The Villages® is one of the largest master-planned 55+ active adult communities in the state of Florida. It is located in Sumter, Marion and into portions of Lake County. It is located approximately 45 miles northwest of Orlando and 20 miles south of Ocala. This ideal location places the community within 60 minutes of some of the most desirable attractions in Florida including Orlando, the Gulf of Mexico, and Atlantic coast beaches.
There are also many popular destinations surrounding The Villages® including the quaint lakefront towns of Leesburg, Mount Dora and Clermont. The Ocala National Forest is 20 minutes to the northeast and offers activities like canoeing, boating, fishing, hiking and biking.
As of the 2020 census, the population was just over 79,000 households and the Villages was the fastest-growing metropolitan statistical area in the country. The Villages® covers an area of approximately 32 square miles, an area larger than Manhattan.
The Villages® is known for its incredible selection of amenities with over 35 community centers, 80 outdoor pools and 41 executive golf courses, connected by over 100 miles of golf-cart-legal streets and trails. The Villages® is an entirely self-sustaining town complete with retail establishments, restaurants, banks, post offices, grocery stores, pharmacies, healthcare centers and countless recreational amenities.
The Villages® is also the home of the largest veteran population anywhere in the United States that does not have a military base, with 16.3% of the population former military.
The Villages® Residential Real Estate
The Villages® features a wide selection of home styles and floor plans in attached and single-family homes within a broad price range. The floor plans are divided up into several different categories including patio villas, courtyard villas, cottage-ranch homes, designer homes and premier homes. Each series offers a unique set of included features and available upgrades.
We offer assistance with pre-owned resale homes in The Villages® community. Many of the resale homes are highly desirable for their location to the town squares with attractive prices. Single-family homes typically range from 1,157 to 4,705 square feet and offer two to four bedrooms, two to two-and-a-half bathrooms and attached one-and-a-half to two-and-a-half garages.
3 Town Squares in the Villages
The Villages® features 3 town squares that provide residents with numerous dining, shopping and recreational options. Spanish Springs Town Square, Lake Sumter Landing Market Square and Brownwood Paddock Square offer free nightly entertainment 365 days a year starting at 4pm daily.
1) Spanish Springs Town Square
Spanish Springs Town Square is reminiscent of a historic southwest setting with storefront shops and fountains decorated in a southwestern style. Spanish Springs Town Square has several attractions including a hotel, more than a dozen restaurants and over 30 retail establishments. Katie Belle’s is a two-story Western-style opera house that provides residents with great dining and dancing opportunities nightly. The square’s movie theater, The Rialto Theater, plays Hollywood movie favorites throughout the year. The Sharon Morse Performing Arts Center is a 1000 seat auditorium located in the Spanish Springs Town Square.
2) Lake Sumter Landing Market Square
Lake Sumter Landing Market Square is a small-town themed square on the shores of Lake Sumter. This square features several dozen retail shops and restaurants that overlook the square. Residents can take a scenic boat tour of Lake Sumter to hear about the lake’s history and visit the lighthouse. Lake Sumter Landing Market Square is also home to the Old Mill Playhouse movie theater.
3) Brownwood Paddock Square
Brownwood Paddock Square resembles a cattle town and offers a variety of shopping, dining and entertainment opportunities. This town square features the Barnstorm Theater playing the latest Hollywood movies and many great restaurants.
Recreation Centers
The Villages offers over 100 recreation centers. There are three center classifications:
- Neighborhood Centers (59) are conveniently located in most neighborhoods ensuring that homeowners have convenient access to the community’s amenities. They include pools, bocce, shuffleboard, and horseshoe pits.
- Village Centers (29) typically include a small clubhouse with meeting rooms, billiards, catering kitchens, bocce, horseshoes, shuffleboard, tennis and pickleball courts and family-friendly pools.
- Regional Centers (12) offer the largest selection of amenities including fitness centers, pools, hobby & craft studios, meeting rooms and ballrooms. There are also sports courts such as tennis, bocce, shuffleboard, pickleball and basketball. These centers are typically larger venues with stages for theatrical and musical productions.
The Villages operates 11 parks, dog parks and fitness trails, separate from the recreation centers. There are several catch-and-release fishing lakes and nine softball fields that play host to over 200 softball teams. A polo field with grandstand seating is another favorite for many residents.
Additional amenities throughout The Villages® include 2 bowling alleys, a library, woodworking shop, numerous hobby and craft studios and RV parking. The Savannah Center is a spacious southern-themed auditorium with stadium-style seating that hosts many performances, touring shows, guest speakers, orchestras, comedy acts and local talent. There are also several places of worship throughout the community.
Health & Medical Services
The Villages® Regional Medical Center and other healthcare centers offer medical testing, diagnostics, treatment and rehabilitation. There is also a VA clinic on site in the Villages. The Villages® is also close to several health care providers, including Munroe Regional Medical Center and Orlando Health South Lake Hospital.
Golf Courses
As of December 2022, The Villages operates 56 courses with 729 holes across all courses. One big draw is the “Free Golf for Life” campaign of unlimited free golf in you walk the 9 hole executive golf courses, fees are charged for riding a golf cart on the courses.
The remaining 13 courses are country club championship courses. Among notable course architects are Arnold Palmer and Nancy Lopez.
The Villages also operates a state of the are golf instruction academy for all skill levels.
Extremely Large Variety of Clubs
As of 2018, The Villages also offer over 2700 social clubs for residents. Some of the most popular are location-focused and based upon where a resident grew up. Others include clubs for genealogy, singles, gardening, bird watching, astronomy, photography, scuba diving and pretty much everything 😊. For sports enthusiasts, there are countless sports teams, leagues and tournaments in everything from tennis, pickleball, golf, softball, biking and bowling.
Artists in The Villages® can participate in activities such as ceramics, painting, quilting and woodworking. Dancers can take their pick of tap, jazz, line dancing, square dancing, ballroom dancing, ballet and more. Health enthusiasts have an assortment of fitness classes, aerobics, yoga, power walking and weight training to choose from. Homeowners who are interested in music and theater might consider joining a choir group, band or theatrical group.
The Villages® also hosts annual Camp Villages, an eight-week summer program filled with activities for residents and their grandchildren to do together. The program consists of kayaking, soccer, full swing clinics, line dancing, putting clinics, kite making, water sports, cooking demos and more.
Post-Secondary Education – Enrichment Academy
In the fall of 2017, The Villages launched The Enrichment Academy with more than 140 fee-based, lifelong learning, noncredit courses on topics such as scuba diving, literature, philosophy and psychology, culinary arts, technology, foreign language, photography, and more. The academy is part of the Recreation and Parks Department and takes place at designated Recreation locations and other approved sites throughout The Villages.
Annual Events
Each year, in April, The Villages host The Senior Games, where approximately 2,000 residents compete in numerous athletic events. The top five athletes in each age division who win in the Villages are invited to compete in the Florida Senior Games. The games have taken place in The Villages for over 18 years and include track and field, tennis, basketball, bowling, volleyball, pickleball, fencing, clay shooting and others.
Call Pete Howlett at 407-739-1716 or email to [email protected] with questions or for more information.