Originally Posted by Janette

We retired here in 2003 after trying visitation packages at different communities. We live in On Top of the World (OTOW), which is featured in this month's "Where to Retire" magazine. You might go online and see if you can access it. Florida has no state income tax, 6% sales tax, low taxes. Ocala is in the middle of Marion County, known as horse country, as there are 30,000+ horses in the county alone. No beaches, but you are surrounded by beautiful horse farms and forests. Gulf is 60 miles away, Atlantic 90. Lower risk of hurricane so homeowners' insurance is lower and easier to get. OTOW has its own website so take a look. Although they only offer new homes, they also have a real estate department that handles resales. If you buy a villa in the older area you will be buying a home on a 99-year lease and will be paying community fees of $300-400 per month. But that pays for outside insurance, all the amenities, security, infrastructure. Homes in the resale side have gone for as low as $35,000. For that you would have purchased a concrete block home with 2 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, garage, airconditioned, probably about 1,000 sq feet and all the amenities the former residents had installed. Take a look at our community. We like it better than the Villages. We also looked there but 90,000 people are just too many!