[lunetunelover]

Originally Posted by countrykaren

I agree in that you don't move to Fla and then complain it's too hot. Doesn't make sense.


Where ever you move, you take the good and bad- you just need more pros than cons.


However, we will be on a fixed income, and we can't jump from the frying pan into the fire.


I've been to Fla many times thru out my life and liked it. However, a vacation is not the same as day to day living and bill paying. Just want to send out feelers.

I understand your concerns and bit of hesitation.


My husband and I had ONLY been to Orlando for about 11 days total over two vacations years apart (4 days in 2005 and 7 days in 2008). But, IMO, sometimes you just know. And no matter where you go, it's going to be different from where you are. All you can do is research as best you can (there are some great cost of living calculators around the web) and talk to people (which you are doing here).


In the end, sometimes the fear of such a big change is more than the change itself. Best of luck to you!

[kiggy]

Originally Posted by lunetunelover

I understand your concerns and bit of hesitation.


My husband and I had ONLY been to Orlando for about 11 days total over two vacations years apart (4 days in 2005 and 7 days in 2008). But, IMO, sometimes you just know. And no matter where you go, it's going to be different from where you are. All you can do is research as best you can (there are some great cost of living calculators around the web) and talk to people (which you are doing here).


In the end, sometimes the fear of such a big change is more than the change itself. Best of luck to you!

Yes. Came down to Venice for 10 days, and by the end of that stay we had bought a house. Sometimes you just know.

[newred5]

CountryKaren
My wife and I moved to Port St Lucie from the western NY area( buffalo suburbs ) in 2011 after I retired ( 51/2). We searched all sorts of areas in Florida and decided in PSL based on costs of living, lower taxes, lower costs of housing , close to beach and things to do as well.
The move was based a lot on the fact that Florida in general was a lower cost area for us than where we were living in NY.
Property taxes in Chautuaqa County - 5800.00
In Port St Lucie -800.00 (homestead can't raise my taxable assessment more than 3% a year )
Car insurance went down about 50.00 every six months
HOmeowners insurance is about double , here it's 750.00 plus a few hundred for flood . We live in a two story all CBS 1600 sq ft town home. We're 8 miles to the ocean and less than three by the way crows fly
Food , might be higher but we use coupons, shop sales, stores like Aldi and stick up when it's a low cost
Weather , yep it's hot, yep it's humid ..it gets hot in NY as well but it's hot here about 6 months and it stays hot into the night as well...AC, pool ,shade and ocean make it nice. Plus when it gets hot, snowbirds fly north and leave the area for us !
Do your homework , look around, visit places and when you visit, go to supermarkets , local festivals on weekends , go to libaraies , talk to people there , at stores and ask policeman ..we did all that and got pretty good feels on places that you can't tell by just driving around.
We both grew up in Western NY , moved here knowing no one but we live it here ..

[newred5]

When we looked at housing in 2010-2011 Florida real estate was at a very low so we did by at bottom line costs as well. Now housing here has more than doubled which causes property taxes to be higher than I listed in my post above

[SUSMUSIC]

Originally Posted by countrykaren

I agree in that you don't move to Fla and then complain it's too hot. Doesn't make sense.


Where ever you move, you take the good and bad- you just need more pros than cons.


However, we will be on a fixed income, and we can't jump from the frying pan into the fire.


I've been to Fla many times thru out my life and liked it. However, a vacation is not the same as day to day living and bill paying. Just want to send out feelers.

Hi Karen,

I agree, a vacation is not the same as daily living in a place. I moved to Sarasota, Fl about 18 months ago from suburban Philadelphia, PA. I had made several previous visits prior to moving here. I agree with the previous posts that the summers are hot, humid, and much longer than the summers up north. However, I disliked dealing with the cold, and the bad winter weather. I think it is a personal choice. Since I love swimming and being around water, I find that Sarasota is a good fit.

On my last visit before I moved here, I came in the summer and I looked for an apartment. I decided to rent first to get to know the area better. I also used this time to get familiar with shopping, recreation, travel routes, and medical care and location of hospitals.

It is hard to compare general cost of living until you know which area you are interested in. I can't speak about taxes and homeowners insurance here since I am still renting. I will say that my car insurance is about the same as it was up north. Utilities will vary also. I pay for electric and water in addition to rent. My electric bill is cheaper even with the AC running all the time in the summer. Of course, electric will vary with usage and a lot depends on the size of your apartment or house. My water bill is slightly higher but not terribly. Again, this depends on your usage. I find food to be a little higher depending on where you shop. However, there is a farmers market nearby which sells good produce, meats, and fish, cheaper than our Publix supermarket. I think food costs will vary depending on which area you live in.


Overall, I am happy here but it does take time to adjust. I have no desire to move back up north.

[jetdoc3037]

Originally Posted by Robino1

It really does depend on where you are moving from. I moved 3 years ago from Philly, right in the city in the historical area. Cost of living is much cheaper here and our car insurance even went DOWN! Hubby still works for the company in Philly, telecommute, and the move here was like getting a raise, even though he didn't get one. We had to pay state tax and city tax. Heating bills were killers.

We are much better off, financially and weather wise, than we were in Philly.

As others have asked, where are you moving from? That will make all the difference in the world.

Same, same....we moved from Md and our car insurance went DOWN, with better coverage. Also our homeowners went down as well.

We love it so far. Our neighbors are great and we know many more people around our area than we did in Md, (people are friendly here, unlike what SOME say here).

[Elbig]

Moved here from Boston 18 months ago. NO regrets. Do not miss the winters one bit. Virtually everything is cheaper here - car insurance, housing, no state income tax, even property tax (the rate is about the same but the cost of comparable housing is less). There are clearly things about New England that are wonderful. We visit it now and then. But for lifestyle, we love Florida, humidity and all.

[StreetSmarts]

It really depends on what is important to you. Some people move here for a job transfer...some people move here bc they want to never feel cold again.

I was born in Fla then lived In Asheville NC for like 8-10 years. I got spoiled. The people, the scenery, the weather....fantastic. But I can't make what I make here up in Asheville. So I kind of try to suck it up when sitting in traffic or feeling 100 degree temps, etc.

Am I happy here, yes. would I rather live in Asheville if I could make the same salary as I do here...yes.

I find that Asheville definitely has more positives than where I live in Fla when it comes to the scenery, the people, the weather, etc. But I can't live in Asheville and make what I make here to make it worth the move back. Most I make the best of it.

Now, if I lived in Miami or Ft Lauderdale....id probably be singing a different tune. I probably wouldn't live In either one, no matter what I was paid, and would not want to raise my kids there.

[Bruins_Fan]

Only lived in FL for a couple years and loved it. Moved for a job, and still regret leaving FL 20+ years later. I miss the heat (didn't mind humidity, either), the lower cost of living, better political climate, and the lower taxes. Wife and I are pretty stuck here in MA being self-employed, but know we will be outta here as quick as possible when we retire, and hopefully will have a second home somewhere in FL before then. FL is not for everyone, but is definitely for me.

[countrykaren]

Thanks everyone. Interesting posts.