Posted on 07/14/2007 7:39:59 AM PDT by ExpatCanuck
We're considering a move from Southeastern PA to the Orlando Florida area. My employer has an office in Maitland and I can work from there. I know the Orlando area has boomed over the last decade and along with all the population growth come the usual problems of traffic congestion, crime, etc. Any advice or suggestions folks can offer on better areas for families in the greater Orlando area would be appreciated (I don't mind a commute to Maitland of 30-45 minutes). We are a family of 4, (my wife, myself and 2 boys ages 14 and 16). Thanks in advance for the helpful and insightful responses I know I am going to get! And my apologies if I don't respond individually to everyone who takes the time to help me out.
In my opinion, this is an utterly asinine thread for a site like FR. Just my opinion. I usually don’t go to any of these types of threads. I’m doing it just this once, because once in my life I want to vote against all such asinine threads.
Look at the topics it is under - I took great care to make sure it was not posted in anything like breaking news or politics. You have the option of filtering what you see and respond to accordingly. Over the years I have found Free Republic to be a source great information and knowledge about many varied subjects. Most of us on the forum don’t mind helping one another out with information and advice. Thank you in any case for sharing your opinion.
Shoulda been posted to general interest/chat which, I do believe, is where it will be moved shortly ...
Ok. My fault. I didn’t know about filtering.
Sorry. Really.
and so it is. Good luck in Florida.
Sorry guys - my bad!
Well, if you only want a 30 minute commute, you need to live pretty close to your job, arrange your hours to avoid rush hour, or figure out a route where you can avoid I-4. If you have to get on I-4 for any length of your commute, you could get stacked up in traffic. But north of Orlando is definitely better than south or central Orlando, so you should be okay.
We’re having a property tax and insurance crisis right now, so when you figure the cost of living, even though we don’t have a state income tax, make sure you take that into consideration. When you move into a property, your taxes could be significantly higher than the taxes of the previous owner because the house will be reassessed. Just be aware of those things.
Having said that, I can't help much. I don't live there but know people who do, so all I can do is relate what they tell me. One, when you find a snake on your property don't kill it. Snakes are apparently territorial and if you kill a non-venomous one then a venomous one might replace it. Two, if you live near water and own a small dog change it's name to "Gator Snack" because that's what it will become. Three, there's a reason why you see people with swimming pools encase them in chain-link cages. For that reason, see number two. Four, insurance is outrageous so you might as well get used to it. Five, the joy of no state income tax is quickly smacked by the drudgery of high property taxes. Six, at least you don't have to worry about snow. Hurricanes are another matter.
Hope this helps.
That’s good advice, probably not something a realtor will be eager to tell me about. We’re in Glen Mills PA right now and I’m paying about $10K a year in property taxes for a 3400’ sq foot house, so I suppose everything is relative. I would guess that I will probably find the taxes lower than what I am paying, but it is good to know what the overall trends will be going forward.
Property values, insurance and taxes have been skyrocketing and have made Florida unaffordable for many.
We aren’t really sure that Orlando is still part of Florida, damn sure don’t look like it!
2nd, if you got school age kids, try to get into the Winter Park area, has the better public schools, is also a safe area for the most part.
If working in Maitland, save yourself the headaches and stay to the east of Rte 4 and North of 408. Winter Park, Baldwin Park, Interlachen Lake areas are really nice. Seeing that you are paying 10k a year in property tax, you can get into the more established “posh” (relative term) areas w/o a problem. But I only know the area in Winter Park, I haven't spent much time in Maitland, Longwood, and Casselberr.y
Orange County/Orlando Metroplex has the 2nd highest level of foreclosures (# of housing in foreclousre/total housing units) in the country, but mostly at properties at lower value than what you’ll be looking for. BUT, there are some insane deals on pre-foreclosures and foreclosures in the area. Also realize that no matter when you buy within the next 6 months, you could have saved 3% to 5% by waiting another month. The market is in freefall.
Make sure you have property insurance policy in place BEFORE you sit down to closing. That means give yourself at least 3 weeks before closing to search for a carrier. Incredibly vital, it’s been a deal breaker for over a year there.
IF you need a real estate agent, freepmail me, my family has a broker we trust who works that area.
But seriously consider paying to join one of the foreclosure property listing services, and/or going to Florida banks and asking for their list of bank repossessed properties, the market has 9 months of foreclosed property backlog inventory, and then you got 2 months of pre-foreclosure inventory, then regular market, then those who gave up on selling and just have empty houses sitting there.
Yes, Winter Park is great too.Its a separate city in Orange and not in the Orlando school system but a bit more pricey.
fldoe.org
florida dept of education. Has a ranking and grading of school districts. Make sure you get your sons into the best high school possible. The best Orange County public h.s. honors/AP courses were 2 grade levels below what I had in a working class NJ h.s. in advanced placement courses.
Study it well.
“but mostly at properties at lower value than what you’ll be looking for” This interests me. Could you elaborate on how it is lower value homes facing foreclosure. I have been arguing that liberal use of condemnation and buldozers is one way out of housing slump.
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