Posted on 11/13/2004 4:52:14 AM PST by mass55th
Within the next six or seven months, I'm hoping to move to Florida and set up residence. My youngest son, age 34 will be moving down there to set up residence as well. I'm asking for Freeper input and advice on where to move in Florida.
Texas is another one of the states that won't tax my pension, but I'm not so sure I want to move so far away from my other son who lives in the Albany, New York area. I've never been to Texas, but want to visit it before I die. Living in Florida would at least get me closer to my goal.
Amen to that...not to mention Dubya is in Texas. Well, if Florida doesn't work out, I can always move to Texas!
Check out DeSoto County. Property is available, and for Florida, cheap. You are close to beaches and medical centers. Low property taxes. You can qualify most properties as agricultural and pay low low property taxes.
If you but anywhere in coastal counties, prepare to pay dearly for homeowner's insurance with very high deductibles. On the coasts it's not unusual to have a 25 - 30 percent deductible for hurricane protection. This translates into $25,000 deductible on a $100,000 home. If you are hit by more than one hurricane in a year's time, the duductible is on each storm. We were hit by 3 this year, but lived in Desoto county and had a 2% deductible because we were zoned agricultural and insured through the Farm Bureau.
Homeowner's insurance is likely to skyrocket after the calamity this year.
Appreciate the advice. I've definitely learned which places to avoid. As if election 2000 didn't teach us all something about where not to live in Florida, huh?
but = buy
Jacksonville is definitely on my list to check out. My son's a Steeler's fan, but he would love to be able to see the games in person. Thanks for the info.
Thanks for the info.
Since you've obviously got your head screwed on straight, you'll be welcome in Florida. I grew up in Florida and just moved back about three years ago. I looked around long and hard before deciding where to settle and decided on North Florida. Very conservative part of the state, (it's our job to offset all the DemoRat condo commandos that live in southeast Florida), and housing prices are still very reasonable, (coming from NY you'll probably think they are positively dirt cheap). But, the real estate hucksters triple the price of any property that can even see the water (even if it's only a puddle).
Jacksonville is a banking center in FL and your son could probably find something productive there. The Jacksonville / St. Augustine beaches are expensive property - but, you can easily buy a large 2500 sq foot house 30 minutes from the beach for less than $200K. Since you're retired, living in the outlying counties could reduce that price even more. Property taxes in Florida are very reasonable IF you stay away from the beaches - I would guess you could plan in about 1.5% of the house's value each year. Sales tax is 6-7%, depending on the locality. NO state income tax and when you register your car in FL, they charge some ~$20 registration fee and a new license plate will be about $100 ($40-50 a year after the new plate). There are NO personal proerty taxes on your car(s), so you won't get a bill for $400-500 after you register your car - but, you will pay sales tax if you buy a car. Florida DOES require minimum auto insurance -- and Heaven help you if you get stopped and don't have proof of insurance. You have to get a Florida Driver's License within 90 days of arrival -- if your out of state license is still valid, no test, just pay the $20 fee.
Living on the beach WILL be an "adventure" in a hurricane - imagine a 10-15' wall of water paying you a visit with 20' waves on top of that (it's called storm surge). Not much can stand up against that - DO NOT plan on staying at the beach if you're expecting a Category 2 or higher hurricane. It can easily be a life-threatening experience, not to mention the fact that property tax insurers also know these facts. But, storm surge is not much of an issue if you live 4-5 miles inland and NOT on a river or big creek. Florida is building new homes to a hurricane resistant building code, my house is built to withstand winds of 120 mph. It does drive up the house cost by $2,000-4,000 - but, it's well worth it when your neighbors in older houses are looking at serious damage and you're hardly scratched?
If you're looking to stay with like-minded folks, I would suggest North Florida or the panhandle. Stay away from Gainesville, college town full of liberals who never met a tax they didn't want to raise for some stupid program or another. Southwest FL is fairly conservative (Naples and Sarasota) but propery prices are kinda high. Southeast Florida is over-run with NE liberals and you wouldn't like it very much (anywhere south of Vero Beach).
As for the weather, the Chamber of Commerce types say it best -- "Winter in Florida is beautiful, particularly if it falls on the weekend!" Hopefully, all this was helpful?
Think carefully, now. This answer could determine the path your life will take for many years to come...I have just excluded about twenty towns whose lives revolve around shrimp, crawfish, blue crab, oyster, tarpon, marlin and kingfishing.
Ketchup or mustard based sauce?
Enough said. You may apply for a tourist visa, but that is all. Consideration will be given for your Republican status.
Your predecesors over the last 50 years have driven most of the original environs to places like Mississippi and Arkansas.
Bring lots of money...you'll need it for your permits for things like going to the beach or smelling the orange blossoms in the spring.
Two more suggestions:
My twin sister and her husband have been looking at The Villages. They are 56 and have golfing friends who love it there. I think they're going to move there in a couple of years. News showed a huge BC04 rally there a few weeks ago.
http://www.thevillages.com/index2.htm
Second suggestion: You said you'll be in the Panhandle area. I'm nearby in Mobile and I really love Pensacola/Navarre/Fort Walton. (Real estate prices may be high right now due to homes destroyed in Ivan.) Since you'll be close by, I also suggest you look at FAIRHOPE, AL. Alabama?!, you say. Eeeek!..I know! But Fairhope is a really lovely town and you'll be amazed at the number of Boston/NY transplants you'll find there. It's on Mobile Bay and within a 1/2 hour drive to some of the world's best beaches. Climate is very similar to Pensacola. I won't go into all the details, but I think housing prices would be a pleasant surprise to you.
Official website:
http://www.cofairhope.com/
Good photos:
http://lightsphere.com/photos/fairhope/
Best of luck. Remember to order grits when you're down here!
I now live in Indiana
If your looking for weather being a deciding factor I would pick a place south of I4. For less traffic and more rural areas look to central Fl and north Fl. I would rent first. Maybe take a vacation to different parts of Fl. to get a feel. It is a diverse state.
There are many things I miss about Fl. And when I hear John Anderson's song "Seminole Wind" I get goose bumps!
Why would you recommend Pinellas County?
Pinellas county, where all of the Republican officials are RINOs? Where co-op boards have the power to be petty dictators? Where people like Terri Schiavo are being starved to death because the judges rule in the direction of whomever pays the highest bribe? Where life is not sacred? Pinellas county is beautiful, but the political climate requires a real "soldier". Floriduh Voter would love to have some help!
Mass55th, come to the Carolinas!
perhaps. but don't underestimate the cracker's ability. the native crop has it's own strengths.
Absolutely!!! Thank you so much!!! If my mother was still alive, she'd probably question you about having my head screwed on straight ;-)
Vinegar based sauces are my favorites. Haven't yet been lucky enough to have the mustard based, but I plan on changing that.
I've only been to the western part of the state once, when we went through Memphis, so I don't have much experience there. We're close to the Chickamauga Battlefield of GA and they have excellent hiking and horseback riding trails. Lookout Mountain TN with Ruby Falls and Rock City is also a great site. Snakes are plentiful in my part of TN but we only have two that are dangerous. There are a lot of Copperheads here because of the abundance of water and we have Timber Rattlesnakes/Diamondbacks but they are pretty reclusive and tend to stay to the deep woods. I've heard we have Coral snakes but I've never seen one. We allow the good snakes to hang around because they seem to keep the bad snakes away. Our main problem is with Black Widow and Brown Recluse spiders but they are not usually aggressive. We do have fireants but not to the extent that they have them in Florida (yet). Since we have such a moderate climate, our pests are plentiful but it's still better than Florida. I've lived with those mouse sized Palmetto bugs. :-)
If you want to live in a state with a lot of historical attractions and a moderate climate, you can't beat Tennessee. If you want some great hiking you need to visit the Smokies. Laural Falls near Gatlinburg, Cades Cove and Clingman's Dome are exceptional.
Anything you could possibly want is available, including reasonable golfing, clubs of all kinds, entertainment, restaurants, shopping, clinics and a hospital. But it too is definitely growing. Houseing is becoming more expensive, a couple of years ago you could buy a nice cement block house for about $325,000.00, including the lot which was about $125,000.00. I understand that some lots are now going for $200,000.00. Of course there are less expensive homes as well as more expensive, probably something for most every budget. It's the life style in the Villages that is the most attractive.
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