Reasons to say no

[JimMIA]

Oh, and Florida also has a free online public school system called Florida Virtual Schools. It's huge and it's very good.

 

[ronandannette]

Many I know who have made a major move like that have regretted it because of the difficulty finding new Doctors/Dentists they like that are accepting new patients, being away from family and long time friends, and in the case of moving to a resort area, being over run by tourists really sucks.

My only concerns would the paying all those real estate commissions and moving costs. I'm still trying to get over paying nearly $40,000 in real estate commissions and fees when I sold my parent's house 7 years ago, a house THEY paid $29,500 for.

This would totally be it for me. We've built the life we want with the sense of community that we want and we knew when we were doing it that we would be here forever. Vacation spots are for, well, vacations. I do sort of admire people who have both the desire and ability to pick-up and start over and I wish them well.

 

[Deb & Bill]

Jim, you left off black bears. They've been spotted near OKW and SSR for sure that I know of. We have them in SW FL all the time (but none on the island that I have heard about).

And then there is brain eating amoeba (usually found in the South where lakes tend to be warm). Don't swim in lake water or get lake water up your nose.

 

[low-key]

bottom line is always money

 

[kymom99]

I would say with small kids, a downside would be a support system. I have some friends around me who are transplants, and they struggle with not having family to help with the kids. And for a while at least you wouldn’t have any friends either. Who do you call if you have car trouble and the kids have to be picked up? What if there is an emergency? It helps to have a village.

 

[GreatLakes]

I lived in FL for two years and hated it. I love visiting Florida and still make it down usually at least once a year but after a few months I knew I wasn't going to stay down there. I really missed the seasons, especially winter, and just never really settled.

That isn't to say you'll hate it OP but if you aren't moving for a job I'd rent for a year to really see if you like it. I was debating buying when I got a job down there and ended up just renting and boy I'm glad I did. I think at this point anywhere I'd move, and it would almost certainly be job related, I'd rent and not buy for at the very least the first year.

 

[leebee]

Lol on people complaining about politics. If you're a liberal and need to be cocooned among people who mostly agree with you on everything, then stay where you are. But if you welcome getting to know different kinds of people with different perspectives, and can accept that you'll usually have a Republican governor, then you'll be fine. Florida is a conserative-leaning swing state, not a hotbed of right-wing extremism.

This attitude is enough to keep me away. How many liberals do you actually know?

 

[barkley]

i would check to see what the situation w/health insurance would be like. many employers offer wfh positions that afford the opportunity to work from anywhere but only offer affordable plans within a certain radius of their brick and mortar geographic location(s). my former employer offers 6 or more plans to choose from w/a variety of premiums/deductibles/copays-but only one at 10x the premium and far inferior coverage to staff that resides outside their chosen 'preferred coverage regions'.

property taxes-check to see if the numbers you are looking at are what you would be roughly paying vs. what the current owner pays. some places (like where i live) have a variety of decreased property tax programs that lower rates but there's no mention of them being applied to individual properties on zillow or other listing sites (a person would need to pull up the assessors website and pull up the property information to get the full amount charged each year before eligible discounts are provided-a neighbor is selling their house and to look at the listing a person would think the tax liability is 2/3rds lower than the full rate b/c of a program few would qualify for).

retaining/improving lifestyle-run the numbers. check to see what your basic costs run in the new place vs. where you live now. vehicle registration/insurance, homeowners insurance and such can run much higher or lower state to state.

 

[Ladyandthepuppies]

I guess as a parent I feel like we have an obligation to our kids to save money for their future. From my preliminary research, and considering that DH will keep his job and I might even be able to keep mine (currently wfh during the pandemic and then it will be re-evaluated) it seems like moving to an area where the living expenses are lower would enable us to save more money without sacrificing our lifestyle. In this case, we could even improve our situation- bigger house, plus a pool, with lower mortgage and tax payments.

I would say with small kids, a downside would be a support system. I have some friends around me who are transplants, and they struggle with not having family to help with the kids. And for a while at least you wouldn’t have any friends either. Who do you call if you have car trouble and the kids have to be picked up? What if there is an emergency? It helps to have a village.

Unfortunately, we already don’t have family in this area where we currently live. But we are a strong unit and support each other. In an emergency I would call DH and vice versa. Only once since our kids have been born did we have to lean on someone else; a few years ago DH had to go in an ambulance to the hospital and I dropped our kids off at a neighbors’ house. In that situation there wasn’t time to call a friend anyway. I guess it’s worth thinking about how long it might take to make a new circle of friends, but in general I already don’t have “a village” of family to lean on. Might as well flip the coin and look at the bright side- we can move anywhere we want to, we’re not tied to a location due to family obligations

 

[DisneyOma]

This morning I showed DH a listing for a gorgeous home in Windermere, with more bedrooms and bathrooms and square feet than we currently have, plus a pool. The listing price is less than our current home is worth and showed lower taxes. For the first time, we started seriously asking ourselves, why don’t we move here?

It seems like there’s a real opportunity to get more value for less money than our current situation. We don’t have much family in our area, and DH’s job was wfh permanently even before the pandemic. We love Disney and it would be amazing to be annual passholders, and it would also be amazing to keep our lifestyle, possibly even upgrade it, for less.

So far, my reasons to say no are that I would miss the fall foliage, my friends in the area, and hurricanes. Is there anything major I’m missing? Giant killer iguanas or something?

Everyone has listed important things to think about, but no one has mentioned COVID19. Not sure when it will even be safe to go anywhere in Florida for a long time?

 

[delmar411]

Windermere is an excellent area, with great schools. There are plenty of activities (normally, not in COVID times) that would allow you to get out in the community and meet other families so that you and your children can make connections.

Everyone else has covered the negatives already. My major complaint about living in FL, lack of access to the shops I want to go to, isn't an issue in Windermere, as it is more centrally located.

 

[wilbret]

Speaking as a representative of the South, we appreciate you vacationing here. We have met our Yankee quota for the decade, check back in 2030.

But seriously, we moved just 3 hours away from family, and it has been very difficult with kids. If you have a strong family base where you are, that might be the biggest hurdle. You can acclimate to climate. Critters aren’t as big of a deal as you think.

**just made it to your post above about not having family where you are. I wonder if taking a trip for an extended time would give you a better idea? Vacations are fun and distort reality. Rent a place for a few months and work and shop and see what it’s like?

 

[wilbret]

Everyone has listed important things to think about, but no one has mentioned COVID19. Not sure when it will even be safe to go anywhere in Florida for a long time?

We have been to Florida 5 times since May. It is perfectly safe. Don’t succumb to scare tactics. Just practice safe habits and you’ll be fine.

 

[Weedy]

It's not so much to do with living around different kinds of people, I usually can get along with almost anybody, but this Covid 19 thing has really opened my eyes to those who don't like to listen to health experts or scientists. I do not want to live somewhere a majority of people think their rights to infect others by not wearing a mask is more important than protecting others. It starts at the top though.

Do you mean decisions like the Governor‘s of New York and New Jersey

 

[JimMIA]

i would check to see what the situation w/health insurance would be like. many employers offer wfh positions that afford the opportunity to work from anywhere but only offer affordable plans within a certain radius of their brick and mortar geographic location(s). my former employer offers 6 or more plans to choose from w/a variety of premiums/deductibles/copays-but only one at 10x the premium and far inferior coverage to staff that resides outside their chosen 'preferred coverage regions'.

This is certainly a valid point, and something that needs to be researched. It probably depends on the size of OP's employer.

If the employer is a big company with locations all over the US, probably not a problem; but if it's a more localized company, this may very well be an issue.

property taxes-check to see if the numbers you are looking at are what you would be roughly paying vs. what the current owner pays. some places (like where i live) have a variety of decreased property tax programs that lower rates but there's no mention of them being applied to individual properties on zillow or other listing sites (a person would need to pull up the assessors website and pull up the property information to get the full amount charged each year before eligible discounts are provided-a neighbor is selling their house and to look at the listing a person would think the tax liability is 2/3rds lower than the full rate b/c of a program few would qualify for).

Personally, I would never rely on Zillow or any other listing site for this kind of information. I see a couple of Zillow listings in my neighborhood and the information in them is pure fiction.

That said, this kind of checking is easy to do in Florida because of our Sunshine Law. Almost all government information is open and easily accessible to the public. It's a simple matter of going to the property assessor's website (or tax collector) and entering the address.

 

[JM23457]

This attitude is enough to keep me away. How many liberals do you actually know?

Well, I'm fairly liberal (voted for Obama twice), so, I definitely do know at least one lol. I know & love a lot of others. I know & love a lot of conservatives, too.

I was responding to PPs who said they couldn't stand the politics of people around them in Florida. The only people who would react that way would be liberals who also needed to constantly be cocooned among other liberals. There are definitely some people like that. (There are some conservatives like that, too, but we're discussing a potential move to Florida, not to San Francisco.)

 

[a1tinkfans]

we did the move North to South ( sw/gulf) and never looked back. My Only Concerns have been comparison past experiences with Medical Specialists like Sloan Kettering/nyc and I travel if/when needed for my own comfort level. otherwise...the move was Life Changing... waking up in Sunshine Every Single Day literally changed my daily existence.
Rainy Season is my break time to slow down the Great Healthy, Fun Lifestyle.. this year, with Covid and being in since March.. not so much lol.
OP, My Suggestion Is to rent in the area you think you’d want to live. Live the daily routine, whatever it is. You ll either fall in love or decide it may not be for you. It’s a great way to decide on an area, community and amenities you require. Best of luck.

 

[FlightlessDuck]

So far, my reasons to say no are that I would miss the fall foliage, my friends in the area, and hurricanes. Is there anything major I’m missing? Giant killer iguanas or something?

Jobs? Do you both work remotely? Retired? Do you NEED more bedrooms? Will your new mortgage percentage rate by the same or lower than your current one? Have you SEEN the COVID rate in Florida? Do you want to live that close to Orlando? Traffic (oh, wait, you are from Philly ... neer mind)? I think there are more dangerous animals.

Are you willing to pay for pool upkeep and maintenance? Are you going to use it enough?

 

[JimMIA]

I think there are more dangerous animals.

I am confident that the violent crime rate in Windermere compares favorably with Philly!

If you are talking about dangerous non-human animals, we don't have many. Every wild critter has ways of defending itself, but animal attacks are not something we lie awake worrying about, LOL.

 

[FairestOfThemAll37]

Windermere is an excellent area, with great schools. There are plenty of activities (normally, not in COVID times) that would allow you to get out in the community and meet other families so that you and your children can make connections.

Everyone else has covered the negatives already. My major complaint about living in FL, lack of access to the shops I want to go to, isn't an issue in Windermere, as it is more centrally located.

So funny you mention this! I don’t care for Windermere at all because so many of the neighborhoods are super isolated (to me) and it’s quite a trek to get to more than 1-2 stores. I know the draw is proximity to the parks and reasonable housing costs, so I get it in that sense. I’ll take my side of town any day (though I admit I’m partial to my very niche though ridiculously priced neighborhood lol) for convenience to everything but the parks!

OP, unless politics affect where you choose to live now I wouldn’t let that impact your decision. I think people outside the state have a very different view than those in the state. I don’t always agree with my state/local government but that’s true of everywhere I’ve lived. I’ve never chosen where to live based on the politicians. As for the regular folk, I’ve come across all kinds and like everywhere tend to gravitate towards those who share common values. Most of the “Floriduh” stuff is magnified in the media. It’s obviously happening somewhere but I’ve never seen any “Florida man” type behavior in person.