Hi from beautiful Venice, Florida

[carolepr]

Hi everybody,

I'm an ER who moved to the Sarasota/Venice area on Florida's gulf coast a couple of years ago from Phoenix - too hot, too much like LA, and definitely no cool ocean breezes!

Love this part of Florida, the white sandy beaches, numerous walking and bike trails, bird watching, etc. Most of this is free, thankfully, because with the collapse of my 401k and interest rates, there isn't much left for anything else!

Happy to hear from anyone contemplating a similar move.

 

[Moemg]

Welcome ,
I am a former Venice resident . I love the area . I currently live on the border of Sarasota and Bradenton.

 

[Coach]

Hi carolepr, and welcome aboard!

It's nice to hear from someone who is coping, and who knows how to enjoy life in an economical way

I'll be looking forward to your posts.

Coach

 

[bbbamI]

Welcome to the fourm.

 

[Rich_by_the_Bay]

Hi, Carole - from a Tampa neighbor. Too bad you didn't pop up a little sooner. You could have joined Moemg, me and our SO/spouses for dinner on Siesta Key last week. Next time.

Welcome to the board.

 

[Gumby]

Welcome Carole. I hope you have found our FAQ subforum http://www.early-retirement.org/forums/f47/ , which will get you started on many of the topics we discuss. Please don't hesitate to ask questions. There are many smart and experienced people on the board who will probably be able to answer them.

 

[Moemg]

Hi ,
I forgot to mention that the Venice Newcomer's Club is great . It also has a Singles group in case you are .

 

[janetvj]

Hi carolepr - welcome! I am envious. I am retiring May 1st and would love to relocate to your area, and in fact this was my plan until the housing prices started dropping. It's a great time to buy, but not such a great time to sell, and my plan was to sell my house and have enough equity to buy in Florida. Based on last years prices, this was easily do-able, but now I'm not so sure. So I will stay put for the time being. But save me a place on the beach!

 

[FinanceDude]

I lived in Port Charlotte about 20 years ago. I used to ride my bike to Venice almost every day....only 34 miles round trip.........

 

[carolepr]

Hi janetvj, Good to hear from you. It occurs to me that if you really want to move to Florida, this could be the best time in years, since house prices have fallen so much. If you can sell (big 'if' I know) you can almost certainly find a very nice home in Sarasota County in almost any price range, and there are even better buys in Charlotte and Lee Counties. I try to keep up with the market because we moved to Venice last year and have our condo for sale. It can give you an idea of what's available: a nice 2/2 in a quiet 55+ “old Florida” community on a canal for fishing and kayaking, walk to the beach, and close to shopping - for less than $165,000 . With so many foreclosures and so few buyers, who presumably can't sell their existing homes, things are slow.


So don't give up. Come on down after you retire and take a look around. There'll be plenty of room for you on the beach (the snowbirds will have gone home)!

 

[janetvj]

Hi janetvj, Good to hear from you. It occurs to me that if you really want to move to Florida, this could be the best time in years, since house prices have fallen so much. If you can sell (big 'if' I know) you can almost certainly find a very nice home in Sarasota County in almost any price range, and there are even better buys in Charlotte and Lee Counties. I try to keep up with the market because we moved to Venice last year and have our condo for sale. It can give you an idea of what's available: a nice 2/2 in a quiet 55+ “old Florida” community on a canal for fishing and kayaking, walk to the beach, and close to shopping - for less than $165,000 . With so many foreclosures and so few buyers, who presumably can't sell their existing homes, things are slow.


So don't give up. Come on down after you retire and take a look around. There'll be plenty of room for you on the beach (the snowbirds will have gone home)!

Thanks for the encouragement Carole! I have made a few trips down already to check out different areas. I love the Venice area - and I know nearby North Port and Port Charlotte have some fantastic bargains right now. I also really liked the Inverness area a bit north of that location. A lot farther from the beach, but the lakes are beautiful, and I like the proximity to biking and hiking trails, and that it's less touristy. I have no doubt that I could find something perfect for me. But selling my house could be somewhat of a challenge, so we'll see.

 

[wrigley]

Hi everybody,

I'm an ER who moved to the Sarasota/Venice area on Florida's gulf coast a couple of years ago from Phoenix - too hot, too much like LA, and definitely no cool ocean breezes!

Love this part of Florida, the white sandy beaches, numerous walking and bike trails, bird watching, etc. Most of this is free, thankfully, because with the collapse of my 401k and interest rates, there isn't much left for anything else!

Happy to hear from anyone contemplating a similar move.

WOW.....I live in Jacksonville Florida and still have a few years until retirement. My wife and I are looking at the Phoenix area to retire. Strange what makes people tick huh?

Mike