location, location, location

[Martha]

We live in a beautiful 100 year old brick building that we own. It has four apartments and we live in one. It is over-improved for a rental and is very well maintained with many nice unique features. For example, our apartment has three fireplaces, in the kitchen, bedroom, and livingroom. For a variety of reasons we are going to sell our place and move to Minneapolis/St. Paul. Based upon what the first realtor has said, we will probably get out of this place only enough money to buy a small single family home in St. Paul with about as many square feet as our apartment. And we won't have three other tenants paying us rent. Property taxes will be lower though.

Bummer.

It is tough to move from a low cost area to a higher cost area. But we are going to do it anyway.

[youbet]

Originally Posted by Martha

For a variety of reasons we are going to sell our place and move to Minneapolis/St. Paul.

Tell us one of the reasons for the move is NOT w-o-r-k!

[wabmester]

The variability in regional prices is pretty amazing. The worst part of it is that the price you'll be paying is mostly driven by the quantity and quality of jobs in the area, and I assume you won't be taking one of them.

We've considered moving to the city to be closer to relatives, but we've acquired a strong aversion to high-density housing and traffic.

[Mwsinron]

Good luck with that move. Do you like to ice fish?

[Oldbabe]

Martha,
I can certainly understand why you'd like to move to Minn/St Paul. I have been there twice and it is a gorgeous city. But your apartment building sounds fabulous. Hard to move from a great situation like that but the lure of the city cannot be denied.

--Oldbabe

[REWahoo]

Originally Posted by Martha

Property taxes will be lower though.

At least you did manage to find an upside. And don't forget that Greg will only have 1/4 the plumbing repair work. Guess he'll have to find another hobby!

[califdreamer]

Martha, your post reminds me of my chronic conundrum with regard to FIRE. I live in a place I really enjoy and would not choose to leave.... except if I move to a lower COL area (really a lower cost of housing area) I could FIRE now. By staying, I will extend by, oh, three more years my time at w#*k.

On one hand, I feel like I'm sitting on too much equity. I've looked at solutions like downsizing to a condo... but I'm just not keen on attached housing. Ditto with the fourplex set-up. The recent "Worry Free Housing" post has me taking a closer look at some type of manufactured housing. In fact I recently visited a park for mfd housing and actually was quite impressed with the new, never lived in home. The park itself, though, was older and worn out and close to a noisy freeway. Other pitfall there is someday if I wanted to move back into a traditional house I could be priced out of the market. Which is the same problem with moving to Arizona, for instance. In ten years it might be impossible to move back to CA if the urge would strike.

I'm curious, what is motivation for moving to the "big city"? Is it family and friends, culture, entertainment?

[Rich_in_Tampa]

Originally Posted by Martha

It is tough to move from a low cost area to a higher cost area. But we are going to do it anyway.

Too true, but location is everything for us, too.

Gee, with the rental income and such a drastic price change between the two cities, does it pay to keep the building and its rental income (increased by renting your current apartment) and still by a small place in the cities?

[Martha]

All options are on the table so we might keep and rent out our place, though I doubt it. I am looking at places in the twin cities over the next few days. If the disparity is too large we may say forget it.

[Rich_in_Tampa]

Originally Posted by Martha

All options are on the table so we might keep and rent out our place, though I doubt it. I am looking at places in the twin cities over the next few days. If the disparity is too large we may say forget it.

One thing (among many) that I always liked about the cities, as an occasional visitor, is that you can actually have a life even though it is snowbound or subzero. Nice place.

I don't blame you for being willing to pay a premium to live there.

[kcowan]

Martha
Don't forget to evaluate renting in the new place while keeping your current place. It might be an attractive alternative, at least in the interim until you are sure about the permanence of the move.

[TromboneAl]

If you can get a really small home, you can expect lower heating/cleaning bills, etc. Perhaps something with a nice, efficient wood stove.

When we moved to our lower cost area, we knew it had to be a one-way trip, but we've never regretted it.

Please let us dissect your reasons for moving.

[lazygood4nothinbum]

i know just what you mean. if i give up my house three miles inland here in crowded fort lauderdale i can get myself a house just a block off the beach in daytona and put half the sale money into the portfolio. wait a minute; maybe that isn't what you mean. still: location location location.

[haha]

Originally Posted by lazygood4nothinbum

i know just what you mean. if i give up my house three miles inland here in crowded fort lauderdale i can get myself a house just a block off the beach in daytona and put half the sale money into the portfolio. wait a minute; maybe that isn't what you mean. still: location location location.

LazyGood4, how cold is the water temp at Daytona in January? Is it a good year round swimming beach for a reasonably hardy person? I see there is a fishing pier- if the water is good, there is a pier, only other thing I would need is some topless sunbathers to feel like I was back in SoCal, only on 1/3 the money.

Is it an active beach, with a boardwalk, music and stuff, or mostly closed off?

Those prices you mentioned last week sound really tempting.

Ha

[lazygood4nothinbum]

ha, according to http://tinyurl.com/ydjrmz january water temp there is a brisk 61 degrees. but even in south florida where the gulf stream runs just off the coast it gets down to 71. daytona beach is in the low 70s now and there were lots of people in the water when i was there just a few weeks ago.

the nice thing about the beach there is you don't have to get totally wet to enjoy it. the gentle slope and hard packed sand make for a very nice walk or large expanse for ball games, boogie boarding and sand castle building.

there is not just a pier but a pier with a ski lift for a bird's eye view, sort of coney islandish. the beach is very accessible, which is one of the things i liked about it. even where it is mostly private property along the street, there are lots of access points for the public. no boardwalk necessary. you can even drive on the sand in places there.

the daytona main pier area is very active while just a 10-20 minute ride north and you have secluded beach areas, including a state park right on the ocean.

if you are looking for exposed breasts & warmer waters then you'll prefer miami beach at californiaesque & sub calif prices. also we have a nude beach at haulover in north miami. i think the closest nude beach to daytona is apollo beach down by cape canaveral.

for my previous report on "the daytona 250" see http://tinyurl.com/2s9uta

[Dawg54]

Originally Posted by HaHa

LazyGood4, how cold is the water temp at Daytona in January? Is it a good year round swimming beach for a reasonably hardy person? I see there is a fishing pier- if the water is good, there is a pier, only other thing I would need is some topless sunbathers to feel like I was back in SoCal, only on 1/3 the money.

Is it an active beach, with a boardwalk, music and stuff, or mostly closed off?

Those prices you mentioned last week sound really tempting.

Ha

One word......'hurricanes'. Still tempting?

[Rich_in_Tampa]

Originally Posted by DOG52

One word......'hurricanes'. Still tempting?

Here are some more words:

Blizzards. Tornados. Mudslides. Floods. Earthquakes. Bumper cars on the interstates with freezing rain. Ten below for 2 weeks. Hard to get away from mother nature and none of these are fun.

I sure do enjoy the other 362 days a year though.

BTW, Saint Augustine is really nice, too. Stayed at Anastasia State Park, gorgeous beaches, dunes.

[califdreamer]

Originally Posted by lazygood4nothinbum

ha, according to http://tinyurl.com/ydjrmz january water temp there is a brisk 61 degrees. but even in south florida where the gulf stream runs just off the coast it gets down to 71. daytona beach is in the low 70s now and there were lots of people in the water when i was there just a few weeks ago.

Thanks for cool link to water temps along the Atlantic. Surprised to see Virginia Beach water still at 50 degrees.

I've heard Gulf Stream veers away from FL coast at about Vero Beach. Anyone know if that's accurate?

[Dawg54]

Originally Posted by Rich_in_Tampa

Here are some more words:

Blizzards. Tornados. Mudslides. Floods. Earthquakes. Bumper cars on the interstates with freezing rain. Ten below for 2 weeks. Hard to get away from mother nature and none of these are fun.

I sure do enjoy the other 362 days a year though.

Yeah well.......I doubt if my neighbors 180 miles south of me on the MS coast have found very many good days over the last year or so. Changed their lives forever. But I will concede that was probably the storm of the century.