Moving to Naples,FL

[NYEXPAT]

Like the title suggests, after 16+ years living in Peru, my next retirement home will be in North Naples,FL. For a number of reasons we had planned on moving to Gainesville, Fl. I recently put it up to a "family vote" and even though none of us has been there Naples won out!

As my young wife does not drive (yet) and will be going to college as well as my 2 young sons attending school, the bus system in Gainesville was a major attraction as well as the schools in north west Gainesville.

I will enjoy the beach access and quieter lifestyle Naples provides and we can always travel to Miami when we are feeling homesick!

We are set on North Naples as they have the best schools in the surrounding area.

If we have any members who live in Naples and have advice, I would appreciate it.

We are planning to buy in Wiggens Bay area as we would like to get membership in the country club there to make use of the shuttle boat out to the state park.

 

[Dtail]

Congrats on your move.
I am 2.5 hours up the road, so don't know too much about your area.
Nevertheless, I am assuming you are used to the relatively intense heat for at least 6 months.

 

[COcheesehead]

I have good friends who live there and like it.

 

[ShokWaveRider]

Only issues we found were, and none really big show stoppers, for seasoned Floridians:

Decent homes were expensive, Traffic during the snowbird season is almost unbearable unless you plan it right, and restaurant walk in reservations were challenging. They were hit hard by recent hurricanes. RE Taxes are on the high side and insurance is steep.

But the area is nice of course as most MCOL - HCOL Coastal Florida towns are, and for the most part the upsides outweigh the downsides.

Try to visit during the snowbird season. I highly recommend renting first before buying. We decided against Naples for Traffic and population density reasons, and that we currently live walking distance from the beach. Equivalent properties in Naples were 3 x the price, and ours is not what one would refer to as cheap.

The good side is with the denser population areas like Naples, one has access to great services and healthcare. We particularly liked the resort communities, but the ones we saw were not as close to the beach as we would have liked.

 

[harley]

Nice. I live nearby in Bonita Springs (much less expensive than Naples), and I kayak in the Cocohatchee River often. Nice area. However, I don't think you're going to be getting the quieter lifestyle you mention. Maybe it is compared to Miami, but Naples is pretty busy. As ShokWaveRider says, there's good health care available. And excellent beaches. Delnor Wiggens State Park is really nice. Maybe we'll see you next year at the SWFL ER get together.

 

[COcheesehead]

I was just down there and it is crowded.

 

[Lagniappe]

Welcome. I moved to Naples last year, and love it. I was in a gated golf course community about 30 miles from here, and found it isolating, even if it was pretty. Closer to Old Naples than you are planning for, I can walk to the beach, shopping, and restaurants, which makes the traffic less of an issue. The off season is quiet and sleepy, but during season, plan ahead for traffic. The best time to run errands is after dark, when a lot of retirees are at home or in restaurants. The traffic is nothing compared to Miami or Tampa, but by February you just want everyone to go back up north so you can enjoy living in Paradise.

I would certainly visit during season so you know what you are getting in to. Once you are a resident you can get a free beach parking pass and go to any beach in the county.

I got some advice from a nurse who has lived here for 30 years when I was house hunting - there are three things not to bother buying new in Naples - Furniture, Boats, and Mercedes Convertibles. There is so much nearly-new turnover, why waste the money. I have personally investigated A LOT of Furniture consignment stores, and so far she was right!

 

[Blueskies123]

Living in Florida most of my life I recommend you make sure you either budget for, or make sure the house already has, a newer roof that meets the storm wind standards, storm windows and doors that open out, and a generator (it does not need to be a large one).

If you buy close to any water you will be in an evacuation area but the beauty may be worth it.

 

[cbo111]

Pretty much the pickleball capital of the world...if you are into that?

 

[Dtail]

Pretty much the pickleball capital of the world...if you are into that?

Amen to that.
The USA championships are there each spring.

 

[pb4uski]

We rented in Naples for Jan-Mar 2014. We liked it a lot.... you can't beat the weather. Traffic could be a bear at times. We found it a bit on the pricey side.

We rented in Sarasota in 2015 and ended up here, mostly because of friends nearby, though it is IMO more affordable and a hair less busy but probably 5F cooler.

 

[Moemg]

How child friendly is Naples ?

 

[davebarnes]

My condolences.

 

[ckelly78z]

"As my young wife does not drive (yet) and will be going to college"

Just how "young" is your wife ? Do her parents know ?

 

[Dtail]

"As my young wife does not drive (yet) and will be going to college"

Just how "young" is your wife ? Do her parents know ?

He posted a picture of her in the past.
She IS young, but not your reference young.

 

[COcheesehead]

He posted a picture of her in the past.
She IS young, but not your reference young.

She might be the only young one there. I've been there and its filled with old people. When the Publix runs out of port-a-scoots, you know there are too many old people around.

 

[pb4uski]

Yes I was looking at some statistics last night and the median age in Naples is 65.6... compared to 47.2 in Sarasota and 37.8 for the US as a whole.... though I will admit that I didn't really notice that everyone was old when we rented there in 2014 but it might be because we were in a condo complex that was mostly retirees.

 

[ExFlyBoy5]

Yes I was looking at some statistics last night and the median age in Naples is 65.6... compared to 47.2 in Sarasota and 37.8 for the US as a whole.... though I will admit that I didn't really notice that everyone was old when we rented there in 2014 but it might be because we were in a condo complex that was mostly retirees.

Probably because there aren't a ton of jobs local (that pay well, anyway) to the area and it's mighty pricey to live in Naples (proper).

 

[COcheesehead]

Yes I was looking at some statistics last night and the median age in Naples is 65.6... compared to 47.2 in Sarasota and 37.8 for the US as a whole.... though I will admit that I didn't really notice that everyone was old when we rented there in 2014 but it might be because we were in a condo complex that was mostly retirees.

That's interesting. We live in a college town and it also has its share of retirees, but its the mix of young and old that keeps things vibrant.

 

[Lagniappe]

Yes I was looking at some statistics last night and the median age in Naples is 65.6... compared to 47.2 in Sarasota and 37.8 for the US as a whole.... though I will admit that I didn't really notice that everyone was old when we rented there in 2014 but it might be because we were in a condo complex that was mostly retirees.

North Naples, where the OP is looking, has a lot of families with children. The schools are good and there are a lot of newly built communities, so prices are reasonable.

The downside is that you have to drive everywhere.

Some stats don't report North Naples (or East Naples, a lower income area) demographics with the rest of Naples. I am not sure why.

 

[ShokWaveRider]

The main reason we chose for not moving there was, People Density, Traffic Density and more prone to hurricanes than a lot of other parts of coastal Florida.

Seems like the Western seaboard gets a lot harder hit by hurricanes than the East (at least historically), as do the keys.

 

[harley]

We're in Lee County, not Collier where Naples is, but right next door. Between us DW and I have been called on for jury duty 3 times in 5 years. She can't understand why it happens so often, as there are other places we've lived for long periods of time where we've never gotten a jury summons. But I told her to just look at the requirements for eligibility and she'd understand. You have to be under 70, which cuts the pool tremendously. Then, you have to not be a felon, which makes it even smaller. So we're going to get called on a lot for the next 6 yeas.

 

[NYEXPAT]

Nice. I live nearby in Bonita Springs (much less expensive than Naples), and I kayak in the Cocohatchee River often. Nice area. However, I don't think you're going to be getting the quieter lifestyle you mention. Maybe it is compared to Miami, but Naples is pretty busy. As ShokWaveRider says, there's good health care available. And excellent beaches. Delnor Wiggens State Park is really nice. Maybe we'll see you next year at the SWFL ER get together.

I would have considered your town but I need a highly rated school system for my 5 and 15 y/o sons. I live in a city of 11 million people which is also "tourist central" so even Miami would seem quiet to me!

I am glad to hear about Delnor Wiggens, we are looking for a place on the Cocohatchee river (I Kayak) and want access to the "Endless Summer" shuttle boat to Delnor Wiggens that runs every 1/2 hour! Thanks for your info!

 

[NYEXPAT]

"As my young wife does not drive (yet) and will be going to college"

Just how "young" is your wife ? Do her parents know ?

28 Years my junior, I am 66. We have not told MIL we are moving yet, hoping to skip out of town quietly!

 

[NYEXPAT]

Welcome. I moved to Naples last year, and love it. I was in a gated golf course community about 30 miles from here, and found it isolating, even if it was pretty. Closer to Old Naples than you are planning for, I can walk to the beach, shopping, and restaurants, which makes the traffic less of an issue. The off season is quiet and sleepy, but during season, plan ahead for traffic. The best time to run errands is after dark, when a lot of retirees are at home or in restaurants. The traffic is nothing compared to Miami or Tampa, but by February you just want everyone to go back up north so you can enjoy living in Paradise.

I would certainly visit during season so you know what you are getting in to. Once you are a resident you can get a free beach parking pass and go to any beach in the county.

I got some advice from a nurse who has lived here for 30 years when I was house hunting - there are three things not to bother buying new in Naples - Furniture, Boats, and Mercedes Convertibles. There is so much nearly-new turnover, why waste the money. I have personally investigated A LOT of Furniture consignment stores, and so far she was right!

Good info, I am glad you are happy there. As we will be moving with only the clothes on our backs, we will need to buy everything from furniture to too a couple of those Mercedes!