What's with everyone running to Florida??

[jim584672]

Do you Floridians move north for the summer? I was in Florida in August once and thought I was going to keel over with the heat and humidity.

 

[Amethyst]

You must not have been in Maryland in August. It's worse than Florida for heat and humidity. It's just that in MD the H2 only lasts 3 months; in Florida it seems to go on forever, with hurricane threat added in, until suddenly it's November and everything is nice again.

I was in Florida in August once and thought I was going to keel over with the heat and humidity.

 

[Dtail]

Do you Floridians move north for the summer? I was in Florida in August once and thought I was going to keel over with the heat and humidity.

There are definitely many snowbirds in FLA, but for those of us who can't afford or just don't wish to maintain 2 places, it is fine.
Yes, I would rather have less humidity, but I don't change any of my activities during the 7 month summer, so the heat/humidity is clearly a big issue to consider if choosing to live here full time.

 

[harllee]

Do you Floridians move north for the summer? I was in Florida in August once and thought I was going to keel over with the heat and humidity.

They all come up to the North Carolina mountains for the summer. I see the Florida license tags all over.

 

[ShokWaveRider]

Do you Floridians move north for the summer? I was in Florida in August once and thought I was going to keel over with the heat and humidity.

No.

 

[Aerides]

Do you Floridians move north for the summer? I was in Florida in August once and thought I was going to keel over with the heat and humidity.

You adapt and naturally acclimatize. Avoiding a lot of time daytime outdoors for July/Aug/Sept is just something you do, kinda like avoiding the bitter cold Dec/Jan/Feb. Or that is beach/pool time. Everything indoors is AC. After you've acclimated it really is just those three months that are hard to tolerate. And summer is not really that much different than the other 8 or 9 lower SE US coastal area states.

Similarly, I can't do cold much anymore. I mean 40 is my low threshold and that's with boots/coat/gloves, etc. 60 is my lowest comfort for outdoor dinner (sweater, jacket, etc., best be no wind). We set the heat to come on at 68, and get a handle of 3-day winter cold snaps most years, where it might hit the 40's overnight but creep into the 60's in the day.

But since when is retirees moving to Florida a surprise? I mean it was a whole Seinfeld episode 25 years ago. Del Boca Vista baby!

 

[ShokWaveRider]

N.E. Fla. is not as Brutal as other parts, certainly not Central Florida, and we even get a Winter.... All 2 - 3 weeks of it. Makes good for all year living. Yes we do get the summer heat, but living on the coast dampens the extremes. All in all we are happy with our choice of locale, certainly no shortage of things to do. Yes we also have traffic but NOWHERE as bad as the S.W. or S.E. We also have an added benefit that we do not have to wait to get a restaurant seat in season, we have a brilliant thing called "Call Ahead Seating".

 

[ShokWaveRider]

I would like to know what is going on with Real Estate in Florida? Inventory seem very low in our area. Literally only three homes for sale now in our 600 home CC community, that is up from last week as there was only one then. And we are coming up to the "H" word Season. How about yours, please state your rough location?

We are in NE. Fla.

 

[Tetto]

I was also stationed in Orlando for 6 months when I was in the Navy, and I have the same memories. I'll stick with Connecticut, thanks. Although if I were forced to move to Florida, I would pick Islamorada, down in the Keys.

I'm in CT also and am increasingly thinking the same thing, despite the higher COL. You get what you pay for!

 

[48Fire]

I am curious. I don't get it. It seems like the knee-jerk reaction of older retirees is to move to Florida.

Nothing against Florida but ... there are other states in the Union.

I talked with a friend of mine who just moved to Florida and asked him.
He couldn't give me a straight answer, besides warm weather and lower taxes.
Left his family, and all the friends he knew, behind.
Really??

Anyway, weather is low on my list of reasons to move somewhere.

People have been moving to Florida for a long time. It's not a "reaction". I moved here in 1981, my wife moved here in 1983. We spent 30 years working up north, all the while planning our escape when we retired.

The weather is a primary factor for us. My wife had a severe ankle injury, which is aggravated by cold weather and dramatically increases her chances of slipping on ice. Yesterday, 4 inches of snow blanketed our former home. And here, temperatures were in the high 70's.

As far as family is concerned, being 1,000 miles away isn't necessarily a bad thing. We do miss the grandbabies, but we can travel easily, and we do so frequently, weather permitting.

As far as friends, we've always enjoyed making new friends and experiencing new adventures. Post retirement, we have settled in a very friendly, eclectic community. When we return from visiting the great, white North, we are immediately greeted with warm smiles, engaging conversations, and friends of all ages and views

 

[Aerides]

I would like to know what is going on with Real Estate in Florida? Inventory seem very low in our area. Literally only three homes for sale now in our 600 home CC community, that is up from last week as there was only one then. And we are coming up to the "H" word Season. How about yours, please state your rough location?

We are in NE. Fla.

It's a national issue. Available homes is at a record low, many neighborhoods look like yours on Zillow. Demand is high because of low rates and the desire to be in a "stay at home" place, and supply is low because everyone's been shopping for a year and now prices are going up:

https://www.architecturaldigest.com/story/housing-supply-record-low-anything-left-to-buy

 

[MRG]

It's a national issue. Available homes is at a record low, many neighborhoods look like yours on Zillow. Demand is high because of low rates and the desire to be in a "stay at home" place, and supply is low because everyone's been shopping for a year and now prices are going up:

https://www.architecturaldigest.com/story/housing-supply-record-low-anything-left-to-buy

+1

I'm seeing listings for $300 a square foot for existing construction. A few months ago it was $250 for brand new construction. We paid $150 a foot for existing construction 5 years ago.

 

[48Fire]

Yes, real estate is definitely a national issue. Here in Florida, prices in our area seem to have gone up around 30% in the last year. A 948 square foot, 2 bedroom, 1 bath home down the street from us just sold for $450,000!!! That's $474/sqft!!! And this is not Naples, Palm Beach, or some other exclusive area.

It's beyond the 2008 bubble in my opinion, feeling more like the dot com bubble. We had a renter suggest to us that he would be willing to pay $500,000 for our place, before the prices go to $700,000. I took his phone number We paid $292,000 one year ago.

Back to the "why Florida" thread. Just finished our hour long walk, through the park and along the water. Just perfect. Had one friend literally block traffic as she stopped, hollering, and carrying on a conversation with us. Chatted with another friend for 20 minutes. Dipped our toes in the pool, planning an afternoon of golf, then a swim to cool off. No regrets here

 

[48Fire]

It's a national issue. Available homes is at a record low, many neighborhoods look like yours on Zillow. Demand is high because of low rates and the desire to be in a "stay at home" place, and supply is low because everyone's been shopping for a year and now prices are going up:

https://www.architecturaldigest.com/story/housing-supply-record-low-anything-left-to-buy

Thanks for sharing the article. As we walk around town, we keep asking ourselves, "Who's buying these houses at inflated prices?" I think, to some degree, it's people that have sold, and are just leveraging their inflated sale. Our retired friends that have been renting and snowbirding seem to have the opinion that they should buy now, before prices go up another $100,000. Maybe some international investors, too, who knows. Whatever it is, doesn't seem sustainable to me.

 

[Amethyst]

For at least 100 years, Florida has had a reputation for having "bubble" real estate markets.

 

[48Fire]

For at least 100 years, Florida has had a reputation for having "bubble" real estate markets.

A few weeks ago, we watched an HGTV house hunter show that focused on our first community, Palm Bay. We bought our house in 1984, after we were engaged and several months before we married. In 1986, the Challenger disaster created a mini-depression in our county, and it took 10 months to sell. It was fun to reminisce about our first home, though, look at the pictures on Zillow, and look at the sales history.

 

[RAE]

I would like to know what is going on with Real Estate in Florida? Inventory seem very low in our area. Literally only three homes for sale now in our 600 home CC community, that is up from last week as there was only one then. And we are coming up to the "H" word Season. How about yours, please state your rough location?
We are in NE. Fla.

We own a home in west-central Florida (Citrus County), and it's the same thing. Realtors say the inventory of homes on the market is only 40% of the long-term average, so demand for homes is WAY beyond supply right now. Houses for sale are getting multiple offers, with some quite a bit above listing price. Average home price has increased something like 16% over the past year, according to the local paper. We are getting postcards and texts from realtors weekly asking us if we want to list our home, but we have no interest in selling at this time. Pretty crazy market right now (and not just in Florida).

 

[Badger]

You adapt and naturally acclimatize. Avoiding a lot of time daytime outdoors for July/Aug/Sept is just something you do, kinda like avoiding the bitter cold Dec/Jan/Feb. Or that is beach/pool time. Everything indoors is AC. After you've acclimated it really is just those three months that are hard to tolerate. And summer is not really that much different than the other 8 or 9 lower SE US coastal area states.

Similarly, I can't do cold much anymore. I mean 40 is my low threshold and that's with boots/coat/gloves, etc. 60 is my lowest comfort for outdoor dinner (sweater, jacket, etc., best be no wind). We set the heat to come on at 68, and get a handle of 3-day winter cold snaps most years, where it might hit the 40's overnight but creep into the 60's in the day.

But since when is retirees moving to Florida a surprise? I mean it was a whole Seinfeld episode 25 years ago. Del Boca Vista baby!

Shhhhhhhhhhh! Don't encourage more people to come here. Tell them about the alligators in your swimming pool, disease carrying mosquitoes, sink holes that swallow houses and cars, hurricanes, etc.


Cheers!

 

[old medic]

My dad moved to south of Tallahassee in the early 80s where a bunch of family already was. We have visited over the years... but no way this mountain boy could tolerate living there... even just part time

 

[Fermion]

I am not convinced we are in a bubble. It is super expensive in just materials to build a house now and that is not counting labor.

Some prices:

Composite decking: $80 for a 16 foot 5.4 inch wide board. This makes a couple of decks around your house cost $4,000 just for the deck boards, say nothing of the pressure treated joists, posts, etc.

Plywood crazy high, $78 a sheet for CDX. Sheathing a roof and putting on a subfloor ($108 for 1"1/8" tongue and groove) is something like $10,000 just in plywood. This is not counting underlayment, ice barrier, shingles, gutters.

Suddenly $250 a square foot starts to sound like a bargain.

 

[ShokWaveRider]

Nine years for us and never one regret. The new area expansion is crazy!

Absolutely nothing wrong with "The Villages" if you like that sort of thing. We would not mind it if it were not in the middle of the state.

We have a friend whose Mum lives there and there are a lot of benefits; Top Notch Healthcare close by, all services close by, easy access to all facilities, really nothing to complain about other than location.

We are also lucky and have the same benefits all within 5 minutes of us, plus a beautiful non crowded beach. And of course hurricanes...

 

[harllee]

My dad moved to south of Tallahassee in the early 80s where a bunch of family already was. We have visited over the years... but no way this mountain boy could tolerate living there... even just part time

old medic--I can't remember where in the NC mountains you are located but do you see a lot of Florida people in your area in the summer? Where I am in the summer--Banner Elk--I think there are more Florida people in the summer than NC people. I guess that's OK if they bring a lot of $$ to spend.

 

[brett]

I am curious. I don't get it. It seems like the knee-jerk reaction of older retirees is to move to Florida.

Nothing against Florida but ... there are other states in the Union.

I talked with a friend of mine who just moved to Florida and asked him.
He couldn't give me a straight answer, besides warm weather and lower taxes.
Left his family, and all the friends he knew, behind.
Really??

Anyway, weather is low on my list of reasons to move somewhere.

We feel the same way after spending time in various part of Florida over the years. Florida is about the last place we would want to live or buy a winter home..

 

[Dtail]

We feel the same way after spending time in various part of Florida over the years. Florida is about the last place we would want to live or buy a winter home..

Yeah it was 26 wind chill today where I used to live and I had to suffer with a high of 79.

 

[Koolau]

As far as family is concerned, being 1,000 miles away isn't necessarily a bad thing. We do miss the grandbabies, but we can travel easily, and we do so frequently, weather permitting.

Folks always asked us: "But what about the grand kids?" I always answered: "The planes fly both ways and kids don't stay put. We can't build our lives around where our kids decide to settle."

Case in point: Daughter has moved 4 times since starting her brood. Had we tried to keep up with her, we'd be jet lagged all the time. We've had one grand baby live as close as Big Island (200 air miles) and now almost 5000 miles away. All this in her less than 2 years of life. How would we keep up with such phrenetic moving?

Now returning you to our regularly scheduled discussion of why everyone's moving to FL since YMMV.