Retired in Florida or in the Planning Stages? Please share Here.

[jimnjana]

We live in the Space Coast. It's awful here. Probably best just to pass it by as you head south on 95.

[Souschef]

Quote:

Originally Posted by jimnjana We live in the Space Coast. It's awful here. Probably best just to pass it by as you head south on 95.

You are so funny. We tell people driving US 101 from LA to Santa Barbara the same thing about Ventura County

[jimnjana]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Souschef You are so funny. We tell people driving US 101 from LA to Santa Barbara the same thing about Ventura County

I've heard that about Ventura County...

[jerryo]

Daytona can be a little busy and rough (though it does have a beautiful beach), but the towns just north and south -- Ormond Beach and New Smyrna Beach -- are quite nice. My DW and I recently moved to a spacious condo in Ormond just off the beach and have great bike trails, parks and nearly a dozen (non-chain) restaurants within walking distance. New Smyrna is a bit smaller, but still a charming artists colony. The half-million population Daytona/Deland metro area is big enough for most needs and has a sweet local airport in Daytona (with non-stops to NY, Charlotte and Atlanta). And, Orlando and Jacksonville are each only about an hour away if you need access to a big city airports and amenities.

St. Augustine, about 45 minutes up the coast, is also a wonderful college town, with easy access to Jacksonville. But it may be a bit chillier in winter!

[always_learning]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ShokWaveRider We just came back from house & community hunting in South West Florida. I know it is in season, but the traffic was terrible in comparison to where we live in NE Florida. We actually drove around from Marco Island up to Estero, many times in 3 days at all hours of the day. Other than that most of the communities that we liked were at least 5 miles to 10 miles from the beach. That is 15 to 25 minutes as I drove. We mainly were looking at the Naples area. Some other things we noticed is that a lot of the homes still had damage from Irma and had tarps on the roof and missing tiles etc. In addition to get an evening meal at Carabbas, Bonefish Grill, and other similar places was a 45 - 1 hour wait at the times we wanted to have supper. On the home front, the houses are well built. Saying all that, the homes in the price range we were looking are very nice and the developments are also very nice. The communities are well kept and looked after. Next time we will look in the Venice area, although we drove back through Venice and it was certainly not as nice as Naples. We never got bitten while we were there either (That did surprise me) and we were not molested by any roaming Alligators.....

Thanks for your update.

We are looking at FL when we retire in a few years and are considering the same areas you are.

I'll be watching this thread for updates!

[Sunset]

Quote:

Originally Posted by jerryo Daytona can be a little busy and rough (though it does have a beautiful beach), but the towns just north and south -- Ormond Beach and New Smyrna Beach -- are quite nice. My DW and I recently moved to a spacious condo in Ormond just off the beach and have great bike trails, parks and nearly a dozen (non-chain) restaurants within walking distance. New Smyrna is a bit smaller, but still a charming artists colony. The half-million population Daytona/Deland metro area is big enough for most needs and has a sweet local airport in Daytona (with non-stops to NY, Charlotte and Atlanta). And, Orlando and Jacksonville are each only about an hour away if you need access to a big city airports and amenities. St. Augustine, about 45 minutes up the coast, is also a wonderful college town, with easy access to Jacksonville. But it may be a bit chillier in winter!

We were just in Ormond beach last month, saw the big rocket and heard it even though it was many miles away.

I was thinking of moving there, but on A1A , going south to Daytona beach its pretty sad looking, going North to Flager it's nice.

What is your thought on a condo, on the Halifax river, either land or ocean side, vs between A1A and the Ocean. ?

[Freedom56]

I believe that Palm Beach County is one of the best places in Florida. We certainly have the nicest looking mermaids. I managed to capture a short video of one under the bridge that connects to Singer Island where a lot of people like to dive. Warning! Don't expect those grainy UFO type videos. This is the real deal.

[albireo13]

she has nice abs!!!

[PoorOldCountryBoy]

In-laws have owned in Nokomis since the mid 1980's. At least 5 homes are owned by family members in Venice, Nokomis, Osprey areas. It's great but you may not get out of the flood zones. I've been going down since the early 1990's--been there every month of the year. Played at Calusa Lakes twice last month in fact. Waterford is another nice place.


The area is very nice, you can get a freeze but only overnight usually. if you go further south it is warmer but also much more vulnerable to big hurricane damage. The last big hurricane flood in Nokomis was in the 1920's and the water went all the way to Rt 41. In-laws have never had storm damage but Hurrican Charlie was a close call as well as the hurricane this year (evacuated but only 90 MPH winds since it went over the everglades.).


It is getting crowded there year round, Ft Myers may have more room for you but that is building up too.

[ShokWaveRider]

We did visit and all the way up the west coast is way too crowded for our tastes, I think we sill stay put in NE Florida for a while. It was a breath of fresh air getting back here after a week in the SW.

[Shanky]

Quote:

Originally Posted by simple girl We live in Sarasota and love it here. It is pricey, but we like townhouse living, so we were able to find something that worked with our budget.

We moved to the area from San Jose CA, AKA Silicon Valley. We found everything to be very inexpensive. You can get waterfront here for the price of a 3/2 fixer upper in San Jose.

[Dtail]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Shanky We moved to the area from San Jose CA, AKA Silicon Valley. We found everything to be very inexpensive. You can get waterfront here for the price of a 3/2 fixer upper in San Jose.

Yes, it is all relative. Have 2.5x more square footage at 60% of price up North.

[beeboy]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ShokWaveRider We retired in Florida 10 years ago in North West Florida 2 miles from the coast in a nice small town. The heat does not bother us (We like it) neither do the other items that people love to bring up like; Alligators, Bugs etc., so please refrain from commenting on those. We are considering downsizing and moving further South to an area that does not have ANY Frost or Freeze Days. While we only get a few, we still do not like them, we want an area that does not stress my Banana, Papaya and fruit trees . According to what I have read one has to be south of Tampa on the West Coast and Melbourne on the East Coast. We like over 55 Gates communities with a good HOA. There are so many to choose from on 55Places.com. We would like to hear from folks that have done, are doing, have moved and have comments on their communities. Some Criteria: We do not like any communities that have Manufactured homes, currently prefer single family (That may Change). Within 5 miles from the Beach (Like Ocean Breezes). We do NOT like the Villages or any communities like them. We prefer homes build after 2002 (Concrete Block & Stucco). We currently live in a Country Club community and like the way they keep up the property, However neither of us play or like Golf. Out of Flood Zones A, B or C are preferred. We are thinking of looking in the Sarasota, Ft. Myers and Naples Areas. Thanks in advance for sharing.

My girlfriend's parents live in Hypoluxo, which is just south of West Palm. I have a place in downtown Ft. Lauderdale, which I love (i.e. more of a city, more to do, but also busier), but you may want to check out Hypoluxo, which is much quieter, but very nice and affordable, with a lot of 55+ communities. Also, Delray and Deerfield are both really nice w/ more going on. You can't beat the weather in S.E. FLA (West Palm and South), it's right below the jet stream so rarely gets cold and is quite often in the high 70s and low 80s even in Jan. and Feb.

[Dash man]

We’re in Hillsboro Beach right next to Deerfield Beach. We love the area and it’s an easy drive to Ft Lauderdale or Boca Raton. Sadly, we’re headed back up north today and likely to only come down for a week or so again before the fall. The weather has been great and the ocean waves more active and beautiful than the gulf side. Traffic is not as bad as Tampa, Bradenton or Sarasota.

[ShokWaveRider]

I just looked on Zillow in Delray, Boca etc. and properties anywhere near the beach have $Ms price tags. Parameters I chose were; Single Family House, built after 2002.

https://www.zillow.com/homes/for_sal...68_rect/12_zm/


Too rich for my Blood.

[beeboy]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ShokWaveRider I just looked on Zillow in Delray, Boca etc. and properties anywhere near the beach have $Ms price tags. Parameters I chose were; Single Family House, built after 2002. https://www.zillow.com/homes/for_sal...68_rect/12_zm/ Too rich for my Blood.

Check east of US 1 and west of the intracoastal. Still really close to beach and close to action of downtown. I actually like that area better than the beach (and you are literally minutes away from the beach). May want to look at pompano, lauderdale, Hollywood, etc.

[Freedom56]

Just a warning to those looking for property in Florida. If the home was built or renovated between 2001 and 2009, make sure you have it inspected for Chinese drywall. When we were shopping for property in 2011, we were warned about this and encountered many properties with reactive Chinese drywall. We had ours inspected before completing our purchase. Many homes have been remediated (drywall removed/replaced, insulation, wiring, plumbing, and electrical removed/replaced) but many have not.

The following can provide some guidance:

https://www.cpsc.gov/safety-educatio...roblem-drywall

https://www.news-press.com/story/new...wall/19722227/

[Badger]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ShokWaveRider I just looked on Zillow in Delray, Boca etc. and properties anywhere near the beach have $Ms price tags. Parameters I chose were; Single Family House, built after 2002. https://www.zillow.com/homes/for_sal...68_rect/12_zm/ Too rich for my Blood.

You will find opposing opinions on housing costs depending on where you are moving from as well as what area of Fl you are considering. At the moment I couldn't afford to buy my modest concrete block house. Yet if I sold it I could buy a home that is 2X as large with more amenities in another part of Fl.

Cheers!

[LakeRat1]

SWF is amazing and affordable for our liking: We did a bit of research on affordability, we knew we did not want to spend a lot for a home or condo HOA Dues etc...... What we found was a very nice 55+ RV Resort Community where you own the land, water, sewer, trash, lawn mowing, two pools, tennis courts, horse shoes, shuffleboard, volleyball.....Most of the homes are Park Model mobile homes, a few motorhomes/trailers show up during season. HOA Dues are $125 per month..... Lots/homes are priced from $40k to $150K...... We are 4 miles from Ft. Myers Beach and 2 miles from Sanibel Island ----- I am one of the youngest ones in the community, but have found it very nice ...... We stay here for 7 to 8 months per year ..... NO STATE INCOME TAX or Personal Property Tax on vehicle/boats, etc.....