Living in Two Places - Experiences, Factors and Issues?

[KingOfTheCheapos]

So I'm fortunate enough to have the money to own two properties. So I want to know:

For those of you live in two places.

a) What locations and what months? Why did you choose them as a pair.
b) What are some of the hidden issues you didn't foresee?
c) Any other tips/suggestions for people researching two areas to live in

 

[Ramen]

For a few years I bounced between the mountains and the desert. Be sure your vehicle can handle both climates. A couple of times I got caught with my small car when I needed my SUV to get back to the mountains in the snow. It was all just bad timing, but if I'd had only the SUV and not tried to gamble with the weather in the car, it would have prevented some headaches.

Also, you'll need to own two of everything. You'd be surprised how often you need something in one place that you left at the other.

 

[kcowan]

Summer place
Winter place
Air travel between
Two cars
Two sets of everything
Difficulty remembering which is where, esp. Tools
Property manager and housekeeper in each location during absence
Different cultures requires adaptation

 

[The Cosmic Avenger]

I'm also wondering about this, specifically what things people take from one home to the other, and what you duplicate. I suppose it depends somewhat on your WR, but still.

 

[Bamaman]

We moved to just outside of Huntsville. Our lake house is 70 minutes away on the Tennessee River. We would like to have a home in Florida or on the Gulf Coast, but our family situation doesn't allow it.

The lake house has been in my family 75 years and I grew up there.

Pro: is that I can use it anytime. Con: It's just another yard to cut. The water's deep, clean and we have a 6 mile water sunset view to the West. The good thing is that total upkeep is maybe $250-300 a month, including taxes.

Many friends have condos and houses down on the Gulf Coast, and they rent them in the high season (Summer.) They're bringing in too much $ to personally use the properties then. And they have real estate management firms dealing with renters and maintenance. They're charged out the nose anytime something goes wrong. They spend quite a bit going back and forth, but most only go for 2 weeks at a time.

 

[Koolau]

We keep a small "apartment" in the midwest at what we call the "homestead" - the place I grew up. We usually spend the better part of the summer - about 3 months/year. Naturally, we use the time to visit friends and family.

The rest of our time we spend at our main home (condo) in Hawaii. Uh, because we can.

There are a number of issues to such "split living" but nothing we haven't managed. The biggest issue is having someone "watch" the place we left behind (start cars, close storm windows for hurricanes, etc.) Mostly, these things work out as you learn how to deal with each issue. It helps having friends and family at each place. YMMV

 

[calmloki]

Willamette Valley Oregon and La Quinta California. 1050 or so miles apart, depending on our route. Oregon for the summer, SoCal for the winter. Because it is dark and gloomy in the winter up north and (currently) 122 degrees in La Quinta.

Dealing with starting, stopping, or putting on hold ones internet/entertainment (Frontier, Comcast and their ilk) is painful and leaves one feeling serviced in the worst "welcome to animal husbandry" way. Elastic left in the desert turns crunchy over the summer, so you run AC for big bucks and contribute to crashing the power grid or leave it off, carry underwear north and south and buy new candles because the ones in the holders have curled over and now are laying on the table. In Oregon every now and again it gets chilly and water pipes can freeze. The house absorbs moisture to match the general sogginess, so clothing gets a fine mildew-y fragrance and it takes a few days of heat to dispel the general cold clammy feel inside. Or we run the heaters and attract vermin looking for a warm place to winter. Medical insurance and care can be problematic. Paper statements bank documents, tax papers (1099int), and new or replacement credit cards often will NOT be forwarded by the PO.
Cats we take north and south complain bitterly for a way before giving up and focusing on shedding and getting comfortable under the brake pedal.

We take tax documents and a bunch of anticipated use paper files N&S. We contact all the financial organizations we can and try to get tax docs online - also make SURE they have the right primary address - fighting with California about whether I need to pay them taxes instead of Oregon is not fun. As soon as we unload we label a box "going South" or "North" and start putting things we want to take with us to the other place into it. Also put in a paper upon which we write what we forgot to bring that we want to retrieve next trip.

 

[harllee]

We have a summer place in the NC mountains and a winter place in the middle of NC so we get the best weather no matter what time of year. We had the middle of the state house first and bought the second house later when we wanted somewhere cooler for the summer. One good thing about our 2 houses is that they are about 3.5 hours apart so if we need to get to the other house or to our doctor, etc it is an easy drive. We keep a double set of most everything except we carry most of our clothes back and forth and we usually carry golf clubs back and forth. We have 2 cars but we usually only take one car to the mountains. We consider our Chapel Hill house our primary residence, we spend more time there and that is where we vote and that is where out doctors are. The biggest downside is of course the cost, twice the maintenance, insurance, taxes, utilities, etc. When we use to travel to other places a lot we also felt some guilt about traveling when we had 2 homes. At our age we are not traveling as much so it is good to have a place to go.

 

[pb4uski]

So I'm fortunate enough to have the money to own two properties. So I want to know:

For those of you live in two places.

a) What locations and what months? Why did you choose them as a pair.
b) What are some of the hidden issues you didn't foresee?
c) Any other tips/suggestions for people researching two areas to live in

a) we live in Florida and spend a little less than 6 months at our summer home in Vermont (~mid-May to late Oct) to escape Florida's heat and humidity
b) none
c) none really, it is like buying clothes... you need to try them on and see if they fit before buying. We visited some friends in Sarasota on our way home from a seasonal rental in Naples. We liked the area so decided to rent there the next season. We liked Sarasota and had a lot of friends from Vermont there so we were looking for a seasonal rental in their neighborhood. Couldn't find a seasonal rental but an opportunity for a FSBO popped up out of nowhere. It was for a rare end unit so we ended up buying it, used it for about 5 seasons before becoming Florida residents in 2020.

Transitions back and forth are a small hassle. There are numerous nice surprises along the lines of finding things that I have seen in a while. I probably should take pictures of the contents of closets and drawers before leaving each place. I do have certain files that come with us whereever we are but most things are done electronically.

And we're close to having two of everything, except golf clubs... those go back and forth but we have golf bags in each location. We use Blink security cameras, internet thermostats, etc to monitor the properties electronically while we are away and have neighbors who can stop in if needed.

 

[NW-Bound]

My two homes are in the south and north sides of the state. One is in the low desert and the other is at 7,000 ft. Only a drive of 2.5 hours separates them. Good thing I did not buy a 2nd home up in the Puget Sound.

 

[RAE]

So I'm fortunate enough to have the money to own two properties. So I want to know:

For those of you live in two places.



a) What locations and what months? Why did you choose them as a pair.
b) What are some of the hidden issues you didn't foresee?
c) Any other tips/suggestions for people researching two areas to live in

a) northern Michigan and west-central Florida. The Michigan location is where I spent most of my career, and I lived year-round here for 50+ years. Still live here for 7 months of the year. Once I retired, we started looking for warmer spot to spend the winter months, and settled on west-central Florida, after spending time in a couple different spots (Florida Panhandle, Texas).

b) no huge surprises or big hidden issues (so far....we've owned the Florida house for 2 1/2 years).

c) well, the obvious suggestion is to own homes in very different climates, so you can spend most of the year in a place where the weather is pretty nice. That was our main motivation for buying the place in Florida.

It is true that you will need to figure out what items you can just bring back and forth, and what items you will want to keep at each place. After we bought the Florida house, we filled a U-Haul trailer with stuff to bring down there from Michigan (mostly tools, my fishing gear, some clothes, etc). Since then, we only bring things back and forth that will fit in our pickup truck. It has worked out okay, for the most part. As far as outfitting the house with kitchen stuff, furniture, tv, etc..........we just bought all that stuff down there, mostly used stuff in good condition so it did not cost us all that much.

So far, it has worked out pretty well, and we have no regrets. We do rent the house out during the summer months when we are not there. The key to that is having an excellent property manager, that lives close-by. Fortunately, a neighbor of ours does that job for us, and he does a great job. We have another guy that takes care of the grass and other small yard chores, and he is reliable also.

 

[KingOfTheCheapos]

My two homes are in the south and north sides of the state. One is in the low desert and the other is at 7,000 ft. Only a drive of 2.5 hours separates them. Good thing I did not buy a 2nd home up in the Puget Sound.

Well living in one state does simplify things. What state?

 

[RunningBum]

I had two places 1100 miles apart due to family reasons, and I spent about 3 months at a time in each. It was pretty certain to be semi temporary (8 years) so it's not that it didn't work out, but rather the need for the other house went away. I found that I was always settling in from the move or preparing to make the next move and not able to get into any real projects of any kind. Probably less of a deal for people who do ~6 months at a time, or have their second home fairly close to their first.

 

[RAE]

As soon as we unload we label a box "going South" or "North" and start putting things we want to take with us to the other place into it. Also put in a paper upon which we write what we forgot to bring that we want to retrieve next trip.

Yep, we do exactly the same thing. Memories fade with time, so keep a list, and if possible, put things in the labeled bins whenever you think of an item that should go to the other place when you travel next.

 

[pb4uski]

+2... the Vermont box or the Florida box depending on where we are at the time.

 

[KingOfTheCheapos]

+2... the Vermont box or the Florida box depending on where we are at the time.

@pb4uski and others who live partially in Vermont. I would love to retire to Vermont but the taxes would kill me. Does living less than 6 months of the year in Vermont side step any taxation issues?

 

[oiseux]

This currently is an unbalanced pair, to become more balanced when fully out: northern California and the French Riviera. No particular months. California is where many family roots are and a home. The south of France condo allows easy access to all of Europe and just 30 minutes from Italy giving the influence and access to two countries on the daily. Warm sea during the summer, but not too hot and humid outside, nor is it too cold or snowy in the winter. Plenty of people in similar situations, top health care, very good tax treaty. The adventure itself invigorates one out of your daily patterns.

Some hidden issues thus far: the sea does create more maintenance issues (kind of knew this, but COVID made it worse with the lack of visiting). Fortunately there are many cost-competitive services in this area that cater to remote residents. They will even start your car periodically. Not hidden, but dealing with pets is a challenge with two locations so far apart.

Don't be afraid to consider far spaced locations. This isn't a weekend getaway anymore. With a housesitter and/or maintenance services your primary home will be just fine.

 

[KingOfTheCheapos]

This currently is an unbalanced pair, to become more balanced when fully out: northern California and the French Riviera. No particular months. California is where many family roots are and a home. The south of France condo allows easy access to all of Europe and just 30 minutes from Italy giving the influence and access to two countries on the daily. Warm sea during the summer, but not too hot and humid outside, nor is it too cold or snowy in the winter. Plenty of people in similar situations, top health care, very good tax treaty. The adventure itself invigorates one out of your daily patterns.

Some hidden issues thus far: the sea does create more maintenance issues (kind of knew this, but COVID made it worse with the lack of visiting). Fortunately there are many cost-competitive services in this area that cater to remote residents. They will even start your car periodically. Not hidden, but dealing with pets is a challenge with two locations so far apart.

Don't be afraid to consider far spaced locations. This isn't a weekend getaway anymore. With a housesitter and/or maintenance services your primary home will be just fine.

Okay, you had me at France. I lived there for a few years and would love to retire there. How does it work if you split your time? I presume you spend the majority of time in the US to qualify as a US resident for taxation purposes?

 

[NW-Bound]

Well living in one state does simplify things. What state?

Arizona. The topography of the state causes the northern and southern halves of the state to be quite different.

 

[Ronstar]

We have a northern Illinois house and had a Scottsdale az townhome until 2 years ago. Spent 8 mos in Illinois 4 in az. Jan-mar & nov in az. Had these 2 locations for weather differences.

Sold the townhome primarily for elder care reasons. I wanted to move full time to az. DW wanted her mom to move with us which was agreed upon at first and then MIL changed her mind and wanted to keep living in her apartment 10 miles from our Illinois home.

The 2 home issues such as dual expenses, dual upkeep didn’t surprise me. But I didn’t see the elder care issue coming.

Don’t think I’ll get back into 2 homes, but I’m not ruling it out.

 

[pb4uski]

@pb4uski and others who live partially in Vermont. I would love to retire to Vermont but the taxes would kill me. Does living less than 6 months of the year in Vermont side step any taxation issues?

Hold on, your profile says that you are from California and you are worried about Vermont taxes killing you?

If you have $100,000 of ordinary income in 2021 and are MFJ your Vermont income tax would be $3,051 but California income tax would be $3,103.

But to answer your question, yes.... if you are not a Vermont resident you are not subject to Vermont state income tax unless you have income producing property in Vermont.... and part of being a non-resident would be being in Vermont less than 6 months a year, amoungst other things.

https://www.irscalculators.com/tax-calculator

 

[KingOfTheCheapos]

Hold on, your profile says that you are from California and you are worried about Vermont taxes killing you?
https://www.irscalculators.com/tax-calculator

Umm, because I don't want to pay CA or VT level taxes Either is not worth it.

I love CA and am happy to pay state income taxes when I'm using the great services (i.e. schools) but not when I am not.

 

[4legsgood]

I have a house in Redmond, WA and a cabin less than an hour away. I split time between the places, usually half the week one place, half the other (since close and a scenic drive between) and except for the dual yard maintenance, it's a lot of fun. If I was to buy again, at least one of the places would be no or low maintenance, but I have no urge to own a place that requires getting on a plane, though I know people do that to follow the sun.

 

[oiseux]

Okay, you had me at France. I lived there for a few years and would love to retire there. How does it work if you split your time? I presume you spend the majority of time in the US to qualify as a US resident for taxation purposes?

You can stay 90 days in six months without a long stay VISA and if you stay the majority of the time in the US you remain an US tax resident. However, the VISA process is straightforward and the tax treaty is really pretty good if you are retired, depending on your income sources (most don't pay more than their US taxes due to the treaty; there is a wealth tax only on property after 1.3M E, at modest rates). Inheritance tax and planning is the biggest issue. We will consider a long stay visa in the future for some period of time.

 

[Scuba]

One issue no one has mentioned is how having two places affects one socially, especially if they are located far apart. On a positive note, you can make new friends in your new location. However, if you have a set of close friends who are important to you, it’s hard to stay as close if you’re only in that location part-time. Yes, you can do FaceTime or Zoom calls, you can visit each other, but you will miss out on day-to-day simple interactions as well as celebrations of some of life’s milestones.

Friends are really important to us. We do have two homes, but decided to rent one of them out to a long-term (2-year lease) tenant. Our homes are only two hours apart and we have been able to make new friends in our new place and still maintain fairly close relationships in our original city. We would love to have a home in the Caribbean and could sell one of our two existing homes to pay for that. However the distance would mean we would hardly ever see any of our long-term friends.

We had a primary home and a vacation home several years ago, and one thing I really disliked is having to have two of most things, and inevitably not having my favorite clothing item or kitchen tool with me when I wanted it because we didn’t have complete duplicates of literally everything.