[jane corbett]

Hi I am currently living in Tampa and have been looking for a cheaper place to retire. Currently looking at Eufaula Al because of the lake. We have a sailboat we want to take with us. All the comments I have read about lower homeowners insurance and taxes are very positive.

[homey]

Jane

If you have a Sail Boat then I strongley suggest the Eufaula area. We moved up here from Punta Gorda and are currently living in Slocomb, which is just outside Dothan.

I have to confess I did not do enough homework on two issues, and do not let the boat influence your move.

One of the things I did not truley consider is boating, we have a 2003 19' Bayliner, and it has just been sitting here, to trailer it to Lake Eufaula's nearest ramp is a 110 mile round trip for us, I did however find a ramp just off 84 in Columbia and that trip will be about 66 miles round trip, would not be the lake but we could run the river. Unless you get a house on the lake with a dock deep enough for a sail boat you might be ok, the only other thing is to moor it at a Marina on the Lake and at this moment I have NO information on that, that would be our only way out if we want to continue useing the boat, but have to weight the costs.

The other thing is failed to do was check out the night life, and we have not found anything yet that comes close to what we had back home, still looking.

No Flood Ins here, homeowners Ins is 1/3 of what we were paying in PG and still going up, Property taxes, we I got a nice surprise the other day when we went to file for our Homestead, we were told that since I am on Disability that their will be NO taxes and I will not have to pay any, I just need to go sign up every year. (works for me)

I got a call in to the Corps of Engineers to one of the Park Rangers we met when we were up to Eufaula, to see if I can come up with some info on Marinas there, will let you know, the boat is nice but don't sway your decision, you can always buy another boat.

[danno]

we also just purchased between dothan and eufaula in abbeville, and cant wait to make the move... there are marinas on the lake and south towards abbeville that rent slips. we met a couple from fl while we were camped in lakepoint park looking for our home, and they were bringing there sailboat up with them when they moved here. they found a marina no problem.with an affordable slip. white oak park and marina on 431 has slips, and is half way to eufaula from dothan. this area has grabbed our hearts. the people are just as warm and welcoming as they can be.. its so real here, no road rage, pretentious want to be's, or people trying to make your life unpleasant..lol people will go out of there way to help.. my kind of place... the affordablility and quality of life here is awesome, and i hope you will love it as we do........... all the best and welcome to the area.......its hard to not like............ danno

[MrMeisterMan]

Dothan?...whew, I guess there are worse places to live for sure, but let's not go off the deep end here people....I've lived all over and my family has interests in many places...south and west....but wait a minute, I live in Sarasota and choose to remain...living in SRQ, the lifestyle, the culture, the physical beauty can't be logically compared to many other places esp a place like DOTHAN !...heck Punta Gorda is NO comparison to Sarasota even ! I did meet some very nice and freindly people in Dothan having driven through on 231 a zillion times, but let's be real, Tampa Bay down to Ft Myers is a special area indeed, it's not for everybody for sure, and the 'worker bees' are 'htting the bid' on their houses to move to places like S. Carolina, and esp East Tn area...at least TN has no INCOME tax, just like FL !.....in my view the best place to live in AL is around the Huntsville area, HANDS DOWN...the area is well educated and the surroundings are gorgeous....Birmingham is lovely but it's friggen stupid, so is Montgomery....I like the small city of Dothan, mainly because it's close to the Florida coast, but there's not a bunch (culturally) to do there......yeah, you can get a cheap house I guess, but I guess it depends on what you're used to, and what you enjoy to do as well.....

Sarasota-Manatee down to Ft Myers is not for everyone, and it's definitely pricing itself to cater to the upscale, not the blue-collar worker or retiree any more, and that's not good at ALL......but I'll sit right here in Sarasota, thank you very much....lol

[sunshine girl]

We had considered moving out of Sarasota a few months ago, but nixed it after previewing NC, SC, TN, GA, No.FL, AL, AR, and KY. No way were any of those places near comparison with Sarasota. Both in beauty and quality of living. We decided to stay, the grass was NOT greener anywhere else. There were ok things about each state/city we visited, but we always were glad to come home to Sarasota. And yes, the pricing here is a bit more than the surrounding cities, but it's worth it. I agree of all, Huntsville was the most comparable, but could not get past the closed mindedness of the area, and ultimately rejected it. I do enjoy reading the posts of others, who reinforce our decision as the right one for us. And I'm sure I'll be hit with the replies of well then, stay away, we don't want your kind here anyway. And with that I rest my case.

[homey]

Originally Posted by MrMeisterMan

heck Punta Gorda is NO comparison to Sarasota even !

but let's be real, Tampa Bay down to Ft Myers is a special area indeed, it's not for everybody for sure,

you can get a cheap house I guess, but I guess it depends on what you're used to, and what you enjoy to do as well.....

I have to guess that you have no idea at all what it is like being on a fixed income, none what so ever. I have to also guess that you are one of the ones that have their nose so far up in the air that you will never smell the roses. I have to also guess that you are one of the ones that has a Handicap Sticker in your car so you can get to the beach or the Restaurant faster than others.

I am on Disability, have been since '95, I worked all my life never asked for anything, but life delt me a low blow, I am not at all happy about it, but I will do what I have to do to get buy.

Now I will grant you that Punta Gorda, will never compare to the likes of Sarasota or Naples, but Punta Gorda is Punta Gorda and we lived their and loved it their, we were about a mile from the harbor, I could drive up to any beach in less than an hour, and yes that means your place with white sand called Sieasta Key, "Been there done that" Hated it!

So why did we move, well it's all about something called $$, if I could reverse what we have done I would, we had a nice home, big enough for both of us and the wife drove 40 miles every day to work and back, she is getting older, she is burning out but she will work rings around any 18 year old doing the same thing, wear and tear on the new car, and the raiseing cost of everything was a red flag to me that maybe a life change was in order, so we do not get caught in a money trap and end up being on the looseing end of the stick, "Been there done that" Hated it!

Charley spared you and your white sandy beach, but I worked my ass off rebuilding our home after that and I didn't see you here helping, but we had friends from Venice and Sarasota that did lend a hand, Ivan, Frances, Jeanne, Wilma, all of them are the reasons things are they way they are, and I never saw any help for people like me who are stuck in life on a fixed income and have to worry about the little things, like how long are we going to be able to live here at this rate?

We moved up here because it was cheaper, I didn't buy a cheap house, I bought a new house because it was smarter, we have more here than we had their for less money, and now because I am on disability I do not have to pay any property taxes. Do I miss SWFL, hell yeah,

I will also grant you that the Punta Gorda will never compare to Sarasota, but I will tell you this much, their are far less people in Punta Gorda with there noses up in the air than their are in Sarasota, so the air is cleaner!

I will also grant you that the Punta Gorda will never compare to Sarasota, but I will tell you this much, Do I want you for a neighbor, Hell No.

But I have noticed that you post on many forums, enjoy your time and the next time we are headed south on 75 and pass thru Sarasota on our way to Punta Gorda we will roll the window down and wave at yea.

[BigMunch]

great reading here !!

[jane corbett]

Originally Posted by homey

Jane

If you have a Sail Boat then I strongley suggest the Eufaula area. We moved up here from Punta Gorda and are currently living in Slocomb, which is just outside Dothan.

I have to confess I did not do enough homework on two issues, and do not let the boat influence your move.

One of the things I did not truley consider is boating, we have a 2003 19' Bayliner, and it has just been sitting here, to trailer it to Lake Eufaula's nearest ramp is a 110 mile round trip for us, I did however find a ramp just off 84 in Columbia and that trip will be about 66 miles round trip, would not be the lake but we could run the river. Unless you get a house on the lake with a dock deep enough for a sail boat you might be ok, the only other thing is to moor it at a Marina on the Lake and at this moment I have NO information on that, that would be our only way out if we want to continue useing the boat, but have to weight the costs.

The other thing is failed to do was check out the night life, and we have not found anything yet that comes close to what we had back home, still looking.

No Flood Ins here, homeowners Ins is 1/3 of what we were paying in PG and still going up, Property taxes, we I got a nice surprise the other day when we went to file for our Homestead, we were told that since I am on Disability that their will be NO taxes and I will not have to pay any, I just need to go sign up every year. (works for me)

I got a call in to the Corps of Engineers to one of the Park Rangers we met when we were up to Eufaula, to see if I can come up with some info on Marinas there, will let you know, the boat is nice but don't sway your decision, you can always buy another boat.

Hi Homey

Thanks for your reply. We are going to be up in Eufaula the 19th through the 21 looking some more. We found a marina for our boat at Lakepointe Park. The wet slips are quite reasonable and the boat will be close. I am still in question about a small town. I know the people are wonderful but we like a little night life too. And we are very progressive Democrats. I don't know how we would fit in. Still in the information gathering stage.

Keep in touch. Let me know how things are going for you.

[homey]

Originally Posted by jane corbett

Hi Homey

I know the people are wonderful but we like a little night life too.

If you find the NITE LIFE then by all means let me know, because we have not found any NITE LIFE that we are used to here, we have not been danceing since July, but life goes on!

Moderator cut: off topic

Glad you found a spot for the boat.

[jacksoli]

yes SouthEast Alabama Medical Center has excellent facilities, and Flowers Hospital, plus beautiful area. Growing, has good cost of living.