[hiknapster]

You are correct on a couple of different counts.

First of all, I also lived in Orlando and my experience there was very different from living in Fort Myers and Bonita Springs. The people were friendlier, most of them were natives and there was a real southern feel to the place. The city was much nicer, too, with things going on of interest for many age groups. There is also museums, Magic games, hills, flora and fauna, etc.

SwFlorida was a flat, retirement mecca of cranky people. End of story.

I left Orlando in 1998 and I've been told that it went downhill but I'm not sure. I wouldn't die if I had to move back to Orlando as opposed to swFlorida.

But even Orlando was very different from what I was use to. You are correct. Home in the northeast is very different than Florida. It has a different feel to it and I can imagine you having a hard time getting use to moving to somewhere else, too, with Florida being so very different.

I've found that the Floridians that do well in Knoxville miss the way Florida use to be and Knoxville reminds them of that. It mostly is the friendliness of the people. It is all about your perspective. In my opinion, Knoxville barely has a winter, coming from the northeast, and I absolutely love the spring and fall here, but to you your experience would be different.

But the question was about transplants and I found that even in Orlando, Florida was like walking on Mars compared to what I was use to. It is so very different from our perspective and I suspect most people don't ever adapt. I think if you are retired and in an enclave where you are catered to it might be different. For families it is a huge culture shock. And I think that for year-round people that have family up north, especially grandchildren, it is barely doable unless you are the type that aren't into that.

Thank you for calling my city nice. I really appreciate that. For what it is worth, I think that the Tampa area would be a good place for families to relocate to. Younger folks in general. It's had a tradition of having jobs, and like Orlando, there are things to do beyond shuffleboard and bingo. It has interesting scenery, too.

I think that once you start getting south of Orlando and Sarasota things rapidly go downhill.

Originally Posted by gypsychic

Florida is nowhere near as bad as you describe. I know you hated Ft. Myers where you lived, and I can totally understand that (I do too), but it in no way represents the entire state anymore than parts of Tennesee that differ from the nice city where you live now. I really hate to see entire states get painted with a broad brush. I have lived my entire life in the expanded Tampa Bay metro, and for me (and everyone I know) there is no better place to live.

[Rabflmom]

Originally Posted by Maggi07

You have to add the gas bill in there too. My gas bills in the winter up north were somewhere between 250 and 300/month.

And WOW, how much cable do people need? I pay $87/month for phone, internet AND cable and there is no way I could ever watch all those channels!

My suspicion, after reading many of your posts, is that you don't have experience paying bills at all and don't have a real reference point.

Also, if you are under 25, your insurance will be higher no matter where you live. My car insurance, for two cars, one with full coverage and the other just the basics is $79 a month. My dh has one ticket.

Shopping around would probably help you save some money in more than one area.

Coming in on this conversation without going back and reading the original posts from you Maggio; but you only pay $87 for phone,internet, and cable? We pay $147 a month for those services by the time all the taxes are added to it here on the coast.. I think they quote it at $109 a month in their ads.

For car insurance we have 2 cars and no one under 25 driving them. We pay $178 a month for full coverage on both, have no accidents or tickets, and have excellent credit rating( which is figured in when charging premiums).

[Maggi07]

Originally Posted by Rabflmom

Coming in on this conversation without going back and reading the original posts from you Maggio; but you only pay $87 for phone,internet, and cable? We pay $147 a month for those services by the time all the taxes are added to it here on the coast.. I think they quote it at $109 a month in their ads.

For car insurance we have 2 cars and no one under 25 driving them. We pay $178 a month for full coverage on both, have no accidents or tickets, and have excellent credit rating( which is figured in when charging premiums).

Yes, that's what I pay with taxes and everything through verizon. We have the minimum cable and digital voice, which saved us some. We got a bit extra off because we were returning customers.

Our car insurance only has one car with full coverage, the other has the minimum. We saved $300 switching to Geiko. No one under 25 driving here, either.

[FloridaKash]

You have to know how to play the insurance game to save. Florida has PIP which is useless if you have medical insurance. You're basically covering yourself twice. Many state will let you drop this coverage. To my surprise there are many type of different PIP coverages available. Pick individual, excluding relative and loss of work pay. Raise the deductible as high as you can and see how much you save. Also, you can save by reducing your Liability Limits and increasing your comp/collision deductibles. And last but not least, Insurance companies love to ********* over if you have bad credit. Increase your credit score and then shop around. If you do all of these you'll save money. Also, don;t forget about removing roadside assistance and rental reimbursement to further lower your rate.

[cheerbaby112]

PIP insurance paysfor 80% of your medical bills and 60% of your lost wages, up to $10,000. I refuse to drop PIP because medical insurance wont cover lost wages for my husband.

[TANaples]

What happens with those all inclusive cable charges, if you read the fine print, is that after the initial 6 month to 1 year special rate, they can increase it, and they DO. It happens everywhere, which only proves the point, that you have to read the fine print before you sign any contract.

They do in NY, but they do in Florida also. Buyer Beware is a very good adage, anywhere.

[Whu]

Florida sucks. I wish I could move, but both my wife and I have decent jobs.

[Mike1306]

Originally Posted by Whu

Florida sucks. I wish I could move, but both my wife and I have decent jobs.

Could you not find decent jobs elsewhere?

We'll manage without you.

[FloridaKash]

Originally Posted by cheerbaby112

PIP insurance paysfor 80% of your medical bills and 60% of your lost wages, up to $10,000. I refuse to drop PIP because medical insurance wont cover lost wages for my husband.

I hear ya. Lucky for me, I have both Short Term and Long Term disability benefits from work. Since I am paying to have them through my work, *I* have no need to pay for it again through my auto insurance. Everyone has their own situations.

[ChrisA70]

Originally Posted by Mike Peterson

Could you not find decent jobs elsewhere?

We'll manage without you.

Ahhh feel the love and compassion in the air.....