[asdavid]

Hi. We are trying to help our parents relocate from Pensacola to be closer to us (we live in Weston near Ft. Lauderdale). They want to be in a smaller town and don't mind if it is somewhat rural. They don't have a huge retirement fund so they are nervous about taxes and insurance. My father-in-law suggested Belle Glade, Clewiston, or South Bay. Can anyone suggest areas we should look at there? We are going to drive out there this weekend and take a look. Holiday Home Builders has a house they will build on our lot or theirs for under $100k.

My husband and I prefer the West Coast (like Cape Coral, Lehigh Acres, etc.) but after reading some of the info posted here about the $18,000 assessment in Cape Coral for water, etc...I don't think it's worth the visit.

Any other suggestions or tips would be greatly appreciated!

[tallrick]

You need to take a drive up highway 27, from South Bay to Moore Haven. It's a poor area with high unemployment and you don't even want to go up highway 80 to Belle Glade. A few years ago it was worth living there for the low property prices but now idiotic speculation drove up prices to an unsustainable level. There's a surprising amout of crime out there too. If prices return to 2002 levels I say go for it, otherwise stay far away.

[macguy]

Originally Posted by asdavid

Hi. We are trying to help our parents relocate from Pensacola to be closer to us (we live in Weston near Ft. Lauderdale). They want to be in a smaller town and don't mind if it is somewhat rural. They don't have a huge retirement fund so they are nervous about taxes and insurance. My father-in-law suggested Belle Glade, Clewiston, or South Bay. Can anyone suggest areas we should look at there? We are going to drive out there this weekend and take a look. Holiday Home Builders has a house they will build on our lot or theirs for under $100k.

My husband and I prefer the West Coast (like Cape Coral, Lehigh Acres, etc.) but after reading some of the info posted here about the $18,000 assessment in Cape Coral for water, etc...I don't think it's worth the visit.

Any other suggestions or tips would be greatly appreciated!

None of them.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Belle_Glade,_Florida

[pslOldTimer]

I sometimes agree with tallrick and I sometimes agree with macguy, but this is one of the rare times we all agree. The towns around the south and west of Lake Okeechobee are not somewhere I would choose to live. If I was an executive with Big Sugar I might agree to live in Clewiston, but otherwise, they are sad, depressed towns. I wish it wasn't so, but it is...and, remember, I chose to set up my retirement near the north shore of Lake Okeechobee, which has some elements of the other towns, but also has enough progressive elements to make it more attractive.

I can't imagine more of a culture shock than traveling from Weston to any of the towns your mention around the lake. I can't speak about the West coast, but anything would be better.

[doom1001]

I would also agree,all those towns around the lake are not where you want to be.Somewhere on the west coast would be a much better choice!!

[kcm]

Check out your other thread on this subject... I put a post on that one ... check it out ....

[Donna-50]

None of the above. I don't even like driving through those towns.

[Dave_n_Tenn]

Lakeport is a much better choice. It's a bit further north of where your looking, but affordable, rural, and not nearly the crime rate.

Nice people around there... lots of mid-westerner's who like to fish the
Big _O.

[PeteU]

Originally Posted by asdavid

Hi. We are trying to help our parents relocate from Pensacola to be closer to us (we live in Weston near Ft. Lauderdale). They want to be in a smaller town and don't mind if it is somewhat rural. They don't have a huge retirement fund so they are nervous about taxes and insurance. My father-in-law suggested Belle Glade, Clewiston, or South Bay. Can anyone suggest areas we should look at there? We are going to drive out there this weekend and take a look. Holiday Home Builders has a house they will build on our lot or theirs for under $100k.

My husband and I prefer the West Coast (like Cape Coral, Lehigh Acres, etc.) but after reading some of the info posted here about the $18,000 assessment in Cape Coral for water, etc...I don't think it's worth the visit.

Any other suggestions or tips would be greatly appreciated!

Belle Glade, Clewiston and South Bay are all very economically depressed areas. I wouldn't recommend moving there unless you absolutely had to. Whenever I've driven through Belle Glade, I get very sad seeing such a seemingly downtrotten town.

You might want to look into the Town of Okeechobee area. It's small, rural and pretty inexpensive, but from my experience it doesn't seem to suffer from the same high levels of abject poverty as the towns on the south side of the lake. It's no Palm Beach, but if you are looking for a cheaper inland solution, it's a possibility.

Lake Placid, as someone mentioned, also bears some consideration.

[doom1001]

Going a bit more north on US 27,Lake Wales and Sebring don't look too bad.But definitely stay away from Belle Glade,Clewiston and South Bay.