New York (Westchester) to Florida - Help??

[bcfarmlady]

I think the area you are looking at is very nice and within your range for costs etc. I lived in Oviedo for 13 years, Winter Springs is nice. The Seminole County school district is rated pretty high as Florida Schools go.. but you have to be diligent with them if you have a student with special needs.

HOT, yes it's hot here and expect for it to take you several years for your blood to thin out. I'm originally from Mass and I know of these things. Take water with you everywhere you go, you will need it.

[SisterP]

Can I ask you a question, what is wrong with the public schools... what is the main reasons why it's of poor quality? I need to understand this. Thank you.

[JLFCPA]

Originally Posted by jhlcomp

Dear friends of mine live in Yorktown Heights. I have lived in Florida for 20 years and my recommendation to you is stay where you are. Your children have access to an excellent education. You are able to make a decent wage and live in an area where jobs are not as much an issue as here. When you want to go to the mountains or the shore, you can.

My husband and I enjoy Florida because we came here at the right time. In our case, we want to move to an area with a cooler winter and more variety. I strongly urge you to spend longer periods here if Florida is really where you want to live and research the area thoroughly. What may be the perfect tropical paradise can quickly turn into quite the opposite.

Both my business partners live in Yorktown. The education situation is probably the #1 hurdle to get over. #2 is coming to some conclusion on whether we can handle the so called brutal summers. #3 is money.....but we probably wouldn't make the move unless I am acquiring a small accounting practice.

We don't like the mountains much. Love the shore though.

[tcar509]

Dear Prospective Floridian,
My husband and I moved here about 12 yrs ago. I came from Connecticut and he came from the Bronx NY. It used to be nice here. However we are carefully planning our exit from this touism driven state. Realty prices have skyrocketed along with taxes and insurance rates. Car insurance is 3-x here what is in is North Carolina. Millions of people come here to relocate and immigrate year after year causing an overcrowding effect. Traffic is hell.
We live in S. Fl between Miami and FT Lauderdale. Have you ever watched the crime drama the 1st 48 hrs? Most of the stories are based in Miami because the crimes there are endless. Hurricanes, homeless people, hookers
in downtown Hollywood Fl, I could go on. Unless you cannot live without being near the beach I would never recommend that anyone move here at this time. The good points: Lots of job opportunities, mostly in the hospitality or sales business. I am a little jaded by this lost paradise at this point, however maybe a little vacation to visit here may do you some good.
tcar509

[nene39]

Palm Coast, a great resort area up North East Florida where we have milder weather year round than that in the south or the west coast. We haven't had hurricane landfall here in more than 130 years, knock on wood it doesn't change, at least during my lifetime...LOL!!!
Anyway, I built a 2500 s.f. house in a gated golfing community, right now you can get about the same size like new house for a lot less than $400K. I'm paying $1,800/year on maintenance that includes the use of amenities such as olympic sized pool (a second community center was just built as well, though the pool is smaller) two gyms, racquet, tennis, basketball courts, playground for the smaller children, and two gyms, a clubhouse, and the security guard. We have excellent public school system, parks where the kids and adults alike can play and relax and even launch your boat on, and we're about 10 minutes to the beach, and for sure, if you're giving yourself a 5 year window to get settled as an accountant, you should be able to make it work.
My budget living in this gated community, is as follows:
No mortgage....
Maintenance----$1800/yr.
Real Estate Taxes-----$6,400/yr. discounted if you pay in November (we pay in arrear, not in advance for this), but only because there's a special bond floated to carve the main street that connects us with the two major thoroughfares, otherwise it would have been just $4K and change...
Home insurance-----@1200/year
City water (including sprinkler use & trash collection)------$170/month, cheaper if you have a well
Lawn mowing service-----$65/month
Outside Pest control------$400/year
Electricity----------------$180/month average
DSL internet, landline, and unlimited long distance service -----$91/month
DirectTV service----------$61/ month
Cell phone----------------$100/ month
I'd say about $1500 a month for all these monthly. As to food, it's personal choice. We don't eat out a lot as we like home cooked food, and our children are grown up, but had they not been, Palm Coast has excellent public school system that the community supports, and appreciate. They offer well rounded education for the young, and the adult school is no less gratifying, they have all kinds of courses that satisfies a lot of interest.
So I'd say $18K/year, but that's living without scrimping on amenities, I'm sure it can be less with more care...
In exchange, we have the security of a gated community, surrounded by warm and friendly people. We have a young and vital community in this city within a city, the public school bus does pick up youngster from our development, and we are getting closer and closer to seeing our new town center crop up overnight.
Pass by Palm Coast and see it before you decide where you would build your house. I've been here 18 years, and I never thought I'd call it home, but I finally sold my co-op in New York which I held on for many years, and so am here to stay. I love Palm Coast!!!!

[Momma_bear]

Originally Posted by SisterP

Can I ask you a question, what is wrong with the public schools... what is the main reasons why it's of poor quality? I need to understand this. Thank you.

The curriculum is entirely based on what is on the state tests. Class sizes are high.

There is little taught in subjects outside math and reading because that is what is on the state tests. This is changing because science is now part of the state test battery.

In middle school the kids don't read nearly enough books because they are busy learning how to glean the "main idea" out of a 5 paragraph reading selection.

The kids are taught to write using a "formula" that yields a good score on the state test. This is great for little kids to get started, but the older kids never really progress past the formula.

The arts are nonexistent in some public schools. So if you think it's important to learn something about art, music, theater, photography, etc. then you are out of luck.

No matter what your ability the curriculum is limited to what is on the state test. So even the brightest kids focus on passing the state tests.