[blacksmith76]

Where are you from? I grew up in the NC piedmont, but have lived in the Denver, CO metro area since 2000. I lived in St. Pete during the summer of 2000 and have been wanting to move back to Florida ever since.

Where in Florida are you moving? Loxahatchee

What attracts you to Florida? We love the weather, lifestyle, activities (big surprise there). Also, the year round gardening and ability to grow rare tropical fruits.

What research did you do or have already done to pick your city or location? We needed some acreage where I can run my noisy metal business without bothering anyone or freezing to death for half the year, but we wanted to be reasonably close to a major metro area and still in Zone 10 for our gardening. Loxahatchee was really the only area we could afford that met all our requirements. It also seems to be a relatively safe area with decent schools for our daughter. My family lives in NC, so it's a bit closer to home, and I have a grandma in Ft. Lauderdale.

Did you spend time in that town in person? Yes. We spent a lot of time looking around Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach counties once we decided on SE Florida.

Did you communicate with people who live their personally? Yes, we met one other guy who moved down from up north 10 years ago and sells tropical fruit from his house. It seemed like we'd fit right in.

[SeaLady321]

What are you from? Hingham Ma. via Fitzwilliam NH

Where in Florida are you moving? Brevard Cty, been here 20 years.

What attracts you to Florida? my parents moved here, and after visiting them I saw how nice and wonderful the area was and how nice iit was to be able to go outside and now have to put on boots, hat and coat to just go get the mail.

What research did you do or have already done to pick your city or location? I was lucky my parents had done a lot of research before moving here and chosing Brevard cty - good schools, on the Atlantic - stays MUCH cooler in the summer, strong Atlantic breezes, less buggy than the west coast.

Did you spend time in that town in person? yes, I came and visited for 10 years before moving here.

Did you communicate with people who live their personally? Yes and got to know many in the 10 years we visited.

[sunnymaryann]

Originally Posted by faithfulFrank

First, welcome to city-data.

The Travares area is nice. I really like the Clairmont area also. We own a home in The Plantation, between Leesburg and Clairmont, about 15 miles south of The Villages. When checking out 55+ gated communities, be sure to check out the HOA fees and fiscal stability of the community. Some places have gone into bankruptcy.

I'm really happy with The Plantation. I'm not selling anything, but our community is "built out", so there are no bond fees like The Villages, and our HOA fees are only $85.00 per month. The Plantation is owned by the homeowners, and we are very much solidly in the black. They have a website. The Plantation for us seems just the right size...just under 3000 homes, two PGA golf courses, three activity centers, a restaurant, etc.

Feel free to PM me if you have any questions. There are many great places around here......all a tad different.....most all very good. It is best to visit them all and one will just "feel right". Good luck!!

Frank D.

Thank you Frank your post was most helpful! Plantation will definitely be explored on my laptop today. I have heard many fine things about Plantation in the past. It was so kind of you to take the time to post your reply to my query.

[berryjuice4life]

We just moved to florida, the kids love it so far, my dh is really liking it and so am I...but the kids and I have only been here a week now We settled in West Boca

[grneyedmustang]

What are you from? Atlanta, GA

Where in Florida are you moving? Lived in Tallahassee for a year to attend FSU.

What attracts you to Florida? I loved the fact that Tallahassee had a small town feel, but yet it had a few (150,000) people! I love being 90 minutes away from nice beaches. I absolutely HATE cold weather, but Tallahassee had enough of a "winter season" for me to enjoy Christmas and New Year's without feeling out of touch with the seasons.

What research did you do or have already done to pick your city or location? I went and visited multiple colleges and fell in love with Tallahassee when I visited before attending FSU. I also visited Melbourne (Florida Tech), but something drew me to Tally. Plus Florida Tech was SUPER expensive.

Did you spend time in that town in person? Yes

Did you communicate with people who live their personally? Yes, I still have friends in Tallahassee and visit occasionally. If I could find a decent job there, I'd leave the traffic and smog in Atlanta and move back in a heartbeat!

ETA: I think I'd like Jacksonville also (from the times I've visited), but since I've lived there, Tally is home.

[rokinronda]

Frank, hi! We actually looked at Plantations 1st because of their 50+ age restriction, but the few homes available were not what we wanted....so we drove north......and the Legacy office was closed......so we headed north....When we saw the bridge, we were dumbfounded as we drove in via Main St.. We bought that day. I have lived in the Villages since 10/2004. We bought a resale/no bond home. We love it here. The entertainment every day is great!!! (LOVE to dance) Plenty of free golf (over 25 executive courses!), water volleyball, polo, hospital, grocery stores, over 90 restaurants, archery, adult and family pools, bowling alleys, movie theatres, boardwalk along Lake Sumter, all the stores, medical offices, tax office, pickleball..hundreds of clubs...all a golf cart ride away! No regrets. I love TVs!

[faithfulFrank]

Originally Posted by rokinronda

Frank, hi! We actually looked at Plantations 1st because of their 50+ age restriction, but the few homes available were not what we wanted....so we drove north......and the Legacy office was closed......so we headed north....When we saw the bridge, we were dumbfounded as we drove in via Main St.. We bought that day. I have lived in the Villages since 10/2004. We bought a resale/no bond home. We love it here. The entertainment every day is great!!! (LOVE to dance) Plenty of free golf (over 25 executive courses!), water volleyball, polo, hospital, grocery stores, over 90 restaurants, archery, adult and family pools, bowling alleys, movie theatres, boardwalk along Lake Sumter, all the stores, medical offices, tax office, pickleball..hundreds of clubs...all a golf cart ride away! No regrets. I love TVs!

Awesome! Also, welcome to City data.......! I'm a mod here...it is a way that I get my "Florida Fix" since we are currently only down there a couple of times a year. We'll be there full time in about 747 days, but who's counting.

I think I've seen you on TOTV.....

We go up to the Villages often when we are down there.....like the restaurants, boardwalks and looking at all the golf carts. It is a one of a kind place.

It is always great to have folks here who are HAPPY in Florida....who LOVE the lifestyle.....I know it is not good for many folks, but here on the forum there is a lot of negativity that I do NOT see when we are down there....in our area we are surrounded with folks who are "living the dream".....they are retired or semi-retired, have nice homes, and are living the lifestyle they worked hard for years to achieve and are now reaping the benefits of hard work and wise investing.

We often have many questions about the area and the Villages.....thanks for posting, it's great to have you here.......

Frank

[rokinronda]

I am more than happy to answer anyones questions about The Villages, Fl.

[tercel95]

Where are you from? Patuxent River, MD

Where in Florida are you moving? I moved to Orange Park about a month ago

What attracts you to Florida? MD has a ridiculously high cost of living... I wanted a nice mix of rural and urban with low crime and more affordable housing...

What research did you do or have already done to pick your city or location? I had never been to JAX before... I did 99% of my research for the move here on city-data...

Did you spend time in that town in person? No

Did you communicate with people who live their personally? Only on city-data

It has been the best decision of my life to move to JAX...

[triciajeanne]

What are you from? Virginia (northern/DC metro area)
Where in Florida are you moving? moved to sarasota
What attracts you to Florida? the beaches, particularly southwest florida - no state income tax was nice - no winter sounded good - original thought that the baby boomers would be heading there and wanted to get there first and get a job - also thought sarasota county government was very progressive and wanted to work there
What research did you do or have already done to pick your city or location? much research, mostly focused on local government
Did you spend time in that town in person? yes, vacationed there regularly
Did you communicate with people who live their personally? yes, again, mostly people who worked for the local government

Just some ideas.

I am interested in where you moved from and where you moved to and your specifics, I am interested in hearing from those who moved away and now have moved back and decided it was the right thing for you to do.

If you moved away and are coming back, where did you move to and where did you move back to in Florida? first reality check - why did I leave - this is not a "slam" session but something you need to know before you move to southwest florida or florida in general - I got slapped in the housing bubble/job market crash that decimated local government staff/ there are few jobs in southwest florida and the classic was to be told that to get another job i needed to "dumb down" my resume. - likely the prices have dropped and thus others won't get burned but we got really hurt by the housing crash - banks, real estate agents /etc acted in a manner that immigrants to the state did not know just how precarious the bubble was - 500,000. home purchased in 2005 just sold for 260,000. - we had long since abandoned trying to sell it and "gifted" it back to the lender who appraised it at a half million. 2. Home insurance cost and difficulty in getting any insurance on properties is a downer. I have never paid so much money for coverage and had no idea of the rates prior to moving to Florida. I did not realize that many companies such as USAA would write a policy but the quote did not include hurricane and mortgage companies certainly require hurricane insurance. So homeowner insurance on a basic house running 2600.00 was not considered high and this was NOT a property on water. 3. Real estate/property tax were very high - again, coming from places where I lived, I had had cheap real estate tax and then high for the state. I was amazed at how high it was there. If I had not had any payment on my home mortgage wise, between my insurance and property tax, I would have had a 700.00 payment - tack that on to your P & I. Just be sure you check not what the previous owner shows in the listing - they might be homesteaded - your assessment will jump up to what you paid or very close so your neighbor may pay 2000 a year while you for the same house are paying 6200. You will get homesteaded if you don't own other property out of state but your base line will be much higher than others in same neighborhood.
4. Coming from more southern states (and yes, DC drivers ARE rude much of the time) , I did feel that florida was not a real warm state, hospitality-wise speaking. Just not all that friendly. Everyone seems to have come from somewhere else and having been schooled in Richmond Virginia, I guess I was used to friendlier people. It was hard to break in in Florida (not that kind of break in - i had a job for most of the time there). 5. If you are a person of four seasons, it is hard to leave that. Every day being sunny and generally hot is depressing - after a while, you long for a cloudy day. The sun is scorching - sarasota is blessed with a natural breeze that wafts through so it's easier than many places but still, that sun during the day, can do you in. I cannot fathom how it feels living in from the coast by 50 miles. I would die. I have to admit that returning to the land of four seasons (virginia/north carolina) was like heaven - i adored the change of seasons and so appreciated seeing each of them in all of their beauty. 6. Median-age in southwest florida - it is not easy to be in your fifties in this area - it seemed like having non-white hair was a strike against you. Reversed-age discrimination. It was pretty depressing. Ok, now that I have not said great things, yes, I am going back - I"m still a resident - i wouldn't be a homeowner and be going through the horror of what happened/the beaches ARE wonderful/i have some great friends there that I would enjoy hanging out with again and I have learned, in traveling to other places, that home is whereever you plant yourself. Florida, like anywhere, has its ups and downs. But I would look carefully at where you settle - watch the neighborhoods you move in to because you may not have much commonality with your neighbors. I would live in one of the more metro areas/city of Sarasota for example and not a suburban neighborhood - or maybe St. Pete/Tampa - Ft Myers - make sure you get close to the beaches - they are your friend. Florida will charge you a hefty fee to get your car in the state, particularly if it is newer - but after that it is just your tags. Insurance for auto was a bit higher but not majorly. Electric seemed reasonable/be careful on purchasing - many homes in southwest florida have pin hole leaks in pipes - check that out carefully or you'll spend 10,000 replacing the pipes - check out the depth of irrigation well - drought has run a lot dry - cost of redigging a new well is high and you have to have irrigation - if you go dry, you'll likely burn out your pump before you know it and that's another 1200.00 - so those are the things i can think of off the top of my head - hope it helps you in your relocation. (mickey said to say hi)

Thank you from allot of us for posting your information.
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