[4luvofk9s]

Frank,
My husband wants to semi-retire (I'm much younger then him and we both work out of th house) so we can move anywhere. We live in Winter Springs (love it here by the way!), and would like to move into a smaller home a little further north. Your house is nice looking - do you mind me asking what gated community you are in. Someone mentioned the Villages but I noticed in your last post that you said it was 15 miles up the road from the Villages.
Thanks for info.

[faithfulFrank]

Dear 4luv,

It is in a gated community called "The Plantation", about 2 miles south of Leesburg.
We looked at a few other very nice gated communities around it, and many were nice, i.e.; "The Legacy", "Arlington Ridge" , etc.

I liked the Plantation because of a few things....2 golf courses, 3 big community centers, 2 fitness centers, 3 guardshacks for entry, 3 big pools and hot tubs, resturant, etc,etc.

3050 homes in 31 smaller little mini-communities, mature trees, and above all, nice friendly people who were not snobby, just nice and respectful. You can do a lot there and get involved with neighbors and clubs, etc, or not.

Everything is owned by the homeowners themselves...keeps fees down, you are self-governing.

Frank D.

[sunrico90]

Frank D,

Can you tell if your original plan worked out or if you had many changes? This can help some individuals looking to purchase a home.... And what is your best advise....

[4luvofk9s]

Thanks Frank,
Sounds like euphoria. We'll have to wait I have a feeling the lots in all these communities are going to be pretty small (I have two large dogs). Maybe when we do the full-time retirement thing, and have little foofoo dogs we might look into it as a potential future spot.
Thanks!

[Ellyg]

Congratulations on your new home!
Born in NY raised in South Florida. I am in the Miami Lakes area, this is about 3 hours from Leesburg. There is crime here like you would not beleive. Everyday people get shot, killed etc. I am not kidding you. The further up North you go the better you are. Like Jacksonville, Jupiter, West Palm Beach. Whatever happens in this part of the city does not mean it's the same at Leesburg. I wish you all the best.

[Ellyg]

Congratulations on your new home!
Born in NY raised in South Florida. I am in the Miami Lakes area, this is about 3 hours from Leesburg. There is crime here like you would not beleive. Everyday people get shot, killed etc. I am not kidding you. The further up North you go the better you are. Like Jacksonville, Jupiter, West Palm Beach. Whatever happens in this part of the city does not mean it happens at Leesburg. I wish you all the best.

[beenaround]

I moved to Central FL from Maryland several years. I returned home for personal and family reasons, but overall, my Florida experience was the best time of my life. I met so many great people down there. Almost everyone I met was from somewhere else, so I got to see different perspectives. You don't see that too much in Maryland. Alot of people complained about the "Florida" drivers, but really there's no such thing. Yeah, they have a FL plate, but there's a very good chance they are not from FL originally. Actually, I found driving in FL not that much different from any other place. For Florida to have so much traffic, I think drivers handle it quite well. I also had good experiences with the school system. I had a wonderful house and nice neighbors. I enjoyed being 20 minutes from the ocean. But I think alot of happiness depends on your attitude. Unhappy people will be unhappy no matter where they live.

[pianogal]

Frank..I love your home and the yard is beautiful - nicely landscaped. It looks like the perfect retirement home. I know you're so excited and I'm so happy for you. I hope your Florida experience is all you have hoped it would be. Please be sure to post once you're settled and let us know all about it!

[faithfulFrank]

Thank you all,
I was asked to share our "story", hopefully helping others......
My Captain retired a few years ago, and bought a nice double-wide in a nice retirement in Leesburg called "Hawthorne"....He loves it. So two years ago, another FF brother I work with bought a house down here in the Plantation.....and proceeded to tell everybody about how great it was with the zeal of a one week old born again Christian......many here rolled their eyes, but was happy for him.

So last month we visited three different friends in Tampa, Ft. Myers, and then the two mentioned above in Leesburg. We had NO intention of following their footsteps. In fact, I always said I would NOT end up in Florida.

We spent about 4 days in Leesburg. My friend has a rental manager who does everything very well for him, for a small percentage of the rent. He plans on retiring here in about 3 years.....so he bought 5 years prior to his retirement date.

He explained that it has been worry free for him, because the rental manager is so good. Now, he can come down there 3-4 times a year to "check" out his rental property....all as a tax deduction. He can also depreciate the cost of the place a percentage each year, (I think around 1/27th per year), and any improvements and costs associated with the property is a tax deduction, along with the interest he pays....etc...to offset the rent that helps pay for the place. It has made a huge difference in his taxes, and gives him a place to go.

Property values have risen in the Leesburg zip code about 135% in the last 5 years. He figured a few years ago that IF he waited until retirement, he may not even be able to afford to buy then. In short, he is of the firm belief that it has been and will continue to prove to be one of the best decisions he has ever made. He is a person that I have always admired for his "money-sense", etc.

When we saw how good Florida is to the senior citizen pensions, etc....I realized that there are good reasons OTHER then sunshine that retirees choose central Florida. we also fell in love with the Plantation, and the exact location IN the Plantation, and in peticular the house and property we decided to buy. Now, instead of working hard for some ambiguous thing called "retirement", I now KNOW my planned future, it now has an address.

I do not think I could lose here, and IF in 4-5 years, when I DO retire, I change my mind, I do NOT think I will lose my shirt. Chances are, it is a wise investment that will go up in value....enough that if I did not do this now, I will not be able to afford to do it 5 years from now. After a steady rise in values there for the past 5-10 years, there has been a 3 month slight dip that I have benefited from, along with a motivated seller.

Having old friends owning right across the street and 2 miles up the road helps. I also would not do this without a great property manager. We find ourselves wanting to be back there every day.....although we know that we need to "stick to the plan" and just visit a few times a year for the next 4 years or so.

There are always negitive people who will be jealous, or tell you the summers are "bad", etc......but if you fail to plan, you plan to fail. Bottom line.....I am just using the huge amount of equity I have in my house here up North, and transfering it to the house down there, where I believe it will grow more, plus give me some awesome tax benefits, etc,etc.

I cannot convey to you the value of having this in what it does to your spirit when you are depressed living day to day, for days without seeing the sun or any temperature above freezing. If you have not lived for days in bitter cold, you cannot understand this.

Those who know us are amazed that we did this so quickly.....i'm one who researches the heck out of everything before spending a dime. I too am surprised, but it feels so right, and we are so excited. There are many nice homes for sale, and some are great deals now........I'm sure some areas are hotter then others. In the "hotter sales" places, things happen fast. Up north here, a house sale can take 5-6 months.....here the whole thing can take just 2-3 weeks.

Anyway, sorry for the long post. Hope I have answered some questions, or at least somewhat explained our "Northern" perspective.

Frank D.