[beenaround]

SUN--hands down..as I look at the 6 inches of snow here in western Maryland. I do miss Florida weather....

[LeavingFlorida05]

Originally Posted by ekrz44

Sun wonderful sun! No brainer!
Winter? Heating bills sky rocket, car mileage goes out the window. Car accidents 20x more likely. My car takes a beating from the salt and all of winters evils. Wind chills. 8 months of hibernation. Not seeing the sun for weeks at a time. Dry cracking itching skin. Dismal.

Sun....ah..sun. Warmth.
Morning walks, evening walks. You can do things before it gets too hot. You can't do anything in the cold.

Midwest deals with nasty winter, then we get Florida like summers. At least you can have the windows open during the winter months, we almost never are able to have open windows, summer, or winter.

Sure, both the midwest and the Florida summers are hot and humid, but Floridas' goes away and turns into very reasonable temps, while the midwest turns into a ice box for 6-8 months.

PS. Skin cancer from sun exposure, frost bite from winter exposure.

You're ignoring the incredible springs and autumns you get in the Midwest. I grew up out there. I've seen it first hand. In fact, I remember September of 2004 as being the absolute best weather I have ever seen, anywhere. Even better than Florida. It was literally sunny, with a high in the low 70s, for the entire month. At the same time, Florida was suffering with temperatures and humidity both over 90.

[CalisterKaley]

Originally Posted by faithfulFrank

There are so many threads here with opinions on how good/bad Florida and the snow belt is, just for fun I thought I'd post a picture of both. It kind of puts in perspective the differences.......

Things I'll miss about it.....the acres of lawn to mow, (I like mowing), the fireplace, the deck and pool, the big kitchen and 17' ceilings, the central vac and huge garage, THE BASEMENT!!!!!, the two big walk in attics, etc,etc.......
Things I won't miss......the higher taxes, the snow, the cold, did I mention the snow??

New house.........

I think we will like living there, I love the neighbors, the activities, etc....I hope I can get used to NO BASEMENT, and a smaller garage, not going out into the woods to cut my christmas tree, ........I'll miss a Christmas snow,(a little).......all in all it will be a big adjustment, but one that I think we will like.......it may be hard going to a house less than half of what you are used to......no steps anywhere....it IS a whole different life...it gives one much to think about......

I do think it is cool driving in Florida seeing all those little reflectors on the road....it's almost like driving on an airport runway....

Questions......Do Florida people who own hot tubs just keep them unheated in the summer? How many times a year do orange trees get picked?, Just one?

One thing I did notice about the new house that I don't like.....when you turn on the hot water, it seems to take a LONG time to get hot...I'm guessing that the pipes from the hot water tank in the garage go under the slab, cool down, then come up to your sink....so you have to run a LOT of water to get the hot water to you. Is this common?? If so, I think I'll install individual instant hot water makers, (tankless) for the kitchen, etc.....it seems like SUCH a waste of water.....are ALL florida houses like this?? you would think they would have insulated the pipes when building.....

Sorry for the rambling.....the real truth is that I miss the new house down there, and I hate the cold up here......this forum is like real therapy for me, it helps just being in contact with all of you, and in a strange way, when I am on here discussing Florida, I do not miss it as much.

thank you all.....

Frank D.

frankie - you seem like a real dreamer and dreaming is good yes here you will get a ton of sun but you will also have to deal with an endless hot and muggy summer and believe me your tune will change once you are down here i see it all the time

how will you be selling your house since the market is in the dumps and its getting worse

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/orl-foreclose0407mar04,0,4083682.story (broken link)

there is a big article on the orlando sentinel about how bad the central florida housing market is more than double the foreclosure rate of any other area - other areas are at 20% foreclosure c. fla is like at 43% (see article)

prices are steady but because surplus is busting at the seams and condo situation is beyond terrible - every article i read seems to say to stay away from condos - prices are ultimately going down so if you WAIT to buy you are smart if you buy now, its still too high and you will get stabbed with a foreclosure if you lose your job here - if you can find one

i happen to think hotel jobs and amusement park jobs suck no matter how the companies try to paint it as cute and happy - it is not your life will be a living hell working for a theme park

it is a different lifestyle here not too bad 'cept the weather most of the year which is horrible but other than that it's not hell, as long as you can make it from work to house alive and not being robbed. have an alarm in your house you will need it

you won't see any season changes here you will deal with bugs- mad people- traffic that is the worse in my life!! omg traffic and drivers in c. fla are the worse in the world, not even in Japan did i see people drive this crazy as they do in c.fla it is really a shame fla is kinda nice but the PEOPLE make it bad

[faithfulFrank]

Dear CK,
My gameplan is to sell my house in NY in about 4 years.....I will make a profit on it, I assure you....(I built it myself, so I have a lot of sweat equity in it).

The house in Central Florida I plan on living in after that. Until then, it is rental property which is a good tax shelter and is bringing in income, tax depreciation, and is a positive investment. In that zip code, in that community, prices continue to rise, and I bought it at a good price.

Worse case scenario, I move there in 4-5 years, try it for awhile and DON'T like it, it will STILL sell for a profit and I am not out anything. I was just there for 3 weeks, and the traffic was fine...(40 miles from Orlando, ya know....and away from the only bad traffic I saw was around the villages, 15 miles north of me.....)

It is not a condo...it is a house in a sought after gated community. I agree with some of your statements, but I do not think they all apply to rural Leesburg. I will be reitired by the time I move there, so jobs are not an issue for me.....
Thanks for taking the time to share your opinion.....

Frank D.

[doggiebus]

Originally Posted by LeavingFlorida05

You're ignoring the incredible springs and autumns you get in the Midwest. I grew up out there. I've seen it first hand. In fact, I remember September of 2004 as being the absolute best weather I have ever seen, anywhere. Even better than Florida. It was literally sunny, with a high in the low 70s, for the entire month. At the same time, Florida was suffering with temperatures and humidity both over 90.

Thank you, some seem to forget about Fall in Spring up north, and how beautiful it is. While you guys are having great weather then, most of Florida is still hot and humid.

[Petertherock]

I was in Florida for a week this past September. Was it hot? Yes. Was it humid? Yes. Was it unbarable? Not for me. I spent most of the week at Disney World and with the exception of a few rain showers (it's Florida rain showers are the norm) it was very nice. I would take 90s and humidity all 12 months over the 6+ months of snow and freezing cold temps we get in Maine.

[faithfulFrank]

Yup,
My personal faith encourages me to "be content in whatever state I am in" (New Testament).....

but when that state is New York, it is difficult....

I perceive Florida as an upgrade to New york....

Frank D.

[Margel]

I don't know Frank, when your read some of the posts around here, it is hard to imagine that Florida is an upgrade to anything...and for some, not even hell! I, on the other hand, can't wait to at least give it a try and am looking forward to the warmth all year as opposed to what I have now...frigid temps, the same traffic (I live in Philly), multicultural (same what I have now), crime has got to be less, and just the prospect of imagining my life to be different than what I have now. The glass is either half empty or half full. Too bad for some that their glasses seem to be constantly, completely empty.

[faithfulFrank]

I've said it before here, but I think the different viewpoints are because of this;

1) THERE ARE DIFFERENT "FLORIDAS"......city, rural, north panhandle, southern key west, coastal, central, etc........I live in NY, but I own acres of property, in a rural part of NY. NYC, or even buffalo and Rochester, which are only 30 miles away from me, is a whole different world. Same with florida.

2) PEOPLE ARE DIFFERENT.....Florida looks a lot different if you are retired, have a good pension, ad are looking forward to a life of leisure......if you are young with an entry level job, it looks a bit different. For me, florida's weather looks good, and Florida is one of the BEST states tax-wise for retirees.....

Just my 2 cents......

Frank D.

[ekrz44]

Oh no!
I didn't forget about the wonderful best weather ever. That weather of spring and fall! That is the best weather hands down!

However, that great weather is only around a week or two tops. It is rare when you get a prolonged period of spring and fall.

What sucks about fall is that if you've lived here long enough, you know it's the warning signs for winter. And summer comes to a crashing halt, a week or two of fall, and then winter slaps you in the face again, and will continue to do so for the next 8 months.
Spring is great because that marks the end of winter, however this two lasts 2 weeks tops, only to be followed by the sweltering heat and humidity of summer.

But I do love spring and fall, I would love for it to last much much longer.
But to stay in the midwest for those few short weeks of summer and fall isn't worth the numbing winters.

You know why they make cars in the midwest? To get the flip out!

Peace.