Help Buying Real Estate (Cape Coral, Fort Myers: house, income, to live in)

[Florida Paradise]

No one will cover you if you buy with chinese drywall. Your homeowners will not... your inspection insurance will probably have an addendum, insuring that they will NOT be held responsible. You need to take a look the "other" threads regarding Chinese Drywall... It has been devastating to many many people in SW Florida.

[oldfart1947]

The statement about MOST homes having Chinese drywall just is not true. True, SOME do. If your house was built in 2005-2006 you need to be careful.

You don't need a NASA scientist to tell you, you have bad drywall. If your copper pipes are black or your copper wires in your breaker box are black, you have bad drywall. If all your copper is shiny, then you probably don't.

[4kidsplus2]

Originally Posted by liberty4u

"BUT the problem is most houses that were built under 5 years ago have chinese drywall."

This I am worried about! Do most newer homes have Chinese drywall issues? Does a homeowner policy cover this or is it buyer beware no recourse? Will a house inspection company GUARANTEE no Chinese drywall?

Thanks

they know what they are looking for- it is stamped right on the back made in China, it has an odor of sulfur and your copper will be blackened. By all means have an inspection whatever you buy. Think it was $150 for us a few mos ago, well worth the piece of mind. We had our well, septic, roof, they check everything. Atleast we knew we'd have no major expenses coming.

We went through over 50 houses one showed evidence of chinese drywall. Realtors have a good idea when showing houses also- but I would get the inspection

[harleygirl07]

Inspect, Inspect Inspect...We just purchased, not only had a home inspector but used a company specifically for CDW even though we kinda thought house was good since it had been redone. There is an old saying "BUYER BEWARE" even if you are on a tight budget for your own piece of mind have the home inspected there is a reason it is that low in cost. If it's too good to be true it usually is. Are you able to get any money for a small mortgage to go with the lump down payment and step up to a better home? If not, just make sure you have it professionally looked at. And no you can't get any kind of HO insurance if you buy know it has it not until you take the steps to remidiate the problem which is BIG$$$$$. Can't wait to move. Closing on Monday. I hope to be in by end of October middle of November gotta wait for the pool and fence work to be done. Cape Coral here I come!!!! Do they have classes some where to teach you to pump your own gas? lol or will I screw it up?

[kroeran]

Originally Posted by liberty4u

tjstrain,
Thank you for the response! I am a disabled Vet with limited income but have saved enough to buy a $50-$60k house. Unfortunately, my options are limited by my finances so we were hoping Fort Myers area would be a good match. I have looked at Las Vegas and Phoenix but the ocean does sound appealing. I am sure with unemployment and depressed home values there is a significant increase in crime.
If you had limited income and $60,000 cash to buy a house where in the area would you buy? Why?
Thank You

you sound like an ideal candidate for this area. Not looking for work, no kids in school, looking at housing under 75k. There will be many different situations for you to consider, and if you can manage it, try to resist the temptation to buy before you have spent a year in Florida.

The property tax system is slanted toward soaking snowbirds and second homers with higher end homes, so by moving down, establishing homestead status, and maybe some other discounts for being a vet or senior (not sure how those work), I suspect your property taxes will be very low.

If ready beach access is a priority over boating/fishing, I am wondering if south of Alico road might be better for you to consider. The Cape is a bit of a hike from the beaches. I know others here have direct experience with that area, so I look forward to their comments, pro and con.

this is one I saw on craigslist

http://fortmyers.craigslist.org/lee/reb/1945177790.html (broken link)

[hiknapster]

Originally Posted by kroeran

you sound like an ideal candidate for this area. Not looking for work, no kids in school, looking at housing under 75k. There will be many different situations for you to consider, and if you can manage it, try to resist the temptation to buy before you have spent a year in Florida.

The property tax system is slanted toward soaking snowbirds and second homers with higher end homes, so by moving down, establishing homestead status, and maybe some other discounts for being a vet or senior (not sure how those work), I suspect your property taxes will be very low.

If ready beach access is a priority over boating/fishing, I am wondering if south of Alico road might be better for you to consider. The Cape is a bit of a hike from the beaches. I know others here have direct experience with that area, so I look forward to their comments, pro and con.

this is one I saw on craigslist

Just Reduced! (http://fortmyers.craigslist.org/lee/reb/1945177790.html - broken link)

Actually, San Carlos Park is often no closer to Fort Myers Beach than Cape Coral. But yes, this would be a good area for this poster. And he/she would be eligible for a VA loan, probably, which would be wonderful.

[oldfart1947]

Originally Posted by 4kidsplus2

they know what they are looking for- it is stamped right on the back made in China, it has an odor of sulfur and your copper will be blackened. By all means have an inspection whatever you buy. Think it was $150 for us a few mos ago, well worth the piece of mind. We had our well, septic, roof, they check everything. Atleast we knew we'd have no major expenses coming.

We went through over 50 houses one showed evidence of chinese drywall. Realtors have a good idea when showing houses also- but I would get the inspection

By no means did I mean NOT to get it inspected before you buy. All I meant was that when you are looking at homes, it is fairly easy to tell if the house has bad drywall, before you get yourself all excited about buying that house.

[kroeran]

I was also taking into account San Carlos Blvd. (and the beach bridge) getting jammed in season and having access through Bonita Beach road.

This should be weighted even more if you have a dog and need convenient access to Lovers Key dog beach park...my particular favorite spot on the planet

[hiknapster]

Originally Posted by kroeran

I was also taking into account San Carlos Blvd. (and the beach bridge) getting jammed in season and having access through Bonita Beach road.

This should be weighted even more if you have a dog and need convenient access to Lovers Key dog beach park...my particular favorite spot on the planet

I promise you, that isn't any better. Dog Beach is a little longer and to actually get to Fort Myers Beach is much longer than that, bridge traffic or not. I lived in SCP and my husband for over 20 years. The great thing about that area is it is smack dab in the middle of everything. But it is also can be a drive, especially to the beaches. Add to that the fact that you can at least can go to the tiny beach in Cape Coral if you want.

[kroeran]

I assume you would agree though, that if you are looking for generic beach access, probably Barefoot Beach zone, and not particularly looking to go to dog beach or Fort Myers beach specifically, and taking into account that the high San Carlos bridge gets completely jammed at times, proximity to Bonita Beach road is the central issue, and that Cape Coral is much further.

What about access to Sanibel beaches from the Cape vs access to barefoot from Bonita Beach road. How would you compare/contrast that...2 sets of bridges, tolls, parking, travel time