The truth about Cape Coral/ Ft Myers SWFL Area (Beverly Hills: insurance, rent)

[kdzgon]

Originally Posted by MikeP

snwboat:

I've never lived on the water but 3K a month sounds rediculous to me. You can expect to pay about 2K a year in taxes for every 100K you spend on a house. So a $300K house would be in the $6K/year ball park. I would guess your insurance would be less, but lets say it's about $4K a year for good coverage just to be safe. Water and sewer runs about $90/month. Unless you are in a gated community there wouldn't be any other large maint fees, but lets add 100/month for landscaping and 200 a month for electricity. With all that (and I think I'm over estimating) you're still only at about $1223/month
So whoever told you $3000 doesn't have a clue.
Anywhere in SW Cape Coral is safe.

Insurance quotes we received for a house on the water in Cape Coral ranged more in the neighborhood of $20,000+ per year for a small home.

[EarthWoman]

Here is the recent outlook of sw FL....Ft myers has really taken a dive in the past 7 years, I am really disapointed about that, but I would not raise my son there. Cape coral is lovely, growning to be sure, but a paradise I would live there in a heartbeat (and this is knowing my inlaws live there-so I must really like it!)

We moved to NC (that's another story) from Naples, Naples is great..if you can afford it and dont mind the millions of bad old drivers in the winter. The towns around Naples stay away from unless you want to live near the people who do the grunt work in Naples, like the illegals. If you have children Naples or Cape Coral is where you want to go.

[LostFtMyers]

Originally Posted by COMPARISON

MY ELDERLY MOTHER LIVES ON LAKE PINE DR IN CAPE CORAL - SHE DOES NOT HAVE PUBLIC UTILITIES AND IS NOT AWARE OF ANYTHING COMIING SOON - I CALLED CAPE CORAL - THEY SAID IT IS NOW CONSIDERED FORT MYERS - I CALLED FORT MYERS - THEY SAID IT IS CONSIDERED CAPE CORAL - DOES ANYONE KNOW WICH DISTRICT THIS AREA IS?

Comparison, some years back the residents of that neighborhood of Cape Coral fought and won a fight against the city of Cape Coral about putting the dual water system. Their argument was it would wipe all of them out due to the economic disposition they all share. The area is or at least was then inside the city limits of Cape Coral. I was so proud back then to see the people stand up the city hall and win!. I do not believe your mother has anything to worry about.

[POKERMIKE]

I Myself Im Moving Down In July With My Wife & 4 Kids I Grew Up In Staten Island Ny All Me Life Its Time For A Change How Bad Can Some Of These Areas Be. Well I Have Been Doing Alot Of Research. Tell If I Am Wrong My Final 3 Places I Have To Pick From Are Naples;bonita Springs Or Estero. Based On Just My Kids Safety& Schools There Ages Are 3-14 Thanks P.s Any Texas Games I Can Find Lol

[Roadrunner69]

Hey Poker Mike, I have lived here in Lee County for over thirty years and out of your three choices I thing I would go with Estero. The only thing Estero dosen't have is a beach but you will be in between two good areas for beaches. As far as games you might want to check out Naples Fort Myers dog track last I heard they had holdem tourneys there at least once a week, I don't know if they have a website.

[whippersnapper]

there's a lot of poker clubs around town if you don't want to go to the racetrack or casino. i play at a one in fort myers and one in the cape. you'll be able to find 'em pretty easy, i believe. oh, and estero and bonita are both pretty nice and more affordable than naples.

[Donna-50]

Originally Posted by a_clark

I was searching threads and came across this series about Ft Myers and Cape Coral - I am looking at living in Cape Coral starting in mid-February. I am trying to find information about average utility costs, etc. Can one of you folks living there give me an idea of what the average costs are for things like elect/water/garbage etc go for? I am planning on renting for about 6 months to give myself time to find a good neughborhood and an affordable house.
Thanks!
Angela

I don't pay for water because I am still on a well. Water is pretty expensive here. Garbage is in with taxes and I pay about $150 - $160 in the winter without AC and about $240 - $250 in the summer. I have a 2,400 sq ft house with a pool. I also keep my AC at 78 and heat when needed about 72.

[aphro23]

i own a rental in Ft myers too and also live out of state. Hope you didn't buy it in 2005 like I did and have lost sooo much money on it, i'm ready to walk away. My advice to you would be to list it on Craigslist.com. That's how I got my last rental and the girls are great and pay on time. It still doesn't help cover all the bills and just getting laid off doesn't help either. Not to mention, my mom also has a condo and it's been vacant all of 2007. Bad bad investment to say the least! All my prior renters didn't last more than 6 months. And my original real estate person, just packed up and left to North Carolina. what a mess that market it. That's what happens when you don't do enough research and let the realtors bamboozle you into a buy.....

[aphro23]

has water in Ft Myers recently gone up?? My water bill has seen increases of almost $20 in the last two months. Or is there a leak somewhere I should be concerned about?

[whippersnapper]

my average utility bills for a house in the cape were water-70.00 and electric-200.00 summer, 100.00 winter. i lived with 2 boys that had no concept of turning off lights or the tv or closing windows when running the AC. there was no pool and the house was about 1800 sq. ft.