Cape Coral/Naples area VS. Port Saint Lucie (Port St. Lucie, St. Lucie: real estate, foreclosures)

[grantsgirl]

Hey Guys:
My husband and I lived many years in the Port Saint Lucie West area. We were very lucky and sold our house in a mere 8mths..haha in PSL west. We watched the area boom like crazy and now there are over 5000 foreclosures in PSL alone. We took a year and traveled and have been trying to find a place that we both love! We loved Fl the fishing, boating, relaxed atmosphere but he wanted me to experience the West coast!! I hated it!! You can have alllllll of Cali! We lived in San Diego nice weather but to many damn people! We lived in Northern Cali-100 inches of snow between Dec/Jan!! BRRR!! So, I am attending school for Esthetician and he is a retired baseball player going to school for physical therapy assistant. We have been looking @ the Ft. Myers, Naples, Cape Coral area and I wanted to see if you guys could tell me if this area is different than PSL. PSL grew so fast that the roads couldn't hold all of the traffic. I can't wait to hear from you guys!!

[Lilybeans]

Well, Port St. Lucie is a disaster now.

[kathyglo]

I can't give you too much advice, but I am in the same position as you...thinking of moving to the Naples area. We've vacationed in SW Florida for many years and loved it. My advice would be to do the same as you did in Cal., don't buy, just rent for awhile till you see if you like the area. I guess the summers are really hot though. I plan to keep my home in Ohio and live there 1/2 year. Being from the north I think it's heaven there.

[kathyglo]

One question to Lilybeans...why is Port St. Lucie bad now? If there was too many people there, it should be better now. Is it a pretty area?

[TANaples]

My neighbors just moved from Naples to PSL. He said real estate was cheaper there (he's an agent), got a bigger house for less money, and most of his friends from NY had moved there.

Naples is VERY HOT from May through October. You can expect 90+, with humidity, every single day. Plus there are a LOT of snowbirds. Most of the homes and condos in the community where we live are now totally boarded up for the off season.

I do agree. RENT before you make a decision. If you decide to stay and buy, you can have your pick. Prices going down, down and short sales and foreclosures galor.

[kathyglo]

Does it bother you about the boarding up in the off season? I think it would be nice to have the place more to yourself!! I am a little worried about the hurricanes...it it true there haven't been any in Naples in a long time?

[Lilybeans]

PSL is in the midst of a financial crisis. The foreclosure boom is still going strong there. Work is difficult to find. Lots of folks are just abandoning their homes.

Worse yet, the taxes are only going to cover around 80% of the city budget. The city is looking at bankruptcy. Hopefully they can avoid that, but there is no doubt that services will be cut and taxes will probably increase.

PSL is one giant bedroom community, not a town in the traditional sense, with a Main Street, etc.

[TANaples]

Originally Posted by kathyglo

Does it bother you about the boarding up in the off season? I think it would be nice to have the place more to yourself!! I am a little worried about the hurricanes...it it true there haven't been any in Naples in a long time?

I can look out my lanai at night and it's toally dark out. No lights from the other houses and condo's. Peaceful.

Wilma was the last one. 3 years ago? I wasn't here then.