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Old 01-20-2011, 11:25 AM
 
68 posts, read 202,708 times
Reputation: 51

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We were considering living in LeHigh Acres at one time and while researching the area came across this article which may be of interest. Apologies if it has already been mentioned in another post in this thread.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/08/us/08lehigh.html

 
Old 01-20-2011, 11:26 AM
 
Location: Cape Coral, FL USA
616 posts, read 1,558,520 times
Reputation: 314
Quote:
Originally Posted by SWFLboy View Post
Personally, I don't understand why Lehigh Acres has gotten such a bad rep. I've lived here for about 3 years and love it. I moved my family here from the midwest and was warned about all the horrible crime and conditions in Lehigh.

Now, after being here for awhile, I honestly don't see what people were talking about. I watch the local news every morning, and 90% of the "bad crime" happens in Fort Myers and Cape Coral, with Lehigh Acres rarely ever mentioned.
But, for some reason, the people that live in Fort Myers and Cape Coral refuse to acknowledge this fact. I'm beginning to think that they need to feel like their cities are better and are using Lehigh as their scapegoat. It's a prestige thing, or something.

Not according to police....

"Scott pointed to a surge in growhouse busts, mostly in the Lehigh Acres area, that began in 2007. Now, the focus is mainly on prescription pills."

"The sheriff’s office’s Bravo District, which includes all of Lehigh Acres and parts of Alva, experienced the biggest decline in crime but remains home to most criminal activity in Lee. That district also has the largest population, though."

But, crime over all is decreasing...

http://http://www.news-press.com/article/20110120/CRIME/110119075/1075/Crime-statistics-down-throughout-Lee (broken link)
 
Old 01-20-2011, 11:59 AM
 
1,299 posts, read 2,335,754 times
Reputation: 245
Quote:
Originally Posted by ZebraCrossing View Post
We were considering living in LeHigh Acres at one time and while researching the area came across this article which may be of interest. Apologies if it has already been mentioned in another post in this thread.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/08/us/08lehigh.html
It's an older article but it shows the decline of the whole SWFL area, recovery will be long time in coming.
 
Old 01-21-2011, 02:57 PM
 
Location: Cincinnati
10 posts, read 24,390 times
Reputation: 34
Being born and rasied in Lee County I think I can put my two cents in. Moved to Lehigh from Ft. Myers in 2005 and loved it. Great place for familes. My kids were in to sports and we had a great time. Yes there is more crime there now because of all vacent houses . Prices of homes took such a big dive. Our home in 05 was appraised at 250k and before we moved to OH it was worth about45k. Very very sad. Land out there I know people that bought land for 5k in the 90's and in 05 were getting offers of 40k plus . I know some sold and made out well but then I know others held on to it thinking it would contiue to rise and BOOM now cant even get 5k for it. The main issue which is all of Lee County is the lack of work. Most that were invloved with anything to with housing have lost big time. Lehigh has such a stock of vacent homes never lived in that you can buy pennys on the dollar. Problem is if you need to work well good luck because jobs are very hard to find. Yes I know the whole US is going through that but Lee County has taken such a BIG hit. And I dont see it changing anytime soon. To me it seems all the area will be good for now and for a long time is those that are retired and those that don't need to work to surive. I mean hell you can get great deals on houses all over Lee but if you have to work....well that is a different story. My husband had been laid off after 20yrs at job in S FT. Myers looked for work for two years with not finding a single job. It got to the point he was willing to take anything including fast food just to get a income and he had no luck. We ended up moving last year to Cincinnati OH and with in one month he got a great job. Yes, I miss my home,family, friends etc. But we had to do something to survie. I do hope Lee County recovers but I don't see it happen any time soon.
 
Old 01-22-2011, 05:03 PM
 
23 posts, read 42,263 times
Reputation: 12
Cincy Girl... That story scares the hell out of me.
I'm about 3 weeks from packing up and moving my family to Cape Coral. We are wanting to open a business doing repairs on mowers, atv's, jet skis, golf carts and other small engine items like that.
But your story makes me wonder if there are any customers left there!
All I hear online is Doom and Gloom.
I have friends in Cape Coral now that think my biz idea is a great idea.
We do make some of our income online and I've made a post here trying to feel people out to see what the thoughts are of people that are there right now.
So far I've gotten positive assessments that I should do OK... Depending on my location as one poster put it.


So.... I'm not looking for work and my wife works with me. But if there's no customers, there's no business.
Still kinda freaking out!
 
Old 01-22-2011, 07:20 PM
 
Location: Cape Coral, FL USA
616 posts, read 1,558,520 times
Reputation: 314
Quote:
Originally Posted by Skipatrol View Post
Cincy Girl... That story scares the hell out of me.
I'm about 3 weeks from packing up and moving my family to Cape Coral. We are wanting to open a business doing repairs on mowers, atv's, jet skis, golf carts and other small engine items like that.
But your story makes me wonder if there are any customers left there!
All I hear online is Doom and Gloom.
I have friends in Cape Coral now that think my biz idea is a great idea.
We do make some of our income online and I've made a post here trying to feel people out to see what the thoughts are of people that are there right now.
So far I've gotten positive assessments that I should do OK... Depending on my location as one poster put it.


So.... I'm not looking for work and my wife works with me. But if there's no customers, there's no business.
Still kinda freaking out!
Ski - from my perspective - it's going to be rough for awhile. I don't know what your business model entails, but there's a lot of people out of work in your line of work. In the last month or so, we've had 4 or 5 people show up at our door looking for tree trimming, yard work, etc. My suggestion is to market your business to other businesses on top of getting walk-in customers.
 
Old 01-22-2011, 09:29 PM
 
23 posts, read 42,263 times
Reputation: 12
Are you meaning there are a lot of mechanics out of work?
 
Old 01-22-2011, 09:41 PM
 
Location: The Conterminous United States
22,584 posts, read 54,033,362 times
Reputation: 13612
Quote:
Originally Posted by Skipatrol View Post
Are you meaning there are a lot of mechanics out of work?
There's a lot of everyone out of work. The unemployment rate is 13.3. Lee County has the 2nd highest foreclosure rate in the country, right now. The investors can try to endlessly spin that but it doesn't change that. The area has been 1st, 2nd and 3rd since the bust. It's ended up on the front page of The New York Times twice, as well as in The Economist and Time.

My husband lived in the area for 25 years. A lot of his family is still down there, though several had to finally move away to make ends meet. We own a business up here and I know how difficult that can be. We had the choice of starting the business down there or up here.

Once again, just because someone tells you to give it a try, beware. Some folks have very odd agendas.

Have you checked to see how many people would be your competition? If you don't have the unemployment numbers I think you might not be doing the research that you need. And don't forget about the hidden players that everyone mentions, the people that are coming by and banging on doors. There are a lot of people down there that fell off the unemployment rolls awhile back. My MIL ran out of unemployment checks well over a year ago. Might be closer to two years.

By the way, my husband is an auto mechanic. He worked in Lee County for years, until we moved away five years ago. It's rough down there.
 
Old 01-22-2011, 09:48 PM
 
23 posts, read 42,263 times
Reputation: 12
Hmm, My wife has family in Knoxville.....
The unemployment numbers are about 10% here and 14% one county to the north.
I know it's not great here but there's plenty of work when the sun is shinning.
The problem with Indiana is the sun only shines for half the year.
My business model is pretty diverse as far as revenue streams go but the bread and butter is repair work.
 
Old 01-22-2011, 10:52 PM
 
Location: The Conterminous United States
22,584 posts, read 54,033,362 times
Reputation: 13612
Actually, Elkhart is 13.3, the same as Fort Myers-Cape Coral. The difference is Elkhart has a manufacturing base. When the economy starts moving again, they will be employed. Fort Myers-Cape Coral is based on restaurant and Walmart work. The area is known for penny-pinchers, too. There are a lot of mechanically inclined folks with a lawn mower, trying to scrape some pennies together. There may be more folks without proper papers in the area, too. Like I said, there are a lot of workers in the shadows, for whatever reason.

Best of luck, whatever you decide.

Table 1. Civilian labor force and unemployment by state and metropolitan area
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