Worst Place for Jobs (Cape Coral, Fort Myers: foreclosed, house, find a job)

[beerme1]

Originally Posted by Jammie

Hik, I'm so glad we didn't move there either. One year ago in March we nearly headed down there. What a mistake that would've been!!! That's right around the time that the bottom fell out and we'd have been in terrible shape. No jobs yet still the high cost of housing at that time. And yea, that Chinese drywall situation isn't over yet and there will be a lot of people who will suffer because of it either financially or healthwise. I still love the tropical setting of Fla. and of course the warmth, but home doesn't look so bad when you look around at some other areas. We've definitely been blessed because our economy has only slumped a bit.

Mod Edit: Calling out moderator
My brother in law just bought a house in cc last year and one of his daughters bought a beautiful place in FT. Myers just two months ago.
Not everyone one is running away, some people are intent on getting there and making a go of it.

[aidaolympia]

This forum is for everybody writing about her/his point of view.
We are just discussing issues.

Every single day, the value of houses are falling in Cape Coral.

But, if somebody does not care about Cape Coral's various problems and wants to live here anyway for whatever reason and are actually happy living here, then good for them.

Thank you for your post.

[yachtcare]

Originally Posted by beerme1

No offense meant but after reading this I am wondering why you are moderating this board. Debbie downer syndrome man.
My brother in law just bought a house in cc last year and one of his daughters bought a beautiful place in FT. Myers just two months ago.
Not everyone one is running away, some people are intent on getting there and making a go of it.

Hmmm, Mods are people too, you know I think they have opinions.(and in some cases their opinion counts more than yours and mine, too.)

Glad to hear your BIL is doing well here. And that one of his daughters bought nearby also. It's always easier coming to a new area, when you have a support system of friends and family in place. And if they bought houses, they obviously had some cabbage to back them up as well....
Thats not the case with everyone that arrives here.(Or reads thru this forum, looking for general information) When I got here 18+ years ago, I was ready to head back to Michigan with my tail between my legs about eight months after I arrived.....but I couldnt afford the move back, and winter was coming on anyway. My first two years here were a living hell. For me it was learning to swim the hard way method. I wouldnt do it that way again, nor would I suggest anybody else do it either. Everyone needs to take serious stock of their position, mentally, and economically before moving here. Even in the boom times, this was a tough move for many. In today's economic climate, this place can chew you up and spit you out in rapid fashion.

[nhkev]

Originally Posted by aidaolympia

This forum is for everybody writing about her/his point of view.
We are just discussing issues.

Every single day, the value of houses are falling in Cape Coral.

But, if somebody does not care about Cape Coral's various problems and wants to live here anyway for whatever reason and are actually happy living here, then good for them.

Thank you for your post.

saying value of houses are falling is not entirely true, I track actual sales on a weekly basis and comparable houses to the one I bought in november are selling 35% higher than when I bought. Houses that were 2200 sq ft on gulf access canals that were selling for 225k 6-8 months ago are now selling closer to 300k. the difference is that 6-8 months ago the better properties were selling at 60% lower than what they sold for 3 yrs ago now the majority of properties that are selling are under 1400 sq ft on dry land and older homes. higher end homes that require jumbo loans are still reducing their prices and homes that have the stigma of the chinese drywall, and unfinished homes. The housing market is following a classic real estate cycle and is pretty far along in the cycle. you posted on another thread that lawrence yun predicted things to get worse. please post a link to that article I'd be curious if it is a general national statement or about cape coral and also when it was said.

[nhkev]

Originally Posted by aidaolympia

Tourism "could be" important for the future economic development of Cape Coral.
Visitors' spending in transportation, recreation, entertainment, accommodation, retail, food, etc. "could have" a direct and indirect impact on production, jobs, wages and taxes.
But in Cape Coral during construction boom there was no relationship between developers and the city council to build for a mixed-use resort and real estate development. The city did not invest in its tourism and relied only on property taxes as source of income.

Cape Coral has no future plan and is just drifting. There is no reason prices not to fall even further. The unemployment rate of 16% does not include the ones without "the paper". 2/3 of employment was construction related.

the unemployment rate is not 16% the article was "predicting" 16% and unemployment "seems" to be waning but what it doesn't include is that it is a percentage of the "working population" not the entire population so if an area has a lot of retirees it's unemployment as a percentage of the total population may not be extreme when compare to the rest of the country.. I only found one stat and am open to correction but from an older census report 2002 it said cape coral had 47% that were not employment dependant so if the unemployment rate is under 12% than as a percentage of the entire population it's like 6.3% which is probably near what most other parts of the country are. and it also doesn't take into consideration the amount of snowbirds that keep their residency in their northern states. could probable explain why 70% of cape coral residents said they were happy in cape coral. the saying of "When your neighbor loses their job we're in a recession , when you lose your job it's a depression."

[hiknapster]

Originally Posted by yachtcare

Hmmm, Mods are people too, you know I think they have opinions.(and in some cases their opinion counts more than yours and mine, too.)

Glad to hear your BIL is doing well here. And that one of his daughters bought nearby also. It's always easier coming to a new area, when you have a support system of friends and family in place. And if they bought houses, they obviously had some cabbage to back them up as well....
Thats not the case with everyone that arrives here.(Or reads thru this forum, looking for general information) When I got here 18+ years ago, I was ready to head back to Michigan with my tail between my legs about eight months after I arrived.....but I couldnt afford the move back, and winter was coming on anyway. My first two years here were a living hell. For me it was learning to swim the hard way method. I wouldnt do it that way again, nor would I suggest anybody else do it either. Everyone needs to take serious stock of their position, mentally, and economically before moving here. Even in the boom times, this was a tough move for many. In today's economic climate, this place can chew you up and spit you out in rapid fashion.

I have never seen a better post written about southwest Florida.

It is so true. Even in the boom times, the place is far from puppies and rainbows. There's something about the area where you really feel like you are on your own.

It's transient. Don't expect your neighbors to help you. Get out in traffic and some old guy is going to cut you off and give you the finger. Go shopping and someone is going to ram you with their cart and keep on moving.

Between that and the brutal, overbearing heat the place just starts to wear you down.

We left during the boom of 2005. My husband had lived there 25 years. He is a trained tradesman and he could get a job anywhere. So could I. The week I was packing I got a call for a very good position. Nope. We were out of there.

It was just too darn expensive and the school system was a disaster. I'm sorry. I'm from the northeast, I raised four other kids and I know a good school system. I know a bad one too, but this was beyond bad.

Move to the area now? C'mon. I know people are frustrated all over this country, but if you think you can just move down there and it will be equally bad but the weather will be better you are wrong. Dead wrong. It is worse down there. Much worse.

Even when life was good in southwest Florida, the jobs were minimum wage, for the most part. Now, even those jobs are gone.

This is definitely a case of jumping from the frying pan into the fire. It's nuts.

[RMD3819]

Yacht-Excellent post.

Hik-Puppies and rainbows-I'm going to use that one. That's good.

My BIL just moved to CC. He is renting. He moved from the midwest. He moved here with a job transfer-and it is a good, solid job. He'll be fine.

I agree with the others. Moving here without a solid job is just crazy.

[aidaolympia]

hiknapster
Fun and honest post, again! Thanks!

[jim09091]

A lot of people aren't tough enough to make it down here. Its not for everyone (thank God because if it was it would be overwhelmed with people). For some though, it is paradise. People don't believe me when I tell them that there are some jobs here. Problem is that you have an education (either university level or very, very skilled trade) and in one of the demanding fields. If not, good luck.

[hiknapster]

Originally Posted by jim09091

A lot of people aren't tough enough to make it down here. Its not for everyone (thank God because if it was it would be overwhelmed with people). For some though, it is paradise. People don't believe me when I tell them that there are some jobs here. Problem is that you have an education (either university level or very, very skilled trade) and in one of the demanding fields. If not, good luck.

Meh. We could have made it there. We certainly thrived in Knoxville and are surrounded by beautiful weather, scenery, people and there is an excellent school system.

I preferred to move out of "low rent" southwest Florida. It just attracts a sort of vibe and people that I am not interested in. I think it will go back to being the sort of snowbird haven that it use to be, complete with the retirees that elbow each other to get to the early bird special at Bob Evans.

For some that is paradise and that is great. There should be a place for everyone.