Destination: St. Augustine (Jacksonville, Fernandina Beach, Flagler Beach: real estate, to rent, house) - Florida (FL) - City-Data Forum

otterhere · 07-13-2023, 09:38 AM

Reasons why I shouldn't retire there... Any?

socalbee · 07-13-2023, 10:13 AM

We live in St. Auggie. If you can afford a nice home in a nice area, it is a great place to be. But isn't that the same for any MCOL / HCOL area. The cheap sides of St. Augustine, like any town are far from desirable. Unfortunately, in recent years builders have been building poorly constructed homes, you need to be very careful when buying and get a proper inspector, not the box tickers that the Real Estate companies recommend, they are mostly all but useless for things that really matter. Yes, there are good ones, but you want one that focus' on construction quality, structural, foundations and roof, not one that is going to tell you that you need a GFI here and a sealed window panel there. Those issues are all noise, and you can see a lot of those yourself. I would say a construction inspector would be a good choice. You usually get what you pay for.

LakeLifePA · 07-13-2023, 10:16 AM

We love that area and Flagler Beach is not too far away. We have definitely thought about it for our Winter home. Tell us all about it should you end up retiring there.

squarpeg · 07-13-2023, 07:16 PM

I have spent the last 13 years wintering in Fernandina Beach. St Augustine was our second choice. My wife and I do take quite a few day trips to St Augustine each year. I like it. I would probably be happy there too. The one thing that really sticks out to me personally, is the traffic. Now this depends where you live, but if I were moving there that would be a huge consideration for me. I would be very careful where I bought based on how easily I could navigate the area. If you have to go over the beautiful bridge of lions on a regular basis, you may just go out of your mind. The town itself is heavily touristed to the point I rarely go downtown anymore.

otterhere · 07-14-2023, 09:37 AM

I understand, upon doing a little research, that there's also a homeless (or "vagrant," as one city official put it) problem there...but that seems to be everywhere these days!

Chas863 · 07-14-2023, 09:50 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by otterhere

Reasons why I shouldn't retire there... Any?

I'm not going to knock the St Augustine area. I'll simply suggest that you are likely to get more house for your money and in a less crowded neighborhood (for moderate to middle incomes) nearer to the central part of the state.

Go 40 to 50 miles or so away from either coast and you'll find you get more house and less crowded neighborhoods for the same price. Of course, that means that you'll have to drive for 45 to 60 minutes to dip your toes in the ocean, but there are plenty of swimming pools that will be nearby if saltwater is not a requirement. Your choice.

socalbee · 07-14-2023, 02:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by otterhere

I understand, upon doing a little research, that there's also a homeless (or "vagrant," as one city official put it) problem there...but that seems to be everywhere these days!

Only in the City itself where the gullible tourists are. Locals typically do not give money to the homeless. We donate to the shelters instead it is a better investment.

socalbee · 07-14-2023, 03:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chas863

I'm not going to knock the St Augustine area. I'll simply suggest that you are likely to get more house for your money and in a less crowded neighborhood (for moderate to middle incomes) nearer to the central part of the state.

Go 40 to 50 miles or so away from either coast and you'll find you get more house and less crowded neighborhoods for the same price. Of course, that means that you'll have to drive for 45 to 60 minutes to dip your toes in the ocean, but there are plenty of swimming pools that will be nearby if saltwater is not a requirement. Your choice.

There is a reason why homes are cheaper in the middle of the state. You get what you pay for.

Gromicide · 07-17-2023, 07:11 AM

I grew up there in the 90's. It's way way more congested but still a good place to live. Going downtown on any given day of the week is crazy. I would only live on the island personally (zip code 32080). Crescent beach would be my choice as it's a little quieter and small beach town feeling. If you want to just move close to St Augustine, there are tons of options just out of town on US1 that would put you closer to Jacksonville but also a 5-10 min drive to St Augustine. Also the world golf village area is an option. Your mailing address would actually be 'St Augustine' but that's just kinda funny to me because to me anything north of the airport/gun club rd or north of the outlet mall isn't St Augustine.

There actually is a pretty high number of homeless and it's not just downtown where the tourists are.

otterhere · 07-18-2023, 09:08 AM

The only problem with Crescent Beach is that there's no public transportation that far down going into St. Augustine. That's something I'd be prioritizing when looking at a place to rent out (how are tourists who fly in supposed to get there? Uber/Lyft would get expensive) and eventually live there myself as an older person who may not, at some point in the future, still be able to drive.