Moving to Maine or Florida from Vermont. Help! (Portland, Standish: real estate, amusement parks)

[harpoonalt]

Another Vermonter here. We have been to Florida numerous times. It's a nice place to visit, but I wouldn't want to live there. We are actually thinking Maine for retirement. Lots to do, plenty of ocean, and New England summers can't be beat. Less culture shock too. Coming from Vermont, Florida can be quite a change. Many love it, I didn't. Too flat, too many people and just not relaxed enough.

Good luck

[Marble cake]

Originally Posted by harpoonalt

Another Vermonter here. We have been to Florida numerous times. It's a nice place to visit, but I wouldn't want to live there. We are actually thinking Maine for retirement. Lots to do, plenty of ocean, and New England summers can't be beat. Less culture shock too. Coming from Vermont, Florida can be quite a change. Many love it, I didn't. Too flat, too many people and just not relaxed enough.

Good luck

I'm thinking you're speaking of south Florida. If so I agree, but I know there are places in florida with a much slower pace and less people. Central Florida and the panhandle are way different than south Florida. SF is one of a kind, at least to me it is.

[harpoonalt]

Originally Posted by Marble cake

I'm thinking you're speaking of south Florida. If so I agree, but I know there are places in florida with a much slower pace and less people. Central Florida and the panhandle are way different than south Florida. SF is one of a kind, at least to me it is.

You're probably right. We visited the east coast near Boca as my in-laws had a condo there. Hated it!

We have a trip in May to Sanibel Island. We hear the west coast is totally different. We'll check out the area for possible winter trips once we retire in 2 years.

[Ellwood]

We have spent winters in FL for many years. This was our last. The crime, congestion, high automobile accidents, people on the phone and texting, high sales tax, humidity, bugs, snakes, etc. do not make for a pleasant place to live. If you are low income, affordable housing is difficult to find and salaries are low. IMO there is nothing attractive about the state. Many of our friends spent winters in FL and that is the reason we did. We live in upstate NY and love it. Maine has so much more to offer than FL. We always take a fall trip to Maine. It's beauty can't compare to FL.

[slyfox2]

Originally Posted by Ellwood

It's beauty can't compare to FL.

You meant that Florida's beauty can't compare to Maine.... I think.

[slyfox2]

Originally Posted by VermonterMama

I tried wells Fargo for a conventional loan and the guy was rather rude. I'm thinking of selling off my place, paying my heloc, and getting a conventional mortgage. I want to work here in Vermont until oct, so I'm not sure if this would be a first or second home mortgage. Are there any other chain banks, or am I just going to have to go up there and find a bank?

Maine has the highest percentage of home ownership in the USA. Banks are geared for it here. Local banks are much easier to deal with then Chain Banks like Wells Fargo. Most of our banks are Regionals like Bar harbor National Bank, the the First, or Camden National Bank. We got our mortgage through the smallest Savings and Loan in Maine.

When we needed to pay down half the mortgage after selling property, they didn't need to write a whole new mortgage, they just payed it down and wrote a new payment schedule. No Chain Bank could have ever been that helpful. And my sister in Law is a Senior VP in one the of National Chain Banks.

[mensaguy]

In addition to the banks slyfox2 mentioned, Bangor Savings Bank and the Bank of Maine are also local lenders. We've dealt with both of these in addition to The First. Our experiences have all been positive. There have been several times that having a truly local bank has been a big benefit.

[DanBev]

Originally Posted by slyfox2

Florida: snakes, alligators, poisonous spiders, nasty bacteria and viruses, stinking hot temperatures, hurricanes.

Maine: No poisonous snakes, no alligators, no poisonous spiders, way less bacteria and viruses, no hotter than 80 degrees on the coast, no hurricanes to speak of. Much healthier living conditions.

Lived in North Florida for over 20 years.None of the above is entirely true Florida was good to us and for us.Easy access by interstate N,E.W.Would not live in south FL for the tea in China.
If you want a can of worms do what we had to do because of age and family,try CT,not a nice state by any means.Lived here when it was nice way back,now a troubled state.

[Brodels]

Other posters have mentioned this, but Maine and Florida are very different places, and both have their pros and cons. I'd suggest making a list of all of the things that are important to you, and things you would like to avoid. I think that if you do that carefully and honestly, your decision will be made for you.

Personally, I prefer Maine to Vermont, but my experience has been that small towns in Vermont aren't that much different than small towns in Maine. Sure, you can live on the coast in Maine, and Maine's small towns may have a more conservative slant, but really, there are probably more similarities than differences. There are a lot of different options in Maine, so you may find what you are looking for, but there is a reasonable chance that if you can't find happiness in Vermont, you may not find it in Maine, either.

All of that having been said, Florida sounds horrible. I can't imagine living there.

[slyfox2]

Dying in Florida is also not a good thing. They have probate laws that are not only archaic, but the state Guv scams huge amounts of money from the estate. Not so in Maine.