re: billboard about leaving for myrtle beach on turnpike (Collingswood: transplants, sales)

[njkate]

Originally Posted by back2jersey

Thanks, Jersey Man. Somehow this thread has gone from being about the billboard advertising lower taxes in Myrtle Beach to choosing other areas such as FL or DE to live. I'm not sure of the connection or how it digressed elsewhere. Anyway, the point I was trying to make in my post was that everything is not as the advertisements would have the public believing. It's almost as if they want folks to belive that everything is so much cheaper here and that Myrtle Beach is the panacea for all of NJ's tax ills. It's as if the message they are trying to get across is why pay $10,000 when you can pay $1,000 as if it is truly ten times cheaper here. It's not that much cheaper here. Plain and simple. It's not yet folks who are being lured to move down continue to believe that because the property taxes are so much lower, all their other expenses will be lower. They then move here then find themselves struggling just as they struggled in NJ because there are other taxes and outrageously high insurance costs and the salaries here are not commensurate with those expenses. It becomes a real financial struggle for many especially those with kids trying to raise families here. Not only aren't the salaries commensurate with the expenses of living but the job/career opportunities are very limited when compared to NJ. Without an income that is sufficient to pay for the taxes and insurance, it doesn't how low the taxes are. If you don't make enough money to pay it, then you don't make enough money to pay it no matter how much it is. Does that mean people shouldn't move to Myrtle Beach? Absolutely not. And it doesn't mean that everyone won't be able to make a living there either. It just means that everything isn't what it seems on the surface and that the entire picture needs to be looked at. Just because an advertisement says it's so, doesn't necessarily make it so. People really have to live and own property in an area such as this for a long time before they really have a good handle on what it's actually like and what it takes in the long run to live here. The move will work out well for some but there will be many who find that the area does not suit them after a while mostly because of the low salaries, limited job opportunities and rising expenses here. There is a reason that this is such a transient area and lack of professional/career jobs and low salaries play into that. All that glitters is not gold yet some may find their silver lining here; others will not.

Excellent posts..sometimes utopia is really right where you have always been.
We have been looking at various areas and went to MB last winter..I could not live there even for the 6 months a year we were looking to..first of all I hate touristy areas....once you go west of MB like Conway there isn't much there.....still mulling the Bluffton/Savannah area..but MB is crossed off my list

[njkate]

Originally Posted by AJGIANTS

Its not just about the taxes in New Jersey; its what our taxes have paid for in New Jersey. If you can not see that New Jersey is the most corrupt state in the union you have blinders on. Im sick of my paycheck getting raped every week then reading about where my hard earned dollars go in newspapers and books such as "The Soprano State".

AJ..if you think SE FL is corrupt free you need to think again

[AJGIANTS]

Originally Posted by njkate

AJ..if you think SE FL is corrupt free you need to think again

Miami is the most corrupt city in the nation.
The difference is Tallahassee does not use tax increases for the answer to every problem that arises in Florida. Unlike Trenton, New Jersey.
Florida has the luxury of taxing the tourists if they need to.

[njkate]

Originally Posted by AJGIANTS

Miami is the most corrupt city in the nation.
The difference is Tallahassee does not use tax increases for the answer to every problem that arises in Florida. Unlike Trenton, New Jersey.
Florida has the luxury of taxing the tourists if they need to.

Nah, I think New Orleans has Miami beat

[back2jersey]

Originally Posted by AJGIANTS

If you can not see that New Jersey is the most corrupt state in the union you have blinders on. Im sick of my paycheck getting raped every week then reading about where my hard earned dollars go in newspapers and books such as "The Soprano State".

The OP started a thread about a billboard on the turnpike advertising a development in Myrtle Beach with the lure of low taxes. I responded as a former NJ resident (Bergen County born and raised) who has lived and owned numerous properties in Myrtle Beach for quite a number of years. I offered my opinion that I felt the advertisement was misleading because it is not as inexpensive for people to live and work here as the hype would like to have folks believe and cited several examples. Nowhere in any of my posts did I say people should or should not remain in NJ and nowhere in any of my posts did I say people should or should not move to Myrtle Beach nor will I ever say that about either place. Instead, I offered information and personal opinion based on my experiences here. Likewise, nowhere in any of my posts did I either state or suggest anything relating to the amount of or lack of corruption in any state or location yet somehow, this thread has veered from being about the billboard in NJ for Myrtle Beach and a comparison of the two areas to corruption in NJ? Aren't there threads on the topic specifically dedicated to corruption in NJ? I'm not going to speak to corruption issues here in this thread; I prefer to speak to the NJ/Myrtle Beach comparisons in this thread.

[back2jersey]

Originally Posted by njkate

Excellent posts..sometimes utopia is really right where you have always been.
We have been looking at various areas and went to MB last winter..I could not live there even for the 6 months a year we were looking to..first of all I hate touristy areas....once you go west of MB like Conway there isn't much there.....still mulling the Bluffton/Savannah area..but MB is crossed off my list

Thanks, njkate. Living in a resort area presents it's own set of challenges and just like any area, it's not for everyone. Those issues go directly to quality of life issues. Also, as it relates to taxes, what we pay out as homeowners in our property taxes pays for some of the services that visitors to our area use. That's another big difference between here and NJ (well, with the exception perhaps of the shore towns).

No, like you posted, there isn't much here once you go west of MB (north of south for that matter either) and there aren't too many ways in or out which leads to a lot of traffic and travel time for those who don't live within the city limits. There is very little but farmland, woods/swamps west of Conway, north of Little River and south of Pawleys (with the exception of Georgetown then it becomes farmland again) until you reach either Florence, Wilmington or Charleston, each about 2 hrs. away from MB proper. Conway city and Conway unincorporated have a very wide range of housing options from single wide parks to double wides zoned agricultural with horses to stately old historic homes to some high crime areas.

MB is basically a very small town of permanent residents. The outlying areas (i.e. toward Conway, Socastee, Loris, etc.) have been developed greatly over the past few years and some of the areas that have recently grown in popularity for relocation spots were areas that used to be viewed in a much different light not all that long ago. If I were to do it all over again however, I still would only move within the city limits as I am now. To me, the point of moving to the beach is to be at the beach and not somewhere that I'd have to get in a car, drive to the beach, look around for parking, pay for parking, deal with traffic each time I wanted to come into the beach, etc. I'm part of the city itself (techincally a city resident) and that makes a big difference around here. A lot of folks don't realize what area actually comprises Myrtle Beach proper. For example, neither Socastee nor Carolina Forest are within Myrtle Beach city limits and that makes a difference in what services are available to them (i.e. County vs. City). Some areas have a Myrtle Beach address but are not located within the city limits of Myrtle Beach and instead are located in the county (unincorporated vs. city limits) so they are not servced by city services (i.e. police, fire, etc.) and they are not technically city residents even though their address reads Myrtle Beach. Clear as mud? It makes a huge difference in things though around here.

It's very different here from NJ. Some will love it; some will not. It is an extremely transient area.

[stevemorse]

Originally Posted by AJGIANTS

You know you have a great thread when the posts are long and detailed. Let me continue the trend.

My wife and I grew up in suburban nj(somerset and morris counties). We now live in Hoboken NJ as I work on wall st and my wife is a RN who can work just about anywhere. We are not having kids for a couple-few years and there is NO Way we are settling in New Jersey.

Now the tricky part- where to settle. Let me preface by stating we love hoboken and our proximity to the greatest city in the world. We love THE PIZZA-and Bagels and Italian food and the selection of restaurants. However we realize that when we want to buy a home we are priced out of New Jersey. Ok so- where to go- We are city people, we are north eastern people- we like nightlife, and stores and restaurants. We like alot of everything. We also love to golf and warm weather in January. We do not mind hot humid summers either. So where? North Carolina- nope to rural. Arizona- not for northeasterners. - We are going to south Florida.

South Florida is just about everything we are looking for. From our perspective, with alot of first hand research, this is our perfect fit. It is not as cheap as NC but your dollar goes signifigantly further then in New Jersey. There is no state income tax and property taxes are lower, not NC low but lower. We would be close to a major metropolitan area- we enjoy diversity rather then a southern city like charlotte or Jacksonville. With all of the ex new yorkers and Jersians down there it helps with adapting. We have several friends and family members that live in Broward county.

Living wise in FtL- Miami we can rent for several hundred dollars less then what we pay now in the same type of luxury apt building then we can get a ridiculously nice home, with a pool on a golf course for what you would pay for a 1800 sq ft cape home in New Jersey. Plus this area is great for both our careers as of course nurses are needed everywhere and Miami has a significant financial district.

We know there are down sides with every area. For one - mass transit is nill in south florida so gas is going to cost us. Then there are hurricanes which have pushed homeowners insurance to higher levels. The Summers are hot and humid but we love the beach and pool so we'll be fine.

Anyway we are headed down in march of 09. Probably living in the Las Olas area of Fort Lauderdale then would move out to a nice suburb like Weston or Parkland.
Thanks New Jersey for providing us with ample reasons to get off our asses and pursue our dream.
********* Corslime!

Priced out? Are you sure? I mean a Wall street guy and a RN?? Sounds hard to believe, I believe you but that so sad!!!

[AJGIANTS]

Originally Posted by stevemorse

Priced out? Are you sure? I mean a Wall street guy and a RN?? Sounds hard to believe, I believe you but that so sad!!!

well for the type of home we can get in florida to new york suburbs its rediculous. There is no way in the word we could afford a pool home in new jersey.

[AJGIANTS]

Originally Posted by back2jersey

The OP started a thread about a billboard on the turnpike advertising a development in Myrtle Beach with the lure of low taxes. I responded as a former NJ resident (Bergen County born and raised) who has lived and owned numerous properties in Myrtle Beach for quite a number of years. I offered my opinion that I felt the advertisement was misleading because it is not as inexpensive for people to live and work here as the hype would like to have folks believe and cited several examples. Nowhere in any of my posts did I say people should or should not remain in NJ and nowhere in any of my posts did I say people should or should not move to Myrtle Beach nor will I ever say that about either place. Instead, I offered information and personal opinion based on my experiences here. Likewise, nowhere in any of my posts did I either state or suggest anything relating to the amount of or lack of corruption in any state or location yet somehow, this thread has veered from being about the billboard in NJ for Myrtle Beach and a comparison of the two areas to corruption in NJ? Aren't there threads on the topic specifically dedicated to corruption in NJ? I'm not going to speak to corruption issues here in this thread; I prefer to speak to the NJ/Myrtle Beach comparisons in this thread.

well think about the philosophy behind the sign on the turnpike.

[stevemorse]

I understand I just think thats sad!! I mean it seems we are losing then good qualified people, and a nurse no less. I hate to loss nurses to another state!!! Good luck either way.