Moving to Ocala - horse country (Gainesville, Naples: real estate, to rent, health insurance)

[hh5131]

We are heading north to Ocala soon from the Ft Myers/Naples area w/horses and 2 kids ages 5 & 7. We are currently looking to rent for a year or two. We need a horse property. I also want my children to have the same or similar education they receive now - they both do very well in school (Charter School A+ rated) and they are challenged & cirriculum is wonderful. My husband is a builder and Real Estate Broker. I am a health insurance agent and commercial embroiderer (both part time)
We've been down here for about 20 yrs now and we're done. Want the cooler climate, yet still nice FL weather and can ride year round.
Any suggestions as to which area of Ocala we should be in. Seems like every time we go to look around up there, we end up looking in the NW area.
Any advice?

[wacahootaman]

IMO, the Northwest is the best.

I live up near McIntosh and you can shop in either Ocala or Gainesville.

Easy access via I-75 or the 4 lane Hyway 441.

The lay of the land is super for horses. Not sure about the schools though.

Your timing is good for buying real estate as a lot of the prices have fallen a lot in the last two years.

Your idea to rent first is good too.

[kshe95girl]

schools for children that age will be fine, its just that when they get old enough for HS, I would worry, North Marion is NOT the best HS in Marion County......

[SantaFeSandy]

Originally Posted by hh5131

We are heading north to Ocala soon from the Ft Myers/Naples area w/horses and 2 kids ages 5 & 7. We are currently looking to rent for a year or two. We need a horse property. I also want my children to have the same or similar education they receive now - they both do very well in school (Charter School A+ rated) and they are challenged & cirriculum is wonderful. My husband is a builder and Real Estate Broker. I am a health insurance agent and commercial embroiderer (both part time)
We've been down here for about 20 yrs now and we're done. Want the cooler climate, yet still nice FL weather and can ride year round.
Any suggestions as to which area of Ocala we should be in. Seems like every time we go to look around up there, we end up looking in the NW area.
Any advice?

I would consider buying (or renting) in Levy county over Marion or Alachua as the property taxes in Levy are way, way cheaper then the other counties. Plus, Levy is dead smack in between Gainesville & Ocala, thereby making a commute to either city just 18 to 30 miles or so. Plus, the Goethe National Forest is fine for riding, as are the rural communities. Besides, most all of us that live in these parts have acres of our own anyway, so you can ride to your mailbox if you want to...LOL

How many horses do you have? I'm currently listing my 5 acre equestrian mini-farm with an Equestrian Properties Realtor out of Ocala, so if you'd like to know more information about either, write me a private message and I'll be glad to help however I can. The layout of my place would be heaven for two young kids, and it's very conveniently laid out for horses, dogs, cats and goats! Not to mention screened in porches and many other perks!

[kshe95girl]

Originally Posted by SantaFeSandy

Levy is dead smack in between Gainesville & Ocala

Levy County is to the west of Ocala, not in between Ocala and Ganesville. Marion County abuts Alachua County to the south.

[SantaFeSandy]

Originally Posted by kshe95girl

Levy County is to the west of Ocala, not in between Ocala and Ganesville. Marion County abuts Alachua County to the south.

Dear kshe95girl, I think what we have here is called "hair spliting." If one wants to be technical, the configurations of the counties make it so that basically all values could be "yes" depending on ones' vantage point.

Technically, I live Southwest of Gainesville and northwest of Ocala, yet if one lives in either southwest Marion or southwest Alachua their counties will absolutely be situated with Levy county inbetween. See the attached link of Florida Counties, Florida County Map

Now...without splitting hairs...Levy county is in between both Gainesville and Ocala, just as the east and the west are in between the poles of the north and the south.

[kshe95girl]

Originally Posted by SantaFeSandy

Dear kshe95girl, I think what we have here is called "hair spliting." If one wants to be technical, the configurations of the counties make it so that basically all values could be "yes" depending on ones' vantage point.

Technically, I live Southwest of Gainesville and northwest of Ocala, yet if one lives in either southwest Marion or southwest Alachua their counties will absolutely be situated with Levy county inbetween. See the attached link of Florida Counties, Florida County Map

Now...without splitting hairs...Levy county is in between both Gainesville and Ocala, just as the east and the west are in between the poles of the north and the south.

With all due respect, by your statement, I should have to drive through Levy County when driving to Gainesville from Ocala, that has NEVER happened.
Levy County is STILL west of Marion County, the map you so thoughtfully provided shows it. Alachua County is still north of Marion County, too.

[SantaFeSandy]

Originally Posted by kshe95girl

With all due respect, by your statement, I should have to drive through Levy County when driving to Gainesville from Ocala, that has NEVER happened.
Levy County is STILL west of Marion County, the map you so thoughtfully provided shows it. Alachua County is still north of Marion County, too.

Kshe...I'm just guessing here, but were you perhaps driving on I-75? If so, of course you would not go though Levy. But if you were driving the routes that I take...through the backroads...e.g., County Roads and off roads on occasion, then yes you would.

When I drive from Newberry (in Alachua county) to OBS feeds, or to T&T Distributors in Ocala i.e., Marion County, I drive from State Road 26 aka Newberry Rd., southeast on 41/27 10 miles to the intersection of State Road 24 also known as Archer Rd. I cross through that, still being in Alachua. I then go through the town of Archer, continuing straight towards Williston, which becomes Levy County, and then at the intersection of S.R. 45/aka Hwy 27 and Noble, turn left on Hwy. 27 South, heading into Ocala aka Marion County. After one passes the BP gas station exiting Levy county, it becomes Marion...need I say more?

Again, this is all contingent on ones driving patterns. I have a truck, live the farm life and would prefer to drive the shortest routes, even if that means zigzagging though backroads that are often dirt. Very seldom do I ever access I-75 as it's out of the way for me and the establishments I frequent!

As to the main point of this entire conversation, it was simply to inform a person seeking the best county to buy real estate in, that if she purchased in Levy, not only would it be less expensive overall, but that accessibility to the "cities" of Gainesville and Ocala would be a cinch, with them pretty much equally situated 30 miles in either direction. My words stating "inbetween" were not to be taken "literal" but in context with the entire thought of the referencing to infer convenience. Have a great day...and that I mean literally.

[kshe95girl]

I understood your point, and thank you!
We are in the ONF, have goats, make cheeses, raise organic produce........ and try not to drive on I-75.
I hope you get here soon, the weather has actually cooled down to bearable!

[SantaFeSandy]

Originally Posted by kshe95girl

I understood your point, and thank you!
We are in the ONF, have goats, make cheeses, raise organic produce........ and try not to drive on I-75.
I hope you get here soon, the weather has actually cooled down to bearable!

Kshe, what kind of goats do you all raise and how many do you have? I'm a vegetarian, and prefer buying organic whenever possible, so who distributes your produce or where do you all sell it?

Do you trim your goats yourselves as well? I'd love to learn more about this topic being that I've only owned my 2 goats for a little over 1 yr. (they are both about 1.5 yrs. old) and my one goat, who's about 200 lbs.+ doesn't have the prettiest of hooves. The female looks good, but the wethered male's front hooves/pad grow slightly inward and I'm not sure how aggressive to get in my trimming of the pad area.

Do you have any pictures you could post of both bad or over grown hooves and then after a good trim? I'd appreciate seeing some pics and being directed to any good websites you might know of as well. My goats are a mix of Dairy, Toggenburg, Boer and Texas Spanish Meat goat.