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If he lived here for 3 years, how did he not know before he built that he hated the area?
Did he build knowing this and think he would get used to the area?
After 3 years one should know whether or not an area will suit them. We rented for 4 years and then bought our lot and built our house. Online purchasing is a beautiful thing.
No.....lived with mother in law for 3 years in West Palm Beach....50 miles away!
High end stores cater to high end clients......My buddy built his dream house in PSL, living with his mother in law for 3 years while saving to buy the lot. He hates it. His one liner about PSL: "it is for everyone that couldn't afford a house in dade, broward or palm beach county!"
He drives a company vehicle so commuting doesn't cost him anything but 10+ hours a week = over 500 hours a year.....it is starting to get to him.
That is too bad that that happened to your friend. All of that investment just to be in a place you hate.
I'm living a similar story though. I can't say I hate the place, but I certainly don't like it.
Because of health issues me and my husband had to downgrade and live in a cheaper place than Dade County, so he did all of the research and found this place. Unfortunately, because of my health issues at the time, I didn't look into it as much as I could have before moving here.
It is sort of cheaper, at least the home prices are, but once your here and take into account your travel expenses, you end up having to dish out a lot of money on commuting. A car is vital here. I can't even imagine having to live here and not being able to drive out of it. The only thing here is Walmart and Dunkin' Donuts. Maybe at the end of life that is all people care about, but I'm only 45 not 95.
Funny, everyone I have talked to that's here has said something similar to your friends one-liner. They are here because it was the cheapest they could find and couldn't afford to go anywhere else....lol
Now there's no way out of here. My home's worth is much lower than everywhere else. It is sort of like a Black Hole living here because once you're in, you won't ever be able to build enough equity to get out. Especially if you are looking for a cash transaction. I left Dade with enough money to pay off a house here, but can never get enough money out to leave. Plus, I am in the dreaded Torino area, a.k.a Salem's Lot.
Location: Finally the house is done and we are in Port St. Lucie!
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We briefly looked in the Torino area, it is way out there and pretty far from anything.
Ended up in East PSL. I love it here. Still have to drive but they are quick drives. 2 min to the grocery, 15 min to Jenson Beach, 15 min to the Mall and surrounding area.
For higher end purchases, online shopping is great.
Now there's no way out of here. My home's worth is much lower than everywhere else. It is sort of like a Black Hole living here because once you're in, you won't ever be able to build enough equity to get out. Especially if you are looking for a cash transaction. I left Dade with enough money to pay off a house here, but can never get enough money out to leave. Plus, I am in the dreaded Torino area, a.k.a Salem's Lot.
Not really unless you have plain given up or not looked elsewhere. The median home price in your section of PSL is 240K and it's forecasted to increase 6% in 2018. That 6% alone should be enough to move on and places in FL like Jacksonville which is booming economically still provide many decent homes in the 150K-180K bracket (around 275 to be exact).
Why would you say that when its right on top of St Lucie West with all the shops and restaurants, movie theaters etc. ?? Quick access to I95 at St Lucie West exit.
It doesn't have any old homes because that area wasn't even built till around 2005.
I love Torino and think its a great area of PSL. There are some nice homes there.
Everything you mentioned is obvious in a single visit. So your either bought sight unseen or didn't care enough about those items prior to your purchase to investigate.
PSL is a nice place to settle down. If your want whole foods and trader Joe's then head south an hour and spend the extra 150k.
Otherwise PSL is what it is and isn't a bad place.
Exactly.
Don't blame your husband, OP.
And there is no "downfall" so where did that word come from. Maybe you missed the economic/real estate crisis in 2008 and don't know that EVERY place in FL had various recovery times, but all LONG. Vero Beach, where I live has the most retired CEOs in the country yet, the county seat, even HERE, with all our wealth, our real estate and commercial properties haven't fully recovered. And we ARE a beachfront tourist community with A LOT going on.
But if you can't afford to leave PSL, then you can't afford to live anywhere too close to our beach (or even bridge) unless you're willing to spend >$200K for a 800 sq ft 2/1 1960's cottage that is STILL about 15 minutes from the beach (or more depending on traffic).
I thought everyone knew about PSL. Even Howard Stern talked about it extensively on his morning show many decades ago when his parents moved there. My parents and I used to drive up from Tequesta in the 70's and were shocked at the massive building going on to satisfy the demand of people wanting to retire to a BEDROOM COMMUNITY that started out with about 300 people just a few years before.
You REALIZE that Ft Lauderdale, Palm Beach and Miami have been around since the 1920's right? They have major international airports, cruise lines, tourist destinations, and a historic backbone that commands MUCH higher prices in everything.
You moved here and didn't even read about it on WIKI first?
Didn't look at a map and see there was no direct bridge?
That's an AMENITY that is going to raise your costs living there. PSL is mostly landlocked, anyway.
Maybe that's why PSL is "the way it is".
Too many people moving here just because they "can't afford" to move further south and who have no plans to be active in the community or whatnot.
I think it's pretty nice there with enough "value". But if you thought you were going to live less than 20 minutes from the Atlantic Ocean in Mid-South Florida for cheap, you were mistaken.
IRONY:
Quote:
Because of financial reasons we really can’t upgrade somewhere else at the moment but I’m curious to know what happened to this place?
Torino is way out here. Hence Salem's Lot. It was sold to us as a very "desirable" area. I have no clue why. No lighting, no sidewalks, 2 government housing developments nearly side by side and the Cemex junk yard, for that final touch. Not to mention the new sober house that's coming along just nicely. Oh, I almost forgot our new homeless residents who recently adopted peddling along Midway Road. The roads are full of potholes and even though it looks like a jungle, there are actually houses behind the unkept forest the city allows to grow on the side of the road. But, really, unless its a gated community with a very expensive HOA and/or CDD, it looks just about the same as every place here. That's why I thought the city had gone bankrupt or something and asked about its "downfall". Now that I know the history of it, it makes more sense.
With the traffic, it takes us about 30 mins to reach the rinky dink mall near Jensen Beach. It's not even worth it. We usually just find it easier to hop on 95 and go to PBG, which takes about the same time and it's just a straight drive with no traffic lights. Thank goodness we are located close to 95. Hopefully that will change once the Crosstown Parkway project is complete and it becomes a quicker route down to US1.
I wasn't looking to live near the ocean. When I lived in Dade, I was nowhere near the ocean. I had to drive about the same distance I do here to get to it. If I was looking for ocean front, I wouldn't have moved here. I was just asking why our section of Hutchinson Island has not been developed. It seems strange for such a potential area to be left abandoned. When I first came down here, I wasn't even aware we had that section. I just assumed Hutchinson Island was only accessible through Jensen Beach and solely belonged to it. Then I realized you can access it through Fort Pierce as well, so our section is the only one missing. You would think it's a prime location for beaches, restaurants, shopping and condos, but it's a barren raccoon city instead.
The only thing I like about where I am now is the proximity to the shopping center on Port Saint Lucie West Blvd. I really like the way it's designed and manicured. It has every shop that you would need. It looks like it belongs in the area since PGA Verano is right there and looks so nicely kept. Unfortunately, it does require a 5 mile drive down the unkempt Torino Parkway and you do have to dodge cyclists and walkers who have to use the road because there are no sidewalks, but oh well. Just don't drive at night.
Most of the houses in this area look unmaintained. The closer to Port Saint Lucie West Blvd you go, the nicer the homes, but as you go into the actual Torino Parkway road, you are going to see some disasters. I guess most have been rented out. Fences are falling apart, mold on all the walls, gardens are weed infested and the way the city keeps its section, doesn't make it any better. Maybe the new "luxury" Torino Lakes apartments might spruce up the area and make it more desirable, but the only thing those people will see from their balconies is the Cemex company.
I don't blame my husband for what happened. I wish he would have looked in West Palm, but he did his best when I was mostly in and out of the hospital. He simply assumed that we couldn't afford in West Palm rather than get a realtor there. He did the online research on this place, etc. He even steered clear of Traditions because of the chinese drywall, HOA fees and CDD's, even though I fell in love with the place. He did what he could with the time frame we were pressed for and we got a bargain for our house. Mistakes were made and hindsight is always 20/20, so there are some regrets, but we are here now and have to make the best of the situation. I can say I'm comfortable. I'm not loving it, but I'm comfortable. I should have saved some money, instead of paying off so many bills just in case this happened, but oh well. The housing prices have been steadily going up and our house is worth way more than what we bought it for. Hopefully it will continue going up, so we can find a better option, but it just takes some time.
At this point a move further north will not be possible as I have to be closer to an ailing parent back in Dade, but in the future it's always another possibility as well.
There is an old saying Gina, "You get what you pay for". We looked in the Torino area years ago during the foreclosure crisis. Rundown houses under 100K all over. After about 3 hours of looking at these eyesores we left. Good luck with your situation.
Jersey where in Torino did you find run down houses under 100K in Tornio? Those homes weren't even built till around 2005--and certainly not under $100 since the lots alone were 25,000 and up at that time. Torino is the area above St Lucie West to Midway. It has a lot of very nice homes in it. I don't believe you have the right area.
and to GinaP ...anything on MIDWAY is NOT Torino. Sidewalks and streetlight are NOT going to be anywhere there is not a development or the City puts them in. Torino is NOT a development. It IS homes that are built by individual builders and Torino is a name for the AREA. The one HOA there is Windy Pines which has nice homes in it and its not gated. The small rental condo complex is not government housing but they are restricted income. You can drive right by and not know they are there except for the sign at the entrance. Most people don't even know its restricted income and its certainly not an eysore.
I drive Torino Parkway quite often since I live in St Lucie West and am not seeing what you are. I also don't drive over any potholes or see jungles anywhere. If you're looking along Midway Rd... hey be my guest, it has potholes till you get to the newly paved and beautified part of it, but DON'T call it Torino because its NOT.
Oh..and if you want to drive to PGA to shop be my guest. Nobody forced you to buy a house in THIS area. But you did pay less for it than you would have in the PGA area. There is a lot of shopping and various stores in St Lucie West which are only minutes from anywhere in Torino. But, apparently they must not be the MALL that you are looking for. You obviously did not invest any time in searching out the area when you bought if the mall has such a draw for you.
WHERE exactly do you live since everything you talk about seems more like Fort Pierce ...and NOT Torino because you really don't seem to know the area at all
Oh and Tradition in general does NOT have Chinese drywall. Some homes in Bedford Park did, and the Condos in behind Publix did. The original homes in a small area what is now called Vitalia(55+). NOBODY ELSE. You can listen to people who have no idea or actually find out... I was there.
Location: Finally the house is done and we are in Port St. Lucie!
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When we first started looking at building, we did look at the Torino area. It does 'seem' closer to Fort Pierce than to PSL. I can understand how the mistake can be made in thinking it is Fort Pierce. At least until you get used to the boundaries between the two.
Since we didn't want an HOA, we looked at the neighborhoods. They were quite nice but they seemed really packed in.
The OP has stated that she was ill and left the choosing to her husband. Now she knows and is planning on being more careful in further choices when the time comes. Now that she knows the area better, she can make a more informed choice for her requirements.
There will be a buyer for her house, that area is planning on expanding and retail to come in time. Driving on Torino is quite pretty. One thing it does have going for it, the proximity to 95. Easy on, easy off.
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