SWF area "HIGH Cost of Living"...how high is high? (Sarasota: HOA fees, home owners insurance)

[cre8art]

I'm a retired NY resident looking & hoping to "settled down" in the SWF region. I'm a newbie to the forum and have checked out various "area's (regions) of Fla. to rest my bones for my remaining years of enjoyment & relaxation. But I seem to be "feeling like the ball in a pinball machine" from all the answers given on the forum sites as to why or why "not" move to Fla. period!!! IMO it seems that a lot of the true "experienced natives"(gypsygirl & others always provide good insight) are more positive towards the "why's to" & the more discontented, maybe "younger" hopeful's (looking for careers/jobs & more in general) are more eager to supply the "why not's." in comparison. Anyway... back to the "subject" of this post, it still seems that both groups still "Stress the Point" of the "HIGH COST of LIVING" in the area! Now coming from the NY area, with Housing Cost's what they are here and "TAXES" (mine are currently $9,000 a yr.!!!) and the MANY Price Increase's we get on Everything Else except the air we breath, I thought for sure!... I'd find a More Affordable Lifestyle in the SWF area to retire year round??? But then I read on the forum that with "ALL the costs" (Housing, Cost of living, Fla.Insurance Cost's, Maintenance Fee's and whatever else I've read or don't know about? That moving to Fla. in general is not the thing to do? Is there a way of getting more specifics as to Cost/price comparison's of what is meant by the "high cost of living" in the area ...is it the food, clothing, different insurance's needed, anything, etc) that I may NOT be aware of and need to consider in my Living Budget. I live a simple (not much required/needed) lifestyle...just looking to enjoy life, the beach & sunsets. Can I find it in SWF???
p.s. I would also like any DM's from anyone willing to give more "personal" info they would rather not post on the forum. And I do plan on speaking with SoFlGal about more specifics in my housing needs & questions, but do not want to bother her until I feel that the area is right for me first. Thanks to all for all your good & bad insight to the Forum.

[SoFLGal]

Well, I can't really give a comparison with other areas because like Gypsychic, I'm a native and have only lived in Florida. I can throw out some figures though so you can compare them.

Here goes:

I live in North Port, which is southern Sarasota county. You could pick up a nice newer home in NP for under $100K. NP will be the most "bang for your buck" as you head closer to Sarasota the prices on homes start to climb. That same home in NP, just a few miles north in Venice, might be $200-$250K and in Sarasota even more.

My home was built in 2003, 2127 under air, hip roof, hurricane shutters, less than 1000 sq ft from a fire hydrant, not in a flood zone. I had a wind mitigation inspection done on my home. Before the report was done my home owner's insurance was $1987 and after having the inspection done it was $727. I did nothing to my home other than have the inspector come out and check it out. This cost me $150 and some home inspectors will throw it in for free with the cost of a home inspection. Here's more info on it: My Safe Florida Home

I spend about $250 a week on food at Wal-Mart each week. That's two adults and three kids.

Taxes on my home are $1938 per year.

Comcast for high speed Internet is $43 per month. My home phone through Comcast is $51 per month. Which I probably don't need because I never use it.

Truly Nolan Pest Control is $94 quarterly.

My Verizon (cell bill) is crazy each month. $324 last month. That's one business phone and two cell phones for the two older kids.

DirecTv is $60 for the best package and $15 for HBO-total $100 per month.

My last FPL (electric bill) was $217. We keep our thermostat at around 80 degrees.

Hope this helps

Originally Posted by cre8art

I'm a retired NY resident looking & hoping to "settled down" in the SWF region. I'm a newbie to the forum and have checked out various "area's (regions) of Fla. to rest my bones for my remaining years of enjoyment & relaxation. But I seem to be "feeling like the ball in a pinball machine" from all the answers given on the forum sites as to why or why "not" move to Fla. period!!! IMO it seems that a lot of the true "experienced natives"(gypsygirl & others always provide good insight) are more positive towards the "why's to" & the more discontented, maybe "younger" hopeful's (looking for careers/jobs & more in general) are more eager to supply the "why not's." in comparison. Anyway... back to the "subject" of this post, it still seems that both groups still "Stress the Point" of the "HIGH COST of LIVING" in the area! Now coming from the NY area, with Housing Cost's what they are here and "TAXES" (mine are currently $9,000 a yr.!!!) and the MANY Price Increase's we get on Everything Else except the air we breath, I thought for sure!... I'd find a More Affordable Lifestyle in the SWF area to retire year round??? But then I read on the forum that with "ALL the costs" (Housing, Cost of living, Fla.Insurance Cost's, Maintenance Fee's and whatever else I've read or don't know about? That moving to Fla. in general is not the thing to do? Is there a way of getting more specifics as to Cost/price comparison's of what is meant by the "high cost of living" in the area ...is it the food, clothing, different insurance's needed, anything, etc) that I may NOT be aware of and need to consider in my Living Budget. I live a simple (not much required/needed) lifestyle...just looking to enjoy life, the beach & sunsets. Can I find it in SWF???
p.s. I would also like any DM's from anyone willing to give more "personal" info they would rather not post on the forum. And I do plan on speaking with SoFlGal about more specifics in my housing needs & questions, but do not want to bother her until I feel that the area is right for me first. Thanks to all for all your good & bad insight to the Forum.

[cre8art]

Originally Posted by SoFLGal

Well, I can't really give a comparison with other areas because like Gypsychic, I'm a native and have only lived in Florida. I can throw out some figures though so you can compare them.

Here goes:

I live in North Port, which is southern Sarasota county. You could pick up a nice newer home in NP for under $100K. NP will be the most "bang for your buck" as you head closer to Sarasota the prices on homes start to climb. That same home in NP, just a few miles north in Venice, might be $200-$250K and in Sarasota even more.

My home was built in 2003, 2127 under air, hip roof, hurricane shutters, less than 1000 sq ft from a fire hydrant, not in a flood zone. I had a wind mitigation inspection done on my home. Before the report was done my home owner's insurance was $1987 and after having the inspection done it was $727. I did nothing to my home other than have the inspector come out and check it out. This cost me $150 and some home inspectors will throw it in for free with the cost of a home inspection. Here's more info on it: My Safe Florida Home

I spend about $250 a week on food at Wal-Mart each week. That's two adults and three kids.

Taxes on my home are $1938 per year.

Comcast for high speed Internet is $43 per month. My home phone through Comcast is $51 per month. Which I probably don't need because I never use it.

Truly Nolan Pest Control is $94 quarterly.

My Verizon (cell bill) is crazy each month. $324 last month. That's one business phone and two cell phones for the two older kids.

DirecTv is $60 for the best package and $15 for HBO-total $100 per month.

My last FPL (electric bill) was $217. We keep our thermostat at around 80 degrees.

Hope this helps

Perfect info as usual SoFlGal Now I have something to compare "actual"
cost's of living... Thank You!!! As I have mentioned in original post, I do intend on getting in touch with you when digging deeper(info) into homes available and hopefully visiting the area soon. Was the FPL (electric bill) a monthly cost? Any rough estimates on specific insurance needed and cost's?Have checked into your website, but don't want to get your wheels spinning for me until I get enough info and more details to provide you with my particular wants, needs, area's and prices for homes.
Thanks a bunch!

[mr&mrssunshine]

we have a vactaion home so our insurance is a little higher than if we were permanent
Ins is around $1800pa
flood ins $500
taxes $3500
our phone/internet package is $60 a month when we are there $10 when not (standby) Embarq
FPL bills are around $120 a month when there with air con (no pool), $50 when we dont use aircon
$90 when we arent there and the aircon is on and $20 when we arent there and no air con(just checked my account) -we leave some things (fridge etc ) turned on)

you would need to add on TV and food and you are away.
This is on a new 2000 sq ft 3/2/2 in Rotonda

My buddy who lives in NY but loves Fla says he could live for half the cost if he could persuade his wife to move- his home on LI is assessed at over $500k - he could get a real good home for half that.

[mikey2]

I think because Florida is such a large state that the cost of living varies in different areas.

For example, the cost of living in Sarasota is higher than where I live in North Port.

I moved from Rhode Island....and I can tell you the cost of living is half (that right and it's no exaggeration) of what it was up there.

What you need to do is come down and see what areas feel right for you.

Good Luck

Mikey

[SoFLGal]

Originally Posted by cre8art

Perfect info as usual SoFlGal Now I have something to compare "actual"
cost's of living... Thank You!!! As I have mentioned in original post, I do intend on getting in touch with you when digging deeper(info) into homes available and hopefully visiting the area soon. Was the FPL (electric bill) a monthly cost? Any rough estimates on specific insurance needed and cost's?Have checked into your website, but don't want to get your wheels spinning for me until I get enough info and more details to provide you with my particular wants, needs, area's and prices for homes.
Thanks a bunch!

Yes, the FPL bill is monthly. But again, keep in mind I have three girls that keep the dryer and the hot water heater going constantly. If there are only two of you than you might be able to cut that figure in half. If you had a pool with a heater that's gonna keep the bill up there. I don't have that though.

Hmmm....other insurance. Well, you could have flood and I really can't give a figure on that because it goes by the elevation of the house. So it would be specific to the home. 95% of North Port does not require flood insurance so if you elect to buy it it's much less. Many of the properties closer to the coast do require flood. Also many of the properties west of US 41 require flood.

The home owners insurance depends a great deal on the age of the home, style of the roof, if you have hurricane shutters, how close you are to a natural body of water or a fire hydrant and how the roof is tied on. There are a few other things they factor in but those are the biggies.

Then you would have car insurance. Mine is crazy because I have a teen driver on my policy. I can't locate a bill right now but I know that I had Allstate and switched to Geico and cut the bill in half.

That's all I can think of off the top of my head for insurances.

[smiledoc1]

Originally Posted by cre8art

I'm a retired NY resident looking & hoping to "settled down" in the SWF region. I'm a newbie to the forum and have checked out various "area's (regions) of Fla. to rest my bones for my remaining years of enjoyment & relaxation. But I seem to be "feeling like the ball in a pinball machine" from all the answers given on the forum sites as to why or why "not" move to Fla. period!!! IMO it seems that a lot of the true "experienced natives"(gypsygirl & others always provide good insight) are more positive towards the "why's to" & the more discontented, maybe "younger" hopeful's (looking for careers/jobs & more in general) are more eager to supply the "why not's." in comparison. Anyway... back to the "subject" of this post, it still seems that both groups still "Stress the Point" of the "HIGH COST of LIVING" in the area! Now coming from the NY area, with Housing Cost's what they are here and "TAXES" (mine are currently $9,000 a yr.!!!) and the MANY Price Increase's we get on Everything Else except the air we breath, I thought for sure!... I'd find a More Affordable Lifestyle in the SWF area to retire year round??? But then I read on the forum that with "ALL the costs" (Housing, Cost of living, Fla.Insurance Cost's, Maintenance Fee's and whatever else I've read or don't know about? That moving to Fla. in general is not the thing to do? Is there a way of getting more specifics as to Cost/price comparison's of what is meant by the "high cost of living" in the area ...is it the food, clothing, different insurance's needed, anything, etc) that I may NOT be aware of and need to consider in my Living Budget. I live a simple (not much required/needed) lifestyle...just looking to enjoy life, the beach & sunsets. Can I find it in SWF???
p.s. I would also like any DM's from anyone willing to give more "personal" info they would rather not post on the forum. And I do plan on speaking with SoFlGal about more specifics in my housing needs & questions, but do not want to bother her until I feel that the area is right for me first. Thanks to all for all your good & bad insight to the Forum.

Hi Cre8art,
Let me be concise. We have a house in central MA and one here in Palmer Ranch. Our house in MA is about 3200 sq. feet. Our house here is about 2300 sq. feet. Taxes are much more sq.ft. for sq.ft. in MA. Insurance is about the same. Utilities are far less here. Trust me, those people who did not lock in oil prices last July are squirming right now. Stuff like the cable bill difference is small one way or the other. Even adding in the HOA fees here in VW the cost of living is less. Perhaps if your point of reference is Nebraska, it might be different, and I don't know if you are from NYC or upstate. But if you are from NYC , Sarasota is a bargain!!
Also, the west coast of FL is so much different than the east coast. This might not be for everyone, but it fits us perfectly.
People complain about traffic. Relative to major cities like NYC, Boston, there is no traffic here. Even in peak season, there is nothing here like the traffic on the GW Bridge or Tappanzee.
No place is paradise and few places are hell. But I think most anyone would enjoy living here. I find people to be as friendly here as anyplace else. Mostly because most people here are from everywhere else.
As to the heat, yes it can be hot here. This is Florida, not Maine. But the heat doesn't bother us and I have spent many a summer in hot humid locales before. There must be a reason why the line for people to move to North Korea is a lot shorter than the line of people wanting to move to the US.

[gypsychic]

A lot of costs here really depends on individual lifestyle, size of house, etc.

We live on the north end of Sarasota which is actually in Manatee County, so we pay Manatee taxes and have Manatee services. Our costs are for a 1400 sq ft 1950's all electric house are:

FPL - $130 in summer using air, $50 in winter, no air

Water, sewer, garbage - about $50 a mo. year round (no pool or sprinklers)

Prop. tax - just under $2,000 per yr.

Ins. (this is the big one) total about $2,600 per year including flood (we live close to Sarasota Bay Note: If your home is newer and meets certain mitigation requirements and not in flood zone you will pay FAR less than we do.

Car ins. is $125 per mo for two people, two cars in Manatee County, this can vary, we pay more because my husband drives 58 miles to work. Cost varies from county to county, what type car you drive, how far, etc.

Phone, internet, TVcable - all in a bundle, $139 per month with Brighthouse.

Except for insurance, I feel that all bills here are pretty reasonable. You have all types of choices for food from gourmet stores to ultra discount stores as well.

Hope this helps!

[Big House]

It really does matter where you are from in NY. But in general you will find the cost of many things much less here. One of the things you don't see is all the hidden costs that are added on by the State of NY that drives up the cost of everything. The taxes in NY are much higher, as an example.

Restaurant and other service businesses down here are less expensive as well. But, it is a matter of how you live your lifestyle when you're down here. I see everyone gave you some actual costs they have relative to insurance, phone, taxes, and other things, but there are a lot of other things that more affordable here than up there.

I really live here in SWFL, I bike, boat, fish, swim, beach, walk, play with the dog, go to tons of outdoor festivals (art, food, seafood, music) and parks, visit all the area towns, air shows, and tons of other things that get you out and about. I hardly spend any time in the house - except to write my friends here on CD. Most of the things you can do for free (if your not married! - just joking ladies - you're all worth every penny - trust me! ). My wife hates it when I make jokes like that by the way - How come?! LOL

[cre8art]

I just have to say... "A BIG THANK YOU!"... to all that have replied, and especially for providing your detail$ of daily living expense$ for the SWF area. You all were very helpful with providing just the right info I needed to compare the cost's of living expenses for the SWF area and my area. And I"m sure it will serve "MANY OTHERS" looking to move into the area as well.

.... it is truly "heart felt" to know that there are still places & people to go to that are willing to help others with their Knowledge & Time!!! Thanks