Relocating and have questions? (Tampa, Brandon: sales, real estate, foreclosures)

[dementedpsyche]

We are most likely relocating from Chattanooga, TN to Tampa, FL. My Husband is taking a job in Tampa and I had a few questions regarding this that I hope can be answered.
Hubby is taking an assistant professor job in Tampa after teaching around 10 years. Right now he makes around 38K which is really low ending it but I figured that was the best. He makes considerably more in Tampa, I think around 48k but don't quote me on that. I am concerned about cost of living. I want to make sure we will make enough to pay rent and our bills. We don't need a fancy life but just to survive. It is he and I and our 12 year old. I spoke to a friend who lives in Ft Myers (3ish hours away) and she said she makes around 100k a year and is paycheck to paycheck which scared me very much.
If anyone can help me in this area I would SO appreciate it. I only want what is best for my family. I don't want my baby girl to want for anything or my husband to think he is a bad provider if he can't pull enough.
So any stories, hints, advice, etc I do appreciate.

[floridabonds]

We're moving to the area as well. It seems that real estate taxes are high if you're going to buy a house. You can find houses under $200k in the Brandon/Riverview/Valrico area. There's no state income tax. If your husband is going to be the sole support it will probably be tight. Come up with a backwards budget - anticipated net less fixed expenses such car payments, car insurance, health insurance, etc. and you'll find out how much you have to live on every month. Figure out a mortgage or rent payment based on that and see if it will work.

[Eresh]

It really depends on how much debt you have. If you don't have 2 car payments and a lot of credit card bills, living off 48K is quite feasible (as long as you don't require a high class neighborhood). Where in Tampa will he be teaching? A lot of profs at USF commute from Pasco county.

[MEDTECH3000]

Hi everybody.
In spite of how useful is this web site and its forums, it is sometime very hard to find any particular subject. For instance : I' ve been trying to allocate any references on HOW would be working as health employee in the Moffit Center, regarding salaries, benefits, etc.; and I've not been able to find any any comment on that?
Would anybody here could tell me something? the fact is that me and my wife are considering to relocate in this area to work at Moffit Center
thanks
MEDTECH3000

[gypsychic]

Originally Posted by dementedpsyche

We are most likely relocating from Chattanooga, TN to Tampa, FL. My Husband is taking a job in Tampa and I had a few questions regarding this that I hope can be answered.
Hubby is taking an assistant professor job in Tampa after teaching around 10 years. Right now he makes around 38K which is really low ending it but I figured that was the best. He makes considerably more in Tampa, I think around 48k but don't quote me on that. I am concerned about cost of living. I want to make sure we will make enough to pay rent and our bills. We don't need a fancy life but just to survive. It is he and I and our 12 year old. I spoke to a friend who lives in Ft Myers (3ish hours away) and she said she makes around 100k a year and is paycheck to paycheck which scared me very much.
If anyone can help me in this area I would SO appreciate it. I only want what is best for my family. I don't want my baby girl to want for anything or my husband to think he is a bad provider if he can't pull enough.
So any stories, hints, advice, etc I do appreciate.

IMO, if you were making it in Chattanooga on $38,000 per year, you most certainly will be doing better here with $48,000 - provided you don't have a lot of debt or buy/rent anything too expensive. There is no income tax here, no sales tax on groceries, the only thing that will be higher is RE taxes and HO ins., but there again, will depend where you live, age of the home, etc. As for your friend who lives paycheck to paycheck on $100,000 - well I would say she is living waaaaaay beyond her means - that is utterly ridiculous.

Good luck - it's a great place to live!

[Nav]

100,000k in Ft Myers???? That is one of the lowest cost of living areas in the State of Florida. The only way she may be taxed is if she bought a monster home during the bubble and has a massive mortgage. In the Ft Myers / Cape coral area you can get 3/2/2 salt waterfront canal homes starting in the 150's. Something is wrong with the info she is providing....Ft Myers / Cape coral area is still leading the Nation in Foreclosures. Its a ghost town in a lot of areas.

As for Tampa, you can live fine on 48k. there are a ton of houses in the 90-140k range that are in descent neighborhoods. You just have to make sure there are not huge HOA's or CDD fees for the community. Like Tennessee, there is no state income tax, and sales tax is only around 7%. Food costs are about the same. Utilities will be a bit higher, but it depends on how cold you run the A/C in the summer. Insurance costs will be higher, both Car and Home. As for property Taxes, they are about $2500 for every 100k in home value. Remember, you'll get a 50k homestead exemption once you buy a house so a 100k house will only be taxed on 50k. Again, taxes aren't that bad in the lower end of the housing spectrum. Where they really hurt is when you go up in price and you are looking at a 5 figure yearly tax bill. Traffic will be much worse, road rage is a problem. Tempers flare easily and a lot of uninsured motorists mean you always have to be cognizant of those around you. Normally not a problem , but its always a possibility. Gas will be a bit higher in Tampa as opposed to TN. It makes no sense since gas is delivered via tanker to the port of tampa.

Bottom line, with a few exceptions, the cost of living in Tampa is only a percent or two higher than the costs in Tennessee. With the 26% raise you mentioned, you should come out ahead

Nav

[seain dublin]

You said it Nav, the drivers here are awful and MANY are unisured. FL leads the nation in uninsured drivers.

FL lets uninsured drivers off with a ticket which they don't pay and they continue to drive, eventually their DL gets suspended, but they keep driving.

Which is why there are so many hit and runs here. They're not supposssed to be
driving.

Unlike most states which impound the cars, FL lets them keep driving. So you have to be extra careful here as to who is around you.