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My advise to the OP is to come here with an open mind, a game plan and marketable job skills and you'll be just fine. Get here then get out and enjoy all of what the state has to offer while ignoring all of the miserable people here. After all, if you're out and about enjoying your life then how can you find time to come here to CDF and be so negative?
These people are known to us as being "social hypochondriacs" or "forum trolls" to others, people who have limited or no positivity in their lives, people who feed on the negativity of others and quote statistics to try to get you to buy into their hate ... almost like how a drug addict feeds on heroin and tries to get you to try it too. They do it no matter where they end up at - the Florida forum, California forum, Texas forum or anywhere else that doesn't end up meeting their expectations.
My advise is to come here prepared, get out of the house and see what the state has to offer. We love it here and hopefully you will too!
Yours is an opinion of a Florida newbie of 15 years ago. This was a time of unrelenting real estate expansion within virtually every corner of the state. With the population growth came residential and commercial development at unheard of proportions. Certain sectors (including medical and computer technology) attached themselves to this economic growth. With it came employment and career opportunities that the the state had never before been able to offer, nor likely ever to repeat. Your wife and you benefited greatly by this expansion, and you were easily able to obtain positions in the IT and medical fields. Your timing could not have been better, and you were/are able to secure positions with virtually no competition. Like the person winning the lottery after buying a single ticket, you are continually pronouncing your proverbial wisdom at finding financial success in your Florida paradise, when in reality, downplaying the luck and positive timing in your relocation. Curiously, I wonder if you would still be considering a relocation to Florida today with the over-saturation of qualified applicants in the current IT marketplace, or examine other possibilities elsewhere where it even might snow!
Despite your insinuations and derogatory name calling, those that offer true and honest statistics to support their contentions may be on this forum simply to offer experiences that may help those who seek it. Because you love Florida does not mean that those with differing opinions do not. The OP deserves more than a presumptuous "everything will work out" without an offer of other variables he/she may want to examine before going "all in".
Prior to my retirement, I was about to purchase an expensive Florida condo in 2006. My former assistant coach purchased a home nearby, and encouraged me to move quickly as prices were going through the roof. He further explained that his six month old home was worth $50000 more than he had paid in that very short time. I went to this board, and like my former coach and you, most of the posters extolled the value of the Florida lifestyle and burgeoning economic values. I also read the posts of those that were genuinely open and honest- most were being bashed for their opinions at that time, as well- when they encouraged us to examine the many additional variables that indicated an overinflated housing market. Needless to say, the posters on this forum saved me from making one of the biggest financial mistakes in my life. Unfortunately, my friend lost his Florida home to a short sale, and our condo of choice was recently sold for half of what we nearly paid for it in 2006.
I am not a "forum troll", nor a "social hypochondriac", but someone who genuinely appreciated those who helped us through CD. It is the OP's decision to do as he chooses, but if any portion of what I post helps him through his challenging decision process, then I take some personal pride in offering some assistance.
Yours is an opinion of a Florida newbie of 15 years ago. This was a time of unrelenting real estate expansion within virtually every corner of the state. With the population growth came residential and commercial development at unheard of proportions. Certain sectors (including medical and computer technology) attached themselves to this economic growth. With it came employment and career opportunities that the the state had never before been able to offer, nor likely ever to repeat. Your wife and you benefited greatly by this expansion, and you were easily able to obtain positions in the IT and medical fields. Your timing could not have been better, and you were/are able to secure positions with virtually no competition. Like the person winning the lottery after buying a single ticket, you are continually pronouncing your proverbial wisdom at finding financial success in your Florida paradise, when in reality, downplaying the luck and positive timing in your relocation. Curiously, I wonder if you would still be considering a relocation to Florida today with the over-saturation of qualified applicants in the current IT marketplace, or examine other possibilities elsewhere where it even might snow!
Despite your insinuations and derogatory name calling, those that offer true and honest statistics to support their contentions may be on this forum simply to offer experiences that may help those who seek it. Because you love Florida does not mean that those with differing opinions do not. The OP deserves more than a presumptuous "everything will work out" without an offer of other variables he/she may want to examine before going "all in".
Prior to my retirement, I was about to purchase an expensive Florida condo in 2006. My former assistant coach purchased a home nearby, and encouraged me to move quickly as prices were going through the roof. He further explained that his six month old home was worth $50000 more than he had paid in that very short time. I went to this board, and like my former coach and you, most of the posters extolled the value of the Florida lifestyle and burgeoning economic values. I also read the posts of those that were genuinely open and honest- most were being bashed for their opinions at that time, as well- when they encouraged us to examine the many additional variables that indicated an overinflated housing market. Needless to say, the posters on this forum saved me from making one of the biggest financial mistakes in my life. Unfortunately, my friend lost his Florida home to a short sale, and our condo of choice was recently sold for half of what we nearly paid for it in 2006.
I am not a "forum troll", nor a "social hypochondriac", but someone who genuinely appreciated those who helped us through CD. It is the OP's decision to do as he chooses, but if any portion of what I post helps him through his challenging decision process, then I take some personal pride in offering some assistance.
A great story and absolute proof that now is the best time to buy real estate in Florida.
The reasons that first attracted you to Florida remain the same.Sunshine and quality of life.
But you're absolutely right to advise due diligence - moving anywhere is a major undertaking and shouldn't be taken lightly.
A great story and absolute proof that now is the best time to buy real estate in Florida.
The reasons that first attracted you to Florida remain the same.Sunshine and quality of life.
But you're absolutely right to advise due diligence - moving anywhere is a major undertaking and shouldn't be taken lightly.
Yup. Hopefully retiredcoach saw the writing on the in 2010-12.... fantastic time to have bought then.
FL population growth is again on the upside, and we will likely beat N.Y.this year to become the third most populated state
Yup. Hopefully retiredcoach saw the writing on the in 2010-12.... fantastic time to have bought then.
FL population growth is again on the upside, and we will likely beat N.Y.this year to become the third most populated state
I agree that buying Florida real estate a few years ago (when the market was at its lowest) might have been a wise move, only if we chose to become full time Florida residents. Between having my family back in Pittsburgh and the "sometimes the grass looks greener on the other side" mentality, however, we opted to stay where we were. Admittedly, it would have been nice to have the option to visit our own place in the sunshine state, but owning a vacation home (regardless of the price paid) too often is a money pit that would limit us from traveling elsewhere. Instead, we took the money that we would have used to buy that Florida vacation place and invested it in the stock market. We use the proceeds to visit a variety of areas throughout the country, including the Florida beaches. Because the stock market has been so strong, we feel as if we are vacationing for free, wherever we choose, without the long-term financial commitment.
The figures that keep staring back at me when I look at the Florida economy are those that say that nearly 50% of the children going to any Florida public school (in some schools, nearly 80%) qualify for free and reduced school lunches. This is indicative of the few most impoverished regions in my own state, and yet, virtually every public school in Florida faces the challenge of educating children coming from homes at/near federal poverty standards. You seem to believe that Florida's population growth is a good thing, but is it really?
Your wife and you benefited greatly by this expansion, and you were easily able to obtain positions in the IT and medical fields. Your timing could not have been better, and you were/are able to secure positions with virtually no competition. Like the person winning the lottery after buying a single ticket, you are continually pronouncing your proverbial wisdom at finding financial success in your Florida paradise, when in reality, downplaying the luck and positive timing in your relocation. Curiously, I wonder if you would still be considering a relocation to Florida today with the over-saturation of qualified applicants in the current IT marketplace, or examine other possibilities elsewhere where it even might snow!
Retiredcoach, I have no gripes with you. We have different perspectives of life here but I think we both believe its not a bad place to be. It may seem challenging living here to someone with a more doubtful mindset, but that is just not us. We do not live in the past, could care less about what happened 15 years ago (or even last year) as we are "making the most of it by moving forward" types of people.
You are wrong with the presumptions that we came here with positions attached to the medical and IT fields, which would be false as we did not. I will add that the IT field here in FL has always been highly competitive, and I obtained my position (as my wife did too) after moving here and have held them quite well despite the obstacles that you warn others of. Were we lucky? Definitely not, just hardworking. You also presume that our "finding financial success in Florida" is due partially to luck, timing or similar to someone "hitting the lottery" which is also incorrect and a cheap way out if I may say so.
The truth to our situation (and many others here in Florida and elsewhere in the US) is that while the housing market and economy from the late 90's to around mid 2005 was growing at an unprecedented (and unsustainable) rate, we made good, common sense decisions. We were living a normal life and starting our family while our neighbors were out remortgaging their homes, buying BMW's and taking lavish vacations. As home values skyrocketed then crashed in 2005, those same neighbors were now foreclosing and walking away from their responsibilities with investors jumping for joy in the background. None of it was luck as we never bought into the hype.
You mention your former assistant coach losing his home due to a short sale and your condo recently being sold for half the value of what it was worth in 2006, which I am sorry for. Truth be told though, your condo was never worth what it was valued for in 2006 and your assistant coach got caught up in the hype of "Gotta buy as values have increased $50K in six months!", both which were inflated values that many people bought into. It happened all over the country and in every market. To blame it on the market here in Florida is just bad information.
While the housing market was taking off, everyone who could afford (at the time) to buy a second or third home became a self proclaimed "investor" overnight. These were the people who got caught up in the crash, walked away and lost everything (many of our neighbors included). While a lot of people lost it all, there were also some smart ones out there too. A lot of them have exited the Florida market as there is not enough "meat on the bone" to make it worthwhile anymore.
Maybe these same investors are people like me who are not greedy and look at their investments without emotion, avoid selling off stocks during a downturn and do not check into Fox news on an hourly basis. Maybe they are in it for the long term (like living here in FL) and make good, strategic decisions. Maybe by doing so they have enough capital now to buy and sell your condo for a quick profit. Hmmm ... starting to make sense? There are always people making money in every type of market, and sometimes your start off at the right end of it and end up losing your a$$ due to making knee jerk decisions, as many do.
You say that we benefited greatly from this so called expansion but fail to comprehend one thing - the only thing that has ever benefited us has been hard work. We obtained our success through diligence and have kept our positions through a combination working hard AND smart, not to mention being pretty good at what we do.
Our same success is out there for anyone with a good head on their shoulders, whether residing here or not. We were affected by the downturn of the economy just like everyone else was here in FL, but it would have happened whether we were here, back in Maryland or across the US in Oregon. Who cares as itis behind us and by having some common sense and making good decisions we made it through just fine. End of story.
My "proverbial wisdom" as you call it has been and will always be:
* Have some common sense
* Have a game plan
* Line up employment
* Line up housing
* Enjoy what the area has to offer
* Form your own opinions
* Work hard
* Be dependable
* Realize things may not go as expected
... With that said, any of the above can be applied to any one of these forums from any state here on CDF, not just for those coming to Florida. My advise to the OP would be to move on from those stuck in 2005 - 2008 and realize that it WILL happen again. Moving here is not rocket science, just have some common sense and be prepared for it and you will be just fine.
Good luck.
Last edited by Florida Vince; 03-31-2014 at 08:00 AM..
In the short time that I've used CDF I've seen more b.s. on CDF than I have ever seen anywhere. These people with the problems are a problem within themselves. Bunch of crybabies and unsuccessful people who do nothing to improve their situations except complain. No wonder they can't make friends. Nobody wants to hear the constant moaning and groaning of unhappy people. They are avoided like the plague and they don't understand why. As far as the guy who hates those from the north, get with it 'bro' because the war ended a long time ago. Such a moron. There are others who have nothing good to say about FL yet they only know about their little slice of it. They have no idea what is going on in the rest of the state. The constant no jobs/low paying jobs story had gotten stale.
You got it right. The people with all the problems would be miserable no matter where they went with their attitudes. I could only imagine how they handle job interviews. No wonder they can't get beyond fast food jobs if they are lucky enough to be able to get one. I also get the impression that a lot of the posters here on CDF came from such great places that no place in Florida comes close to their standards. Every place in Florida is a dump, a ghetto, nobody knows how to drive, etc. A bunch of perfectionists who for the some reason left the great places they lived to wallow in Florida. Summer is coming so I am sure there will be a long list of those complaining about the heat. What did they expect summer in the most southern state in the continental United States be like? I have yet to see very much useful information for people thinking about relocating here in comparison to the trash commentary.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Florida Vince
My advise to the OP is to come here with an open mind, a game plan and marketable job skills and you'll be just fine. Get here then get out and enjoy all of what the state has to offer while ignoring all of the miserable people here. After all, if you're out and about enjoying your life then how can you find time to come here to CDF and be so negative?
The problem here on CDF is that there are so many people here who had none of the above (game plan, skills) and came here with visions of care free living, margaritas, palm trees and warmer weather - and making millions while enjoying it all (or what they made back home). When reality catches up with them and they end up failing ... miserably, they're stuck in a pool with other poor planning, Florida bashing people just like themselves. Its a cycle that repeats itself year after year here on CDF and you'll see them come and go like the weather.
These people are known to us as being "social hypochondriacs" or "forum trolls" to others, people who have limited or no positivity in their lives, people who feed on the negativity of others and quote statistics to try to get you to buy into their hate ... almost like how a drug addict feeds on heroin and tries to get you to try it too. They do it no matter where they end up at - the Florida forum, California forum, Texas forum or anywhere else that doesn't end up meeting their expectations.
After failing, phase two (with their poor planning never coming into the conversation) is to lessen their responsibility for it by quoting statistics like poverty rates, low wages, unemployment numbers and crime statistics. They want you to believe "EVERYTHINGS COMING APART IN FLORIDA! RUN FOR THE HILLS!" Don't believe the hype, its the same here as anywhere else in the country.
Point being is to not buy into any part of it. Be prepared, come in with a game plan (and an exit plan if things do not meet your expectations), be a responsible person and realize that nothing in any part of the country (not just FL) is what it was like 30, 20, 10 or 5 years ago. We're OK with change as change is good. Don't be lured into a negative blanket statement / advise that can be applied to anyone moving to anywhere in this great country of ours. There are hundreds of forums from every state in the US here on CDF that you can find bad (and good) information at.
My advise is to come here prepared, get out of the house and see what the state has to offer. We love it here and hopefully you will too!
Good luck!
Last edited by in_newengland; 10-28-2014 at 11:14 PM..
Reason: advertising/spam
You seem to believe that Florida's population growth is a good thing, but is it really?
I stated a fact, not an implication in my previous statement. Personally, I think it's a double-edged sword. It is not clear that FL has the infrastructure from many aspects to deal with this but for those in certain industries, it is certainly a boon.
Btw, FL isn't the only state reeling from the great recession. Many states saw their free/reduced lunch school age population soar
The number of students receiving subsidized lunches rose to 21 million last school year from 18 million in 2006-7, a 17 percent increase, according to an analysis by The New York Times of data from the Department of Agriculture, which administers the meals program. Eleven states, including Florida, Nevada, New Jersey and Tennessee, had four-year increases of 25 percent or more, huge shifts in a vast program long characterized by incremental growth.
All 50 states have shown increases, according to Agriculture Department data. In Florida, which has 2.6 million public school students, an additional 265,000 students have become eligible for subsidies since 2007, with increases in virtually every district.
Nationally, the number of students qualifying for free or reduced-price lunch continues to increase. According to the most recent comparison by the National Center for Education Statistics, free and reduced-price lunch eligibility rose from 38.3 percent during the 2000-01 school year to 48.1 percent during 2010-11.
I agree that buying Florida real estate a few years ago (when the market was at its lowest) might have been a wise move, only if we chose to become full time Florida residents. Between having my family back in Pittsburgh and the "sometimes the grass looks greener on the other side" mentality, however, we opted to stay where we were. Admittedly, it would have been nice to have the option to visit our own place in the sunshine state, but owning a vacation home (regardless of the price paid) too often is a money pit that would limit us from traveling elsewhere. Instead, we took the money that we would have used to buy that Florida vacation place and invested it in the stock market. We use the proceeds to visit a variety of areas throughout the country, including the Florida beaches. Because the stock market has been so strong, we feel as if we are vacationing for free, wherever we choose, without the long-term financial commitment.
The figures that keep staring back at me when I look at the Florida economy are those that say that nearly 50% of the children going to any Florida public school (in some schools, nearly 80%) qualify for free and reduced school lunches. This is indicative of the few most impoverished regions in my own state, and yet, virtually every public school in Florida faces the challenge of educating children coming from homes at/near federal poverty standards. You seem to believe that Florida's population growth is a good thing, but is it really?
Those statistics also reflect the fact that the feds don't ask for proof of a family's income or assets when they apply for those free school lunch programs. While I would not argue the fact that many of these families do have low incomes and qualify for those programs, there are also any number of families- we saw a lot of them in the Miami-Dade school system who believe that the program and money are there for the taking and they may as well take advantage of them, even though their income ( much of which comes from a mano a mano, under the table, economy where wages are paid in cash, neither taxes of SS taken out) is well above the level to qualify for the programs.
Just saying, basically, that the enrollment in free school lunch programs tends to be inflated due to fraudulant use, because the feds don't ask the applicants to prove they are qualified.
A lot of people on this forum keep saying how horrible Florida is and to not move there, like Florida is the worst place on earth or something.
It's really nothing personal, but it's getting pretty crowded here; please lock the door behind you if you join us in paradise!
Oh look, it's almost lovebug season again!
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