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WEATHER | HURRICANES | REAL ESTATE | JOBS | SCHOOLS
WEATHER - SWF does not get any snow, but there are about five months of very hot summers (>90F), often with high humidity dew points (>70F DP ) and mid-December to mid-February can have brief cold snaps where nights can dip into the 30s and 40s, but usually only for a week or two.
The most reliable pleasant weather is October/November and March/April. If thinking of moving here year round, make sure you spend some time here in summer, when everyone runs from their cars to inside to escape the often oppressive heat, so that you know what you are signing up for. Most people adapt, but some leave Florida due to the summers or are unhappy about it.
This is of course not an issue for snowbirds who go back north in the summer, or for second home people who spend their stays in the pool or at the beach. Beach area homes are slightly cooler than inland area homes in the summer. For some, sitting inside looking out at a hot sunny day is less depressing than looking at snow and gray skies.
Weather forecasts in the summer may show rain for many days, but this is most often just an afternoon tropical shower, with sunny skies the rest of the day. You need to experience all this yourself, BEFORE you commit to a purchase.
Bear in mind that often the heat can be the same or higher where you now live but the dew point is usually much higher in SW Florida, and that will make a big difference in comfort. But, once again, most people that live year-round eventually acclimate.
HURRICANES - Hurricane season runs June 1 to November 1, but the historical odds of a Cat 1 or higher in Lee County is about 16% for the entire season, so the odds that there would be one during YOUR short visit is minimal. The season peaks in early September, so try to avoid that period by a month either side, or have flexible arrangements. Hurricanes more or less announce themselves a week ahead of time and you can monitor the projected paths. National Hurricane Center
For ownership, if you are concerned, consider living in higher number evacuation zones (inland on higher land) and buying property built after the new building code was put in place in 2001, or reassure yourself that wind mitigation has been done on an older property. Beware that properties near inland rivers and sloughs may also be considered high risk for FEMA insurance purposes.
PURCHASING REAL ESTATE - Thoroughly explore Florida and neighboring States and then decide on which county, near beach or on canal, rural or urban, or on gated condos with or without a captive golf course. Each choice has benefits and costs/risks. If you can, buy in the off-season. The more restraint you show in delaying purchasing, by renting initially or vacationing in the area, the better a choice you will make that suits your needs.
Pay attention to monthly carrying costs. Florida real estate is “on a super sale” now, but make sure you do not commit to a property without seeing the full county tax bill, including ad valorem taxes not only for the city, but as well the county (capital & general funds, library, hyacinth & mosquito control), school, SWF water levies, inland waterway, & non-ad-valorem Community Development District (CDD) bond payment (if applicable), as well as HOA fees, and insurance (regular and flood). Note that MLS short sales are very uncertain and can take months, and that post-foreclosure MLS Bank Sales are much easier. For the brave, there is this:
Tax Deed Sales - https://www.lee.realtaxdeed.com/INDE...METHOD=TAXDEED
Foreclosure sales - https://www.lee.realforeclose.com/IN...THOD=FORECLOSE
The good news is that the Florida property tax homestead exemption reduces the value of a home for assessment of property taxes by $50,000, so a home that was actually worth $100,000 would be taxed as though it was worth only $50,000. However, the second $25,000 of homestead coverage does not apply to the school portion of property taxes.
Exemptions - http://dor.myflorida.com/dor/propert...xemptions.html
Here are some useful government tools:
Look up a Tax bill - Lee County Tax Collector's Office
Insurance Est’r - Compare Homeowner's Insurance Rates
Flood Insurance -http://www.floodsmart.gov/floodsmart/pages/residential_coverage/rc_overview.jsp (http://www.floridadisaster.org/mitigation/nfip/Documents/2007/FOT/downloads/WhyYouNeedFloodInsuranceBrochure-OT2007.pdf - broken link) Lee County Property Line
Pay attention to which evacuation zone the property is in. This will not only bear on the actual risk to you and your property, but as well will affect how often you will be ordered to leave the area (if you summer over) and the insurance costs, which can be higher than other parts of the US. Make sure you determine what insurance is required by your mortgage lender and obtain a quote from your insurance agent, before committing to the purchase. Be sure to make receipt of an acceptable flood certification, a contingency of your initial offer. Keep in mind that the actual risk of your home even being subjected to damaging winds is remote over a lifetime of residency, and with educated selection, your home should be able to withstand the unlikely event of even a Category 5 hurricane. More radically, without a mortgage, a person with a solid wind mitigated house on high land with a high evacuation number, far enough from the coast, with sufficient funds set aside to make repairs and recover, might consider self insurance.
http://www.floridadisaster.org/Publi...eZones_Lee.pdf (http://www.floridadisaster.org/PublicMapping/SurgeZones/SurgeZones_Lee.pdf - broken link)
Chinese drywall is estimated to be in less than 4000 homes in Florida (6,300 nationwide, with 58% in Florida - U.S. CPSC: Drywall Information Center ), and as well is found in most other States. Generally, it is believed to have been used between 2002 to 2009, with 2006 & 2007 being years of main concern, but there is no hard and fast rule. It could also be found in homes pre-2002, but which have been renovated. As always, it is absolutely necessary to get a licensedinsured home inspector (who is a member of the American Society of Home Inspectors or another professional association) to thoroughly check the home for Chinese drywall and other issues such as termites and mold as well ($400ish depending). While this is a significant issue that should not be ignored, Chinese drywall is easily detectable by a professional, so this should not be a stumbling block. 2009 Chinese drywall controversy - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia http://www.doh.state.fl.us/environme...spections.html
If all this due diligence is scaring you off, choose to indefinitely rent to eliminate many of the expenses and risks of home ownership, such as being trapped by a house if you lose your job, divorce, or more remote risks such as condo gets into trouble and raises fees dramatically, the captive golf course goes under, builder folds with unfinished facilities, bad neighbors move in, city decides to put in city water and charge you, hurricane damage to area, personal health change, and so on. Enjoying the Florida lifestyle does not mean having to take on the risks of home ownership. Wait, and make a smart insider move in the off season, rather than a sucker Yankee move after a week of driving around. ft myers / SW florida apts/housing for rent classifieds - craigslist
JOBS IN SWF - The most dangerous thing you could do would be to give up your lease or sell your house and move to Florida on the HOPE that you might find a job within a few weeks or months. Locals with many connections are having trouble and hundreds of people apply for a minimum wage job when it comes up. Moving down with kids in tow who are relying on you to find work would compound your danger. IF you are determined to move to the sunshine and are prepared to scrape by on wages for much less than the north for the rest of your life (IF you find work at all), it is essential that you come down and find the job BEFORE pulling up stakes up north. Better, if you want to raise a family, especially on unskilled wages, study this information and move to where there are better prospects, at least to more northerly Florida, or better yet, Texas and the midwest.
SCHOOLS -Public schooling in Lee County employs "School Choice" within a large zone, which requires the parents to rank their school preference by March of the preceding school year, then the school district attempts to match the student with the ranked choices. The higher rated schools usually have more demand than slots, so these are allocated on a lottery basis, which may lead to your child being assigned to a lower quality or more distant school (up to an hour bus ride each way) than you had hoped, which is almost a certainty for new residents who miss the March deadline.
Possible public school solutions include renting until you know your assigned public school(s), then move to the neighborhood of the school to minimize busing or drop-off distance. If you don't like the school assigned, you may try getting on a waiting list for a more desirable public or charter school. It is not uncommon to reside just outside of the county boundary (in Punta Gorda or south of Woods Edge Parkway - verify County you are in!) and take on a possibly long commute to Lee County for employment. In Florida, it is more common than elsewhere for middle class parents to pay for private, Catholic (tuition subsidies may be available for low income attending Catholics) or Protestant/Christian schools. Finally, some choose to home school.
Great thing about Lee County is that everything from Everglades City up to Sarasota are day-tripable. If you like plenty of bars, restaurants, unlimited shopping, beaches, boating, golf, festivals and being 2-3 hours from Miami, Fort Lauderdale, Orlando, Tampa, and 30-90 minutes from Naples and Sarasota, with the Keys close enough for overnight trips, then you WILL have fun here. Starting at the top:
NORTH OF THE COUNTY
Fisherman’s Village| Charlotte Harbour Park| Town of Boca Grande| Gasparilla Inn & Club| Gasparilla Island Museum| Boca Bike Path| Haze Bike Path| Legacy Bike Path| Babcock Adventure| Arcadia Antiques| Ca D’ Zan Mansion| Polo
CAPE CORAL, MATLATCHA AND PINE ISLAND
Yacht Club Beach| Sunsplash Water Park| Paradise Bikes| Cape Coral Art League| Historical Museum| Cultural Park Theatre| Four Mile Cove Preserve| Rotary Park| Boat Rental| Island Girl Ferry| Tropic Star Cruises| Cabbage Key| Pine Island Preserve| Matlatcha| Matlatcha Pass Preserve| Matlatcha Bridge Fishing| Golf
SANIBEL/CAPTIVA
Bailey-Matthews Shell Museum| Ding Darling Refuge| Sanibel Fishing Pier| Sanibel Causeway| Big Arts| Sanibel Bookshop| Andy Ross Lane Beach| Turner (Blindpass) Beach| Captiva Historic Cemetery| Chapel by the Sea| Colgate Sailing School | Green Flash
FORT MYERS & FORT MYERS BEACH
Notable Shopping & Restaurants
Bell Tower Shops| Tanger Outlet| River District| Shell Factory| Veranda Restaurant| Beach Seafood Market| Total Wine| Sun Harvest Citrus| The Bike Route| Schwinn Cyclery |Paradise Bikes| Night Clubs | Fleamasters|
Nature & Sports
Ostego Bay Science Center| Manatee Park| Princess Cruise| Calusa Nature Center| FM Beach & Pier| Imaginarium| J.C. Cruises| Butterfly Estates|
Skatium| Minnesota Twins| Boston Red Sox| 6 Mile Cypress Slough| Key West Ferry| Boat Rental| Bike Paths | FM Golf | Lehigh Golf| Horseback | Sailing Tour| Matanzas Pass
Culture
Edison & Ford Winter Estates| Burroughs Home| SW Florida Museum| Laurel Art Gallery| Arts for ACT Gallery| Arts Cultural Center| Davis Art Center| Alliance for the Arts| Reperatory Theatre| Theatre Conspiracy| Broadway Palm Dinner Theater| Mann Arts Centre| Gulf Coast Symphony| SW Florida Symphony| Murder Mystery Dinner Train | Mound Key| Bridge
BONITA SPRINGS/ESTERO/IMMOKALEE
Lover's Key Park| Dog Beach Park| Miromar Outlets| Poker Room | Gannon’s Antique Mall| Coconut Point Mall| Koreshan Historic Site| Kayaking| Corkscrew Sanctuary| Airboats| Seminole Casino| Bonita Golf| Estero Golf
COLLIER COUNTY (NAPLES, MARCO ISLAND, EVERGLADES CITY)
Naples Pier| Tin City| Segway Tours| Trek Bikes| N. Cyclery|Alley Bike Path| 5th Ave. South| Waterside Shops| Naples Golf| Botanical Gardens| Museum of Art| Zoo| Co. Museum| Turtle Club Restaurant| Bach Ensemble| Opera Society| Philharmonic| Theatre Zone| United Arts Council| Von Liebig Arts Centre| Flying Club | Stilts Restaurant| Tiger Tail Beach| Manatee EcoTour| Everglades City Airboats| Ave Maria|
FURTHER AFIELD (Google Map Travel Time)
Daytona (4 hours - NASCAR)
Orlando (3 hours – Disney World, Universal Studios, Sea World)
Tampa (2.25 hours – Ybor City)
St. Petersburg (2 hours – Dali Museum)
Palm Beach (3 hours – Flagler Museum)
Fort Lauderdale (2.5 hours – Sawgrass Mall)
Miami (2.5 hours – South Beach, Vizcaya)
Keys and Key West (5 hours – Dolphin Swim, Bahia Honda Park, Sunset Celebration)
Note: comments on this sticky may be made on the SWF FAQ sticky thread
WATCH THIS SPACE FOR MORE TO FOLLOW ON SWF FAQ!
DANGEROUS THINGS TO DO IN SWF
Feeding alligators. | As a very rough rule of thumb, driving around Fort Myers north of College Parkway without knowing what you are doing, especially after dark (McGregor is the exception and a good way to get downtown after dark.) | Driving around anywhere after dark unless you are familiar with the area and know where you are going. | If someone grabs your purse outside a liquor store, fighting with the robber. | Impolite behavior on the roadways...many are carrying (weapons) and some are not law abiding. | Walking side streets alone when in River District at night | Not being polite and docile with police. | Renting a car without liability coverage from home (smarter) or rental car company (not so smart). | Wading or swimming in lakes and rivers. | Walking off paths in brush or wild terrain. | Swimming inland if caught in an undertow (swim parallel to beach, then in). | Not doing the stingray shuffle in Gulf Water when the tide is low and water is warm. | Falling between your boat and dock barnacles. | Not hydrating. | Not using sunscreen. | Using a roaming non-US-based cellphone $$$ | Not locking down your AC unit in remote locations. | Moving to Florida without a job lined up. | Buying a house based on a two week tour (see section on moving down). | Being rude to server staff. | Wearing socks with shorts. | Saying "that's not how we do it up north".
Last edited by faithfulFrank; 06-04-2011 at 12:06 PM..
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