Need Help With Move To FL - Schools, Cost of Living, Places to Rent, etc HELP! (Clearwater: flat fee, real estate)

[NHtoFL]

Well the title pretty much says it all. My family and I want to give the Warm Weather a try. However I am trying to collect as much info as possible. Any help anyone can give me is apprecaited.

Looking at anywhere from Clearwater down to Naples. Punta Gorda & Cape Coral seem to be the best options for us for economic reasons. I would like to focus on these 2 towns, but I am open. Looking to rent a home for the 1st year to see if we do like it and the deals for $ 1300/mo would suite us.

Family of 5, kids ages 4,6, & 15. - Schools are a concern for obvious reasons. I also want the 15 year old to get the typical job that a 15 year old would get and I would like there to be stuff for him to do to keep him busy. Beach, volunteer work, etc anything to keep him going.

Beach is a big one. How are the beaches? Can we hop in the car and be somewhere within 10 minutes? Beach, ice cream, amusements, mall, etc.

How is the night life for adults and kids? Is it a kid friendly town? I

Cost of living? Looking to rent a 1500-2000 sq foot home. Can someone give me a ball park on expenses like...

Heat/oil ( I am a yankee, so I have to ask )
AC / Electricity
Car Insurance ( late model mid sized cars )
Phone/Internet/Cable
Renters Insurance

Thanks for the help!

Jason

[memoriesbre]

Please reconsider Punta Gorda and Cape Coral. We lived in Punta Gorda and it is boring and there are so many grumpy people there too. It's going to be such a hard transition for the kids also with the schools. There is nothing to do in those towns.. believe me.
If you care about family, I would stay in NH where they are. It is sad when Christmas rolls around and you are down here and the rest of your family and friends are up north.
That's why we moved back to th Northeast and we are loving it!

[121804]

Originally Posted by NHtoFL

Is it a kid friendly town?

Punta Gorda...absolutely not.

You have a young family.

Best bet is to look further north in FL. SWFL is known for, is & always be for the retiree population.

Cape Coral just has too many problems it is trying to resolve but is going to take a very long time due to the nonexistent economy in that city.

[Tarastomsgirl]

Originally Posted by NHtoFL

Well the title pretty much says it all. My family and I want to give the Warm Weather a try. However I am trying to collect as much info as possible. Any help anyone can give me is apprecaited.

Looking at anywhere from Clearwater down to Naples. Punta Gorda & Cape Coral seem to be the best options for us for economic reasons. I would like to focus on these 2 towns, but I am open. Looking to rent a home for the 1st year to see if we do like it and the deals for $ 1300/mo would suite us.

Family of 5, kids ages 4,6, & 15. - Schools are a concern for obvious reasons. I also want the 15 year old to get the typical job that a 15 year old would get and I would like there to be stuff for him to do to keep him busy. Beach, volunteer work, etc anything to keep him going.

Beach is a big one. How are the beaches? Can we hop in the car and be somewhere within 10 minutes? Beach, ice cream, amusements, mall, etc.

How is the night life for adults and kids? Is it a kid friendly town? I

Cost of living? Looking to rent a 1500-2000 sq foot home. Can someone give me a ball park on expenses like...

Heat/oil ( I am a yankee, so I have to ask )
AC / Electricity
Car Insurance ( late model mid sized cars )
Phone/Internet/Cable
Renters Insurance

Thanks for the help!

Jason

I've heard punta gorda is a boring, and not much in the way of smaller children however I've ever lived there and only visted. I do know there are parts still recovering from Hurricane Charley, someone might be able go verify for me if it is or isn't.. Have you tried, Estero and Bonita or maybe even Naples? They are both close to Naples, and Ft. Myers but cheaper and very nice. While there is a large population of retirees there are many many familes there, and yearly they are building new schools.
You can find houses there now for $170,000. For the $1,300 a month rent, youre options are open wide! Lots to rent for under that.. My sister in law is renting right now and got a 2 bed apt for $770 in a gated community. I can send you info on the previous community I rented at if you'd like, its very very nice, and gated. There are lots to be found. There is tons to do for the kiddies, schools close by.. They have a hockey rink for Everblades hockey (I believe tickets are under $10.00 for the game, that was when I left last May) you can also ice skate there. Naples has a water park for the kiddies, and may afterschool programs and summer programs. They have movies, downtown pier ect etc. They are always building more stuff to do.

expenses... I'll give you what mine were when I left Fla, and what they are now in NH..

Florida..
Heat/oil- None existant don't use either.. MAYBE heat once or twice a winter, nothing thats going to impact your bill

AC / Electricity- For my 3 bdrm 2bth condo with 12 ft cathedrial ceilings I was paying $75 a month, but in the winter I turned if off and it went down to $45 or so.. My grandmother has a 1 bedrm condo in the same place and her electric was $26 last month I kid you not. PLUS no service fees like NH.. whatever the hell those are.

Car Insurance- I paid $98 a month for my Sportage, 02

Phone/Internet/Cable- Phone, I had local service only so I can only say about that but it was $10 a month , no long distance.. Internet and cable we paid together, for highspeed plus cable we paid $80 a month about, that included renting the modem

Renters Insurance- Didn't have it .. sorry..

My rent was also $200 cheaper in Fla, they allowed dogs, and I lived in a gated community, with pool, lakes, tennis courts, indoor raquet ball courts, workout rooms etc etc. In NH I have a tiny 1 bdrm studio apt. No washer, no dryer or dishwasher (all standard in Fla)
My heat is $400 a month, my elect bounces from $150-$175 ish. Car insurance is $150 here plus inspection of $ plus city and state tax when I register the car.. In Fla we paid one flat fee of $50 I believe it was to renew tags yearly, no matter make, model year of car etc and no inspections either...

Believe me you're not gonna worry that Christmas doesn't feel like christmas when you see on the weather channel those poor suckers diggin out their cars under 15 feet of snow right.. It seems like the only argument most people have on the Fla boards is it doesn't feel like the holidays down there, but I disagree and as long as I don't ever have to experience the 130 inches of snow Keene got this winter ever again I don't care what they feel like. You can always visit up north and not have to deal with the hassle of shoveling, and slush and ice and outragous heating expenses. Good luck.. Check out farther south of SWFL. I don't care what people say there is lots to do there, and you should really visit and check it out. With the market the way it is, you can rent for a year and still get in on a really great deal on a house! Good luck and keep us updated!

[121804]

Tara-

You may want to revisit some of your old posts where you stated you hated FL when you were a child & why.

[Tarastomsgirl]

Originally Posted by 121804

Tara-

You may want to revisit some of your old posts where you stated you hated FL when you were a child & why.

Please stop bring that up, every time I post something positive you have to bring that up. I'm not sure how many time I have to keep saying that I have learned my lesson that the grass is not always greener, and really was speaking out of frustration because I didn't know what else was out there.. Besides that, for anyone who has lived in Fla long enough they'll tell you you can't even compare Fla in the 80's to the 90's because there was nothing there. I can remember farms where major intersections are now.. Please don't twist everything to be negative, and please stop bringing up posts from a year ago.

[chriscsmirri]

I live and am a real estate agent inBonita Springs, Fl. I moved here 8 years ago and love it. There are many family oriented neighborhoods here. moderator cut

Bonita
Charter School is a very good school and there is the new Coconut Point Mall that woul d be a great place for your 15 year old to work. Barefoot Beach and Bonita Beach are minutes away.

Heat??? what's that - Just kidding. Most homes are all electric and I find car insurance to be about $1300 per year.

When are you planning to relocate?

[Bulldawgfan]

Besides that, for anyone who has lived in Fla long enough they'll tell you you can't even compare Fla in the 80's to the 90's because there was nothing there

Which is EXACTLY why I would never move back to the gunshine state. In my opinion, Florida has (and will continue to) taken a turn for the worse. But, if you are going to go, you picked the best corner to head to. Good luck, sorry my first ever post was on the negative side!

[Donna-50]

I live in CC and have 3 kids that go to A and A+ schools.

My electric is about $220 - $240 in summer. I have 2,400 sq ft plus pool. In winter it is about $140 - 160.

I have a 16 year old that doesn't have a job yet but hasn't looked either. She always volunteered at church.

I think CC has a nice family feel. We do have a little beach, but if you want to go to FMB it will take about 20 minutes or so depending on traffic.

[Rachael84]

Stay where you are. Florida schools are really going downhill even more. There are so many budget cuts and school aides and teachers are being laid off like crazy. Even the A schools can't compare with schools up north.