Amelia vs. St. Augustine (Jacksonville, Jacksonville Beach: for sale, real estate market, oceanfront)

[otterhere]

For buying a beachfront condo to rent out now and occupy half the year in retirement; compare and contrast. Thanks for any input!

[Peter the Brit]

The St Aug area has a larger rental audience It has college students, snowbirds and the regular non home renters whilst Amelia is more remote and does not have the same attraction as the oldest city has IMHO

[JBtwinz]

Amelia is a very small quaint beach town that is nestled in the farthest northeast corner of Florida. While we do get a bit of the tourist crowd it is no where near the amount Saint Augustine gets....we still have that small town feel. While I would not call it remote it is about 50 minutes to the south side of Jacksonville (I occasionally commute and it is a very easy commute).

Right now the real estate market has come back here tremendously and the inventory of rentals along with moderately priced homes or condos is almost non existent. The availability of ocean front condos for sale is going to be hard to find here. Along those same lines keeping it rented would not be a problem with the market here now if you owned one.....and also those a block or two back from the beach also.

We have been known to have several freezes from December to March but for the most part the weather is beautiful........just not south Florida warm.

If you have any questions DM me.

Good luck!

[otterhere]

I didn't see a lot of condos on St. Augustine when I searched initially; some in a condotel (Beacher's Lodge), but the reviews on TripAdvisor weren't all that. Didn't know what kind of rental market there was there. Guess I should be asking Jacksonville or Florida tourism that question since my main objective at this point is to keep it rented out as much as possible...

[JBtwinz]

It is hard to stay objective when exploring such a big area (from Amelia to Saint Augustine). Each area has it's own set of great quality's...........and to find these quality's it is going to take a bit of research on your part. Certainly a realtor is going to point out their case for the area they specialize in.......it's only good business.

Fernandina Beach Vacation Rentals, Condo Rentals | HomeAway

While I have my take on Amelia.....I have no idea how Saint Augustine or Jacksonville Beach are for year round beach rentals (which months rent the best or easiest).

[kyle19125]

Originally Posted by otterhere

For buying a beachfront condo to rent out now and occupy half the year in retirement; compare and contrast. Thanks for any input!

I think both would do well if marketed properly (internet vacation rental sites). Fernandina Beach/Amelia Island would appeal to those who don't like the overly touristy areas that St Augustine can provide, where St Augustine would appeal more to the typical middle class folks who want to be near the "attractions". I would visit and see where you would rather be yourself for six months of the year.

[ssclulow]

Definitely pass on Beacher's Lodge south of St. Augustine Beach. It is a facility that was converted from a motel with efficiency rooms into small condos that were marketed as for sale at the height of the real estate craziness. It will be difficult to find a St. Augustine area beachview condo unit for sale at a reasonable cost because there are not very many units that meet that criteria. There is a height restriction here so there aren't high rise buildings. The condo communities are ocean front but only a few buildings will have ocean views. Quite a bit of beachfront property has high end houses sitting on it.

[otterhere]

Why pass on Beacher's Lodge? I love that the name has a typo in it (!), and it otherwise seems charming. I think the management might be less than it could be, based on TripAdvisor, but many full oceanfront views from balconies there. Heck, I might need to buy one thing in Myrtle Beach to rent out for now - make a bunch of money on it (I KNOW people rent there, and prices are relatively low) - and then trade up later to wherever I want to live myself half the year.

As for visiting all of the various places I'm considering, I'd never retire at all if I tried to do that; it's really not possible at this time. And in this age of modern technology, including citydata.com research, it really shouldn't be necessary.

Will see what's available in Atlantic, Neptune, and other beaches closer to Jacksonville proper. Thanks, all!

[judeK]

Originally Posted by otterhere

Why pass on Beacher's Lodge? I love that the name has a typo in it (!)

What typo? That's the original owners name!

[ssclulow]

I would pass on Beacher's Lodge because the units are extremely small with 1 bedroom floorplans 400 and 500 sq. ft. , no washer or dryers in units and negligible closet space (broom closet size). This is fine for a weekend stay, but I personally would not be happy living in a space like that for weeks at a time. The last time I used a communal coin laundry was over 40 years ago. FYI, the second floor does not have elevator access but the 3rd and 4th floors do.