Where does the Money Go??? (Miami, Vero Beach: sale, apartment, house insurance)

[TOMD]

Hi ALL, I have been thinking about building a house on my lot in Sebastian Highlands and moving down to Florida but I just have not been able to pull the trigger. I was wondering where for those of you living in this area full time where your money goes. I know that utilities (i.e. Electric) runs high and is a year around expense. Just wondering where the other big expenses are. Food, Taxes, Insurance, Gasoline and the like. When I move to TN from California everything was cheaper. However the food prices were not and the quality of the produce was not what I was use to. What would be some of the negative surprises people will experience should they move to Florida. Crime , to many tourist during those seasons, and those listed about . Thanks.

[SeaLark7]

Some groceries are more expensive - we paid $2.89 a gallon for milk in Ohio; here it is $4.19. A dozen eggs are $1.98 here, a good fifty cents higher than Ohio. (It has been a year since we moved to Florida, but these prices have remained steady since last Summer). Our property taxes are lower here, but that is partly because we had 10 unfarmed acres in Ohio; still, they seem reasonable in Florida. There is NO state income tax in Florida, so that will make up for the extra cost of some things. Auto insurance is higher - we pay $689 a year for our 2002 Toyota Highlander's insurance (just paid it this month; we have AAA insurance). House insurance is roughly the same, even with the additional $700 or so just for the hurricane coverage. Electric is high in summer but there are no heating costs in winter, so it balances out. As for gasoline prices, right now it is around $3.65 a gallon here in Vero Beach. Hope this helps !

[FlaLadyB]

some of the things you have to look at are not MONEY....its a LIFESTYLE ....without SNOW and everything that entails..

Crime in this area is pretty much nil...

ask that same question to someone from Miami and they have bars on the windows

[runswithscissors]

Originally Posted by SeaLark7

Some groceries are more expensive - we paid $2.89 a gallon for milk in Ohio; here it is $4.19. A dozen eggs are $1.98 here, a good fifty cents higher than Ohio. (It has been a year since we moved to Florida, but these prices have remained steady since last Summer). Our property taxes are lower here, but that is partly because we had 10 unfarmed acres in Ohio; still, they seem reasonable in Florida. There is NO state income tax in Florida, so that will make up for the extra cost of some things. Auto insurance is higher - we pay $689 a year for our 2002 Toyota Highlander's insurance (just paid it this month; we have AAA insurance). House insurance is roughly the same, even with the additional $700 or so just for the hurricane coverage. Electric is high in summer but there are no heating costs in winter, so it balances out. As for gasoline prices, right now it is around $3.65 a gallon here in Vero Beach. Hope this helps !

That's so weird about the milk! I never really thought about it because I thought milk was a USDA driven price. Even in Philly it was substantially more!

http://www.ams.usda.gov/AMSv1.0/getf...TELPRDC5096547

I seem to remember there are much less stringent regulations about animals in Ohio so maybe that's why. No clue, though.

[SeaLark7]

I was at the beach today and talked with a visitor from Boston about comparing prices, and she said milk in Boston is about $4 a gallon. Could be we had a bargain all those years in Ohio and never knew it !

[SeetheUSA]

I agree- my biggest expenses here vs NC are auto insurance and electric bills. Both are pretty significant here.

Milk is cheaper at Sams and BJ's- and only $2.99 on sale weeks at Walgreens. Groceries can be bought for cheap- you just have to plan. If you only go to Publix, you will pay thru the nose.

[DanielAvery]

I think it's impossible to make certain judgments on food prices since so many food items have skyrocketed nation-wide in recent years, despite the assertions by the government that there is "virtually no inflation".

[PortStLucieWater]

Originally Posted by DanielAvery

I think it's impossible to make certain judgments on food prices since so many food items have skyrocketed nation-wide in recent years, despite the assertions by the government that there is "virtually no inflation".

Not only in price but sizes of many products have been decreased as well.

[FlaLadyB]

prices change on certain items because of availability. You have to watch what happens to the growing seasons on a number of things. Like we do......duh Take honey- we are not going to have any available except at extreme prices unless we do something to help the bees.

Gas prices make me nuts

but I dont understand milk prices and some others. I would not think they would fluctuate that much.. but apparently they do!

[DanielAvery]

Every experience is different, of course, but speaking to the original inquiry, I have noticed in my 2 1/2 years here (happily relocated from Georgia) that certain things are more expensive, some things cheaper. Off the top of my head:

More expensive in FL:
electricity
restaurants*
cable TV/internet
food (groceries)
clothing

Less Expensive in FL:
car insurance
my rent**
repairs/maintenance for car
gasoline (marginally)


* I say restaurants because I really hate to cook--that's a personal thing and can be curbed if times get tight. But yes, I have noticed chain restaurants back home would charge a lot less for the same exact dishes than they charge here.

** I may have just lucked out in that regard, but I haven't gotten a 1/1 apartment this cheaply since college in the 1990s. If/when I take the plunge and buy a place, my tune might likely change.