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Why lie, I'm too lazy to search and see if this topic has been discussed recently. LOL
Still working now but I dream of moving to a place like Hilton Head or some ocean front community in Florida for retirement. I don't like cold weather but what are the downsides? What's your story?
We moved from Seattle to Hawaii, but we bought a house, not in a retirement community. We love it. I wear shorts and t-shirt 365 days a year. We have no heat or air conditioning in the house and don't need it, but I think Hawaii is a milder climate than Florida. We have a huge garden that produces all year and we have lots of fruit trees. I surf all year and my wife paints. I do not do well in cold weather so living somewhere that is 75-85 all year is perfect for me.
Downside is Hawaii is expensive, maybe 15% more than what it cost us in Seattle (which is not a cheap city to live in). Most of Hawaii is rural so you have to be OK with not a lot of city amenities. Every 10 years or so a hurricane will pass close to or over one of the Hawaiian islands but that is probably less than what Florida gets. But every 30 or 40 years a tsunami will hit one of the islands. That is only a problem for houses close to sea level.
We love the beach here in Pensacola. Problem is during tourist season it can be a challenge to get there unless you want to go before 8 a.m. And After 10 a.m. -- forget about it -- the traffic will be horrible and the parking will be even worse.
Now after tourist season?? Paradise.
We've been snowbirds for five years and this summer we came down for more FL summer in early July rather than our usual early September. We usually stay eight months here, but this year will be ten months. The plan is to be here full time sometime before DH retires in four years.
We came for the grandkids here more than the weather. We both have a great love for beaches and big water, actually any water. Mountains do it for some and me too, but big water does it for me more.
In SWFL, the season, New Year's to Easter, is crowded with snowbirds, tourists and traffic. Restaurants have long waits and stores are crowded and busy. I wouldn't recommend this area for a type A personality. People start coming in October and trickle out by April/May. More developments are being built and more being approved, so there will be more people and congestion.
There is a high percentage of retirees here and you'll see more of them than young families in restaurant and stores. You'll also see more older active people than other areas during nice weather. I'm still surprised at the number of older people on bikes or walking/running that I see every day in season. With the grandkids, our activities are more school and kid oriented which makes a nice balance for us.
I don't live in a gated, 55+ or resort type community and life here is like life anywhere else; it's just warmer/hotter for much longer, but with a public beach 3 miles away and our community beach by ferry < 2 miles. The grandkids are two miles away, a nice distance.
Hilton head requires a rather long drive to the beach so I would not consider that a beach community.
Remember storms and summer traffic.
Maybe from Sun City. But many of the HH communities (e.g., HH Plantation, Palmetto Dunes) are just a short bike ride along the community riding paths to the beach.
I moved full-time to a beach community at the Jersey shore at one point. Bought a beach-block condo. Figured I'd even like it in the winter....nice peaceful walks on the beach. However, a couple things I hadn't considered:
- There weren't many other full-time residents. I was alone in my nine-unit building and there was only one other full-timer on the whole block. So that can be an issue in resort communities, as well as having a lot of investor-owned rentals around you. The condo above mine was rented out weekly in summer so there was always a lot of noise and kids.
- It was super-crowded in season, but off-season it was like living in a small rural community. Everybody knew everybody's business, the big news was that the Elks DJ got fired, they were constantly recalling their mayors, the healthcare and shopping weren't great and it was two hours to the closest big city.
I once wanted to move to a beach but decided not to.
I do know people still working who moved to the beach and regretted it. Mainly because of wear and tear on the property and longer commutes to where they worked.
I decided against it when I spent time in a beach community off season. It was fine for vacation in early October, but I got a sense of how bleak, raw and cold as well as deserted it would be off season. That was in North Carolina.
In the end, I decided I didn't want to be subject to weather evacuations. I live inland within 20-30 minutes of a beach. A pool in the back yard works better for me. I considered a house here and a beach condo, but decided its cheaper just to rent a place at the beach when we want to and that's what we do. Also, we have since made contacts that offer up their beach house for free.
We got a second home at the beach but not on the ocean and love it and love it. So much so my wife decided the CCRC 1/ 1/2 miles from another beach close by is where she wants us to finish out our years when we eventually head there.
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