Part timers???? (renting, condo, houses)

[lhayes1976]

were just not ready to move to Florida full- time yet. We still have small grandkids and wouldn't want to be away that long. With that said, for those of you that have two homes, how do you handle having two homes.? I just worry about theft, maintenance issues, etc.

[mr&mrssunshine]

we bought our home here while living in England and had it for 2 years before we moved.
you will need a lawn guy $80 pm
a pool guy if you have one $80pm

and then the advice is , make good friends with your new neighbors !!!

[Harbor Hopper]

Having two homes is not a big deal (except to your checkbook!) Probably 50% of homes down here are 2nd homes.

[La-La land]

Always a concern of ours being from Canada. We decide on a 2nd story walk up condo, lock it and leave it.

[gomet]

Buy a condo not a house. It has less maintenance issues. You only have to have someone come in the unit at least once a month to make sure everything is ok.

Good Luck!

[motordavid]

We have had a 2nd winter seasonal house in SW FL, for 10 years...
SFH, in a golf community, gated & attended, fwiw.

Never a theft or burglary problem. We do have a trusted house watcher that rolls by/in once a week, and is a very skilled handyman with contacts, if something should go kaboom that he can't fix on the spot.

'Maintenance' is no more than normal for the FL house; our Mtn home gets its fanny kicked all winter while we are gone from it.

Other than some weeds creeping up through the lanai pavers in summer while we are gone, we really haven't had any maintenance situs.

The consideration is cost(s), double taxes, dbl club dues, dbl utilities, double 'stuff' in both houses, and one is continually having 2 or 3 of something in one house and none of that 'thing' at the other house.

Two different lifestyles & two separate groups of friends seems to compress the 'year' even more, and time is flying by fast enough as it is...

Packing car(s), migrating, all part of the deal of a 2nd home. Not for the old or weak & weary.
My 50Cts.
GL, mD

[macrodome2]

Like MotorDave, we have someone to look after the Northern and Southern homes when we are not there. We also have the duplicate "stuff". But this winter we decided enough with the back and forth. We're going to sell the Northern one.
We don't have much family up North (no kids) so other than a few siblings, no reason to stay.

We're spending more time in the Southern house and can't see spending the money (it's over $20K a year) for the Northern one when we'll only be there a max of 4 months out of the year. Besides the Northern one is the one we've lived in for 25 years and it's too big. If we find we don't want to stay down here all year, we're thinking of renting a condo in various locations- Colorado, Montana, California, just about anywhere for a month, and if that doesn't work we can always buy a smaller condo "up North" somewhere.

[Shabotnik]

Go condo; you won't be sorry.

[dpbarr2000]

You can afford a home worth $50K more when you dont have to pay condo association fees, which average $350 per month or higher. Your neighbors in your future single family home neighborhood have no interest in letting criminals run rampant in your vacant property.

[Avalon08]

Originally Posted by La-La land

Always a concern of ours being from Canada. We decide on a 2nd story walk up condo, lock it and leave it.

With no one checking it? Not a good idea. Anything could go wrong -- a leak, the AC going out, etc. We have a regular cottage industry in my community of neighbors acting as property managers for snowbirds.