Best time of year to move

[justNancy]

Originally Posted by bluebottle

My husband and I are thinking of moving to Sarasota and hope to rent a place for 6 months or so while looking for the right place to buy. For those familiar with the rental market. What is the best time of year to move down in terms of rental availability? We have a baby on the way, due in September, so it is a case of do we make the big move before then, or wait until October? Is it more difficult to rent later in the year as the snowbirds come down?

Since you said "thinking of moving" instead of "relocating," I hope you will have a means of support, especially with a baby on the way. Many people move here because of high unemployment where they're currently living, but it's no better in Southwest Florida and, even before the current economic turndown, wages were considerably lower than in other parts of the country. I didn't want to mention it, because you or your husband might have a profession where this is not a concern. However, it is something to be considered very seriously, especially now.

Because I've moved around a lot, I have a great deal of experience renting at different times of the year. If you wait too long, it might be difficult to find a short term rental in a nice community if the unit is rented during the winter season. Of course it depends on what you plan to spend. Keep in mind that, by law, the owner is supposed to charge a sales/room tax just like a hotel if the tenant stays for less than 6 months. Last year I stayed in Vero Beach across the state, and I paid 11% tax month to month. I changed the lease to 6 months and the tax was waived. (My rent was also adjusted because of the longer stay.) A couple of property managers told me they now rent for a minimum of 7 months because they ran into some problems because of the tax. Technically, you're supposed to stay for a minimum of 181 days. By the way, since I was looking specifically for a furnished home, my choices were a bit limited.

I am posting this because I made a very stupid mistake last year by procrastinating. Last May I found a 2/2 pool home in Rotunda West from May 15 to Dec for only $700 a month (an incredible deal) and decided I had plenty of time to find something else a little more convenient, since there were so many ads on Craig's List. By May 31 they had all been rented.

[justNancy]

Originally Posted by Sunny-Days90

And please fly or drive down to spend a few days in the town of your choice before moving. If you can. DO NOT rent from a picture.

This is excellent advice. Boy, can I tell you stories! That's why using a real estate agency has some advantages, although there are never any guarantees. I'm a single woman and currently renting a furnished room in a home in Port Charlotte because of a jam I got myself into. I wish I had a time machine, but I can't find one, even on eBay.

[HenryHelmhazzard]

Originally Posted by justNancy

This is excellent advice. Boy, can I tell you stories! That's why using a real estate agency has some advantages, although there are never any guarantees. I'm a single woman and currently renting a furnished room in a home in Port Charlotte because of a jam I got myself into. I wish I had a time machine, but I can't find one, even on eBay.

Apparently someone from the future heard your plea, went back in time, and posted this:

Magical "TIME MACHINE" wicca, pagan, TIME TRAVEL-device - eBay (item 160382712355 end time Apr-28-10 13:22:17 PDT)

[swaptrex]

There seems to be a lot less rentals on CL since the beginning of April...

[bluebottle]

Originally Posted by justNancy

Since you said "thinking of moving" instead of "relocating," I hope you will have a means of support, especially with a baby on the way. Many people move here because of high unemployment where they're currently living, but it's no better in Southwest Florida and, even before the current economic turndown, wages were considerably lower than in other parts of the country. I didn't want to mention it, because you or your husband might have a profession where this is not a concern. However, it is something to be considered very seriously, especially now.

Because I've moved around a lot, I have a great deal of experience renting at different times of the year. If you wait too long, it might be difficult to find a short term rental in a nice community if the unit is rented during the winter season. Of course it depends on what you plan to spend. Keep in mind that, by law, the owner is supposed to charge a sales/room tax just like a hotel if the tenant stays for less than 6 months. Last year I stayed in Vero Beach across the state, and I paid 11% tax month to month. I changed the lease to 6 months and the tax was waived. (My rent was also adjusted because of the longer stay.) A couple of property managers told me they now rent for a minimum of 7 months because they ran into some problems because of the tax. Technically, you're supposed to stay for a minimum of 181 days. By the way, since I was looking specifically for a furnished home, my choices were a bit limited.

I am posting this because I made a very stupid mistake last year by procrastinating. Last May I found a 2/2 pool home in Rotunda West from May 15 to Dec for only $700 a month (an incredible deal) and decided I had plenty of time to find something else a little more convenient, since there were so many ads on Craig's List. By May 31 they had all been rented.

Thanks for the advice. I will be taking about a year off with the baby and my husband works from home (own business) so jobs shouldn't be a concern for a while. I did want to keep working until closer to the time the baby is due though. We would rather have a furnished rental and would probably rent for 9-12 months. I did hear of the tax on rentals 6 months or less. I know we've got to decide pretty quickly as don't want to get into the situation where many of the rentals are gone. It is difficult though balancing the risk of missing out on a good rental opportunity, with working for a few more months and also being concerned as I don't know the doctors or hospital system there.