Cost of living in Jupiter? (Seems Insane) (Orlando, West Palm Beach: car insurance, home)

[City Guy997S]

Originally Posted by Not rich enough

Well, we were looking to head to this area too with our children but there is no way I can afford a reasonable house. Especially after the comment of $250k a year not being enough. We chose the wrong career it seems. Tbh we are now looking at anywhere on the east coast as far down as we can get to find a reasonable house for $300k give or take. I most importantly worry about the safety of my kids and their education. Does anyone have any recommendations for ANY areas on the coast of Florida for this? Currently live in Charlotte, and while everything is very nice here on our side of town, we really want the beach and places to go fishing. Thank you in advance. Would love to be near an inlet.

Go back and re-read the thread......that 250K argument was already shot down

[skylinet]

I've sold two homes in the past sixty days in Jupiter under 360k. Not big family homes but livable for a small family.
Plan on paying 200+ a sqft if you really have to be in Jupiter.

[Constant_Turmoil]

Originally Posted by pepper1980

Jupiter fits the bill for us in a lot of ways- family oriented, close to the beach, excellent schools - but I have been seriously wrestling with the following and would love some opinions from folks who live there:

1. Single family homes crazy expensive and dated

I’ve been looking up homes for sale for the past two or three years and it’s impossible to find a 3+ bedroom single family home 2300sf+ for less than $650K... and that’s not in any popular neighborhood like Abacoa which everyone talks about... the odd home you find for that “cheap” is old and dated.

In Nashville where we live now you can easily find a 4+ bedroom home that’s newly built for $450K.

2. Property taxes seem ridiculous

Even if we were to “settle” and purchase a non-ideal home for $650K... we would be paying close to $1K/month or more in property taxes alone. That means even if you paid off your mortgage completely you still have to pay $1K/month in property tax for the rest of your life.

The common response is “yes but no federal income tax”. I hear this but TN doesn’t have any either and property taxes are way more reasonable.

3. HOA and Insurance

Abacoa seemed like a nice area (even though single family homes there seem to be $750K+) when we visited but $300+ dollars for HOA is crazy... that’s a car payment and a nice car at that.

I also understand insurance is especially high due to hurricane likelihood in that area..

4. Yearly evacuation due to hurricanes?

Last year we visited Jupiter for a month and had to evacuate back to TN after 2 weeks because of Irma. (Good thing we did because the condo we were renting got flooded.)... I realize Irma was an uncommonly strong hurricane but our friends who live in Jupiter say that every year it’s normal for them to evacuate... they just go to Disney in Orlando to ride them out, which is relatively convenient, but still this surely needs to be a factor as far as cost goes doesn’t it?

5. Abacoa?

Abacoa seems like a great place for us lifestyle wise but I would just feel stupid paying $800K for what I consider a “slightly above normal” home there along with $300/month HOA and $1K/month property taxes... is everybody who lives there just used to these kind of prices / taxes / premiums?

If I conservatively add all these things up minus the inflated home prices it comes to at least an additional $2,000/month in cash you are committing to and paying as a “premium” just to live in Jupiter.

Of course there are other areas nearby with much lower property taxes and home prices but my consideration here is to make Jupiter work.

Am I off base here? Am I misunderstanding anything or not considering something? How are people making this work?

Hi! WELCOME TO SOUTH FLORIDA. It's one of the very best places to live in the state of Florida. If you can't afford it, I suppose you could look elsewhere. When I lived in Scottsdale, AZ it was the same way. High house prices for the lousy outdated quality - but terrific schools. Take your pick. You can't really have both without a heavy cost.

I get it, I used to live in Carronbridge the Enclave in Cool Springs (Franklin). You won't get anything even comparable for what one can buy in Nashville (yes, even after all the hoopla about it being the best place to live. I would love to move back to Nashville, but that ain't gonna happen unfortunately.) but this is South Florida where all the people from the super expensive cities that come here and plunk down a half million for a house or condo they will barely spend 2 months in. Even the new homes here are of crappy quality compared to TN.
Sorry, but that's the truth.

[gailmarcarelli]

Originally Posted by pepper1980

Jupiter fits the bill for us in a lot of ways- family oriented, close to the beach, excellent schools - but I have been seriously wrestling with the following and would love some opinions from folks who live there:

1. Single family homes crazy expensive and dated

I’ve been looking up homes for sale for the past two or three years and it’s impossible to find a 3+ bedroom single family home 2300sf+ for less than $650K... and that’s not in any popular neighborhood like Abacoa which everyone talks about... the odd home you find for that “cheap” is old and dated.

In Nashville where we live now you can easily find a 4+ bedroom home that’s newly built for $450K.

2. Property taxes seem ridiculous

Even if we were to “settle” and purchase a non-ideal home for $650K... we would be paying close to $1K/month or more in property taxes alone. That means even if you paid off your mortgage completely you still have to pay $1K/month in property tax for the rest of your life.

The common response is “yes but no federal income tax”. I hear this but TN doesn’t have any either and property taxes are way more reasonable.

3. HOA and Insurance

Abacoa seemed like a nice area (even though single family homes there seem to be $750K+) when we visited but $300+ dollars for HOA is crazy... that’s a car payment and a nice car at that.

I also understand insurance is especially high due to hurricane likelihood in that area..

4. Yearly evacuation due to hurricanes?

Last year we visited Jupiter for a month and had to evacuate back to TN after 2 weeks because of Irma. (Good thing we did because the condo we were renting got flooded.)... I realize Irma was an uncommonly strong hurricane but our friends who live in Jupiter say that every year it’s normal for them to evacuate... they just go to Disney in Orlando to ride them out, which is relatively convenient, but still this surely needs to be a factor as far as cost goes doesn’t it?

5. Abacoa?

Abacoa seems like a great place for us lifestyle wise but I would just feel stupid paying $800K for what I consider a “slightly above normal” home there along with $300/month HOA and $1K/month property taxes... is everybody who lives there just used to these kind of prices / taxes / premiums?

If I conservatively add all these things up minus the inflated home prices it comes to at least an additional $2,000/month in cash you are committing to and paying as a “premium” just to live in Jupiter.

Of course there are other areas nearby with much lower property taxes and home prices but my consideration here is to make Jupiter work.

Am I off base here? Am I misunderstanding anything or not considering something? How are people making this work?

1. Many of the older desirable neighborhoods have homes for under $625k. But the prices are increasing. Many have been renovated. Some neighborhoods to look in are The Shores of Jupiter and the sister communities like North Fork, Cypress Cove and Shorewood. There are quite a few others I could share.

2. Property taxes are high because there is no income tax in Florida. Homesteading not only gives you a break on the amount of the home value which is taxed, the Save Or Homes part of it keeps your taxes from increasing too much by keeping the assessed value lower than the market value. More about that here: What you need to know about Florida's Homestead Exemption

3. HOAs tend to be lower in communities that do not have a gate, especially a manned gate, and are older without a lot of amenities. The Shores is about $60 per month. Tequesta Country Club (very desirable but older homes) has no mandatory HOA. Houses that have been hardened against hurricanes get a significant break on their insurance. Roof age and geometry plays a big role in decreasing your insurance. Look for a hip roof for the best reduction.

4. No, I have been here for 13 years. Only evacuated this past year for Irma and we really didn't have to. Mandatory evacuation usually only is required on the islands.

5. Abacoa is very desirable and newer so it is more costly. When some of these newer communities were built there were big impact fees that had to be paid which increased the base price of the new homes. Impact fees help keep Jupiter beautiful.

If you are willing to look in the older communities for a home to renovate or one that has already been renovated, your costs will be lower.

Let me know if you would like more help.

[OptimusPrime69]

I cringe when I read ppl complaining about "well back in East BumF!@# it's sooo much cheaper"..... yeah, it's cheaper cuz no one wants to live there. ..

Anyway, Jupiter is a nice, small town and it's expensive. If you wanna live there, then cough up the cash./

[cfbs2691]

Originally Posted by OptimusPrime69

Jupiter is a nice, small town and it's expensive. If you wanna live there, then cough up the cash./

This
Great post.

[LifeIsGood01]

Originally Posted by pepper1980

4. Yearly evacuation due to hurricanes?

Last year we visited Jupiter for a month and had to evacuate back to TN after 2 weeks because of Irma. (Good thing we did because the condo we were renting got flooded.)... I realize Irma was an uncommonly strong hurricane but our friends who live in Jupiter say that every year it’s normal for them to evacuate... they just go to Disney in Orlando to ride them out, which is relatively convenient, but still this surely needs to be a factor as far as cost goes doesn’t it?

That makes no sense, they don't have to evacuate yearly, there hadn't been a hurricane to hit Florida before Irma hit since 2005.

[ajnucch]

Originally Posted by pepper1980

I can believe that lol! What *is* the income these families who are moving there make?

Ask Burt Reynolds lol

[TriMT7]

Originally Posted by Not rich enough

Well, we were looking to head to this area too with our children but there is no way I can afford a reasonable house. Especially after the comment of $250k a year not being enough. We chose the wrong career it seems. Tbh we are now looking at anywhere on the east coast as far down as we can get to find a reasonable house for $300k give or take. I most importantly worry about the safety of my kids and their education. Does anyone have any recommendations for ANY areas on the coast of Florida for this? Currently live in Charlotte, and while everything is very nice here on our side of town, we really want the beach and places to go fishing. Thank you in advance. Would love to be near an inlet.

An income of $250k is more than enough to live in Jupiter.

Jupiter is actually cheaper per square foot than many parts of West Palm Beach.


With a $500k budget you can get a fine 3-4 BR house in Jupiter. There's a 2400 sq. ft., four bedroom home in Hammock Trace for $489k, with a sub-200$/month HOA. There's also a 2000 sq. ft., four bedroom home in the Heights for 360k.



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For 300k you're going to have to look at places further from the coast, or further away from metro centers. Port St. Lucie, Vero Beach, etc.

In western Palm Beach County (Wellington for example), there ARE 3 bedroom homes available in the 300k range which are quite respectable. You'll be about 30 minutes from the beach with traffic realistically.

[beach43ofus]

So, let's say I can afford Jupiter...

Do the new trains run through Jupiter? If so, are they noisy? Does the ground shake if near the tracks (say1 mile). Does it impede traffic. Will they hurt the property values?