The We Moved To Orlando Trip Report Update 4/12 Trevon's Birthday & East

Since you babysit a lot, have you considered working at Disney at one of the child care clubs? The down side may be that you would not be at home and they may give you hours you do not like.
I am only suggesting this b/c I used to work at a preschool and the other teachers and I were big Disney fans and we said we would love to live in Orlando and work there.

Actually I didn't think of that :laughing: I did think of working a couple of days a week at WDW to get the tickets...I suppose I would be at home in the child care club for sure! I don't want to work outside the home fulltime though, I wouldn't make enough and wouldn't be able to be with the kids as you said. I would do a few days though just to get the benefits of working at WDW and could do it when my sister is off and home with all the kids.

Thanks for the idea ~ it's a great one and I will definitely try and grab a pt position in that field :)

 
:wave2: Hi! I'll totally be following this. I'm so excited for you! And for me for finding this so soon after you started it! :banana:
 
My Ex SIL lives in ST Cloud, though she doesn't recommend it for our family. She says Altamonte Springs, Clermont, Winter Park, and Lake mary are all pretty nice areas. I asked last year when we were thinking of checking out the area.
 
:wave2: Hi! I'll totally be following this. I'm so excited for you! And for me for finding this so soon after you started it! :banana:

Hi! I'm so glad you found it :goodvibes Thanks for reading along!!

My Ex SIL lives in ST Cloud, though she doesn't recommend it for our family. She says Altamonte Springs, Clermont, Winter Park, and Lake mary are all pretty nice areas. I asked last year when we were thinking of checking out the area.

Those are nice areas, I'm really leaning towards Clermont and heard lots of great stuff about Lake Mary. Winter Park is probably out of our price range and I haven't checked out Altamonte Springs yet. Thanks for the suggestions!

 


Well, the title says it all...do we get a pool?!?

What do you guys think? I think if we're living in Florida we need to live in Florida and have a pool in our backyard!

But...how much extra does the electric run with the pool and hot tub? How much is pool care if it's not included?

Anyone with a pool and/or living in Fl. that can help on the electric bill question, that would be great :thumbsup2

Anyone else ~ what do you think? Pool or no?

It's only about $200.00 extra a month for a pool home, but that doesn't include the electric. Lots of home incl. pool care, which is nice...

It would be so fun for the kids to have a pool ~ I don't want to get a house without one and regret it, and vice versa...

What would you guys do?


:)
 


Okay, so I'm really considering homes in Kissimmee and Davenport. I found a couple of really nice ones but they are in resort communities. It sounds great, I don't mind living in a resort community with a beach, pools, clubhouses, movie theater and a nice house with a pool...but the bad thing about that is that the homes next to you may be short term rentals. Which means that they may be empty or you will have new neighbors every week or two. They could be loud and into parties or quiet and spend their days at the parks. I don't think this sounds too bad personally, but I would love to hear other opinions. I found a beautiful 4 bdrm/4ba with pool and hot tub and 2200 sf, brand new for $1200. a month. We would be 20 minutes or less to the parks and I think it sounds nice.

When we stayed at Hapimag in Jan., we noticed there were the townhomes up front (it was a gated community) and in the back they had lots of nice homes. We drove around and wondered why some homes had christmas decorations up, like they lived there long term, and some had lots and lots of cars in them like they were having a party. You could clearly see that some were permanent residents and some were short term rentals. I didnt see a problem with that area, I really liked the development.

Anyway, thoughts would be really appreciated. I don't have much time left to research as I have to get packing starting tomorrow. So much to do :scared:

Thanks guys!!!

*Oh ~ our other option is living 40 minutes from WDW in Clermont or Lake Mary ;)

 
Thanks for taking us along for the ride! Especially thanks for posting prices of the real estate. One person's definition of "reasonable" is different for somebody else, so it gives us a lot of perspective before we all start packing!
 
I say go for the pool! :) If you're going to live in Florida, you'll need one! And the benefit is that you can use it pretty much all year round and not just 3 months out of the year.

4 BR/4 BA HOUSE for $1200 a month?? Are you serious? I pay $1000 for a 1 BR/1 BA APARTMENT! NJ is way too expensive!!

Those resort communities sound nice but I don't know... It's a risk either way when you move and don't know who you're neighbors are going to be, but the possibility of having that change from week to week could be a negative.
 
Thanks for taking us along for the ride! Especially thanks for posting prices of the real estate. One person's definition of "reasonable" is different for somebody else, so it gives us a lot of perspective before we all start packing!


Thanks for coming along!

No problem ~ I'm trying to help people with my research too, it seems a waste to not share it, I've done so much this past month or so.

Rental prices are good in Orlando. Here where I live in Asheville I pay $975.00 a month , incl. water for a 1700 sf townhome. It's a really nice community too, but the house is about 13 years old and you can see it in places.

It seems in Orlando that 3 bdrms go for $800. - 1200. for a really nice, new , big pool home. For 1400 you can get huge 3500+ home in a nice neighborhood in Clermont, Poinciana, etc. So you have lots of nice homes for great prices.

You get into Windermere and Winter Park and you can add $200.00 to the same type of house for the area.

Here in Asheville to get a new 2000 sf home in a development you would have to pay $2000.00 a month at least, and it would sell for about 500,000 at least. So to me, it's great!


 
I say go for the pool! :) If you're going to live in Florida, you'll need one! And the benefit is that you can use it pretty much all year round and not just 3 months out of the year.

4 BR/4 BA HOUSE for $1200 a month?? Are you serious? I pay $1000 for a 1 BR/1 BA APARTMENT! NJ is way too expensive!!

Those resort communities sound nice but I don't know... It's a risk either way when you move and don't know who you're neighbors are going to be, but the possibility of having that change from week to week could be a negative.

Yeah, I know. It doesn't bother me too much though. I have never felt unsafe while staying offsite at a resort before.

The prices for rentals and homes for sale there are incredible right now. For 1200 a month you can get a 3 bdrm pool home pretty much anywhere besides Windermere and Winter Garden.

I found a place I love but it is a resort. I will post a link and you can see the homes!

 
n Davenport I'm looking at a 4 bdrm, 3 ba townhome in a really nice community inc. water and elec. for $1200.

It's about the price of a same size home with pool but then you would have to add on for utilities, pool care, lawn care, etc.

 
That is closer to 192. You would go down by AK to get into Disney property.

I live next to a short term rental home. I like I don't have the same neighbors all the time. It is empty quite a bit.
 
Holy smokes Amy! I cannot believe the prices!! Coming from the D.C./Baltimore area I just can't fathom those prices. Unreal.
 
Oh - and I like the idea of living at a resort community and using their pool as opposed to having to pay the electricity and upkeep of my own pool.
 
Okay, so I'm really considering homes in Kissimmee and Davenport. I found a couple of really nice ones but they are in resort communities. It sounds great, I don't mind living in a resort community with a beach, pools, clubhouses, movie theater and a nice house with a pool...but the bad thing about that is that the homes next to you may be short term rentals. Which means that they may be empty or you will have new neighbors every week or two. They could be loud and into parties or quiet and spend their days at the parks. I don't think this sounds too bad personally, but I would love to hear other opinions. I found a beautiful 4 bdrm/4ba with pool and hot tub and 2200 sf, brand new for $1200. a month. We would be 20 minutes or less to the parks and I think it sounds nice.

When we stayed at Hapimag in Jan., we noticed there were the townhomes up front (it was a gated community) and in the back they had lots of nice homes. We drove around and wondered why some homes had christmas decorations up, like they lived there long term, and some had lots and lots of cars in them like they were having a party. You could clearly see that some were permanent residents and some were short term rentals. I didnt see a problem with that area, I really liked the development.

Anyway, thoughts would be really appreciated. I don't have much time left to research as I have to get packing starting tomorrow. So much to do :scared:

Thanks guys!!!

*Oh ~ our other option is living 40 minutes from WDW in Clermont or Lake Mary ;)




I've heard some negative opinions about living in a resort community. It sounds good at first, but long term you start missing having actual neighbors and a sense of community.

Nothing to stop you from doing it - you could always move later if you find it a problem. That resort sure looks awesome! :thumbsup2


:goodvibes
 
That is closer to 192. You would go down by AK to get into Disney property.

I live next to a short term rental home. I like I don't have the same neighbors all the time. It is empty quite a bit.

Do you ever have problems with your neighbors when they come?

Thanks!

Holy smokes Amy! I cannot believe the prices!! Coming from the D.C./Baltimore area I just can't fathom those prices. Unreal.

I know! It's unreal!

Oh - and I like the idea of living at a resort community and using their pool as opposed to having to pay the electricity and upkeep of my own pool.

Me too, just talked with some people on the Orlando forums and pool care and elec. would cost hundreds a month.

I love the idea. We have a community pool where we live now, that is open for the summer. The pool at the resort we like is 82 degrees all year round :):):)

I've heard some negative opinions about living in a resort community. It sounds good at first, but long term you start missing having actual neighbors and a sense of community.

Nothing to stop you from doing it - you could always move later if you find it a problem. That resort sure looks awesome! :thumbsup2


:goodvibes

Me too, but everyone is different and we're kinda different from others in that having an empty house next to us or new neighbors sounds perfect for us!

I don't have that need for community. I guess I've gotten my fill here where I live the last 4 years :laughing:

Thanks! The resort does look awesome, I may just put the deposit down without seeing it in person. The real estate agent I'm working with is going over there on Mon. to check it out for me!


 
I guess you can always find a "community" other than your neighborhood-through church, school, and other groups.
I lived in a new neighborhood a few years ago and we felt that we really only knew one other family. Everybody kept to themselves and were too busy working all the time.
 
I just found your thread and since you have asked for opnions I will chime in!!

One thing to consider living in a resort community someone has already mentioned and that is the party atmosphere and the people coming and going at all hours.
I guess if you were to rent a home and then decide you didn't like the neighborhood you could up and move. Definately consider renting and not buying unless you are sure since these places can be difficult to unload.

I see you are homeschooling so I won't bring up the schools in areas like these. (Since most of the residents in the area are not long term, the schools tend to suffer)

Davenport is close to the Animal Kingdom but not so close if you want to head over to the Magic Kingdom regularly.

Another thing to consider is the kids. Since the neighborhood is so transient, they most likely will just have each other as playmates.

I realize these are all points that have no doubt been mentioned, but really tghink it over before you decide to sign anything.
And last but not least, take a quick trip down here and check it out for yourself. DON'T RELY ON SOMEONE ELSE'S EYES, as they might think something is fine that would drive you insane.

Best of Luck to you on your upcoming move! :)
 

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