Who has made the move to FL?

[wendow]

We pay $1500 per year to insure our house. We were looking at $5000 per year until we had a wind mitigation done and received credit for all the hurricane proofing we did. Not all companies write policies in FL. A lot of people get thrown into Citizen’s Insurance. It is the insurer of last resort.

In most cases, it doesn’t make sense for us to even file a claim because our rates will double.

This is actually what happened to us. Our insurance was $800 year. Then we had a massive hail storm in the summer of 2013 and everyone's roofs needed to be replaced. We filed a claim and insurance went up to $1600. We should have just paid for the roof and not filed the claim.

 

[wendow]

So, $1500 doesn't seem crazy high to me. I understand @floridafam that you have done things to hurricane proof your house to get your rates down but it sounds like if you did that or bought newer, you could get decent rates??

 

[Judique]

So, lots of talk about high car and house insurance. I'm curious what everyone considers "high".

Here in CO, our house insurance is just over $1600 year. We have a pretty avg policy, not cheapest and not most expensive.

Car insurance is $1800 year...three cars, three drivers (one teen)...two old cars (2004, 2005) and one newer (2016). Again an average policy.

I would consider that fairly inexpensive auto insurance when I compare it to my Maryland policies. We have a 2013, 2009, 2001 and no accidents, multi line policy discounts, higher deductibles (1K) and 100/300 coverage. 2013 is 1400 a year for 25 year old, and the other two are about 1800 total so $3200 a year for 3 vehicles. Either that or I need to go shopping for a new carrier!

 

[wendow]

I would consider that fairly inexpensive auto insurance when I compare it to my Maryland policies. We have a 2013, 2009, 2001 and no accidents, multi line policy discounts, higher deductibles (1K) and 100/300 coverage. 2013 is 1400 a year for 25 year old, and the other two are about 1800 total so $3200 a year for 3 vehicles. Either that or I need to go shopping for a new carrier!

Wow, and ours just went up quite a bit when we added our teen!

 

[jen7233]

So, lots of talk about high car and house insurance. I'm curious what everyone considers "high".

Here in CO, our house insurance is just over $1600 year. We have a pretty avg policy, not cheapest and not most expensive.

Car insurance is $1800 year...three cars, three drivers (one teen)...two old cars (2004, 2005) and one newer (2016). Again an average policy.

I was thinking the same, what do people consider high. The places we looked at in Florida were several thousand dollars less in homeowner's than what we were paying in Kansas. Our Kansas house we sold recently was appraised at $270,000 and our insurance was $6800 a year. We thought for Kansas that was ridiculous. This included "specials" which is why I'm hesitant to get involved in any future properties that have a CDD. Our car insurance is $1200 a year for two cars and over 45 age drivers.

Have you done any pricing or looked at property tax information for where you are considering? Some information on the county websites. Maybe your insurance company for your car could run an estimate if you narrowed down the city. Not sure, just a thought. We have family in the Florida panhandle and there are some nice places there, but it also seems a bit far from the Atlantic side if you are interested in driving to parks, etc. I think it takes them about 6-7 hours. But, at least that's a one day drive!

 

[beffiegirl]

HI, just wanted to tell that we moved to St. Augustine(st. Johns county) 8 months ago. We are right near Jacksonville. I picked here because of schools. My 2 oldest were home schooled in NJ. But my oldest wanted to go back to school, he's in 11th grade. He's doing great. My DD tried the schooled but hated it(middle school) so now she is home schooled through the virtual school, which is great. I have 4 kids altogether like you. We moved down here with no jobs, which was stupid! My husband worked in NYC for 20 years and made really good money, but we knew that he was not going to make the same money. He did get a job but for half of what he used to make. He also does real estate, since this area is up and coming. The schools are a+ rated. And they're building hundreds of homes. Sometime I wished that I lived closer to Orlando in Semiole county but then I see the traffic near Orlando, yikes! If you need help with the area, just ask me. My advice, get a job first! The average salary is 40-50,000. Not a lot. But in NJ our house was half the size and old. Plus was a lot of money, to be in good school district. So here at least we have twice the size house and it's brand new, in a nice community. And the weather is awesome. Plus we are 2 hours from orlando, and 20 minutes to the beach.

 

[TwoMisfits]

I was thinking the same, what do people consider high. The places we looked at in Florida were several thousand dollars less in homeowner's than what we were paying in Kansas. Our Kansas house we sold recently was appraised at $270,000 and our insurance was $6800 a year. We thought for Kansas that was ridiculous. This included "specials" which is why I'm hesitant to get involved in any future properties that have a CDD. Our car insurance is $1200 a year for two cars and over 45 age drivers.

Have you done any pricing or looked at property tax information for where you are considering? Some information on the county websites. Maybe your insurance company for your car could run an estimate if you narrowed down the city. Not sure, just a thought. We have family in the Florida panhandle and there are some nice places there, but it also seems a bit far from the Atlantic side if you are interested in driving to parks, etc. I think it takes them about 6-7 hours. But, at least that's a one day drive!

Dang! This is one reason I picked a region which almost never has property-destructive severe weather (no large tornadoes, huge hurricanes, major flooding, blizzards, etc)...I think I'd cry if we paid that much (right now, we pay the equivalent of .17% of the value of our home for full replacement property insurance)...

 

[westcoastfldisneygirl]

Our house is 2100 a year to ensure.

 

[1GoldenSun]

Take a look at Zillow to check out home prices and what the taxes are for said homes. You can also look at neighborhood crime rates and area schools on Zillow. We pay around $8,000 a year on a 3300 sq ft house, which I don't think is too bad. I don't know what we pay in car insurance but it can't be too bad or my husband would be complaining about it, haha.

Regarding sinkholes, you do sometimes read about them in the news, but I personally don't know a single person who has been affected by one and I've only seen one or two. If you do your due diligence before buying a home and have a thorough inspection, it's unlikely (though not impossible) to happen to you. Likewise, alligators are around for sure, but they generally don't bother people. I catch sight of maybe 2 or 3 a year, usually sunning by a retention pond; it's not like they're roaming the streets. Plenty of lakes are swimmable and the springs are lovely. I wouldn't leave small pets outside if you live anywhere near a retention pond, though; they WILL get eaten.

Pools are plentiful; most upper-range homes will have one and lower-range homes often have one available for use by the community. My kids swim year-round, although we do heat ours when it gets truly cold.

The humidity really is the worst, but I've got to say, it's great for your skin! I lived for a short time in Colorado and used to get static-flyaway hair, terribly dry skin, and chapped, cracked lips all the time (I just have very sensitive skin) but in Florida I never have this problem. None of us have allergies but I do hear that the pollen can be pretty bad if you do. My friends with allergies just stay inside when it's especially bad. I don't notice it at all because it doesn't affect me.

While I don't think you truly "get used to" the heat and humidity in that you get inured to it, I do think you get used to dealing with it and just aren't too bothered by it after a while. I KNOW I will be miserable if I try to do any outside activities in August so I just don't, unless it's worth it to me to be sweltering. You just stay inside for July and August except for early morning and late evening. It's not so bad. It passes.

What I really disliked in the beginning about Florida I still dislike. I hate the architecture--bland concrete block and stucco--even in the nicest communities I think all the houses look alike. Many go for this mock Spanish style that doesn't look Spanish at all, and those are the NICE houses. The cheaper ones are just boring boxes. I love a cute Cape Cod or a bungalow, with some WOOD! But Florida homes rarely catch on fire. No wood. I also hate the flatness and the tropical vegetation. I miss rolling hills and hardwood trees. So many palm trees everywhere! I really hate palm trees.

But overall I love it here and I never thought I would. I was always trying to get DH to move to Colorado where the mountains are, but now we're pretty settled and the kids are happy and we're probably here for the foreseeable future. I'd love to have a place in Colorado someday to spend summers!

 

[1GoldenSun]

Oh, you guys were talking about insurance, not taxes, haha! I don't know what we pay in insurance. I think a lot depends on what zone you're in.

 

[MillauFr]

If I was looking to move to a place with warmer weather San Diego would be near the top of the list. The weather in Florida is lousy 6 months out of the year. It is hot and humid and rains too much. San Diego has much better weather.

 

[FortForever]

Moved here 11 years ago from WV and never looked back. The only snow I ever plan on seeing again is on Hallmark Christmas movies.

Paid cash for our home and four acres with the profits from the sale of our WV home. A few years later, bought the 4 acres that join ours for $15k. We do live out in the boonies, but that's the way I like it. We moved to a city that is inland to avoid hurricanes, although we somehow managed to take a direct hit from Cat 5 Irma last year. That was a first and hopefully a last. We were under mandatory evacuation, but rode it out due to the unavailability of gas. Didn't want to get stranded on the road.

Aside from that unpleasant event, we are happy here and spend lots of time camping on the beautiful, uncrowded beaches. Not the tourist beaches, the "real Florida" ones. We spent Memorial Day weekend camping at one of our favorite state parks on the beach and literally could not see another human within eyesight on the beach that Saturday. I took photos both directions. We literally had the entire beach to ourselves - on a major holiday!

We are 90 minutes from the ocean, a bit less from the gulf. We can enjoy waves, or blue still water, depending on our mood. We are 2.5 hours from WDW and have weekday passes that are around $20 month. We also take full advantage of Florida resident discounts on cruises. As far as I'm concerned, we are living the good life. Even the summers are great, even though I spent my first 43 years in WV/MD.

Obviously, Florida has no income tax, but our property taxes are also low in my county. The first year we moved here, they assessed the value of a newly added shed at $3500 or so. I had only paid $500 for it, so took my receipt down to the court house, where I thought I was wasting my time. The clerk apologized and called out the Property Appraiser to talk to me. He was quite the good ole boy and and happily lowered my taxes to "whatever I thought was fair." I was dumbfounded, but very happy.

While we still live 10 miles out of town, into the country, our town has built up significantly since we've moved here. I wouldn't even recognize it as the same place, and it's been just over a decade. I hope it never loses it's rural, small town appeal.

Our car insurance is a tad higher here than it was in MD and quite a bit higher than WV. Even so, everything else evens that out. After experiencing the non-drivers of this state, I can completely understand the higher cost of auto insurance. I learned quick to not move on a green light until looking both ways for red light runners. I see it every single time I go to town. Also, the majority of people around here apparently don't know what their turn signals are for. Defensive driving definitely a requirement.

BTW, most of my family works in Gainesville (where the university is,) which has a lot of jobs. It's about a 30 minute drive.

 

[wendow]

I was thinking the same, what do people consider high. The places we looked at in Florida were several thousand dollars less in homeowner's than what we were paying in Kansas. Our Kansas house we sold recently was appraised at $270,000 and our insurance was $6800 a year. We thought for Kansas that was ridiculous. This included "specials" which is why I'm hesitant to get involved in any future properties that have a CDD. Our car insurance is $1200 a year for two cars and over 45 age drivers.

Have you done any pricing or looked at property tax information for where you are considering? Some information on the county websites. Maybe your insurance company for your car could run an estimate if you narrowed down the city. Not sure, just a thought. We have family in the Florida panhandle and there are some nice places there, but it also seems a bit far from the Atlantic side if you are interested in driving to parks, etc. I think it takes them about 6-7 hours. But, at least that's a one day drive!

Wowzers, your Kansas homeowner's insurance was really high!! I'm right nextdoor in CO and ours is much lower at $1800 year. And our house has a higher value (houses are $$ here).

We have looked at the property tax info for several of the counties. It's higher than we pay here in CO but our houses also cost a lot more but it's significantly less than what we would have to pay in TX.

I think I'm ok with a 6-7 hour drive to the parks. I'd just like to be able to drive it in a day. I don't have to be on the doorstep. Both my teen dd's want to do the college program when they are able so I'd like it if they could make it home in a day's drive. If a great job came up and we were closer, I'd be fine with that too.

 

[wendow]

HI, just wanted to tell that we moved to St. Augustine(st. Johns county) 8 months ago. We are right near Jacksonville. I picked here because of schools. My 2 oldest were home schooled in NJ. But my oldest wanted to go back to school, he's in 11th grade. He's doing great. My DD tried the schooled but hated it(middle school) so now she is home schooled through the virtual school, which is great. I have 4 kids altogether like you. We moved down here with no jobs, which was stupid! My husband worked in NYC for 20 years and made really good money, but we knew that he was not going to make the same money. He did get a job but for half of what he used to make. He also does real estate, since this area is up and coming. The schools are a+ rated. And they're building hundreds of homes. Sometime I wished that I lived closer to Orlando in Semiole county but then I see the traffic near Orlando, yikes! If you need help with the area, just ask me. My advice, get a job first! The average salary is 40-50,000. Not a lot. But in NJ our house was half the size and old. Plus was a lot of money, to be in good school district. So here at least we have twice the size house and it's brand new, in a nice community. And the weather is awesome. Plus we are 2 hours from orlando, and 20 minutes to the beach.

Thank you! I appreciate your sweet offer. I had contacted a couple people through pm who mentioned recently moving to FL and no one ever got back to me which is why I started asking here. I cannot even say how helpful this thread has been to me, and posts like yours encourage me My dh will definitely get a job first!!

We don't homeschool because our public schools are bad. I just have loved homeschooling my kids and feel it's been a great fit for our family. I am familiar with FL's virtual school as my friend in Tallahassee uses that with her kids. However, if one of my kid's wanted to go to school, I'm completely fine with letting them try! Can I ask...do you know if FL does concurrent enrollment for homeschooled high schooler's?? Here in CO, my high school kids can take college classes for dual credit and district pays for it (up to 7 hours per semester). Is there anything like that in FL? TX has nothing like that (they ignore homeschoolers exist) which is one huge negative for me with TX.

We will be visiting in April (still nailing down dates). I may pm you to ask for some good neighborhoods to drive around, if that is ok!

 

[wendow]

Take a look at Zillow to check out home prices and what the taxes are for said homes. You can also look at neighborhood crime rates and area schools on Zillow. We pay around $8,000 a year on a 3300 sq ft house, which I don't think is too bad. I don't know what we pay in car insurance but it can't be too bad or my husband would be complaining about it, haha.

Regarding sinkholes, you do sometimes read about them in the news, but I personally don't know a single person who has been affected by one and I've only seen one or two. If you do your due diligence before buying a home and have a thorough inspection, it's unlikely (though not impossible) to happen to you. Likewise, alligators are around for sure, but they generally don't bother people. I catch sight of maybe 2 or 3 a year, usually sunning by a retention pond; it's not like they're roaming the streets. Plenty of lakes are swimmable and the springs are lovely. I wouldn't leave small pets outside if you live anywhere near a retention pond, though; they WILL get eaten.

Pools are plentiful; most upper-range homes will have one and lower-range homes often have one available for use by the community. My kids swim year-round, although we do heat ours when it gets truly cold.

The humidity really is the worst, but I've got to say, it's great for your skin! I lived for a short time in Colorado and used to get static-flyaway hair, terribly dry skin, and chapped, cracked lips all the time (I just have very sensitive skin) but in Florida I never have this problem. None of us have allergies but I do hear that the pollen can be pretty bad if you do. My friends with allergies just stay inside when it's especially bad. I don't notice it at all because it doesn't affect me.

While I don't think you truly "get used to" the heat and humidity in that you get inured to it, I do think you get used to dealing with it and just aren't too bothered by it after a while. I KNOW I will be miserable if I try to do any outside activities in August so I just don't, unless it's worth it to me to be sweltering. You just stay inside for July and August except for early morning and late evening. It's not so bad. It passes.

What I really disliked in the beginning about Florida I still dislike. I hate the architecture--bland concrete block and stucco--even in the nicest communities I think all the houses look alike. Many go for this mock Spanish style that doesn't look Spanish at all, and those are the NICE houses. The cheaper ones are just boring boxes. I love a cute Cape Cod or a bungalow, with some WOOD! But Florida homes rarely catch on fire. No wood. I also hate the flatness and the tropical vegetation. I miss rolling hills and hardwood trees. So many palm trees everywhere! I really hate palm trees.

But overall I love it here and I never thought I would. I was always trying to get DH to move to Colorado where the mountains are, but now we're pretty settled and the kids are happy and we're probably here for the foreseeable future. I'd love to have a place in Colorado someday to spend summers!

Thanks for such a great, detailed post! I would also like to have a place in both CO and FL someday. Best of both worlds! Being from TX, I cannot say what a treat living in CO has been. It's one of the most beautiful places I've ever seen and I get to experience it outside my door everyday. But yes, dry skin is such a problem. I am forever lathering up with aquaphor and chapstick. My eczema kiddo really suffers here. He scratches his legs and torso until he bleeds.

So, your taxes are really high to me!! Our house here in CO is almost 4000sq ft and we pay $1800. Can I ask what part of FL you are in? Are you buy a coast?

Why the hatred for palms lol? I like them but they may be like the pines here. Lovely to look at but spreading their pine pollen everywhere.

 

[wendow]

Oh, you guys were talking about insurance, not taxes, haha! I don't know what we pay in insurance. I think a lot depends on what zone you're in.

Oh, seeing this now. Nevermind my question on your insurance lol!!

 

[wendow]

If I was looking to move to a place with warmer weather San Diego would be near the top of the list. The weather in Florida is lousy 6 months out of the year. It is hot and humid and rains too much. San Diego has much better weather.

I love San Diego. Been there many times but I just don't want to live in CA. Everyone I know in CA is trying to move out. Weather is great there though!

 

[wendow]

Moved here 11 years ago from WV and never looked back. The only snow I ever plan on seeing again is on Hallmark Christmas movies.

Paid cash for our home and four acres with the profits from the sale of our WV home. A few years later, bought the 4 acres that join ours for $15k. We do live out in the boonies, but that's the way I like it. We moved to a city that is inland to avoid hurricanes, although we somehow managed to take a direct hit from Cat 5 Irma last year. That was a first and hopefully a last. We were under mandatory evacuation, but rode it out due to the unavailability of gas. Didn't want to get stranded on the road.

Aside from that unpleasant event, we are happy here and spend lots of time camping on the beautiful, uncrowded beaches. Not the tourist beaches, the "real Florida" ones. We spent Memorial Day weekend camping at one of our favorite state parks on the beach and literally could not see another human within eyesight on the beach that Saturday. I took photos both directions. We literally had the entire beach to ourselves - on a major holiday!

We are 90 minutes from the ocean, a bit less from the gulf. We can enjoy waves, or blue still water, depending on our mood. We are 2.5 hours from WDW and have weekday passes that are around $20 month. We also take full advantage of Florida resident discounts on cruises. As far as I'm concerned, we are living the good life. Even the summers are great, even though I spent my first 43 years in WV/MD.

Obviously, Florida has no income tax, but our property taxes are also low in my county. The first year we moved here, they assessed the value of a newly added shed at $3500 or so. I had only paid $500 for it, so took my receipt down to the court house, where I thought I was wasting my time. The clerk apologized and called out the Property Appraiser to talk to me. He was quite the good ole boy and and happily lowered my taxes to "whatever I thought was fair." I was dumbfounded, but very happy.

While we still live 10 miles out of town, into the country, our town has built up significantly since we've moved here. I wouldn't even recognize it as the same place, and it's been just over a decade. I hope it never loses it's rural, small town appeal.

Our car insurance is a tad higher here than it was in MD and quite a bit higher than WV. Even so, everything else evens that out. After experiencing the non-drivers of this state, I can completely understand the higher cost of auto insurance. I learned quick to not move on a green light until looking both ways for red light runners. I see it every single time I go to town. Also, the majority of people around here apparently don't know what their turn signals are for. Defensive driving definitely a requirement.

BTW, most of my family works in Gainesville (where the university is,) which has a lot of jobs. It's about a 30 minute drive.

Can I pm you? I'd love to find out more about where you live. Gainsville is one place I don't think my dh has looked but with up and coming college kids, it sounds like he should. We are fine NOT being close to a coast. Our reasons for moving to FL are not just beaches or Disney. However, the idea of being able to be on a beach and not be surrounded by tourists sounds great. We are pretty quiet people

 

[FortForever]

Can I pm you? I'd love to find out more about where you live. Gainsville is one place I don't think my dh has looked but with up and coming college kids, it sounds like he should. We are fine NOT being close to a coast. Our reasons for moving to FL are not just beaches or Disney. However, the idea of being able to be on a beach and not be surrounded by tourists sounds great. We are pretty quiet people

Sure, PM me, I will be glad to help any way I can. We actually DID move to Florida for the beaches and Disney. You only live once. LOL

 

[wendow]

Sure, PM me, I will be glad to help any way I can. We actually DID move to Florida for the beaches and Disney. You only live once. LOL

I'd be thrilled to be closer to beaches and Disney but I'm ok not being on either's doorstep Our primary reasons are lower COL than we have here in CO, and then to help our dd17 who is ill. She definitely feels better in FL. Heat and humidity are much better for her than cold and dry. Being closer to Disney and near such great beaches is a bonus for us. I totally agree with that YOLO and you should live and be where you want to be!

Thank you! I'll send you a pm in the next day or so!