Would you move to orlando?

[bamamouse]

I don't understand this question...and now I think I need an adult...

Look at his avatar

 

[Planogirl]

I would pick Nashville personally. It would be nice to be close to WDW and St Augustine plus I'm a Universal freak but I really like Tennessee. There's a lot going for that state IMO.

 

[raysnkaysmom]

As much as I love to visit Orlando, I'd have to vote for Nashville. It just seems more of a place to call 'home'.
Besides, if you lived in Orlando JUST for WDW, wouldn't it kinda take away from the magic of going there?

Now, when my kids are grown and gone, I'm moving somewhere in FL..maybe the gulf or St. Augustine... I'll be closer to Orlando, but not RIGHT there

 

[ChristmasElf]

I spent a year or so of my life in Orlando, and although I loved being so close to the World (went every weekend!), there were some negatives:

The public schools in the Orlando area are pretty bad. If you move there and you have school-age children, you'll want to enroll your kids in private school. And, public or private, most Orlando schools require school uniforms.

However, the schools have really professional morning news shows.... some company in the area donated equipment to the public schools.

Also... housing can be a hit or miss. I recommend a gated golf course development. Though most are the winter homes of senior citizens, they're guarded 24/7 by security.

Just like every other town there will be schools that are good and some that are not so good. Private schools are not always the answer.


If you were to choose Orlando, just a few things to consider:

Orlando sits in Orange county. The schools in the west side of Orange county are A rated and the schools in unicorporated Orange county on the south end of Orange are also good.
Stay out of the Pine Hills area. We call it crime hills. This is an area north of Hwy 50 (aka Colonial) just east of Ocoee.
Winter Garden is very nice. Stay near the area of 535 and 429 and you will find fairly new homes, great shopping, great schools, including a brand new middle school. And as a bonus, you will be a 10 minute drive to the parks.

Windermere is very nice. Pricey on the homes and taxes are generally higher. This area is odd in the fact that yoy may find a brand new supersized home right next door to a 900 foot shack of a house in the downtown area of Windermere.

Hunters Creek area located in south unincorporated Orange county has a variety of neighborhoods with houses from 160,000 in one area to over 400,000 in another. Depends on how big you need the house t be and how old it is.
The schools in this area are very good.

All 3 of these areas are fairly close to WDW. Traffic is crazy on I 4 and the Turnpike during rush hours. The backroads of 535 going into the "back door" of Disney is also busy at certain times for cast members that are still employed by the mouse. (Disney has been busy giving many cast members the heave ho and there is a hiring freeze across property no matter the position-even the college program is being affected)

Within a year of moving here, you will find that going to the parks all the time gets old real quick.

Osceola county. eh, never really cared for it, so I will not comment on this. 192 AREA is full of tourists and filled with restaurants and stores that cater to the tourist as also reflected in the prices)

Seminole county is north of Orlando. Good schools. Tuskawilla is nice and unless your employer is in South or west Orange county, your drive time won't be too bad.

The best thing would be to grab a map. If the 408 or 429 or 417 would be an option for getting to work, (although these are toll roads,) they are still much faster than taking I 4.


We have no state income tax here.
But know that if you ever decide to buy a house and say pay $500,000 for it in say March. You will pay maybe $5000 in property tax that year. The following year, your tax rate will be refigured and you could plan on paying almost double for the remaining years you live in that house. Kinda sneaky, but it is what it is. Don't look at what the current homeowner payes for property tax as your rate will be higher. Recession or not.

Finally, know that the job market here is not very good right now. If Dh has a great job and you can stay at home, no problem. Used to be everyone was hiring, now, no one is hiring.

 

[olena]

I wanted to move to Orlando at one time. My parents, siblings and nieces live near there. It's nice being close to WDW but that does wear off. The job market is very tough, especially when compared to the cost of living. My parents just lost their homeowners insurance carrier (State Farm) and are having trouble finding a new insurer. They got hit by three hurricanes within months of buying their home, which was damaged. My Dad has to mow his lawn twice a week during the hot months. Don't even get me started on the HUGE bugs and snakes that come into their houses! We thought about trying to move there, but we have changed our minds. We visit frequently enough though, but I'd take TN.

 

[raysnkaysmom]

The Jungle Room is in Memphis...

LMAO...I was gonna say that....but didn't wanna burst his 'hey' bubble

 

[PK Disney Dork]

Neither Florida OR Tennessee have a state income tax!!!??

Wow...that's nice!

 

[MoniqueU]

Living so close to the parks does take some of the magic away IMHO. I have been an annual passholder at Disneyland for the better part of 16 years now with some lapses here and there. I can NOT do a theme park more then one day, 2 max. I never stay on site no matter how good the rates and I feel like I have done it all because I have. I know DW is bigger then Disneyland I have been there before foo but for the life of me I can't figure out why people choose to vacation there for a week straight and the ones that stay 2 weeks scare the beejeezus out of me. That is just too much stimulation for me. I get the magic I really do but I can do epcot and MK in 2 days and ride and eat and drink enough to get my fix and be done. I detest AK and the MGM studios holds no interest to me at all. I do like universal though because of the front of the line if you stay on site and you can still get a smoking room last I heard. Disney lost me when they said I couldn't smoke on my balconey or patio.

The other reason I couldn't live in Orlando is I am sure I would be real tempted to go after Casey Anthonys Parents. I would be one of those whacked out protestors screaming at them from their front lawn. Those people are just dispicable to me and should all in jail with their daughter.

 

[olena]

Neither Florida OR Tennessee have a state income tax!!!??

Wow...that's nice!

True, but you pay through the nose just to drive anywhere in Orlando. Is Nashville full of tolls?

Oh, and Orlando is the only town I've been in where a red light means 'keep going' or are merely suggestions. When the light turns green, we sit and wait because we have nearly been t-boned by the locals on numerous occasions. Yes, people run lights elsewhere but it's really bad in O-twon.

 

[Buckalew11]

I'd pick nashville but I am partial to TN. If I go to FL, I think it'll be to the Keys.

 

[Kathi OD]

Move to Orlando? Heck NO! Too freakin' hot most of the year for me. And that argument about the air conditioning? HA HA HA! Until they figure out a way to cool the outside air, I'd much rather deal with winter here.

 

[Mouse House Mama]

I would look into the schools before I made any decision. I noticed you have children in your siggie so I would imagine that would be most important.
Check Neighborhood watchdog as well.
Good luck with your decision! It sounds exciting!

 

[SydneyBristow]

I wouldn't move to Orlando. I live in Lake County and I love it here, it's far enough from the congestion and traffic of the tourist areas & Orlando but still close enough to everything. Where I am now is really the only place I'd want to live in Central Florida and we have no plans to leave.

 

[mickaholic4077]

I have no desire to live in Orlando. I like vacationing there, but it's not a place I'd want to live. There's too much endless sprawl, so many imported people, and I like a place with a hard freeze to kill off some of the nastier bugs.

Nashville also wouldn't be my cup of tea (I'm a northerner through and through), but I'd prefer it over Orlando.

Well,speaking as one of the "imported" people, I am glad that you choose not to live here.

 

[Darcy03231]

While absolutely love to vacation in Orlando I don't think I would ever move there, for a variety of reasons, the biggest being that the local economy is so dependent on tourism. When things get bad it can go down rather quickly.

I would (and DH and I have discussed) moving to the Nashville area. DH's sister lives in Franklin (right outside of Nashville) and has been there for about 20 years. His parents lived in Monterey, actually his mom still does. We've visited through the years and I think its a great place. The schools where my SIL lives are very good, Nashville is a short drive so getting into the city for shopping, restaurants, culteral events, etc. isn't an issue. Also, they don't seem to have been hit as hard by the recession as the Orlando area.

 

[jezebella]

I grew up in Nashville (Murfreesboro, to be exact) and now live in Orlando. I actually love both places. I do miss Nashville's downtown area. I also miss the sense of community and family. The people there are extremely nice as well. I will say though, sometimes whe you move there, it's hard to really get into for a while. A lot of Nashville and the burbs around it, even though big cities, still have a core of the good 'ole boy system. It takes a bit to become a "local", but once you're in, you're in for life.

I vacationed my whole life in Orlando and moved down here after my parents decided to. I've lived here now for nearly 5 years and love it. It does kind of spoil the whole "Disney as a vacation spot" but what do I care? I go nearly every weekend. As for keeping the magic about it--well, we Disney cruise. It's so much more affordable with FL rates and no flights to book, just drive 45 minutes and hop on the boat.

You get used to the heat. My DH is from England and now he thinks when it drops below 60, it's freezing. The heat doesn't really bother us now at all. I loved living in Nashville, and most of my friends are all still there---but I wouldn't move back for anything. Plus, I never need to travel to see my friends, because most of them journey this way for vacation at least once every couple years.

If you want more specifics about either place, PM me. My DH is a realtor in Orlando (he was earthfaires realtor on the "We moved to Orlando" thread) or I can refer you to someone in Nashville as well. Good luck!

 

[The Mystery Machine]

I would if I could however it is not in the cards for us. We did have a chance to move to Tampa or DFW. DH relocated to DFW.
We are now back in MO after 3yrs. I hate winter.
Granted the spring here this yr is so beautiful. I did miss that.

 

[Feralpeg]

I moved to the Orlando area five years ago. I've never regretted my decision to move here. I love it.

A lot of whether you will love it or not depends on your lifestyle. If you have to commute across the city every day, you won't like it. There are many areas of Orlando that are not crawling with tourists. I live five minutes from the back of the Magic Kingdom. I rarely see a tourist in my area. There is just no need for them to come out this way. Yet, I can be on WDW property in minutes. Picking the right area is key to how much you will enjoy living here.

Don't think that once you move here that you will be spending every day in the theme parks. It just doesn't work that way. Real life always takes precedence. If you were to go every day, you'd get tired of it. It can happen! I go just often enough to keep it special.

I love the weather here. It is hot during the summer, but it is just as hot and humid in other areas of the country during the summer. When I lived in the mid-west, the month of August our temperatures were usually over 100 degrees for at least a couple of weeks. It has not reached 100 degrees in the Orlando area in the five years I've lived here. I always get a kick out of people complaining about Orlando summer weather being so hot, yet they have not spent any time here other than at WDW. If I were to be walking around on cement all the time during the summer, I'd also think it was miserable. I don't. I go out and enjoy myself, but I don't spend hours tromping around on heat soaked pavement. When I get hot, I go back in my nice air conditioned home.

The winters here are glorious. No ice. No snow. The one thing that used to really get to me when I lived in the mid-west was the gloomy skies in the winter months. There were more grey days than not. In Florida, we get an occasional grey day, but most days are bright and sunny. I love that!

I love being around people and meeting people from different areas. Orlando is a great place to do that. If you are bothered being surrounded by Spanish speaking people, this is not the area for you. Spanish is everywhere. It doesn't bother me.

OP, please don't be scared off by a few negative comments. I suggest you come to Orlando and spend some time looking around the city. Don't hang out in the theme parks. That is just a small part of living in Orlando. Good luck with you decision!

 

[Feralpeg]

I wanted to move to Orlando at one time. My parents, siblings and nieces live near there. It's nice being close to WDW but that does wear off. The job market is very tough, especially when compared to the cost of living. My parents just lost their homeowners insurance carrier (State Farm) and are having trouble finding a new insurer. They got hit by three hurricanes within months of buying their home, which was damaged. My Dad has to mow his lawn twice a week during the hot months. Don't even get me started on the HUGE bugs and snakes that come into their houses! We thought about trying to move there, but we have changed our minds. We visit frequently enough though, but I'd take TN.

I agree that the insurance thing is a problem. I also have State Farm and am looking for a new insurance company.

As for the snakes and bugs. I've never had a snake in my home in the five years I've lived here. I do see black racers on ocassion outside. They don't bother me.

I have an exterminator treat my home every six months. I don't have any problem with bugs. The closer you live to water or a wooded area, the worse the bug and snake problem will be. The little lizards are everywhere outside, but they don't come inside. I've had a couple of little frogs get in the house. They are always fun to try and catch!

On the other hand, I love the wildlife here. I came out of work the other day (I work part time for Disney) and there was a turkey standing next to my car. We talked for a few minutes before he strolled off. LOL! At any time, I can find sand cranes in my neighborhood and all sort of other exotic birds. I saw an eagle a couple of days ago. I love seeing the bobcats and the occasional alligator. I just keep my distance. Once in a while, I even spot a wild boar. The deer are everywhere. It's like living in a giant nature preserve.

 

[sbell111]

if you pick Nashville I will show you the jungleroom.

Ummm, that's Memphis.