Moving to Orlando (probably) - help me decide

[monica9]

Oviedo is in the "Orlando area." Where is your workplace?

He is going to be Lockheed Martin Orlando area. I work at a hospital where I live now as a dietetic technician in the milkroom in their nicu but only a few hospitals in the country have a milkroom. I’d like to get a job at Disney.
Does anyone know anything about health insurance in Florida? If it’s better than other states? That’s the one thing we need, good health insurance which I currently provide with my work.

 

[hrhdhd]

He is going to be Lockheed Martin Orlando area. I work at a hospital where I live now as a dietetic technician in the milkroom in their nicu but only a few hospitals in the country have a milkroom. I’d like to get a job at Disney.
Does anyone know anything about health insurance in Florida? If it’s better than other states? That’s the one thing we need, good health insurance which I currently provide with my work.

I can't help with the insurance question; ours is from our employers.

If he'll be at the LM near UCF on Lake Underhill, Oviedo isn't a bad choice. If it's the one off Sand Lake, it'll be a hike. And Disney's a long hike from Oviedo. A daily commute would be awful from there.

 

[doombuggy]

When I commute from Oviedo to Disney on the weekends, I leave at 5am (I have to be to work at 6) and I take the 417 to the 528 to I-4. It is a 35 mile drive to Disney Springs and it takes me about 35 minutes at that hour. Coming home it takes about 45 minutes (same route). That being said, I am moving to Davenport and the traffic I hit when I go to look at the progress on my new home is insane. It's only about 20 miles away yet it takes about 45 minutes for me to get there from Disney Springs.

Oviedo is a great place to live. There are many shopping and dining options nearby. I work from home during the week and at Disney on the weekends, so I decided to move closer to Disney - save some $ and wear/tear on my car and live closer to my friends.

Working at Disney is fun, but it is still a job. I think they are hiring as not all furloughed people elected to come back, and they are still calling back some people for other positions, but I think Casting is supposed to open back up again soon if it hasn't already. I have been there 25 years.

 

[spiceycat]

my mortgage payment is less than $700 per month. I live in Lake County, Tavares. It is pretty here and far enough away from the madness of WDW and surrounding areas to be really peacefully.

Just depends upon what you want.
That say definitely make sure you know where you will be working - get an address if possible. As long as you are working - it is nice to be close to work in Orlando.

 

[monica9]

When I commute from Oviedo to Disney on the weekends, I leave at 5am (I have to be to work at 6) and I take the 417 to the 528 to I-4. It is a 35 mile drive to Disney Springs and it takes me about 35 minutes at that hour. Coming home it takes about 45 minutes (same route). That being said, I am moving to Davenport and the traffic I hit when I go to look at the progress on my new home is insane. It's only about 20 miles away yet it takes about 45 minutes for me to get there from Disney Springs.

Oviedo is a great place to live. There are many shopping and dining options nearby. I work from home during the week and at Disney on the weekends, so I decided to move closer to Disney - save some $ and wear/tear on my car and live closer to my friends.

Working at Disney is fun, but it is still a job. I think they are hiring as not all furloughed people elected to come back, and they are still calling back some people for other positions, but I think Casting is supposed to open back up again soon if it hasn't already. I have been there 25 years.

Thanks for the info. How is health insurance for Disney? Houses prices seem so high. Coming from ct where house prices are high for old ranches, I assumed we’d find something nice in Orlando suburbs for 500 or under but it’s more expensive than ct!

 

[monica9]

my mortgage payment is less than $700 per month. I live in Lake County, Tavares. It is pretty here and far enough away from the madness of WDW and surrounding areas to be really peacefully.

Just depends upon what you want.
That say definitely make sure you know where you will be working - get an address if possible. As long as you are working - it is nice to be close to work in Orlando.

We want great schools, family friendly neighborhoods and low crime rate all while being within half hour or so from our work. The Seminole county areas look good. I’ve been researching Oviedo, doctor Phillips, horizon west, winter garden and winter park, lake Mary and Windermere. I don’t know where else to look to find a house 500 or under with what we want.

 

[starry_solo]

Thanks for the info. How is health insurance for Disney? Houses prices seem so high. Coming from ct where house prices are high for old ranches, I assumed we’d find something nice in Orlando suburbs for 500 or under but it’s more expensive than ct!

Likely non-existent. Disney is hiring a lot of part-time workers and benefits are eh. Similar to what they are doing in CA. And it's not just Disney but other employers as well. I know a pharmacist in FL that earns 1/2 of what a pharmacist in CA earns...yeah, it really is crazy!

 

[DisneyDoesMyHair]

We want great schools, family friendly neighborhoods and low crime rate all while being within half hour or so from our work. The Seminole county areas look good. I’ve been researching Oviedo, doctor Phillips, horizon west, winter garden and winter park, lake Mary and Windermere. I don’t know where else to look to find a house 500 or under with what we want.

Possibly look at renting in the area for a bit. Inventory in the housing market is tight at the moment, and it would give you some time to get to know the area a little better before you commit to a mortgage. We selected Windermere for the great schools and proximity to Disney. It takes us about 10 minutes to drive to Magic Kingdom. We spend a lot of time in Winter Garden, Doctor Phillips and Horizon West, and I love all of these areas, as well. I don’t think you will go wrong with any of those choices, just play close attention to your potential commute. Orlando traffic can be rough.

 

[monica9]

Likely non-existent. Disney is hiring a lot of part-time workers and benefits are eh. Similar to what they are doing in CA. And it's not just Disney but other employers as well. I know a pharmacist in FL that earns 1/2 of what a pharmacist in CA earns...yeah, it really is crazy!

Ok. I assumed Disney being such a large company that the health insurance would be decent. My daughter gets a ton of bloodwork every 12 weeks and has been the past 5 years. It’s only $25 total each time on my insurance but my husbands would cost a couple hundred. So many things to consider when moving and looking for a job. It’s really overwhelming.

 

[monica9]

Possibly look at renting in the area for a bit. Inventory in the housing market is tight at the moment, and it would give you some time to get to know the area a little better before you commit to a mortgage. We selected Windermere for the great schools and proximity to Disney. It takes us about 10 minutes to drive to Magic Kingdom. We spend a lot of time in Winter Garden, Doctor Phillips and Horizon West, and I love all of these areas, as well. I don’t think you will go wrong with any of those choices, just play close attention to your potential commute. Orlando traffic can be rough.

Thank you. Glad to here. You are comfortable walking around your neighborhood with your children? That’s super important to me. We 100% would rent first for Atleast a year just to see. The problem with that is, we wouldn’t know where to rent because our oldest will be going into high school and don’t want to rent in one town and then move to another and some of these schools don’t look too bad so leaning towards public vs private school.

 

[stephk1981]

We moved to Doctor Phillips area from Tampa ( so not far)just over a year ago. We loved being able to scout out areas before buying, otherwise we would have bought somewhere else most likely and not have been as happy. We love our neighborhood, we have a 350 HOA. Our neighbor 2 doors down works at GF at the front desk, she always complains about their Healthcare, so the Healthcare may not be great. Schools in FL imo aren't up to par with schools in the North. That's why FLVS and homeschooling is so popular here. We homeschool for this exact reason. Our district is supposed to be great, yet all I hear are complaints for the parents in our area. I would send mine to private school especially Orlando christian prep if we didn't homeschool. Good luck with your decisions!

 

[lpereira]

Ok. So a ton of blood work leads me to believe that you have a child with some medical needs. I can take that stress off you. I pay $250 a month for my child to be covered under the states medical needs (not sure the official name of it) insurance. There are several GOOD children's hospitals in the area. And they work with each other to provide too notch care. My child gets seen weekly by various doctors. Then a couple times a year all the doctors and their staff see her at the same time in the same room. I have never had a complaint about her medical care. There's Florida Hospital for Children (now Adventhealth), Arnold Palmer, and Nemours Children's Hospital.
As to schools Seminole County is great. We homeschool but I'd put my child in Seminole County in a heartbeat. They practice school choice so your "zoned" school isn't your only choice. Oviedo is a nice area. I would rent for a bit. Housing supply is constrained which is causing prices to be stupidly high. A friend of mine just sold her home in Oviedo and got multiple all cash offers the first weekend on the market. She ended up selling well over asking price. Now she is renting because she can't find a home to buy that she can afford.

 

[monica9]

We moved to Doctor Phillips area from Tampa ( so not far)just over a year ago. We loved being able to scout out areas before buying, otherwise we would have bought somewhere else most likely and not have been as happy. We love our neighborhood, we have a 350 HOA. Our neighbor 2 doors down works at GF at the front desk, she always complains about their Healthcare, so the Healthcare may not be great. Schools in FL imo aren't up to par with schools in the North. That's why FLVS and homeschooling is so popular here. We homeschool for this exact reason. Our district is supposed to be great, yet all I hear are complaints for the parents in our area. I would send mine to private school especially Orlando christian prep if we didn't homeschool. Good luck with your decisions!

We are Christians and would love to get them in a private Christian school, I’m just hesitant about tuition costs. I will definitely look into that school

 

[monica9]

Ok. So a ton of blood work leads me to believe that you have a child with some medical needs. I can take that stress off you. I pay $250 a month for my child to be covered under the states medical needs (not sure the official name of it) insurance. There are several GOOD children's hospitals in the area. And they work with each other to provide too notch care. My child gets seen weekly by various doctors. Then a couple times a year all the doctors and their staff see her at the same time in the same room. I have never had a complaint about her medical care. There's Florida Hospital for Children (now Adventhealth), Arnold Palmer, and Nemours Children's Hospital.
As to schools Seminole County is great. We homeschool but I'd put my child in Seminole County in a heartbeat. They practice school choice so your "zoned" school isn't your only choice. Oviedo is a nice area. I would rent for a bit. Housing supply is constrained which is causing prices to be stupidly high. A friend of mine just sold her home in Oviedo and got multiple all cash offers the first weekend on the market. She ended up selling well over asking price. Now she is renting because she can't find a home to buy that she can afford.

Thanks for the help! $250 per month doesn’t sound bad at all! My daughter has a genetic liver condition and I’m sure if any major procedure needed to be done I can possibly still work with her current doctor out of Yale or the other doctors that have seen her at Boston children’s. If you have any recommendations on if we should rent a house, condo, apartment, etc in the Seminole county, let me know. We are coming down to go to Disney this fall but only vacation but then my husband and I are coming down around feb to check out towns and possibly get in to some houses with a realtor just to get an idea of the houses around here.

 

[starry_solo]

Thanks for the help! $250 per month doesn’t sound bad at all! My daughter has a genetic liver condition and I’m sure if any major procedure needed to be done I can possibly still work with her current doctor out of Yale or the other doctors that have seen her at Boston children’s. If you have any recommendations on if we should rent a house, condo, apartment, etc in the Seminole county, let me know. We are coming down to go to Disney this fall but only vacation but then my husband and I are coming down around feb to check out towns and possibly get in to some houses with a realtor just to get an idea of the houses around here.

You need to look into whether you would qualify for the state's insurance in FL.

 

[starry_solo]

Ok. I assumed Disney being such a large company that the health insurance would be decent. My daughter gets a ton of bloodwork every 12 weeks and has been the past 5 years. It’s only $25 total each time on my insurance but my husbands would cost a couple hundred. So many things to consider when moving and looking for a job. It’s really overwhelming.

It depends if you work for Disney corporate or parks/stores. Corporate has better benefits than parks/stores.

 

[lpereira]

You need to look into whether you would qualify for the state's insurance in FL.

All children qualify with medical issues. $250 is the monthly maximum payment

 

[bobbie68]

We are likely moving there from ct too. Which town did you end up purchasing in?

Hi we ended up buying a home in East Orlando our zip code will show Orlando or Alafaya. We are about 5 minutes from Waterford Lakes shopping areas and we love it. I originally wasn't looking here but a house that fit us showed up, so we jumped on it without seeing exactly where it was. We got very lucky.


We moved from Meriden what part of CT are you in? When are you looking to move? If I can help with anything please send me a pm if you would like. We moved a 26ft. Uhaul towing a camper and driving 3 cars.

I wish you luck it is a big undertaking, but it is worth it.

Bobbie

 

[monica9]

All children qualify with medical issues. $250 is the monthly maximum payment

Is this just for Florida residents? I’ve never heard of that. In Connecticut you only get state insurance if you make under a certain amount of money

 

[monica9]

Hi we ended up buying a home in East Orlando our zip code will show Orlando or Alafaya. We are about 5 minutes from Waterford Lakes shopping areas and we love it. I originally wasn't looking here but a house that fit us showed up, so we jumped on it without seeing exactly where it was. We got very lucky.


We moved from Meriden what part of CT are you in? When are you looking to move? If I can help with anything please send me a pm if you would like. We moved a 26ft. Uhaul towing a camper and driving 3 cars.

I wish you luck it is a big undertaking, but it is worth it.

Bobbie

Ooh thanks! We are from orange ct.