My florida lifestyle part 2

[sarahluvsdisney]

Hello everyone,

For everyone who has posted replies to my original post - I have PMed some of you but for others heres some more info:

We have been living here now for 3 years - times flies by so quickly when you have your own business.
When we first arrived - life was one big adventure - moving 4000 miles away - setting up a new home - furnishing that home - taking over from the previous owners of the business - etc etc
Once the first 6 months had passed and the novelty had - shall we say worn off a little then the hard work begins - you begin to realise that - yes I have given up my life in the UK and holy crap I have to make this work.
Although this pressure is for some probably not what you might want to hear it is a fact. However this should not put you off doing what you truly want to do - I have to say I would never go back to England for good - it is the best thing I have ever done, I love my lifestyle here in Florida.
In the first year I was out here I had several family members come and see me - I travel home to england twice a year - In the summer and at xmas.
Somebody posted a reply and asked about Disney losing its magic - I dont think it does. We are annual passholders and own at DVC. Being a florida resident you get fab deals on the disney hotels - here are some of the rates I get:

All stars $ 49 per night
Animal kingdom lodge - savannah view $149 per night
Poly $ 149 Per night
Wilderness lodge $149 per night.
Carribean beach / port orleans $ 88 per night.

Being a resident here we quite often go up for the weekend and dont always visit the parks. Sometimes we hire out boats, go to the movies,play a little golf - all the things you want to do when you are here from the Uk on vacation but cant as we spend our time busting our butts round the theme parks !!!!

The one thing that is hard here is getting any kind oof credit.
Yiou cannot get a mortgage for the first year and after that you need to put down 20% before they will consider you. You must remeber that you are a new citizen in the states - your credit history in England is not worth anything - to get a credit card with say a $500 limit we had to put $500 in a savings account with the bank - they keep this for a year until they think you have proved yourself to them and you pay your bills on time.
Having said all this - The credit thing is fgood now - we have a mortgage and credit cards - you must be prepared to wait 2 years before you are fully accepted and have built up a decent credit history.

Well thats all I ahve for now - if anyone wants anything else then pleae Pm me or reply to this post.

Have a great day

Sarah.

 

[AlanUK]

Hi Sarah,

Thanks for posting this it's very interesting

One question I have is what business did you purchase and did either you or your husband have any experience in this area when you decided to go for it or was it a total leap of faith??

Alan.

 

[squitty]

Sarah thank you for posting

I would love to do what you have done...you are living the dream

 

[Mrs Dazzle]

Hi Sarah

I have really enjoyed your experiences since your life moved to Florida. Thanks so much for taking the time to tell us all about it

We looked into moving over there about 4 years ago (doesn't everyone after your first couple of trips when you think everything is so much better than over here ). We looked at going down the business route like you, but I'm afraid friends and relatives over here put a bit of a damper on things and made us reconsider due to our daughter. She's now 12 with a very happy life with some good friends. All the usual things we'd considered - moving her away from all her friends, her school etc.

I don't know whether you have any children, but the major problem we came up against was trying to find out information on how well the schools are doing. We have an 'able/gifted' child, so didn't want to ruin her education. We have friends who live in West Palm Beach and they tried to explain the school system as best they could.

The other issue was crime. Sadly America has a very bad reputation (probably deservedly so in certain areas) for crime, drugs etc. and when you have a young child this is a very important factor. However, I believe the UK is going down the pan in this area.

What have been your experiences with both of these issues (if relevant to children of course!).

And how about holidays - we all know Americans don't get as many holidays as we do so I am guessing your business (would love to know what it is, please PM if you don't want to reply) is going well for you since you come over to the UK twice a year.

We are now looking at the 'retirement' time to move - place over here, place over there (if we choose Florida then down on the gulf coast for our three months stays); unless Katie realises her dream to become a vet and gets a US job, then we'd follow her like a shot

It's a fascinating subject, thanks for sharing with us and giving us all some hope

 

[Kilted_Yank]

Sarah,

I am glad that you are happy here and that you are doing well. I hope that my countrymen have welcomed you and your family warmly.

Bill