o FL from NY? Long distance moving advice?

[elcodfish]

I tried on the community board and got no help, so let's try here!

My husband and I are planning on moving from Buffalo, NY to the Orlando area sometime between 2013 and 2016. Luckily he can work from home and I will hopefully soon have a job that I can transfer to that area. We bought and moved into a house 15 minutes away from where we grew up so I was hoping to get some insight on how to do a long distance move.

Currently we are working on decluttering the house and the plan is to have a real estate agent come in next spring to help guide us through what we need to do to sell our house the year after. A lot of our furniture is hand-me-downs, so we will be able to leave a lot of it behind. The plan would be to put our house up for sale, then put in for a transfer if it sells, then find a house and move. It seems a little stressful that all of that has to happen so quickly, but that is how it is I guess

We're really excited about the adventure, and have done a lot of homework and visited a few areas we are interested in and have plans to visit a few more times this year, but you can never be too careful! What did you wish you knew before you moved that would have made everything easier? What did you learn in the process? What are your best moving tips?

Thank you all so much!

Erica

 

[msmama]

Having moved across the country twice (once each way). I would definitely hire movers. It was SO much more convenient than moving ourselves (with a U-haul).

Pack everything up, they come put it on a truck, I don't see it again until I'm at the new place.

Whenever I've moved, I've always rented first. I feel like living somewhere for awhile will give me a better idea of where I want to live - especially moving from the north to the south - different things are important when choosing a house, you know?

Good luck!

 

[vicki_c]

Having moved to and from the same places as you (really - Southtowns to Melbourne), I would suggest trying to spend some time in Florida before you actually move there, if at all possible, especially in the summer unless you don't plan on being there in the summer when you move there (like a snowbird thing). We did not enjoy Florida much (we only stayed 2 years though) and we found it way too hot except for November - March. That wasn't the main reason we moved away though, just one of them.

Here's what I missed the most (not in order):
My family
Wegman's
Fall
Great restaurants everywhere
Sense of community in my neighborhood - we did not have that in our FL neighborhood - a brand new subdivision where no one really ever tried to be very neighborly. Maybe it had too many houses people were flipping or something, I don't know.
Any sense of history regarding the architecture, homes, etc. - I didn't realize how much I would miss that until I didn't have it. In Florida, people would tell me they lived in an "older" neighborhood and then proceed to tell me that their house was built in 1975! LOL!
Traffic & commuting may be an issue for you as well - we didn't live in Orlando, but on the east coast so that wasn't an issue too much where we moved.

There are definitely very good things about living in C. Florida (namely visiting the Mouse all the time), but I would just caution you to look before you leap. We moved more on an impulse and it wasn't a good decision for us. We have relatives though that moved to FL about 10 years before us (from Angola) and they are happy as clams and would never consider moving back.

As for moving, I can't help - I was moved by my company so it was all taken care of for me.

 

[elcodfish]

There's a lot of reasons we are planning to move
-I am so over snow!
-my asthma does not do well in the winter, and taking steroids everyday is not fun
-lower taxes
-I want to see the sun!
to name a few.... even if we go and move back, we want to at least try! We already have friends in the areas we are looking. We are going for a week this summer and then another week this fall.

I think we would get those moving pods, where you pack them, they pick them up and move them for you. It's cheaper than a mover and less worrisome then driving a giant truck for 22 hours.

 

[disneyofcourse]

These are the best tips I heard when I moved cross country.

-Now is the best time to think about things that you really have no use for and get rid of them. If you've been thinking about upgrading a couch, get rid of your current one now. Clean out all cabinets, donate, sell and pack. A new home in a fresh city is like a fresh start.

-Start packing nick-knacks your keeping in newspaper and bubble wrap. Long distance moves mean a larger chance that items get broken. Tons of movement from bumps in the road. I packed fragile stuff in small boxes and just filled every corner with paper and didn't have one thing break.

-Remember the less you pack, they more you save on moving costs!!

I moved using a u-haul rental and two friends and it saved me thousands over hiring pro's. Plus, I had peace of mind knowing everything was in my possession as many of my friends have had horror stories of companies stealing and breaking things. One had her house broken into by the guys who she hired to help her move.

Also, once the time gets closer find hotels and places to eat before leaving for the move so your not driving around with tons of stuff in a truck and accidentally end up in a bad area searching for a place to sleep for the night.

Also, always rent first. Even if you used to live in the area! Area's always change and may not always be the same. Take your time renting, let it be 6 months or a year. Yes, your "wasting" money on rent but at least your not wasting a lot of money buying a home in an area you don't love afterall.

 

[disneyofcourse]

There's a lot of reasons we are planning to move
-I am so over snow!
-my asthma does not do well in the winter, and taking steroids everyday is not fun
-lower taxes
-I want to see the sun!
to name a few.... even if we go and move back, we want to at least try! We already have friends in the areas we are looking. We are going for a week this summer and then another week this fall.

I think we would get those moving pods, where you pack them, they pick them up and move them for you. It's cheaper than a mover and less worrisome then driving a giant truck for 22 hours.

Snow does suck especially after a week(or two or five) of it but once you come down south I bet you'll somewhat miss it For me its not winter without snow.

I used to live in the North and my allergy's were HORRIBLE because of smog and other air pollutants. Now I live in the south and I have horrible allergies to trees and overall nature. lol You can never win with allergies it seems!

The lower taxes are indeed lower where i live now too. But- its(The area) also very different from what I was used to because of lower taxes.

 

[JDUCKY]

There's a lot of reasons we are planning to move
-I am so over snow!
-my asthma does not do well in the winter, and taking steroids everyday is not fun
-lower taxes
-I want to see the sun!
to name a few.... even if we go and move back, we want to at least try! We already have friends in the areas we are looking. We are going for a week this summer and then another week this fall.

I think we would get those moving pods, where you pack them, they pick them up and move them for you. It's cheaper than a mover and less worrisome then driving a giant truck for 22 hours.

We used pods from ABF when my DGF moved here last year. Be sure you pack your stuff VERY CAREFULLY. Those things get jostled around a fair amount. I wouldn't rent a big truck and do all the moving...let someone else haul!

Do you all have any kids? If so, where you move to in this area will matter a lot when it comes to schools (unless you plan on private schools).

Are you wanting to be closer to Disney? Downtown? The beaches?

Will you have family/friends visiting often that would want to visit the area attractions? (would influence how far away you'd want to live)

Do you prefer a newer neighborhood? Something more established? Open land somewhere on the edge of town?

What type of commute would you like to have (although with your timeframe, you have plenty of time to get your house in shape up there to sell and to find job(s) near to where you'd be living). Just keep in mind that, except for I-4, all highways around Orlando are toll roads and that getting around on the surface streets is an exercise in patience as it's traffic light after traffic light that are timed to interrupt the flow of traffic in the worst possible way (like it's a trick to get people onto the toll roads or something)

 

[vicki_c]

Lower taxes (and no state income tax) is definitely a blessing and a curse. It all depends on your perspective. You get more take home money, but you pay a lot of it in other ways and other fees that they don't call "taxes" and of course, if you pay less, there are less services provided.

So for some, that's not an issue - for others, it's more noticeable.

(And salaries are lower in FL as well - partly due to no state income tax and partly because they don't need to be higher to entice people to come there - that's the philosophy my FL-headquartered company relies on and it works).

 

[elcodfish]

Thank you all for the great (and fast!) advice! We don't have kids, and as for a neighborhood, age doesn't really matter, but we do want established greenery. I know we most likely will have to pay HOA fees, but even that added to our taxes is WAY less than we pay up here. We probably want to be more central and close to Disney and I have a surface street commute. So far we have visited Winter Park, Winter Garden, Windermere and Clermont. I really liked Windermere and the more I am learning about Clermont the more I like it too. What about Davenport? The housing prices there are very low comparatively...

 

[JDUCKY]

Thank you all for the great (and fast!) advice! We don't have kids, and as for a neighborhood, age doesn't really matter, but we do want established greenery. I know we most likely will have to pay HOA fees, but even that added to our taxes is WAY less than we pay up here. We probably want to be more central and close to Disney and I have a surface street commute. So far we have visited Winter Park, Winter Garden, Windermere and Clermont. I really liked Windermere and the more I am learning about Clermont the more I like it too. What about Davenport? The housing prices there are very low comparatively...

Clermont is growing some but it's becoming a cookie-cutter area with the way the development is going. Winter Park is a great area and not too terribly far from WDW.

I'd avoid Davenport completely. Housing is cheap, yeah, but it's fine to own some rental property there maybe.

We're on the edge of Winter Garden/Windermere and love it. It's new so there's the lack of mature landscaping but we have awesome neighbors, close to good schools and close to plenty of shopping, only 15-20 min. from WDW and can see parts of Wishes from our front yard! Used to be on the north side in Seminole county which offers some great areas like Lake Mary/Heathrow, Winter Springs and Oviedo but you're further from the parks.

Windermere is like Winter Park but newer and more luxurious so you have established greenery, larger homes (with higher property taxes) and traffic in/out of there at rush hour can be ridiculous depending upon how you would need to go in/out.


You could also consider the Dr. Phillips area. Easy access to the parks, more established neighborhoods w/mature greenery, plenty of shopping/restaurants.

 

[snowy76]

Here's what I missed the most (not in order):
My family
Wegman's
Fall

That's because Wegman's comes first up here

 

[vicki_c]

That's because Wegman's comes first up here

Hijack: I actually used to say while living in Florida - "I'm not sure which I miss more - my mom or Wegman's!" After all, my mom would come and visit us a lot!

 

[hanutedmansionmomma]

We moved from Rachacha NY to KS. Congrats on getting out of the snow belt!

I love that I don't have to wear boots and carry my shoes in a bag to my destination 6 months out of the year anymore.

I don't love that no one realizes that you're supposed to deep fry chicken wings. Everywhere but NY bakes them and there's nothing worse than a rubbery chix wing, IMO.

Advice - donate donate donate before you move. You will regret carrying those heavy books around you never will read again anyway. Let someone else enjoy things you'll never really use again (especially the heavy ones!)

One thing I didn't research was the politics/religion in this area. It's working out ok, but it's different than where I'm from, so it's an adjustment I wasn't prepared for (we're in a super conservative christian area, NY was way more liberal).


I do miss Danny Wegman too!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[louey]

That's because Wegman's comes first up here

Not to change the subject but.... there are no Wegmans in Delaware so we drive about 30 mins to the closest one. We love Wegmans best store ever

 

[BridgetBordeaux]

We moved 3 times in a 5 year period. Now we have been stable for over 4 years. Here are my tips............

Throw away/give to charity all you excess stuff. Reduce your poundage!

Pack as much of your own stuff as you can. The boxes and tape are cheaper than having the moving company do it and .........you can label each box accurately as to its contents. This makes unpacking much more manageable.

Set aside some arrival gear....a table lamp, some cleaning supplies, your vacuum so you can clean/prep the new place before you moving van arrives.
You also might want to set aside some towels and your pillows as well. It might be worth staying in a hotel for a few days before the van arrives so you can paint a room or two.

If your appliances are already old, leave them behind and have new ones delivered to you new place. Paying money to move a 12 year old washing machine/fridge may not be the best money spent.

It is an adventure and can be an exciting process---good luck!

 

[disneyjunkie]

Great thread

 

[andycat]

We moved from Oregon to Florida last year (hence my user title). We knew we wanted to be near the ocean and have been very happy so far in Jacksonville. It does get cold (we have to laugh at all the frost and freeze warnings), but we love the sunshine! Realize that the areas you're talking about are all inland - so no ocean breezes, more heat, more humidity, and more mosquitoes.

To put a finer point on what several others said, be ruthless in getting rid of things. We knew in advance that we wanted to downsize, and we went from a 2500 sq ft house to a 1200 sq ft condo. Grandma's china hutch had been in the family for years, but it wasn't that great a piece of furniture to begin with. The dining room set that we bought knew for $2500 the year after we got married wasn't to our tastes any more. While the clothes washer was a fairly new high efficiency model, the bumps of moving it and having it disconnected for several months wasn't going to be good for it. Our mattress was 10 years old. They all got left behind. We only brought the living room furniture because there was room in the pod after we'd packed everything else. Even so, there are still things we look at and say, "Why did we haul THAT all the way across the country?"

We used PODS, and I couldn't have been happier with their service. When you call and get you call and get a quote, you'll get the "list" price. You should get a follow up call within a few days from your local manager, who should be able to give you a much better price.

I also agree with the advice to rent for a while. Keep in mind, though, that short-term rentals may be tough to come by. Florida also charges lodging taxes (like a hotel) on any lease less than six months. We were able to find a small, furnished 1BR that we used for a couple of months while searching for a longer term spot, but it was expensive.

Finally, excluding housing, it does seem like the cost of living is a little higher here. Mass transit (at least in Jacksonville) is more a novelty than practical and their "light rail" is a complete joke. Groceries don't double coupons, you have to buy two for BOGOs, electricity is expensive, car registration is expensive (almost $1000 for two vehicles) and people have very high opinions of what their stuff is worth when selling it used. If you're patient though, you can still find some reasonable deals.

Good luck!

 

[Cheshire Figment]

Before Judy and I moved down here we rented a self-storage locker and bought a ton of 12x12x18 boxes and put stuff we knew we would want in the storage. We numbered each box on to and all four sides and kept a list of what was in each box.

We ordered many different size boxes, designed for moving, from www.uline.com as well as supplies such as bubble wrap and styrofoam peanuts. For example, they sell a 750 foot long roll for $39 while Office Depot charges $19 for 100 feet.

We got portable wardrobes, boxes for glasses and cups with dividers, and boxes for artwork, all delivered to us.

We used a moving company for the furniture and stuff after decluttering, and a U-Haul truck for the stuff we had put into the storage locker.

 

[Shleedogg]

We're considering the same move. We're in Batavia. We're both sick of the snow and cold. I have been for years, it just hit DH this winter. Hard making the decision to move away from family though.

Be careful about what movers you hire. If you get a quote that's way lower than the others, be skeptical. I had a friend and former boss of mine from Buffalo hire movers to move from Buffalo to Arizona. The came and packed and took away all her things then basically held it hostage. The initial company sold her contract to another company in Arizona. The Arizona company gave her the run around for weeks. When they finally came to deliver it, they demanded hundreds more despite the fact that they had already paid the moving fee. Her husband quickly called the police while she was arguing with them. Luckily it all worked out and they got their stuff back. There are stories of the same company (and many others I'm sure) of doing the same thing. Just be skeptical

I had a friend move from MI where her DH was in law school, live in western NY this summer and then down to TX this fall. They used a pod and were very happy with it.

 

[Lucky4me]

I have all the same issues as the OP, as well as seasonal depression- SAD. I also live in upstate ny, Rochester area.
I've researched for years about moving to the central fl area and have finally come to the conclusion that for year round living, it's not for us. Here are my reasons-
Taxes- The real estate taxes may be lower in FL, but homeowners insurance is much higher, as is car insurance and registration. Add in HOA's and it came financially pretty even for us.

Food prices are higher in FL- who else besides Wegmans will sell a gallon of milk for $1.69 and a loaf of bread for .99?

Crime- It's higher in the places we were looking and could afford, compared to where we live now. Much higher.

Traffic- no comparison. We live in an area of 300,000. At 5pm, it's like driving around Mayberry compared to I-4's rush hour.

Weather-yes we get snow, ice, cold, wind, dark gray clouds for many, many months, but usually have a beautiful warm late spring and summer with bright blue skies. Fall is spectacular.
In central FL, you get a ton of sunshine, but along with that, you get
severe thunder and lightning storms, often daily in the summer. Hurricane threats from June through November, (a blizzard can't take down my house) not to mention the heat, humidity and bugs. Palmetto bugs aka cockroaches and love bugs freak me out a little. If I lived down there, I'd have to hire a weekly service to come spray to keep them out of my house. (more $$)
From all my trips to fl, I think the mosquitoes are worse up here in the summer, so that wouldn't be a factor.
Just like staying outside here in the winter, staying outside for any length of time in the heat and humidity of the summer in FL is not fun. You'll find yourself running from your AC'd house to your AC'd car to your AC'd work or wherever else you go. My Asthma is just as affected by heat and humidity as it is the cold.

So for all these reasons, as much as I detest winter up here, we are staying put. My dream life would be going down to FL for three months a year- Jan-April. We're working on it, but it may be many years before we can afford to do it.
If we moved permanently, I would miss my family, my neighbors, fall, spring, summer, the festivals, theaters, museums, incredible new libraries and community centers, great schools, garbage plates, chicken wings, Zweigles white hots, Abbotts custard, and above all, of course, Wegmans!

OP, I'm not discouraging you to make this move, just make sure you get all the numbers straight so you have no surprises once you're there and it's too late. In my case, I learned the grass is not greener in central Florida and I'm glad I figured it out before we made that leap.

Oh and as far as selling your house-that will be easy compared to all the rest!
Real estate in Upstate NY hasn't fluctuated all that much as in other areas of the country. If your house has no major problems and it's priced right for the area, I don't see why it wouldn't sell. I would think trying for the transfer first, then putting the house up when you got the transfer, would be the way to go rather than the other way around.
Good luck to you!