Retirees and near retirees...

[dvcgirl67]

Just wow. Don’t believe everything you see on the news. Just because there was 1 moron several years ago shouting nonsense doesn’t mean he speaks for everyone who lives there or that everyone is like him.
There have been numerous brawls at Disney world that have made the news, do you think that all people who go to Disney world wind up in a fight? Of coarse not.

Most major cities have political rally’s to show support for their candidate during election season. Who cares if it’s done in a park or in the form of a golf cart parade? They also do golf cart parades going though the neighborhoods collecting non Perishable food for the needy but I’m sure CNN didn’t cover that parade.

Yes. The villages definitely leans conservative but it is nothing like you describe. People from both sides of the aisle are welcome. I have linked a very non biased video from a popular YouTuber about the villages of you have any interest.

I don't know what you're talking about regarding the "one moron shouting"....is that someone who lives there? I don't think I said anything bad about the place to be honest, only that it's very conservative. And you can be sure that there are people who move there because of that....and others who avoid it for the same reason. People on this thread have said that they'd prefer to live some place in retirement that aligns with their conservative beliefs....did they not?

I've never seen any reports on CNN about that community, but I've read stories over the years about it and that people on the left used to feel comfortable there and no longer do. Does that mean all of them? Of course not. It's just a sign of the times....that's all.

 

[tarheelmjfan]

I don't know what you're talking about regarding the "one moron shouting"....is that someone who lives there? I don't think I said anything bad about the place to be honest, only that it's very conservative. And you can be sure that there are people who move there because of that....and others who avoid it for the same reason. People on this thread have said that they'd prefer to live some place in retirement that aligns with their conservative beliefs....did they not?

I've never seen any reports on CNN about that community, but I've read stories over the years about it and that people on the left used to feel comfortable there and no longer do. Does that mean all of them? Of course not. It's just a sign of the times....that's all.

That could be said for much of Florida, but we're there for the weather & ocean. Truthfully, I think most people are. IME, the idea of people moving there for politics alone is very overblown. I don't personally know anyone who did. There are a few places I would choose not to live though. There are also a few counties where you'd fit right in, including mine.

 

[CGB]

DH has been completely retired almost two years. He has retired twice; once from active-duty military and then again from civil service. I still have 1.5 school years to get to my earliest-possible retirement age eligibility. Even though I used to tease DH about retiring to Orlando, we have no desire to move. This area is home to DH's family with his hometown about a 90-minute drive west. It's an urban/metro area surrounded by rural, so we have access to farms & orchards, pro-sports, restaurants, museums, theatre, shopping, lots of universities, etc. We also have a military base (where DH worked), which we need for our healthcare.

Our adult kids seem happy here, finished with college & fully employed with their own friend groups. We "military retired" here 20 years ago for the higher education opportunities for the kids and it's become home to us. We have lots of military friends who retired in this area too. I'm sure we'll do more traveling when we're both retired, but we're happy with our home, location, etc.

 

[dvcgirl67]

That could be said for much of Florida, but we're there for the weather & ocean. Truthfully, I think most people are. IME, the idea of people moving there for politics alone is very overblown. I don't personally know anyone who did. There are a few places I would choose not to live though. There are also a few counties where you'd fit right in, including mine.

I'm sure most people do move/retire to areas for weather and taxes more than most anything else. I've lived in central Florida, for three years and it wasn't for us. Perhaps if we'd lived near the coast we would have liked it more. Crime was also very high when we lived there, so that was also a problem for us. We have enjoyed spending time in the Keys , and so I can see us doing short term rentals down there if we're spending time in the States.

 

[Traveling on cc points]

I don't know what you're talking about regarding the "one moron shouting"....is that someone who lives there? I don't think I said anything bad about the place to be honest, only that it's very conservative. And you can be sure that there are people who move there because of that....and others who avoid it for the same reason. People on this thread have said that they'd prefer to live some place in retirement that aligns with their conservative beliefs....did they not?

I've never seen any reports on CNN about that community, but I've read stories over the years about it and that people on the left used to feel comfortable there and no longer do. Does that mean all of them? Of course not. It's just a sign of the times....that's all.

Sorry. I assumed you were referring to the idiot a few years ago that made national news that CNN played over and over again when trump was running. He made a very derogatory comment and trump retweeted it. Trump claimed he didn’t know what he said and just retweeted it because the man (the idiot) was wearing a maga hat.

My point still stands that you shouldn’t judge an entire city because of a few things posted on the internet. I get it, we all do it. If we hear something enough times, we assume it is true. There are good and bad people everywhere.

 

[tarheelmjfan]

I'm sure most people do move/retire to areas for weather and taxes more than most anything else. I've lived in central Florida, for three years and it wasn't for us. Perhaps if we'd lived near the coast we would have liked it more. Crime was also very high when we lived there, so that was also a problem for us. We have enjoyed spending time in the Keys , and so I can see us doing short term rentals down there if we're spending time in the States.

Yeah, I personally wouldn't want to live in Orlando either, but I'm all about the ocean.

 

[mikehn]

South FL has been my stomping grounds for years. But Im starting to zero in on southwest FL, somewhere between Naples and Sarasota.

 

[dvcgirl67]

Sorry. I assumed you were referring to the idiot a few years ago that made national news that CNN played over and over again when trump was running. He made a very derogatory comment and trump retweeted it. Trump claimed he didn’t know what he said and just retweeted it because the man (the idiot) was wearing a maga hat.

My point still stands that you shouldn’t judge an entire city because of a few things posted on the internet. I get it, we all do it. If we hear something enough times, we assume it is true. There are good and bad people everywhere.

Yeah, I honestly had no idea what you were talking about. It's all good.

 

[tvguy]

I hear resort areas can have issues as places to retire in. A friend today posted on Facebook gridlock traffic in Palm Springs, where he and his partner retired. All snowbirds there for Thanksgiving week as not a single car has California license plates.
They have been retired for 15 years and this is their second retirement location choice. They had owned a condo in Ensenada, Mexico for some years and retired their first. But crime and violence got so bad they sold the condo and moved to Palm Springs.

 

[Chili327]

I hear resort areas can have issues as places to retire in. A friend today posted on Facebook gridlock traffic in Palm Springs, where he and his partner retired. All snowbirds there for Thanksgiving week as not a single car has California license plates.
They have been retired for 15 years and this is their second retirement location choice. They had owned a condo in Ensenada, Mexico for some years and retired their first. But crime and violence got so bad they sold the condo and moved to Palm Springs.

Yea, i'm thinking that wasn't the best place to land, plenty of other great spots down there, but maybe not as convenient to drive up to CA.

 

[hertamaniac]

We've got a "permanent" scouting trip planned shortly and it's not anywhere where we live in/near O-town. Let the flockers come which has been our real estate investment motto.

 

[dvcgirl67]

I hear resort areas can have issues as places to retire in. A friend today posted on Facebook gridlock traffic in Palm Springs, where he and his partner retired. All snowbirds there for Thanksgiving week as not a single car has California license plates.
They have been retired for 15 years and this is their second retirement location choice. They had owned a condo in Ensenada, Mexico for some years and retired their first. But crime and violence got so bad they sold the condo and moved to Palm Springs.

This reminds me of House Hunters International when the new buyers are moving to Cabo or Puerto Vallarta (or someplace similar). They love vacationing there and figure they'll love living there as much. It's one thing to stay near the beach/town in either of those places for a week, but as a resident it would probably get old pretty quick. I've read accounts of petty crimes driving ex-pats away in Mexico and Central America. It's one thing to visit those places on vacation, but quite another to live there.

 

[tony67]

Just talking about Florida in general and some things that have come up on this thread.

The whole Florida man things - that stuff happens everywhere for the most part - the problem with the Florida law this stuff is public record and on a web site and very easy to access - so there are people that just monitor that it look for the odd stories for click bait - and we all fall for it - myself included.

There does seem to be an uptick in fights and bad behavior at Disney IMO - but I don't think that is just Disney - more that people have become much worse in general since the end of the pandemic. I agree some of it is just social media and everyone having a camera - but overall it seems to be up. BTW - theft of and from strollers also seems to be up by many accounts. Never understood the folks that leave valuables in the stroller - you are just asking for it really.

Some folks living in Florida for quite a while are starting to leave for greener pastures - Georgia is starting to become popular with people leaving Florida from what I've heard. Not for the pollical reasons. The problem is folks from NY, CA and even MA sell their homes for crazy money and go to Florida and buy a house for far less then they sold theirs and over time they are starting to change the entire neighborhood. Putting up fences - don't mingle with the locals - don't get involved in the community etc.. Then the taxes start to go up because the house values have gone up and people cant afford the taxes any more or just feel like its not worth it as its not at all the same place.
This is not unique to Florida - I see it in my own neighborhood - people sell the family home in South Boston for more money than they ever dreamed it could be worth - move to the suburbs and buy houses - they pay over ask and get in bidding wars - happened just last week for a house that needs 200k in work IMO - it went for 60 over ask. Really good considering it sold two months before that off market to a company that just cleaned it out and did nothing else - they doubled their money. We have had quite a few of these and it is changing the neighborhood. A lot more noise - electric bikes and motorcycles. Also a lot more speeding and not looking where they are going through intersections with no lights and no stop signs. Someone asked them to slow down and they were told to get the F off their property. It went south from there. They put slow down signs up and they were stolen. Police get involved. Few more issues and a restraining order for the speed racer. Drunk at 1Am on Friday - they start banging on the persons door calling them out. The couple is like 30 years older than them and he is living at home with his mother. Anyway he breaks the glass on their storm door and cuts himself. Blood everywhere. Police show up. He runs off. Manhunt. This is just one of a handful of incidents - so Florida man is not just Florida man. (another reason why I am concerned about over 30 kids moving to the parents home in the 55+ community) Too bad as it was a pretty unusual neighborhood. Most of the folks are second generation in the house and the families owned them since they were built, myself included - some grew up with my parents or remember hanging with my grandparents. Many town employees live here as well as the former mayor. That is pretty unusual for a suburban city. I know same everywhere - you cant go home again etc..

So I want to take the profit and get out, but I spent a year remodeling this place to my exact specs so moving elsewhere is tuff - thing is the taxes are getting out of hand. Pretty sure I've missed the boat on Florida and all the other places I was considering some time to look for the next one.

 

[tony67]

This reminds me of House Hunters International when the new buyers are moving to Cabo or Puerto Vallarta (or someplace similar). They love vacationing there and figure they'll love living there as much. It's one thing to stay near the beach/town in either of those places for a week, but as a resident it would probably get old pretty quick. I've read accounts of petty crimes driving ex-pats away in Mexico and Central America. It's one thing to visit those places on vacation, but quite another to live there.

Yeah you really need to move somewhere and rent for several month before you go all in. I've said it here or in another thread (or two) - but so many people move to Portugal after a week or two on vacation and a year or so later they are moving back to the states.

 

[_19disnA]

Looking for a place to retire needs to consider your budget, taxes/insurance, having access to things you enjoy (i.e. golf/tennis/swimming/etc.), desired climate and how far you will be from relatives/children. Do you want to fly 1/2 way across country to visit relatives/children on a holiday? What happens as you get older and traveling long distances becomes more of a challenge regardless of driving or flying? Florida isn't the only place with good weather all year long. Much of the southwest or southeast rarely/never gets snow.

In all of the various places I have lived, neighbors tend to chit/chat and make small talk about nothing whenever we are outside (gardening, the weather, family/children, perhaps some current news event, etc.). I can't recall ever having a conversation about religion or politics with any of my neighbors. If that isn't your thing, change the subject to something else or just continue with your yardwork !!! I doubt anyone is going to change their mind about politics from having a conversation with your neighbor, so those types of conversations seem pointless to me. Can't say I have any idea what my neighbors views are on such subjects since it has never come up and not something I would ever discuss with them.

In any community you want to live, do they allow short-term rentals where your neighbors will always be coming/going and someone new each week or those 55 and older places where some have restrictions on who can live in your home? If you have a younger grandchild who might visit during the summer, is that something permitted? Better to know those things then be surprised after you move in.

 

[starry_solo]

I have about 15 years left to retirement. I plan to stay where I’m at. The weather is great year round, taxes are high but the salary (and then the ultimate retirement) will be able to cover all my expenses so I’m good.

 

[kymom99]

I’ve been “retired” but kept working in various long term sub jobs (teaching) for the past 7 years. My husband will probably retire in 2 years. We are finishing up (finally) our retirement home on the 15 acres I inherited from my parents. We will be in the same county. That’s our retirement plan.

I know a lot if people who talk about relocating at retirement, but then grandchildren change their outlook.

My friends and I talked about buying something in Florida together but the idea fizzled out.

 

[Skywalker3]

DH can retire in 5 years, he'll be in his upper 50s, so not positive he'll retire as soon as he's eligible, but having that goal keeps him going some days.....I won't have enough years, and while I'm older than he is, I'll have a few years after he retires, until I'm Soc Sec eligible. So we'll see. We've both upped our contributions to our retirement accounts, he does about 18 %, and I do about 30%. House is paid off, however, now everything is breaking down and needs repairs. So will seem we'll always need a house repair fund/emergency fund for crap like a new water heater, or water line....need a new roof soon. blah.

Pretty much our whole marriage (over 20 years,) we've talked about retiring to Florida/Orlando.
But this past trip in June REALLY reminded us of just how hot/humid it gets. We both grew up in coastal Louisiana, different towns, but same climate as FL. HOT and HUMID AF. and then many years in Baton Rouge. Very common to be drenched in sweat just walking from your car to work....and glasses fog up immediately. I really don't know if I want that again, especially almost all year. TN actually has 4 seasons, and trees that have leaves that change color, etc.

Our in-laws moved to TN after retirement to be close to us and their grandkids. TN is very tax friendly for retirees, but we do have a rather high sales tax. Local plus state is almost 10%. Health care is mostly good, but we live very close to Nashville, and have all of those doctors/hospitals as options. FIL is retired military ,and the VA hospital is close.

Have 2 kids in the area, one in college in TN, one probably also going to a college in TN, so I really don't see ourselves moving away from them any time soon. My new goal is to maybe try snowbirding, get a townhome in Orlando, or something like that, when DH retires. The insurance rates and taxes though....whew.

So, I think we'll stay put at least 5 more years, see how his parents' health is, and see where the kids end up, before we make any plans to move.
Best wishes as you start thinking about it all.

 

[Christine]

DH can retire in 5 years, he'll be in his upper 50s, so not positive he'll retire as soon as he's eligible, but having that goal keeps him going some days.....I won't have enough years, and while I'm older than he is, I'll have a few years after he retires, until I'm Soc Sec eligible. So we'll see. We've both upped our contributions to our retirement accounts, he does about 18 %, and I do about 30%. House is paid off, however, now everything is breaking down and needs repairs. So will seem we'll always need a house repair fund/emergency fund for crap like a new water heater, or water line....need a new roof soon. blah.

Pretty much our whole marriage (over 20 years,) we've talked about retiring to Florida/Orlando.
But this past trip in June REALLY reminded us of just how hot/humid it gets. We both grew up in coastal Louisiana, different towns, but same climate as FL. HOT and HUMID AF. and then many years in Baton Rouge. Very common to be drenched in sweat just walking from your car to work....and glasses fog up immediately. I really don't know if I want that again, especially almost all year. TN actually has 4 seasons, and trees that have leaves that change color, etc.

Our in-laws moved to TN after retirement to be close to us and their grandkids. TN is very tax friendly for retirees, but we do have a rather high sales tax. Local plus state is almost 10%. Health care is mostly good, but we live very close to Nashville, and have all of those doctors/hospitals as options. FIL is retired military ,and the VA hospital is close.

Have 2 kids in the area, one in college in TN, one probably also going to a college in TN, so I really don't see ourselves moving away from them any time soon. My new goal is to maybe try snowbirding, get a townhome in Orlando, or something like that, when DH retires. The insurance rates and taxes though....whew.

So, I think we'll stay put at least 5 more years, see how his parents' health is, and see where the kids end up, before we make any plans to move.
Best wishes as you start thinking about it all.

Interesting on your points on Tennessee. I participate in some other retirement forums and we have a few posters there who are really ragging on it for retirement purposes but they have been very clear that they live in more rural areas. A few of them stayed a year or two and then felt that had to leave. Abysmal medical care, poverty, drugs, crime and very little that is being done about it. As with most places, things are much better (at least medical wise) near the larger cities. I was kind of shocked to hear it. My aunt (by marriage) has her family that has remained in a place called Elizabethton near the Virginia border and my aunt says it's just awful now. No specifics there but at one point she thought about going back.

 

[tvguy]

This reminds me of House Hunters International when the new buyers are moving to Cabo or Puerto Vallarta (or someplace similar). They love vacationing there and figure they'll love living there as much. It's one thing to stay near the beach/town in either of those places for a week, but as a resident it would probably get old pretty quick. I've read accounts of petty crimes driving ex-pats away in Mexico and Central America. It's one thing to visit those places on vacation, but quite another to live there.

The thing is, they owned this condo for 15 years before retiring and spent several weeks a year there over the time they owned it. Probably no different that what a lot of us who have stayed put for decades have experienced in our neighborhoods. Things change, and not always for the better.