Should we move to Florida from CT?

[LoveBWVVBR]

Our car insurance went WAY up down here from IL as well. I think coming from CT it may also go up. MA and FL are PIP states so they tend to be higher in general. We are in S. Florida though and the rates are higher this far south in general.

I'm really scratching my head on the PIP thing. I know that our insurance rates in MA were so high because of heavy regulation and little competition. Here in FL we were able to get GEICO (no GEICO in MA), and our rates are SO much lower than they were in MA. We don't live in the big city, so maybe that has some effect. We lived in the 'burbs in MA too, though. Our car insurance is literally half of what it was in MA for the same coverage. DH has since bought a new vehicle and our insurance is still half of what it was in MA for 2 older cars.

 

[GeorgeG]

Hey there, how's your grandson's trip-planning going? Was he able to get some help from the Shades of Green?

Also wanted to tell you that we pass through the Villages when we drive to Disney on the back roads and think it looks like a great place to live.

I haven't heard anything lately other than he left Iraq yesterday, supposedly back home, but their destination was deemed "classified." I don't know if that's routine or if they ended up somewhere else. I gave him all the info on Shades of Green and also had a WDW planning DVD sent to him. I hope to hear from him soon.

We love The Villages. We looked at a lot of areas in Florida and made our decision to live here the second we stepped off the tour trolley. With some of the new roads, we can now get from our driveway to the "back door" of WDW by Coronado Springs in under an hour without going anywhere near I4.

 

[swilphil]

It sounds like LOTS more research is in order:

Is the mortgage industry in Florida right now what your husband would want to join? Does he need to be worried about layoffs and low commissions?

Are you willing to possibly pay for private school? Are there acceptable public schools in the areas you are considering?

Have you spent much time in Florida in the July and August? Can you live in the intense heat? How will you handle hurricanes?

 

[CathrynRose]

It sounds like LOTS more research is in order:

Is the mortgage industry in Florida right now what your husband would want to join? Does he need to be worried about layoffs and low commissions?

Are you willing to possibly pay for private school? Are there acceptable public schools in the areas you are considering?

Have you spent much time in Florida in the July and August? Can you live in the intense heat? How will you handle hurricanes?

I moved from Chicago to the Tampa area in 2004 - in a year, I was back in Chicago.

I hated it. The schools leave a lot to be desired. The traffic is horrendous. There seems to only be one way to get to and from anywhere (no 'side streets' - which Im used to in Chicago) There wasnt a whole lot of Culture. Id only heard of the "Jaws of Life" until I moved to Florida - I got to see them alllll the time. The food is very 'chain's only' - no cute little hot dog stands, or great Chinese food or wonderful pizza joints. (and this one is going to annoy some but...) Their fashion sense was months (if not years) behind - which was weird *for me*. When the hurricanes rolled through (remember, I was there for Charlie, Jeanne, Francis and on and on...) the electricity would go out for dayssssssssssssssss.... Dayssss!!! Heck, we'd have ice and snow storms in Chicago and the crews would be out there during them, getting our power back on. No electricty in July makes for a stinky, sweaty 4 days.

I hated it. My kids hated it. My husband hated it.

Dont get me wrong. Weekend Disney trips ROCKED...other then that, it stunk, IMO. Things seemed backwards.

Oh and bugs. Bugs Bugs Glorious Bugs...a giant ones. And snakes... they send out newsletters and Public Service warnings about snakes.

Granted you dont have to shovel snow, but June, July and August you cant even walk to your mailbox without breaking a sweat. The locals said we had to flip-flop our seasons...inside in the summer, outside in the winter.

Now I moved down for a new help-desk being formed. Out of me (Chicago), another Chicago person, a Boston person, a Dallas person, a Philadelphia person, another Boston person - only Philly and the other Chicago person stayed.... the rest of us left.

 

[rparmfamily]

I love the St Augustine area personally. Even south of there, like Palm Coast, Ormond Beach, Sanford, Lake Mary,etc.

 

[Cool-Beans]

Sure. You're young, you don't have kids. If it ends up being a mistake, it isn't the end of the world. You can always move back.

 

[iluvflorida8]

We moved from NE Ohio to Vero Beach, FL 2 years ago and haven't regreted it for one minute.

Our home is five miles from the beach. The reasons we like this area are..

1. No traffic problems at all
2. Small town atmosphere (18,000 population)
3. temperatures never go above 90 degrees even in summer
4. Always have a nice 10-15 mph ocean breeze 80% of the time
5. 90 minutes from WDW / 45 minutes from Cape Canaveral / 80 minutes to West Palm Beach
6.80 minutes to Orlando airport and PBI (Palm Beach International)
7.No state tax, cheaper property taxes


Our situation was a little different than yours. My wife and I both got 30 years in our profession(General Motors-myself wife-H.S. teacher) and we both retired at age 50. So we didn't have to worry about schools,jobs,etc

We would NEVER go back to the cold,snow,etc.

 

[DanceRC28]

Thanks again for the info, I am sharing it all with my husband as more and more of you are writing in. As far as home pricing, I didn't mean we were only looking to spend 180k, I was just giving a general comparison. We could definitely go up to about 250k and be okay, and I think for that price we would be able to get what we are looking for in a home and in a community. We don't have to be right out the back door of WDW, we are open to a lot of communities in the surrounding areas.

In repsonse to comments from swilphil:
As for the comment on my husband working in the mortgage industry- true he could be laid off in Florida, but he could also be laid off in CT. He makes no commission, so that wouldn't even be an issue for us. As for paying for private schools, I would want to find a home in a community with schools that were good enough for my children to attend. I don't like the idea of my children having to wear uniforms, either in CT or in FL, so that wouldn't be something I would want for them. In regards to car insurance, I highly doubt it will compare to what we pay now. If you research cost of living in CT, I think you may have a major eye opener. I agree I do need more research, but that is why I am asking the advice of people who already call FL and the Orlando area home. This advice is what can help us truly make a decision that is right for us.

Thanks again for the info guys, please feel free to add anything else you think we should know.

 

[PrincessKitty1]

I love the St Augustine area personally. Even south of there, like Palm Coast, Ormond Beach, Sanford, Lake Mary,etc.

I would live in the St Augustine area in a HEARTBEAT if there were any jobs in the area. I would love to retire there.