What are the PROS and CONS of living in Florida? Would you live there or move out..

[*Fantasia*]

Would you move there or move out of there? What are the pros and cons of living there?

I am doing my little research on Florida. I wanna know honestly how people think about this state. What they like and don't like about Florida. I am doing my homework cause I am planning of moving there this July. I am flying back there this May and start looking/applying for apartments and checking out schools. I just wanna make sure I have basic ideas of what I am gettng myself into. PLEASE TELL ME WHAT YOU THINK OF FLORIDA. WHAT YOU LIKE AND DON'T LIKE ABOUT FLORIDA. IF GIVEN A CHANCE WOULD YOU MOVE THERE OR MOVE OUT OF THERE. THANKS SO MUCH FOR YOUR HELP!

Telly

 

[olena]

termites and terrible drivers. Great weather.....until the hurricane comes.

 

[Pin Wizard]

I've been here 15 years, so I guess I pretty much like it. I'm just tired of all the hot air and sunshine. I'm ready to move out. This area can be quite expensive. I'm in Southeast FL. But I have ds in a private school, not public system. I know of too many unhappy people with the public school system. But you still find good ones in every town. You just need to know which they are. Here's a link to Myflorida.com. It should help.

http://myflorida.com/

 

[kadaten]

PROS

DISNEY DISCOUNTS
always within a few hours of a beach
great weather...warm almost year round
no state income taxes
no personal property taxes (car taxes, etc)
no snow!
lower cost of living compared to some areas

CONS

you may miss the season of fall....leaves don't change color!
will you be farther from family?
moving anywhere is always hard
tourists...you may get tired of them, but maybe not
HIGH gas prices (makes up for no income taxes)
high homeowners insurance due to hurricanes
hurricanes


Sure there are others, but when all is said and done, we are eagerly trying to get back to Florida on our next set of orders. I'm just tired of the cold and want to be back within a couple hours of Disney!!

 

[DocRafiki]

It all depends on what life is like where you live. I would call the salaries here a PRO and the cost of living a CON, but I'm from Louisiana & Mississippi. Most people in the US view those things in the opposite light. Same with the weather. It was more humid in the summer where I lived, and much colder in the winter; plus, we already had to deal with hurricanes, so the weather is 100% better here (well except maybe that pesky lightning but really the difference isn't all that noticeable).

I'm off to bed and too sleepy to make a list, but I am obviously voting to MOVE IN (to Florida).

 

[*Fantasia*]

Thanks you guys. I very much appreciate your infos and inputs.

Disney is really not the main reason why I want to move out of Michigan. I am sick of winter. I am tired of the cold weather. The cold weather (when you can't wear shorts anymore) is from October through May. The freezing weather is from Dec, Jan and Feb. I figure if I am going to live somwhere down south where it's warm most of the year it would be Florida. And I figured since I go to Disney a lot, why not Florida.

I'm sure a lot of you guys have lots of things to say about Florida, so please just share your experience with me or the things you hear about Florida. Even if you don't live in Florida, I wanna know your pros and cons. I wanna know if given a chance if you would move there or out of there. Thanks so much in advance.


Telly

 

[Miss Jasmine]

As soon as DH retires we are probably moving to North Carolina (10 short years from now, lol). I hate the months of July through September. You don't even want to leave your house. You get sweaty going from your car to the office. ICK. The schools are not the greatest in Florida, even if you do live in a great school district. It's just not the same as up north because property taxes are so much less. The State is too dependant on tourism dollars. The elderly population makes it hard to increase any type of tax so that schools, roads and other infrastructure can be improved or even built. Oh and the drivers are terrible.

 

[4disneyfans]

We moved here this summer and live in the Lake Mary area where the schools are very good. This was a decision we had debated for years and so glad we did it now. Very different from where we moved from but so much more to do with the kids and Disney doesn't hurt either. I know this is a huge decision for anyone but especially those with children because of all the rumors you hear about Florida schools. We researched and researched the areas before we moved here and have found the schools here to be fine..a little different in the way things are done but nothing that is alarming. We too, were tired of the COLD but the change is what we are really enjoying. So much culture. We have meet people from everywhere!The summers are hot but not much different from the Mid-South. Humidity seems to get worse up there every year. The winter has been wonderful here! Today is suppose to be in the 70's. We have had some sinus problems that are different from back home but hopefully will adjust eventually to that. The only big "con" is the property is higher here than we were accustomed to which means we just have to look a little harder. I hope this helps a little. I have been where you are at and it is a somewhat "scary" and huge decision but if you love Florida I think you will be happy with it. Besides, you can always move back if you change your mind. We had not moved in about 15 yrs. when we made the decision to move here. What a "house cleaning" and move that was!!! Best of luck to you and your family!!!!

 

[*Fantasia*]

I know this is a huge decision for anyone but especially those with children because of all the rumors you hear about Florida schools.

Hi 4disneyfans. What rumors? Please fill me in if you don't mind. Thanks. And your story, your experience there helps me a lot.

And thank you Miss Jasmine for also sharing your experience. Thanks everyone for your inputs. Anymore stories/experience out there that would like to chime in. You are welcome to share your thoughts. Thanks.


Telly

 

[vandergriff4]

I just want to say that we moved here recently also. We live in the Sanford area which is really close to Lake Mary. Both are located in Seminole County with is right above Orange County. We love it here. The school district is good and my DD loves her school. Not to mention the fact that we are just an hour away from WDW. Just be sure to research and you will find a great place to live. Good luck to your family on your move.


Hi there 4disneyfans I haven't seen you in a while. How are you?



(edited for spelling)

 

[Talking Hands]

Lived in So Fla for 29 years in April.

Pros:
Weather is great. No snow.
No state income tax
Himestead exemption on real estate tax
Being near Disney
Being near the Everglades and Florida Keys
Great Deaf community even though it is rather small
Husband's family is here
School's are good as long as you had your kids in magnet programs

Cons:
Deaf community is small. DC or Rochester would be better for that
Leaves don't change.
What little family I have is in VA and CT.
Very little opportuntiy for classical musicians here so my daughters will be leaving.

 

[Denine]

This is a good thread.

DH and I would love to move to Florida. We are so sick of the cold and clouds all the time. I hate snow. We do have a DD that is 17 months old. I have not decided yet whether or not I will homeschool her.
Gas prices are about the same as here in Ohio, high. Ohio and Florida are always the most expensive states to buy gas in when we drive.
We have looked at homes in the area and like East Orlando. It is a growing area. It is about 45 minutes from WDW.
Of course, we love the mouse, so that is a plus. We also like to cruise, so we would be a lot closer to the ports.
We just need to find DH a job.

 

[Kallison]

We researched it two years ago and may be doing it again in the future. We were not happy with the school system. The county school systems are huge and there seems to be a lot of problems with the Choice System. The schools we visited we were not impressed. We have an excellent school system now. If we did move it would be private school for the kids. The houses are a lot different then what we are used to, no storage, smaller, expensive, cookie cutter lots. The safety factor seemed to be keep an eye on your kids at all time. Where we live now the kids have freedom to roam a bit, they take their bikes into town with friends, around the block, play together in the woods and at the pond. When the realtor told the kids they absolutely could not tromp in the swamp out back they looked at her like she was insane - lol. We have an acre of land with woods and a farmers field next to us we have lots of privacy. Our inground pool is bigger, the kids thought all the pools and lanais were lame. We are used to space, mountains, hiking, open land, unique historical towns. Not flat, traffic and mini-malls everywhere. BUT if we ever do move, I know we will all adjust as a family, we will just be sad for awhile. We've grown up in the Northeast and always loved where we live. I like being able to hop a train to NYC or Philly for the day whenever I feel like it. Or drive 3 hours to the Catskills to go skiing or the Poconos. Of course if we moved to Florida we would be getting our Disney AP's and watching the Yankees in spring training, going to the beach more (we are not a sun/surf family), fishing, maybe learning to scuba. We would make the best of wherever we lived, it is just that Florida would not be our first choice. It sounds like Florida might be right for you though. Good luck with your decision.

 

[jsmith]

I don't have personal experience but my SIL move there when her ex-H went to grad school, then got divorced. She HATED living in Orlando. As a state employee she made about $20,000 year less than she did in the same job when she moved home to Colorado. No seasons, hot and sticky for a good part of the year, bugs, and far from home and family

 

[ScarlettO]

If you are serious about relocating, check out a book called "The Best Places to retire in Florida". It has very good info on 100 of Florida's main cities/towns as regarding jobs, schools, cost of living etc. As young as you are, the job situation is the most important.

 

[The Mystery Machine]

Hi! DH should find out this week if we are going to Florida. So I do not want to get to excited, but I have been anxious. He would be working in Tampa.

(Kallison what you have is a dream! I would never move from that. We on the other hand live in the middle of Missouri...no mountains, no skiing, no BIG cities to go to. We also have hot muggy summers here. It is VERY BORING!)

 

[Feralpeg]

I'm moving to Orlando in June. I'm retired, so the job situation is not an issue for me. DD will be a junior in high school. Although I don't think her new school will be as good as the one she is currently attending, she is extremely bright and already has such a good foundation, I don't think she wil have problems in the future. She will be able to attend college in Florida and I will be able to pay in-state tuition. There are so many things to do in Florida. Since the weather is nice year round, you can get out and do things. Where we currently live, we would be stuck at home a good portion of the year due to cold weather. There just isn't that much to do here. I can't wait. I am going to Orlando on Friday to check on my new house and enroll DD in school. I'm very excited!

 

[*Fantasia*]

It sounds like Florida do not have a good school system. O-OH..not good. I might have to put them in Catholic school again. The school where my son goes called me today and asked if I was going to submit the enrollment form for Sept schooling cause they did not receive the form and it is due today. I told her that my son is not coming back there and that we are moving to Florida. I was kind of sad cause the school that my son goes to is an excellent Catholic school. I feel like I am messing up his schooling by pulling him out of one of the best schools in here.

Thank you everyone for your suggestions and sharing your thoughts and experience. Your reply is very much appreciated.
Anymore thoughts and comments out there? Please just chime in. Thanks.


Telly

 

[floridaminnie]

I'm a school teacher in the public school and DD will start kindergarten at a private school in the fall. I've lived here for ten years now and I love it. I was an air force brat and have lived everywhere and this has become my home. I don't mind the hot weather in the summer, b/c I head for the water parks!

 

[The Mystery Machine]

floridaminnie...are the schools in Tampa that bad that you are sending your dd to private?????
Yikes!

I know that they don't have money as I saw the "news report" about the fire code violations in Hillsborough County. The super said they just don't have the funds (more or less).