DC to Florida - Where to look?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Atlantic Beach, FL. There’s a Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, lots of healthcare support, retirement living, and some change of seasons. There is also the newer area of Nocatee. It is more tucked away, about an hour to the airport and 20 minutes to the beach.

This is a good recommendation. Ponte Vedra is great, too. I think Jax is relatively underrated, which means it should get expensive soon with all the FL growth.

For people familiar with the JAX / Amelia Island area...any thoughts on Southern, GA beach areas that literally border Amelia Island?

Wondering if homeowners' insurance rates are any different, property tax rate comparison, etc.? Are the areas comparable in terms of quaint towns (e.g., is there a Fernandina Beach equivalent?)?

R yr here are no south GA beaches literally bordering Amelia Island. Cumberland Island is directly north. St. Mary’s isn’t on the ocean and is not ideal. Sea Island/St. Simons/Jekyll are resort towns with second home populations. I can’t speak to tax rates and insurance costs of an area like St. Mary’s, but I imagine it’s cheaper because it’s more rural. It’s also a submarine base.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:By all means, move to Florida. But don’t expect tax or any other savings. At your anticipated house price, you’ll pay $35,000 in real estate taxes in the South Florida metro area. Almost equal amount in insurance. Two cars minimum, insurance, gas. High healthcare costs (if you need it). So while you might enjoy the climate change, you won’t save money.

You’ll thank me for this revelation.

NP
I’m puzzled by your “high healthcare costs” and other claims. We’ve not noticed any discernible difference on healthcare costs between DC and FL. Some people even use concierge medicine with fixed pricing that eliminates surprise billing, telemedicine, no wait times, next day appts. We also have EVs and our State Farm car insurance rates have dropped from DC. We’re in Indian River County and the taxes are nowhere near $35K. My MIL lives in Boca and her taxes are nowhere near that figure, either. She just bought, too.

You sound like you have some strange investment/motivation or more likely, you’re just jealous.

The people on the DCUM real estate forum have this strange fear of Florida, despite having spent no time here and having no first hand knowledge of what it's like to live here. They hear about people moving down here, and it stresses them out that people may be having a better life than them, so they dig in their heels to make up nonsensical reasons to hate Florida, most of which aren't based in fact. These threads often devolve into them saying stuff like "I could never live there because of the alligators". Which is when you know they're arguing in bad faith.

PP. I don’t have a strange fear of Florida, I live here and like it. But OP has no clue about the hidden costs. Who knows what her health insurance will, ours is expensive and we get very, very little for it with high deductibles. I can guarantee her though, that her RE taxes will be 1.8% of the purchase price, and her insurance will be excruciatingly high, even if no flood zone. Two cars, high insurance and high gas consumption due to long distances (for most people, but that’s individual). Investment interest? Certainly not, that ship sailed 2 years ago.

It's good to look into this because it sounds like it can vary. My health insurance monthly payment and deductible actually dropped significantly moving from DC to FL. Car insurance dropped too. The state income tax savings is paying for our luxury apartment.

I agree that FL RE isn't a good investment if you pay peak prices. Home prices have started to drop where we're looking, and I expect they'll drop more. They went up a lot during the pandemic so there's more room for them to decline. Many homes are sitting as buyers and sellers are at an impasse. Most of the stuff that closes sells for quite a bit under list price/less than peak prices. The exception is very large, updated homes in expensive areas. Those are still commanding $2-3M. I'm assuming that very wealthy people just don't have the same concerns.

Home owners insurance can be an issue from what I hear. Don't waive the financing contingency if you need a loan. The roof needs to be newer and in good condition to get home owners insurance, and you need home owners insurance to get a loan.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:By all means, move to Florida. But don’t expect tax or any other savings. At your anticipated house price, you’ll pay $35,000 in real estate taxes in the South Florida metro area. Almost equal amount in insurance. Two cars minimum, insurance, gas. High healthcare costs (if you need it). So while you might enjoy the climate change, you won’t save money.

You’ll thank me for this revelation.

NP
I’m puzzled by your “high healthcare costs” and other claims. We’ve not noticed any discernible difference on healthcare costs between DC and FL. Some people even use concierge medicine with fixed pricing that eliminates surprise billing, telemedicine, no wait times, next day appts. We also have EVs and our State Farm car insurance rates have dropped from DC. We’re in Indian River County and the taxes are nowhere near $35K. My MIL lives in Boca and her taxes are nowhere near that figure, either. She just bought, too.

You sound like you have some strange investment/motivation or more likely, you’re just jealous.

The people on the DCUM real estate forum have this strange fear of Florida, despite having spent no time here and having no first hand knowledge of what it's like to live here. They hear about people moving down here, and it stresses them out that people may be having a better life than them, so they dig in their heels to make up nonsensical reasons to hate Florida, most of which aren't based in fact. These threads often devolve into them saying stuff like "I could never live there because of the alligators". Which is when you know they're arguing in bad faith.

PP. I don’t have a strange fear of Florida, I live here and like it. But OP has no clue about the hidden costs. Who knows what her health insurance will, ours is expensive and we get very, very little for it with high deductibles. I can guarantee her though, that her RE taxes will be 1.8% of the purchase price, and her insurance will be excruciatingly high, even if no flood zone. Two cars, high insurance and high gas consumption due to long distances (for most people, but that’s individual). Investment interest? Certainly not, that ship sailed 2 years ago.

It's good to look into this because it sounds like it can vary. My health insurance monthly payment and deductible actually dropped significantly moving from DC to FL. Car insurance dropped too. The state income tax savings is paying for our luxury apartment.

I agree that FL RE isn't a good investment if you pay peak prices. Home prices have started to drop where we're looking, and I expect they'll drop more. They went up a lot during the pandemic so there's more room for them to decline. Many homes are sitting as buyers and sellers are at an impasse. Most of the stuff that closes sells for quite a bit under list price/less than peak prices. The exception is very large, updated homes in expensive areas. Those are still commanding $2-3M. I'm assuming that very wealthy people just don't have the same concerns.

Home owners insurance can be an issue from what I hear. Don't waive the financing contingency if you need a loan. The roof needs to be newer and in good condition to get home owners insurance, and you need home owners insurance to get a loan.

PP here. I meant co-pay, not deductible (but deductible didn't increase either).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Considering moving from Upper NW to Florida as primary residence for the tax break (this would save us approx 75k per year). Empty nesters, mid-50s, able to work remotely but not sure where to look.

Our budget is $1.5MM - 1.75MM and we'd like to be near amenities like restaurants, shopping, etc. Condo or house. Miami seems fun, but we'd need "livable" neighborhoods. Naples seems ok too - but maybe a bit stodgy.

Any recommendations for neighborhoods in either location?

Naples Florida.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:By all means, move to Florida. But don’t expect tax or any other savings. At your anticipated house price, you’ll pay $35,000 in real estate taxes in the South Florida metro area. Almost equal amount in insurance. Two cars minimum, insurance, gas. High healthcare costs (if you need it). So while you might enjoy the climate change, you won’t save money.

You’ll thank me for this revelation.

NP
I’m puzzled by your “high healthcare costs” and other claims. We’ve not noticed any discernible difference on healthcare costs between DC and FL. Some people even use concierge medicine with fixed pricing that eliminates surprise billing, telemedicine, no wait times, next day appts. We also have EVs and our State Farm car insurance rates have dropped from DC. We’re in Indian River County and the taxes are nowhere near $35K. My MIL lives in Boca and her taxes are nowhere near that figure, either. She just bought, too.

You sound like you have some strange investment/motivation or more likely, you’re just jealous.

The people on the DCUM real estate forum have this strange fear of Florida, despite having spent no time here and having no first hand knowledge of what it's like to live here. They hear about people moving down here, and it stresses them out that people may be having a better life than them, so they dig in their heels to make up nonsensical reasons to hate Florida, most of which aren't based in fact. These threads often devolve into them saying stuff like "I could never live there because of the alligators". Which is when you know they're arguing in bad faith.

+1 DP here and this is so true. They're livid that someone eschews liberal areas in favor of living in a red state. It's so important to their political identity to believe that red states can't be good places to live. So alligators and daily access to late-term abortions become "concerns" along with making up lies about the COL.

It’s just always been a pretty cheesy place. Beautiful beaches and some nice pockets but the “Florida man” game didn’t come about by coincidence. The weather and country club life are appealing and I wish I liked the state, but I just don’t. If I had $8 million, I’d buy on 30A but the rest of it is pretty unappealing. And Desantis is a crazy fascist - that doesn’t help at all.

We lived FT on 30A for 5 years and still own a house there. There is much to love. The biggest drawback is healthcare in that area. Hospital / medical infrastructure has not kept up with the pace of population growth, and it's a long way to travel for good care.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Considering moving from Upper NW to Florida as primary residence for the tax break (this would save us approx 75k per year). Empty nesters, mid-50s, able to work remotely but not sure where to look.

Our budget is $1.5MM - 1.75MM and we'd like to be near amenities like restaurants, shopping, etc. Condo or house. Miami seems fun, but we'd need "livable" neighborhoods. Naples seems ok too - but maybe a bit stodgy.

Any recommendations for neighborhoods in either location?

Naples Florida.

Check flood factor before you buy. Love the beautiful downtown on a cool, dry, and crisp winter’s evening.

[Anonymous]

South Tampa. Did a similar move. You can email me at [e-mail] for more info.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Sarasota
St. Petersburg
Davis Island (Tampa)
Lakeland

Agree! Except I haven’t yet been to Lakeland. Sarasota is right next to Venice Beach which is glorious! But if you’re a radical Democrat extremist, Miami might be best.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:North east goes to east coast of Florida ie palm beach, Miami Midwest goes to west coast ie Naples, Tampa. So if ur originally from the dc region I would stay east coast side.

True

[Anonymous]

I recommend NE St. Petersburg. It is a purple area and it is not a politically charged area. Since you said you were Republican I would recommend Snell Isle or one of the gated neighborhoods. For $800k that would get you a smaller house not on the water in the nicer neighborhoods. Downtown St Pete is great for a condo,, but not sure you can get anything for 800k. Expect 15k in property taxes for that amount. If you live a majority of the time here your property taxes will only go up a small amount each year. Tampa is only 25 minutes away.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:By all means, move to Florida. But don’t expect tax or any other savings. At your anticipated house price, you’ll pay $35,000 in real estate taxes in the South Florida metro area. Almost equal amount in insurance. Two cars minimum, insurance, gas. High healthcare costs (if you need it). So while you might enjoy the climate change, you won’t save money.

You’ll thank me for this revelation.

NP
I’m puzzled by your “high healthcare costs” and other claims. We’ve not noticed any discernible difference on healthcare costs between DC and FL. Some people even use concierge medicine with fixed pricing that eliminates surprise billing, telemedicine, no wait times, next day appts. We also have EVs and our State Farm car insurance rates have dropped from DC. We’re in Indian River County and the taxes are nowhere near $35K. My MIL lives in Boca and her taxes are nowhere near that figure, either. She just bought, too.

You sound like you have some strange investment/motivation or more likely, you’re just jealous.

The people on the DCUM real estate forum have this strange fear of Florida, despite having spent no time here and having no first hand knowledge of what it's like to live here. They hear about people moving down here, and it stresses them out that people may be having a better life than them, so they dig in their heels to make up nonsensical reasons to hate Florida, most of which aren't based in fact. These threads often devolve into them saying stuff like "I could never live there because of the alligators". Which is when you know they're arguing in bad faith.

Incorrect. I moved there and moved right back within 8 months. High crime rate, crazy drivers/unsafe roads (witnessed a lot of accidents), prevalent fraud, lazy people - felt like a different country.

You just described DC.

Yes, part of DC is like that. On the other hand, most of Florida is like this.

No it’s not.

[Anonymous]

We bought in Ponte Vedra when prices were low. We love it. But, people are moving here from the NE in waves. We are 5 miles to ocean which is perfect. As you go west (away from the ocean) the building has become excessive. People from the north see beautiful homes with pools, outside kitchen, lots of space and want in. The prices are not worth what they are getting. Upkeep on a house in FL is not cheap. We live in Nocatee which is a beautiful community with a great lifestyle. But, please, stop moving here! We’re full.

[Anonymous]

Sarasota or surrounding area.

[Anonymous]

Please spend significant time there before you make this move. You should go for a month at least, ideally more. It is a very big cultural shift. Socializing, dining, culture, are all very different in Florida. It is hard to make friends who can actually hold a convo. People talk about church and football nonstop. Trump supporters are everywhere.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Please spend significant time there before you make this move. You should go for a month at least, ideally more. It is a very big cultural shift. Socializing, dining, culture, are all very different in Florida. It is hard to make friends who can actually hold a convo. People talk about church and football nonstop. Trump supporters are everywhere.

Not where we live. Lots of smart, interesting people who never talk about church or football. Sounds like you picked the wrong spot.