Moving to Florida?

[ChrisS]

Originally Posted by Gryff

Chris, we had a bit of huffing and puffing in here earlier the lecky bill arrived $430 which I thought wasn’t bad we’ve had guest in and AC going and pool heat for 10 days
But him indoors who used to work for a major electricity supplier had his usual huff and puff but does he complain about the $220 for TV cable internet nope cause we’ve a full sports package and knows fine well I’d cut the sport off tute suit if he did and oh heck I need new sod on the strip of grass I own between the road and the side walk and got a $25 fine because the trash can was out earlier than it should have been as trash pick up was Friday not Thursday due to Memorial Day weekend but so did most of our estate it seems
The joys the joys

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There's very little leeway/understanding with code compliance Helen, we had a run in with those beggers a couple of times too, took the major hump when one was snotty about a post on county land that we were supposedly liable for, we hadn't put the blasted post there! Not long after our gardener forgot to change the battery in the sprinkler box and they were running off kilter, code compliance left a warning, two nights later before a letter could be sent out the same officer stuck a court date on the door. Luckily a friend works for them and paved the way clear for us, indeed the supervisor was not impressed with the officer putting a court date on the door before the warning letter had even left the office.

$430 for a leccy bill, oh vey!

[LIZH]

Originally Posted by EssexSue

Maybe Cape Coral is a more expensive area but I can honestly say there is no way we could sustain that sort of loss every year.

Last year was - obviously - our worst year on record and we lost about $10k. We turned off/down every thing we could and our MC charged us caretaker rate. Obviously if we decided to not rent out again we would save a lot of money on advertising and continual upkeep and replacement of consumables.
Our gardens and grounds are all maintained by the professional landscapers so that comes out if our HOA fees as is out watering and pest control.

Luckily we have been renting out to American guests since February 2021 and the future is (fingers crossed) looking good. That said I would not advise any Brit to buy at the moment given the very high house prices and poor exchange rate.

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That’s the same as us, but we are down about £13k this year having no guests in. Who would have thought Match last year that we would still be in lockdown😢

[weeleighluigi]

We are DESPERATE to move to Florida... like, get jobs, rent house (initially) and move ourselves and our 2 kids over... i keep looking but it seems like a huge can of worms.

I get interviewed for jobs but then they look into a Visa for me and it always falls on it's face

[daytonababe]

Originally Posted by weeleighluigi

We are DESPERATE to move to Florida... like, get jobs, rent house (initially) and move ourselves and our 2 kids over... i keep looking but it seems like a huge can of worms.

I get interviewed for jobs but then they look into a Visa for me and it always falls on it's face

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Easiest route job wise is a company transfer ..or buy a existing profitable business

Just going over there to work without a skill they require is virtually impossible. The company would need to prove the job couldn’t be done by a American citizen .

It is a minefield , you could get a visa to work but your partner might not , and as things are now there’s no guarantee once your kids reached 21 that they could stay there .

[Gryff]

Oops thanks to good neighbors who nipped round to ours and reset the sprinkler for=the lawn the whole estate had a major power outage builders over in the next estate turned us and 2 other neighbor hoods off for hours so our sprinkler would have come on at the wrong time $50 fine and doubled up every time it came on out with our designated watering hours
Ie $100 the next time $200 etc and unpaid fines can result in a Leiu on your home and it can be a really stupidly low non payment amount if bills are not payed for certain fees and you are looking at loosing your property
We’ve just had a bill from our HOA for armadillo removal they can cause havoc to property they have been removed to a sanctuary and the bill for annual termite inspection $650 for nowt
That was termite barrier renewal inspection insurance certificate and the Armadillos relocated and mail boxes being repainted etc
Roof and drive way cleaning notices ie they need done also
Out this week happy happy face ours are fine oh and because the HOA are in dispute with next door to us about trash cans being on the wrong side of their house I’ve got a stay about mine being on show ( I can’t put mine behind the live bin screen because theirs are on the wrong side so mine have to be on show ) apparently a huge yellow sticker slapped on them so I don’t get fined
It might be the land of the free but it’s slso the land of the fine folks

[EssexSue]

Originally Posted by Gryff

Oops thanks to good neighbors who nipped round to ours and reset the sprinkler for=the lawn the whole estate had a major power outage builders over in the next estate turned us and 2 other neighbor hoods off for hours so our sprinkler would have come on at the wrong time $50 fine and doubled up every time it came on out with our designated watering hours
Ie $100 the next time $200 etc and unpaid fines can result in a Leiu on your home and it can be a really stupidly low non payment amount if bills are not payed for certain fees and you are looking at loosing your property
We’ve just had a bill from our HOA for armadillo removal they can cause havoc to property they have been removed to a sanctuary and the bill for annual termite inspection $650 for nowt
That was termite barrier renewal inspection insurance certificate and the Armadillos relocated and mail boxes being repainted etc
Roof and drive way cleaning notices ie they need done also
Out this week happy happy face ours are fine oh and because the HOA are in dispute with next door to us about trash cans being on the wrong side of their house I’ve got a stay about mine being on show ( I can’t put mine behind the live bin screen because theirs are on the wrong side so mine have to be on show ) apparently a huge yellow sticker slapped on them so I don’t get fined
It might be the land of the free but it’s slso the land of the fine folks

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You really need to stand for your HOA Helen, yours sounds absolutely manic. Ours is strict because the appearance of the resort is important, I don't understand why your neighbors bins impact on you but we'd have had them sorted long ago.

[mazworld15]

Having a rethink, apartment in a complex with a pool? Anyone own one, do you rent it?

[Gryff]

Sue they aren’t at all it’s a tiny estate so cars on the street trash cans on the street make it look so untidy
Exceptions for cars on the street are made for holidays such as Memorial Day weekend
4th July ( 3to5th) Labour day Christmas Thanksgiving and of course. The Super Bowl
You just need a permit
The trash cans on the street are the City as are sprinklers grass noise after 10pm etc
I can’t be on;the board as we’ve got a full time resident only clause but I do get a good say at meetings

[Gryff]

We obviously have a villa but I’d think long and hard about an apartment on a complex
Withna coomunal pool if you intend to spend months at a time
HOA fees can be extortion could you be bothered trekking to the pool every day big difference rolling out of bed and into the pool or coming back in at night a cool,down in the pool while the BBQ heats ( multi occupant buildings BBQ and Habaci grills are against the law )
In older years could you be bothered lugging cases i cansay is look look and look again our home was bought firstly to suit us we bought 15 years ago but knew it was to be our retirement life so all on the flat close to shops medical services ie doctor dentist pharmacy golf courses restaurants all of those within a mile
Best advice we can give what kind of life style are you looking for what won’t you compromise on what’s oh that’s ok because of whatever
And never forget the health insurance costs with repatriation if needed as you get/older
And we don’t regrets one minute of ownership and can’t wait to go home even the grown up kids are now saying when the heck are we getting home with you now

[ChrisS]

Originally Posted by mazworld15

Having a rethink, apartment in a complex with a pool? Anyone own one, do you rent it?

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Sorry Maz, don't think me a killjoy... one problem that can rear it's ugly head is community fees. If condo's become empty, due to foreclosure for example, other condo owners become liable for that condo's fees, and whilst the market is as good as currently being seen that's unlikely to happen, but, people seem to be taking a similar route as seen when interest rates were low around the mid 2000's. When rates increased many realised they were in over their heads and walked away, leaving the banks with a glut of property. There's a classy, high rise, condo building on the river in Fort Myers where resident owners found themselves with high mortgages plus additional community fees as more and more owners walked, it was a domino effect of owners walking. Banks were placing condo's that had previously achieved $600k+ for sale at circa $200k in an attempt to sell, but once buyers discovered they'd be on the hook for thousands in fees they backed out. The situation became so serious that, for a while, banks refused mortgages against condo's.

Our friend was the Supervisor of the recording office in Cape Coral and told us some amazing details during the crash, her office would go for days with no property sales being recorded, her clerks sitting at their desks doing nothing!