Florida 55 plus - Page 5

151949 · ‎03-09-2010

@homedecor1 wrote:
@151949

Yes you're right I'm not familiar with the tax structure the way it's determined. Hopefully with all this building and growth in this immediate area our taxes will remain low.

My cousin lives is your area and I know her taxes are much higher.

I guess all things are relative - our taxes here are close to the same as our Pa home was but here a lot more is included - in Pa we had to pay additional tax for Fire and EMT and trash pickup - we even had a street light tax. Plus we had state and local income tax - I even had to pay a "privledge tax " for the privledge of going into the city limits of Pittsburgh to go to work. Here all we pay is the one property tax, so we feel it is a huge bargain. Where we live is not incorporated so there are no local city taxes at all. Our only local government is the county who provides us with police and fire and EMT service, trash pickup and takes care of the roads etc. Thus far we see no problems with this.

homedecor1 · ‎03-09-2010

it's all relative I guess! For instance, food prices here are insane (esp. at Publix), gas higher (in NJ can't fluctuate the way it does here!), salaries much lower, car insurance much higher so I would think when deciding where to live those are concerns when one retires on a reduced income.

We left NJ because our home tax bill was $13,900/year. That was ridiculous as I had no kids in school. Our yearly sewer bill was $1,200 separate from taxes. And lots of other little bills added up.

all that I'd return to NJ in a minute but know I wouldn't live the lifestyle I'm used to or my savings/retirement would be drained quickly as housing prices (rent or own) are insane. Plus, I'm spoiled by this beautiful weather!!!

Have a great day!

Ditzydori · ‎03-10-2010

thank you for all the very informative and interesting replies.

I I was just wondering how sun city, Florida is. Does anyone know anything about that community?

on the east coast, my sister in law and cousin live in Century Village. I know they have lots of activities. Any info is greatly appreciated.

chiclet · ‎03-19-2010

I did not read all the posts so I may be repeating some information. I live in North Florida. We rarely have any really bad weather. There are some nice 55 communitities in Port Orange and one nice one in St. Augustine, Florida. It depends on what kind of life you want to live. In the upscale manufactured home communites there is a gate guard and you do feel a little more secure. Since most people don't work there is always people out and about walking and walking their dog. Crane Lakes has a golf course and restaurant and many activities. Coquina crossing in St Augustines has two pools, tennis court, putting green etc. To move into these communities you have to have a background check so you know you are not living next to a convicted criminal. It is by no means perfect but I cannot imagine living in a regular neighborhood where you don't know if your neighbors are selliing drugs or who knows what. Both of these communites are about 15 minutes from the beach. The homes are reasonably priced but the lot rent is expensive as is the homeowners insurance.

nktmt · ‎02-04-2011

We have been looking for a single family home near the west coast of Florida. We live in the west but have an RV lot in the Florida Keys where we have spent the winters. We would like to move to Florida full time however do not want to live in the Keys full time.

We checked a few areas on the way down this fall along the west coast however did not see anything in our budget. We did not go to a realtor because we have to sell our home out west. I thought I would like a gated community (that's what we are in now) but I don't need all the activities, I do like the security. We looked at King Gate in Port Charlotte,way to fancy for me. We looked around Naples, Ft. Myers, Port Charlotte & some other areas. Lots of traffic but there is traffic everywhere in Florida.

We also stopped by Heritage Pines in Hudson Fl (north of Tampa) we only had one day & could no get in without a realtor (gated). I have checked there web site and it looks like a nice 55 plus community........however this is my worry for this area.......sink holes. I know things could happen anywhere but I feel with a hurricane at least you have notice to evacuate. This seems to be a "sink hole" area. It is gated & 55 plus there are very nice homes in our price range.

Would you be concerned?

Thank you for this thread.

151949 · ‎03-09-2010

@nktmt wrote:
We have been looking for a single family home near the west coast of Florida. We live in the west but have an RV lot in the Florida Keys where we have spent the winters. We would like to move to Florida full time however do not want to live in the Keys full time.

We checked a few areas on the way down this fall along the west coast however did not see anything in our budget. We did not go to a realtor because we have to sell our home out west. I thought I would like a gated community (that's what we are in now) but I don't need all the activities, I do like the security. We looked at King Gate in Port Charlotte,way to fancy for me. We looked around Naples, Ft. Myers, Port Charlotte & some other areas. Lots of traffic but there is traffic everywhere in Florida.

We also stopped by Heritage Pines in Hudson Fl (north of Tampa) we only had one day & could no get in without a realtor (gated). I have checked there web site and it looks like a nice 55 plus community........however this is my worry for this area.......sink holes. I know things could happen anywhere but I feel with a hurricane at least you have notice to evacuate. This seems to be a "sink hole" area. It is gated & 55 plus there are very nice homes in our price range.

Would you be concerned?

Thank you for this thread.

We get Tampa news here in South Sarasota County and I have noticed they are having a lot of sink holes uo there. Wonder why? I don't know what your budget is or how close to the beach you want to be. Of course the closer to the beach the more expensive it gets. Right now a nice 3 bed 2 bath house , not condo, around 1500 sq ft under air brand spanking new in a gated community is base at about $200,000. When you start adding things like granite countertops etc it can go up very quickly. HOA fees will always depend highly on what they offer for the money so it is important to be very clear about what you get for your money. However, we live in a beach community so that adds value to the property. Same exact home about 10 miles away in North Port is less expensive because it is further from the beach.

Editted to add - we looked at homes all around this area extensively for many years because we have family here. We did not necessarily have to be right in this town , just not too far awayWe pretty quickly decided that we only were interested in Sarasota county. Lower taxes and more for your tax dollar. Everything upkept very well due to sarasota being a rather stable County financially. A lot of millionaires and probably billionaires live in sarasota County, so they have a good income base. You never ride down a rode here and see public property that is in disrepair. Beaches, parks,waterways etc all pristine.

Ditzydori · ‎03-10-2010

I have enjoyed reading everyone's response so much.

nktmt · ‎02-04-2011

Our price range is not over $250.000 and we are not looking for beach property, it would be nice to be closer to the water because it would be a little cooler.

We own our RV lot in the Keys and also pay HOA ($300 a month). We are in what they call a resort complex. Double wides, newer homes are block high rises and a few RV lots still remaining. There are recreation halls, swimming pool, tennis courts & a lot of activities. I no long use any of the amenities. There is a marina which my husband pays an additional amount for a boat slip for our small boat for six months.

The sink hole problem is a result of property being located above underground open spaces and caves, the was a special on TV about it. You can also google Florida sink hole maps.....very interesting.

We have a family member that lives in Cortez, they have a condo on a canal.

I'm sure once we sell our home in Montana we will return to Florida and do some serious looking. This thread has been a tremendous help.

Thank You!

Zhills · ‎11-15-2011

@Ditzydori wrote:
thank you for all the very informative and interesting replies.

I I was just wondering how sun city, Florida is. Does anyone know anything about that community?

on the east coast, my sister in law and cousin live in Century Village. I know they have lots of activities. Any info is greatly appreciated.

Sun City is a lovely community South of Tampa. Some of the houses are older (it was Dell Web's original) but the area is well preserved.

Everything in Sun Cityis accessible with a golf cart. There are special lanes for them. Go grocery shopping, to the Doctor, even a hospital. I have friends in Sun City and they love it. They even have a program for people living alone where you call in every day by ?? or they will call you to see if you are OK.

This area also gets nice cool afternoon breezes in the Summer. They are not just on the Coast.

Sun City is close to beaches both on the Bay and on the Gulf.