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8bucks

Possible move to Florida

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Hey I know some of you live in Florida and I am looking for some thoughts on moving from. Cold weather state. I am going down in a couple of weeks for a final “interview” but feel pretty confident that an offer is coming. The company would be located just north of Tampa.

 

Looking potentially at homes in the suburbs to the north of the city. Land o Lakes, Lutz, WesleyChapel. Prefer growing towns and those seem to fit that. Any thoughts on those areas or other areas to check out?

 

How does the summer heat compare to Indiana’s winters? I have been there for trips in the summer but wondering more how 3 months of heat compare to our winters.

 

I have heard bugs are terrible. Skeeters as big as birds.

 

Will the alligator in the pond eat my dog.

 

How are the people? I assume many are from all over and it won’t be much different than here but curious what you all think.

 

Are newer homes built to better withstand storms? Saw where one builder used concrete blocks and that got me wondering

 

Any other thoughts appreciated

 

 

Sent from my iPad using BtownBanners mobile app

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9 hours ago, 8bucks said:
  1. Hey I know some of you live in Florida and I am looking for some thoughts on moving from. Cold weather state. I am going down in a couple of weeks for a final “interview” but feel pretty confident that an offer is coming. The company would be located just north of Tampa.
  2. Looking potentially at homes in the suburbs to the north of the city. Land o Lakes, Lutz, WesleyChapel. Prefer growing towns and those seem to fit that. Any thoughts on those areas or other areas to check out?
  3. How does the summer heat compare to Indiana’s winters? I have been there for trips in the summer but wondering more how 3 months of heat compare to our winters.
  4. I have heard bugs are terrible. Skeeters as big as birds.
  5. Will the alligator in the pond eat my dog.
  6. How are the people? I assume many are from all over and it won’t be much different than here but curious what you all think.
  7. Are newer homes built to better withstand storms? Saw where one builder used concrete blocks and that got me wondering
  8. Any other thoughts appreciated
  1. Florida is kinda like a few different states. South Florida has a very different culture from North Florida and the West Coast. South Florida (generally) is very Northeast and Latino influenced. Outside of Tallahassee might as well be rural Alabama. Tampa has much more of a Midwest/Chicago vibe.
  2. Those are good towns for schools and by reputation. If you're not looking for schools and want to see what makes Florida uniquely interesting, Tarpon Springs and New Port Richey are really a cool places that veer North of downtown Tampa.
  3. The summer heat is brutal when you are inland. Not a problem at all when near the water. It's why Florida was built near the water before air conditioning. BUT, the truly ugly months are only really June, July, August, and September. The heat turns off like a spigot around the first week of October. It's not how hot it gets (low 90's and very humid every day) it's that it never cools off for three months straight -- taking the garbage to the curb at midnight into 82 degrees and pure humidity sux.
  4. Bugs are bad, especially away from the water where there's no breeze.
  5. Yes
  6. https://floridaman.com/
  7. All homes are built to withstand storms! Concrete block construction ('cbs' in your listings) is a given since the 1940's, and is standard for all home types from quaint to McMansions. Cbs construction is not for hurricanes -- it's mainly for termite protection. The non-cbs homes are almost 75 years+ old--they've withstood a bunch of storms and are fine. Hurricane windows and a double-strapped roof is where the storm protection lies. Hurricane windows will also save about $250 a month on air conditioning bills, but it'll cost about $35,000 to put them in on a house that doesn't have them. Hurricane shutters are a royal pain in the @$$ to put up.
  8. Like many places, Florida is good at what it's good at. Falls under the theory of 'don't go to a Red Lobster restaurant for your steak dinner.'

So, what is Florida good at? I'd say the things Florida is good at are: housing with beach breezes, water/beach-centered lifestyle, casual attitude, cultural diversity (including many who have moved there from all around the US), beautiful weather for eight months a year and car commutes that never get affected by road conditions, low taxes, resorts at your fingertips, outdoor sports abound, and pro sports with low-ish prices (except for the Miami Heat), and lots of gated community housing in the burbs if that's your thing.

Florida is not so good at - culture/arts, historic neighborhoods, street-level interesting urban centers, formal vibe, and a stand-alone cultural identity of its own.

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Welcome to the neighborhood!  I live just west of Tampa in Madeira Beach.  I moved from Indiana 18 years ago and have lived in Tampa and St Petersburg as well.

Those are nice towns that you listed.  I think you'll like them just fine.  A few thoughts while looking for your home:

Insurance for natural disasters can be $6,000+ per year.  Get to know the flood zones and stay out of AE.  

While the areas you listed shouldn't be as susceptible to flooding and high rates, sink holes are a problem.  Sink hole insurance in those areas north of Tampa can go into the thousands as well.  Not only is there a risk of high insurance costs, but sink holes in this area have been known to swallow people, never to be found again.  Definitely get to know the sink hole zones in those areas if that's where you choose to settle.

Yes, there are alligators in every piece of fresh water you see.  Say good bye to swimming in fresh water holes here or say good bye to your life.  Never turn your back to the water including on the golf course. 

I highly recommend buying a block home which is 95% of the homes in the towns you listed.  Stuhoo is correct, impact windows and hurricane straps are probably more important.  If you don't have a realtor in the area let me know.  I've used mine for 3 houses now and he's wonderful.  He's a retired St Petersburg Police Officer so he easily beats up the other realtors every time.  He's also a hawk when it comes to noticing every aspect of houses so nothing slides.  He's easily saved/made me 10s of thousands over the years 

The weather is phenomenal here and your body conditions to it quickly.  Within 2 years you'll find anything under 70 degrees to be chilly.

Feel free to reach me with any questions about the Tampa Bay area.

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Also... Say goodbye to pork tenderloin sandwiches, college basketball fans, falling leaves, hikes with an elevation of more than about 50 feet, slushy shoes, and single family homes that cost less than $300k. Spring training games are awesome and seafood will no longer be farmed in a man-made pond or frozen off the truck!

I've only seen a gator a few times in South Florida -- always in or next to a canal. They will not be roaming your suburban neighborhood!

PS: Josh is a West coast (of Florida) guy so he will know towns the best -- love your former home of St. Pete -- the old and waterfront  neighborhoods there are beautiful.

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Oh wow I didn't realize alligators weren't more prevalent down south.  Sorry 8Bucks, Alligators do roam the neighborhoods here.  They don't stray too far from a pond, usually just in the yards surrounding them.  Every so often you see them travel over roads between ponds, but you're moving to a zone where you need to realize they can be anywhere.  I've seen them in ditches, retention ponds, water hazards...everywhere.  They're not to be feared as much as they need to be left alone.

While a pork tenderloin sandwich can be difficult to find, a hot pressed Cuban sandwich can help you forget about them.

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This is good stuff. A few questions 

how far inland is too far for the sea breeze benefit?  
 

Stay away from AE - what is AE?

not liking the gator reports lol 

Stuhoo you sound like you prefer the Midwest.  
 

 

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11 minutes ago, 8bucks said:

This is good stuff. A few questions 

how far inland is too far for the sea breeze benefit?  
 

Stay away from AE - what is AE?

not liking the gator reports lol 

Stuhoo you sound like you prefer the Midwest.  
 

 

I love Florida—if you do it right.

I’m more of a ‘hiking outside, basketball in a gym on a winter night’ and big city center guy, so Bloomington, Chicago, Boston are my personal favorites, but Florida is fantastic in its own way.

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AE is a flood zone.  Don't do it.  I lived in AE for 12 years.  https://floodadvocate.com/fema-zone-definitions/?gclid=CjwKCAiAvaGRBhBlEiwAiY-yMKjSLhCYvBSTuNFbbKm2xryWexcaBSLXwH6B7FaMNSoyu7CxMAdQgRoCPgcQAvD_BwE

I don't know the designations for sink hole zones, but please educate yourself on those before you find a place in the towns you listed.  In 2013 a sinkhole opened up underneath an East Tampa man's bed while he slept.  He was never seen again.

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6 hours ago, Josh said:

Stuhoo -- what do you see about New Port Richie that's interesting?   Yeesh that's a crap hole.  Don't haze the new guy.

Used to drive through it on the way to play golf at World Woods. As I recall, it used to just look like the world’s longest unbroken strip mall. 

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On 3/9/2022 at 12:28 PM, Josh said:

Welcome to the neighborhood!  I live just west of Tampa in Madeira Beach.  I moved from Indiana 18 years ago and have lived in Tampa and St Petersburg as well.

Those are nice towns that you listed.  I think you'll like them just fine.  A few thoughts while looking for your home:

We visited Madeira Beach on vacation a few years ago and loved it. We checked out St Pete some. 
I’d highly recommend that area. 

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7 hours ago, 8bucks said:

Accepted the job in the Tampa area. What a crazy market to buy in. Is sleeping on the beach frowned upon?


Sent from my iPad using BtownBanners

As long as you have a coconut filled with rum and tan lines it will never be frowned upon.

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I have a sister who (within the last two years) moved down to Venice Beach.  They absolutely love it!  Besides getting used to the weather, they are always the youngest couple when they go to a neighborhood cook out.  The snakes are worse than the gators.  If you can swing it, get a membership to a local marina.  They get a fueled up pontoon once a week and cruise the inter-coastal.  My in-laws used to live in Spring Hill and that is full of retired East Coasters.  We have had good times and bad times there.  Whatever you do, don't forget where you came from.  Everyone I know that moves down there seems to have long term memory loss.

Good luck on your new career.

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Josh, be wary when anyone says 'swampland'.  But good luck. 

I had a 'dual agent' representing me for a while in southwestern Florida.  Asked my attorney how that guy could sleep at night.  My lawyer said he lies on one side, turns and lies on the other.

Was very interested in this two-story house.  There was one story before the offer and another story afterwards.

Thank you.  You're a great audience.  Will be here the whole season.  Try the veal.

 

 

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24 minutes ago, HoosierCoop said:

I have a sister who (within the last two years) moved down to Venice Beach.  The snakes are worse than the gators.

I think this depends upon the different regions of Florida.  This is probably the case around Venice, but not the Tampa area.  In my 18 years here I've seen one poisonous snake in the wild.  We're gator country here.  It's hard to go a week without seeing one.

Black racers are a different matter though, those dudes are everywhere.  Coyotes too.

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