Yesterday was watching an infomercial about Palm Coast, today went to the website, good prices, seems like good area, but seriously, i want to know from you guys, what is the true lowdown on Northeast Florida, particularly Palm Coast?

New community? How hard is it to find a job? Population like? english still primary language?

Please Help me out, hehe.

Oh yeah, how close are the tracks?

 

hot
humid
mosquito's that will suck you dry (in a bad way)
constant threat of hurricanes
high healthcare (so i've heard, i havn't had to worry about it yet)
too many lawyers

i'd rather move somewhere in N Georgia in the hills of the mountains personally

 

The upside to all that is that we have some of the hottest girls here, makes the beaches even better.

 

oh yea, and the education system here SUCKS. don't let anyone tell you any differently. we're ranked among the worst in the country.

and its only going downhill with these new limits on class sizes... with no money to go along to make it happen they're going to pull from all sorts of other areas. can you say bye-bye florida pre-paid and bright futures scholarships?

 

Haven't spent much time there but there doesnt seem to be a whole lot there unless you're up around Jacksonville.

As long as you stay north of Orlando you're still in english speaking country, go much farther south and...

You're not really close to any 1/4mi tracks there. Your closest would probably be Gainsville which is at least an hour and a half away.

 

So hypotehtically speaing, it is still English there? Education doesnt really matter as I will be out of school already, lots of lawyers? humn.

Oh yeah, hurricanes, are they reallllly that bad? And do they cause that much damage?

 

well we havn't had a direct hit by a major one for a long long time, but from what i understand 95% of all damage is within like 15 - 25 miles from the coast, right around the eye wall... otherwise its a bad rainstorm, or a normal summertime storm.

whenever you see the guys on TV they're always within 2 miles of the coast, and all of those houses get wiped away. homestead wasn't too far from the coast as well.

 

Ok I've got to step in on all this Florida bashing. Florida is great. Period. Orlando is a crowded big city now. I havent been to the panhandle much. The education problem is as much the parents fault as any. I know lots of people who could care less about their kids education. Most just dont want any trouble out of their kids. Its a beautiful state that has been ruined by people moving here and trying to change the place into what they had "up north". Just nicer weather. Gated and deed restricted communities all over the place. The beaches that I grew up on cant be seen from the road anymore. Its kind of sad. That aside. I hope you come and enjoy Florida as is. We're alot more than rockets and Mickey Mouse. As for cost of living? We have some of the lowest cost of living here in Brevard County. Beach side homes for $150,000 and inland homes from $70,000 to $80,000 for a real nice home. Good luck

 

Another vote for Florida. Education is weak, as are a few other areas. Spend time with your kids, and lead by example. English is the language, but Spanish doesn't hurt. My 5 years of French have been used once since I moved here.

There are oppourtunities here that are not available anywhere else in the country. NASA, multiple major flight schools, the world's center of racing, some of the best beaches, and the diversity of people and things to do is replicated world wide (Eurodisney, etc.).

Come spend some time here and experience it for yourself. Palm coast is nice, but it is kind of a golf / retirement town. If that sounds good, it is very nice. Not too far from Daytona either.

Good luck and let us know when you are coming down!!!

 

I just may come down with my girlfriend(if willl be with her) for spring break and check out the area. If i like, we just may buy a house there and rent it out for a year or two, then once done with school, ought to be nice.

One thing that reallly got me thinking was the damn low cost of living. lol.

Like houses from $75k to $150k beachfront, that is amazing, here, the same house would be like $600,000 to $800,000.

And the weather, hehe, ought to be damn nice, esp since there is friggin snow out and my car is parked on ice, well, the winter car is, hehe, the Z is in the shop.

So anything else going on around the north eastern florida region? any descent post graduate schools there or?

 

The are you're looking at (Palm Coast) is very nice. There are alot of northern retirees in that area and alot of Miami-Dade people who left south Florida after hurricane Andrew. The whole city is brand-spankin new. As well, there are very few apartments in the are, though that will soon be changing with more condos being built. But the vast majority are private homes, which is good for quality reasons.

Again, Palm Coast is between Daytona Beach and Jacksonville but is really closer to Daytona and is counted in the Daytona metro area. It's about 20-25 minutes down I-95 to Daytona from there. Also, St. Augustine is right next to Palm Coast if you want some variety and to see something that is nothing like the rest of Florida.

I've been looking at houses over here on the wester edges of Daytona and I think when I finally get a permanent job and some more money I'll buy a house here. It's a nice area, very laid back (Im used to New York), and development is moving our way to get some more modern conveniences but without the big city congestion of the north and even Orlando.

Good luck.

-Rich

 

I don't know where you can find a "beach side" house for 150,000 but housing is still much cheaper than up north. My 1600sf 3/2 in a nice neighborhood with moderate sized lot was 90,000 back in 94. It's recently been appraised (for refinancing) at 115,000. But similar houses have been going for around 120-125 or so. I guess you could say I'm actually in the suburbs of Orlando. Orlando traffic is a nightmare. But I work 3rd shift so I'm always going in the 'other' direction from everybody else. Daytona. Ormond beaches are really nice. Lot's of tourism though, but not overly crowded. If you're planning on settling down in central Florida you may keep the school thing in mind before you decide on a location. Kids have a way of popping into the picture when you least expect them. Orlando has a pretty wide spectrum of jobs. Of course at the present time they're all taken. But that's sure to change sooner or later.

When you come down see if you like the area. Enlist some of us local guys to show you around. That way you're not wasting your time trying to find out what's here. There are some parts of the area that you'll want toi avoid.

I never knew Palm Coast played infomercials up North. That's too funny. I guess they think they can scalp a Yankee for an extra 25,000 on a house since they pay so much for real estate up there. They think it's cheap when they pay 150,000 for a 125,000 house. Don't waste time with the infomercial. Coming down and hiring a real estate agent would definately be a better idea.


BTW - Palm Coast is about an hour or more North of Orlando, and about the same or a little more south of Jacksonville.

 

You can buy a beach side house in Satellite Bch, Indian Harbour, or Indialantic in the 100,000 to 150,000 range all day long. Even less if you want to live near the Air Force Base. Older homes but most are well kept. Palm Bay aint too bad and 100,000 can get you a new home on a one acre lot. But its inland a coupe of miles.

 

Damn guys, not bad at all. So bad question, but how far do you guys need to go to find a place to skii? Or is that out of hte question? I guess there is water skiing. lol.

I will defnitely enlist you guys when me and my girlfriend come down, maybe parents come down.

I am still in awe about the housing costs, like I said, $200,000 buys you a small 3 bedroom townshouse with nearly no backyard. So for the same money, might be a mansion down south.

Is the cost of living lower in Florida or just housing?

Furthermore, like how long do you typically have to drive to a supermarket? Here in jersey we have Exits, lol, Either hte Turnpike or Parkway, lol.

Healthcare? anyone know?

 

Healthcare is mediocre in the state. You have a lot of older folks, so they are crowding the already busy hospitals and offices. Most are on Medicare, which with it's low pay scale does not encourage MD's to stay. I hear the cost of malpractice insurance is so bad that it costs $1.60 for every dollar of income. That sounds weird, but what I mean is that something a doctor figures is worth $1 to pay him and all his expenses, costs the patient $2.60 when malpractice is added in.

The cost of living is lower in FL, but so is the pay. Paramedics and cops start at like $20k a year. Computer engineers in the $30's. Yuck. Right to work state. Also means a right to fire state. Unions are about useless. That is too bad!

When I moved to FL I stayed with a buddy in Polk county. 20 minutes to the grocery store on the highway. I live near Daytona now. About 2 miles, and another 6 beyond that for all kind of food and stores.

Support the airlines and fly to skiing resorts. We banned snow here.

My 3/2 house with about 1600sq ft on about 1/2 acre was under $100k. Taxes are $1100/yr, and that includes garbage. Electric is about $120/mo even with A/C and my spa. Water is less than $20/mo, probably double that if you have irrigation and use it.

Voting is a good source of naitonal humor.

Hope this helps!