quote:

Originally posted by ElToro:
This is a timely thread. We are halfway through a small remodel to spit shine and then sell. My work has greenlighted working remote indefinitely so we are going to escape CA to FL. wife has much extended family in the panhandle. We are going down presidents weekend to look at properties. And hopefully make an offer and be out of here be end of school year.

ElToro: My house near Pensacola is for sale. Email me for a link, or this post.

I can understand wanting to leave your current location but you must thoroughly research your options. I have been in Florida for 18 years and want to leave.

Positive: No income tax
Negative: Hot and humid, high property tax, high insurance rates, having to subsidize insurance rates for homeowners on coast, hot and humid, bad political climate in larger cities. bugs, home upkeep (pool guy, inside bug guy, lawn bug guy, palm trimming guy, yard upkeep guys, screen repair guy, high homeowners assn fees, and more), hot and humid, crowded, liberals moving to Florida and bringing their tired worn out ideas with them, and hot and humid.

Options I have considered: North and South Carolina (ruled out; retirement income taxes, property taxes high). Tennessee ruled out; obscenely high sales tax but no income tax.
North Georgia: main negative for me is the income tax; considering as mentioned above, some taxes mitigated due to my age.

Currently looking at North Alabama: Exempt income taxes for Federal, State and local pensions. Do not tax social security, low property taxes, low insurance.

My choice is to move elsewhere in Florida and possibly become a snow-bird (second choice for me) or to consider move to North Alabama. Huntsville growing terribly due to influx of government transfers and people like me wanting to escape less than perfect locations.

Thank you all for the help! A little more information...We both work from home and we still have 8-10 years to work before we retire. Our retirement income will be from a pension, IRAs, 401Ks, mutual funds etc. We're sick of paying Illinois high taxes and VERY tired of the shitty politics.

We both love the heat and hate snow so that's why Florida and Southern Alabama are where we are looking. Thanks again.

The big question is where do you want to live in Florida. It can make a big difference.

My wife and I moved to Florida from New Jersey 21 years ago. We move to central Florida just South West of Disney.
We bought a brand new 1000 square foot home for $76000.00 for cash from the money we made on our home we sold in New Jersey.
Our taxes after all the exemptions are around $700.00 a year as of this year. They were based on what we paid for our house back then and current yearly assessments.

Taxes for homes now are based on current prices so they will be higher.

Not having an income tax has been great. A big part of our state budget is paid by sales tax and fees paid by tourists when the visit.

Sales tax can be different from county to county. The state has a base tax then the county can add to it for what they want. Part of ours in our county was for indigent health care at one time. Other county's use theirs for building new schools.

We were only planning on staying in the house for a few years, then we were going to buy a piece of property "not in a homeowners association" to build a house.

Twenty one years later we are still here in the same house.

When we moved here at first it was great. Even though we were neat two major highways it was still very rural. It was nice and quiet. No traffic, not a lot of business around but that was okay.
Now, what used to take you fifteen to twenty minutes to get to takes at times an hour or more. Traffic has gotten so bad I cant wait to move.
Inter State 4 improvements around me are not keeping up with the amount of people moving to the area. As far as I know there is no plan to do anything to try to improve the traffic problems either.

My wife and I own property on the side of a mountain in Tennessee. We bought it after we decided we did not want to retire in Florida.
Once again it all depends on where you want to live.

Good luck I hope this helps.

If you decide Florida , welcome! We need more right thinking votes to counter the NY and NJ idiots that are moving down in droves.

As to weather ... just so you are aware , if you start at the southern tip and drive northwest you won’t hit Alabama for about 16-17 hours. It’s a MASSIVE state north to south. And far northern Florida weather is far better in my opinion than far south Florida weather. North Florida gets about a month of extra cool nights that you can open your windows up in the winter. Far south Florida you might not be able to open your windows at night at all, all winter. Which sucks. My sister in law lives on the GA/FL border and it might be 60 at her house at night but 81 at mine in south Florida ...

The county you move to makes a big difference. My older brother lives in Tampa-Hillsborough Co.

We own property in Columbia County and the tax rate is hugely lower. Chuck wants to sell his home and build a small home on our property but he has no income so it will never happen.

But if I were to move back to Fla, I’d move to north Fla, like Live Oak, Mayo, Gainsville area...nothing near a big city.

Look up Madison, FL, a small old town in North Florida that is still rural.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: cne32507,

Property tax: We live in a gated community, about 870 homes, a pretty good mix of blue collar workers, white collar professionals, young couples in their first home, retired folks. Our house is probably somewhere around the mid range in terms of current value. We pay around $1,500.00 in annual property tax.

quote:

Originally posted by Boat Fun:
Killer, one other thing to consider is property Insurance. When I left FL insurance was darn near impossible to get due to hurricanes and people had to go through the state to get insurance which is very pricey. Just a thought!

We have had no problem at all finding homeowner insurance. The independent agent that we use shops the market for us every year and presents us with several quotes. We're right around $1,200.00 / year, right now, including hurricane insurance.

Somebody else mentioned sales tax. State sales tax is 6%. Counties have the option of adding a small "discretionary" tax, which mostly ranges from 0% to 1.5%. We are in Seminole County, right across the city line on the north side of Orlando. Our total sales tax is 7%. I usually try to do any shopping in Orange County with their 6.5% sales tax, because fuck Seminole -- I voted against the county 1% add-on, which passed by a fairly small margin.

Sales tax is NOT added to things like groceries, medical stuff, and a few other classifications.

Cool house. we want to be north of 98. Also looking at Pace, Navarre also near the Alabama border like century but on the FL side. Ideally we’d like a few acres. Only solid requirement is strong fast internet connection to I can keep working.

I’m of the opinion we should rent for 6 months to a year and then buy. But I open myself to interest rate risk as well as moving twice sucks. I work for a banks and can get an employee rate that’s very competitive but if rates spike in a year or 2 I could get hosed.

quote:

Originally posted by cne32507:

quote:

Originally posted by ElToro:
This is a timely thread. We are halfway through a small remodel to spit shine and then sell. My work has greenlighted working remote indefinitely so we are going to escape CA to FL. wife has much extended family in the panhandle. We are going down presidents weekend to look at properties. And hopefully make an offer and be out of here be end of school year.

ElToro: My house near Pensacola is for sale. Email me for a link, or this post.

[QUOTE]Originally posted by ElToro:
we want to be north of 98.

US 98 is about 1/2 mile north of my house, as it is the main drag in Gulf Breeze. Maybe you meant US 90?

You mentioned Alabama in the OP and that's the only one I can comment on. Been retired here in Enterprise, AL (pop +/- 25K) for going on 15yrs. We are 25mi from the Florida line. Just far enough back from the coast not to be hugely affected by hurricanes. We have had 2 tornadoes since I've lived here in Enterprise but both were 10+ years ago. One major one and one minor one. Lots of retirees here in Enterprise. There's an Army Aviation Post (Ft. Rucker) right next to Enterprise and many present and former military here from all over the place. Shopping is good in Enterprise. Got a big Publix grocery store, big Walmart, Lowes and many thriving local businesses. If you need to catch a plane, Dothan is nearby and Montgomery is just up the highway 60 or 70 miles or so. Now if you want to learn to fly, we have a well run municipal airport. Did I mention Florida is just 25mi away.

Property taxes are low, with homestead exemptions and after I turned 65, I got a total exemption on property taxes but besides age, that total exemption is also based on income and I'm not sure what the cutoff is. Buy something out in town and pay 9% State, City and County combined sales taxes on the purchase. The state of Alabama does not tax military pensions or social security. I haven't filed an Alabama State Tax Return since living here. I contacted the state tax people and found since all my income is military pension and social security, they said I didn't need to file.

Like Florida, lower Alabama gets hot and muggy. Winters are very mild too although it did snow one (1) day in the 15yrs I've been here in Enterprise.

quote:

Originally posted by Hobbs:

Been retired here in Enterprise, AL (pop +/- 25K) for going on 15yrs.

I believe that Enterprise's major claim to fame is the statue of the Boll Weevil.

Most people do not know that there were actually two types of Boll Weevil, a large one and a small one.

The large one is rare, and not much is known about it, but almost everybody has heard about the lesser of the two Weevils.

quote:

Originally posted by V-Tail:

quote:

Originally posted by Hobbs:

Been retired here in Enterprise, AL (pop +/- 25K) for going on 15yrs.

I believe that Enterprise's major claim to fame is the statue of the Boll Weevil. The deal is that when the boll weevil infested cotton crops in the early 1900's, it forced many area farmers to convert to peanut crops and this area of lower Alabama is still a "peanut capital".

Most people do not know that there were actually two types of Boll Weevil, a large one and a small one.

The large one is rare, and not much is known about it, but almost everybody has heard about the lesser of the two Weevils. <<< I saw what you did there HA !!!

Yes sir. There is huge Boll Weevil monument smack dab in the middle of the street in downtown Enterprise LOL. The deal on that is that the boll weevil infested cotton crops around 1900 or so and forced most farmers to convert to peanut crops. This area of lower Alabama is still known as a "peanut capital". So, a monument to the boll weevil was erected in appreciation of the pest that brought about good fiscal change and prosperity. Still a good bit of cotton acreage around too though.

Getting medical care in Enterprise is not a problem. We have a hospital and lots of clinics both medical and dental to choose from. The Veterans Administration (VA) has a clinic on the nearby Army Post. Dothan is close enough (also 25mi) for ANY specialist needs (human or animal) and a major full suite hospital is in Dothan and conveniently on the Enterprise side of Dothan.

Look at a map of Enterprise, there is a (mostly) 4-lane highway ALL the way around Enterprise. Boll Weevil Circle. Good for cruising around at speed and access and egress from Enterprise at many points. Enterprise is a great small town. I think it has everything I'll ever need.

^^^ All that said about Enterprise, I did live in Mayport Florida (think Jacksonville) when stationed there with the Navy and thoroughly enjoyed it !!! ... I could have chosen to retire anywhere ... anywhere ... but chose Enterprise, AL because of Alabama not taxing military pension or social security and the nearby Army post is convenient for using veteran benefits. I knew no one when I moved to Enterprise. Had never even been to Enterprise. Got lucky I think.

Hobbs, Dothan is one of the places we are looking at.

quote:

Originally posted by Killer:
Hobbs, Dothan is one of the places we are looking at.

It's a great town. A big small town. The largest city in this part of Alabama and just as close to Florida as Enterprise. Maybe a mile or two closer. Dothan has all the major alphabet TV networks (which we receive OTA in Enterprise). More traffic but Dothan checks all my boxes too. I just like the smaller Enterprise and go to Dothan only when I really need to ... mostly anything super special for medical and dental ... and a board certified veterinary surgeon who was formally head of a veterinary university in Virginia (a vet's vet), when one of my dogs needs him. Everything else is here in Enterprise and Dothan is just a 30min 4-lane drive away if need be a couple of times a year or few years or so.

Well, if Dothan is on your radar maybe look at one of the small towns close to Dothan/Enterprise but not too close. I live in a small town 30 minutes from Dothan. I am far enough away that housing/property tax is significantly lower but close enough to take advantage of most of the benefits of a city. Not much crime, no traffic, fast internet. Close enough to stores, doctors, restaurants. You have to be ok with dirt roads as soon as you leave the city limits, though.

I looked strongly at Hartford ... and Geneva when I was retiring and found those to be truly small towns. Great small towns but too small. Figured I'd have to go to Enterprise or Dothan pretty often. I know I run into folks when out and about in Enterprise who are from Hartford and Geneva pretty often. Definitely worth a look though. Those folks I run into from Hartford and Geneva wouldn't change it for the world.

Thanks for the information, guys. We planned on driving down there over Thanksgiving but our dog needed emergency surgery at the University of Illinois so we couldn't leave. We'll hopefully make the trip this spring.

Oh, there are certainly disadvantages. If you are a long time resident everybody knows your business. Marriage problems, everyone knows. Lost your job, everyone knows. That can help as well. Break your leg, somebody cuts your grass. Got the flu/covid, meals get delivered to your house.

Edit. One thing I really don't like about AL is the tax on food. I don't care if you tax frozen pizza or hot pockets but I think taxing staples like bread, eggs, milk is BS.

2nd edit. Drop me a line if/when you decide to look at my area. I would be happy to show you around.