Tell me about living in FLORIDA...

[Heather in Neverland]

Now that we are planning our reentry into the states for next June, we are focusing our efforts on Florida. We love the weather, they will transfer my teaching certificate, they have lots of tennis academies to choose from for my kids, etc.

 

Other than, we only know what we read on the Internet. We have been looking in the Tampa Bay Area simply because it seems appealing and we have friends in Sarasota and Bradenton.

 

So all you current and former floridians, can you help a girl out? What are some great cities (and neighborhoods within those cities) to live in and why? Which areas should I stay away from?

 

We are looking to rent at least in the beginning until we get settled before we buy.

 

Any other advice?

[fairfarmhand]

I lived south of Tampa in the Riverview-Brandon area for about 10 years. (I was a child/teen at the time) It was about 18 years ago, so things have changed a bit.

 

Brandon has lots of nice little areas in which to live. At least it did when I lived there.

 

(keep in mind that I was a trailer park kid. So when I was a child-teen, anything that wasn't a mobile home was upper crust! LOL!)

[Truscifi]

Florida is very diverse. Are you looking for more rural, urban, suburban? Do you want near the beach, on the beach, inland near springs, away from water?

 

I love Sarasota. If I had the option to start over and pick a different place to live in FL I would go there. It is beautiful, has tons to do, is relaatively young (population) compared to the surrounding areas, and is not completely overrun by tourists and snowbirds.

[Mom-ninja.]

You sure you like the weather? Cause it's, um, hot. As in you must run a/c year round. Then there are the tropical storms/hurricanes that come through every now and then. Basically, plan on not being outside for the entire summer.

 

Are you planning on home schooling? That's easy in FL. Pinellas County has a huge home school community.

[SebastianCat]

I live in Tampa, in NW Hillsborough county.   Feel free to PM me if you'd like more specific information on this part of town.

 

There are large homeschool communities in the Lutz/Land O Lakes/Wesley Chapel area, and also in the Brandon area.   Lots and lots of things to do - sports, recreation, performing arts, shopping, etc.   Where I live I am 30 minutes away from the beach (regardless of traffic), and 20-60 minutes away from downtown Tampa (depending on traffic).   One hour away from Disney, slightly longer to other attractions in Orlando.

 

The weather is hot and humid, but you get used to it after about a year.    Tampa is really nice because our temps rarely get above the low 90's in the summer because of the sea breeze each afternoon.   Cities farther inland (like Orlando or Tallahassee) get much hotter.   We swim from February through November each year, and can wear warm weather clothes (shorts, t shirts, flip flops) for those months.   The only cold weather gear you'll need is a couple pairs of jeans and a jacket.   

 

Things you need to consider when moving to this area:

 

1.   Check hurricane evacuation zones.    Where I live now (Odessa) we are not in an evacuation zone, but we lived previously in Westchase and were in a category 5 evacuation zone.   Know what that means and what you are comfortable with.     If you don't want to evacuate, stay out of Pinellas county.

 

2.   Check to see if flood insurance is required where you live.   The closer you are to the coast, the more likely it's going to be required.   (I don't know about renting and insurance, but it's a big expense when buying a home.)

 

3.   Check sinkhole activity, and the cost of sinkhole insurance for whatever property you are looking at.   Some areas are much more active than others.

[mom2att]

Sounds like you've narrowed it down to the west coast.  There's info about the Tampa Bay area in this thread (as well as Floridians chiming in from other parts of the state).

 

I love Florida, but it's like several different states depending on where you live.

 

 

[Audrey]

All of Palm Beach County is hell.  They need to put a great big arch over the Port of Palm Beach that says "Abandon hope, all ye who enter here." 

 

 

 

You're welcome.

 

 

[FaithManor]

Absolutely agreeing about Palm Beach County.

 

We have never lived there, but have relatives in St. Pete who love it.

[Harriet Vane]

I'm not familiar with southern Florida.

 

A dear friend of mine lives in northern Florida, and it's lovely. She is in St. Augustine. The area has lots of nifty historic stuff as well as state parks and beautiful beaches. Summers are hot, but winters are wonderfully pleasant. I adore walking along the beach in February. It's never cold there, but the winters are not the grilling horror of the south.

[Beth78]

Good areas of southern hillsborough county are Brandon, Valrico, Bloomingdale, Riverview, Lithia, the Fishhawk area is really nice. We currently live close to downtown Tampa but we are buying a home in Valrico. Gibsonton is good, Ruskin is iffy, Apollo Beach is nice, Sun City is older folks mostly 55+ housing only. I wouldn't move to Temple Terrace or around there, or any where around USF, Ybor, a few others. I have lived in hillsborough county my entire life so I know about most of the neighborhoods.

[NotSoObvious]

All of Palm Beach County is hell.  They need to put a great big arch over the Port of Palm Beach that says "Abandon hope, all ye who enter here." 

 

 

 

You're welcome.

 

 

I agree. I live here.

[SwallowTail]

(putting on my local accent for flavor):

I'mma tell you a secret ....it's HOT.  Hot as Hades. 

 

We are in Gainesville.  It is great, but is two hours to the beach.  That has its pro's and con's.  It is an awesome city though, but has high property taxes.

 

My in-laws are in Riverview.  It is nice, but quickly getting very crowded, as they cram more and more homes into the suburban developments and put shopping centers on every corner.  A new mall is being built as well.

 

I have also lived in Jacksonville, Orlando, and have spent quite a lot of time in St. Augustine.  What do you want to know?

[Myeightkiddies]

If you like having your windows open and feeling a breeze, be sure to get a house on the beach.  Without being on water, it's too hot to open your windows with the exception of a couple days a year.  The humidity level makes the heat even more intense.  You'll always be sweating when you go outside the house.  There's no snow.  Some winters may still be in the 30s; however, you may also need to run your air conditioner some months.  In the summer it often rains at least once a day, but it doesn't cool things down as it just increases the humidity even more (sauna like).

 

In some areas there are a lot of tourists.  This means restaurants are packed in the summer/closed in the winter; traffic is horrendous in the spring/summer; prices are increased everywhere; and it seems that most improvements done are for the benefit of tourists rather than residents.  The upside is that you can go to Busch Gardens, WDW, Universal Studios, etc. more easily, but the expense eventually adds up and isn't likely to be done too often.  Hurricanes cause a whole other level of inconvenience, including food/gas/water shortages and no electricity for a week or more.  That area of Florida gets hit, either directly or indirectly, often.

 

That's a lot of negatives, but some really great friends can make all the difference in the world.  Just rent for a couple of years.  If you like it buy a house, and if not, you are more free to move.

 

 

[sassenach]

Loved living in (north) Clermont. I also like Windermere, Winter Garden and Oakland (which are all in the same general area). I adore the west coast beaches and Sarasota.

 

I'm not a hot weather girl, but I adapted. Get a place with a pool. It makes all the difference in the world.

[Cinder]

I bet all the weather talk doesn't scare Heather a bit after living in Malaysia.  :D

[Twilight Woods]

I can't give you any feedback as we just moved to FL from IL. We moved to Brevard County. I love it so far. The 2 days we were unloading the truck I swear the humidity rose on purpose. :) I am a warm weather girl so it suits me just fine and I can't wait till the winter months... no more coats, gloves or below zero weather. 

[idnib]

Wait, what's the story with Palm Beach County? Don't leave me hanging...

[Trish]

You sure you like the weather? Cause it's, um, hot. As in you must run a/c year round. Then there are the tropical storms/hurricanes that come through every now and then. Basically, plan on not being outside for the entire summer.

 

Are you planning on home schooling? That's easy in FL. Pinellas County has a huge home school community.

 

Homeschooling rules are NOT onerous in Florida, and there are plenty of great groups. Our group often runs into Tampa to the Straz Center to see plays/musicals. There's a ton of stuff to do in the Tampa Bay area.

 

We do run the A.C. year round, pretty much, but since I'm from the north I've always felt it beats seven months of ice/snow and jackets! However I don't "stay inside" all summer -- I just exercise in the morning or evening rather than noon.

 

I'm still amazed how nice the weather is practically all the time.

 

[Audrey]

I bet all the weather talk doesn't scare Heather a bit after living in Malaysia.  :D

 

 

I'll bet the bug talk doesn't phase her, either. 

[TheBugs]

I can't give you any feedback as we just moved to FL from IL. We moved to Brevard County. I love it so far. The 2 days we were unloading the truck I swear the humidity rose on purpose. :) I am a warm weather girl so it suits me just fine and I can't wait till the winter months... no more coats, gloves or below zero weather.

I used to live just south of Brevard. Brevard has so much to do from the zoo to Kennedy Space center and the beaches are nice too. We actually had some cold winters four years ago, as in wearing a sweater and jacket and that was nice. The winters last two years were perfect. I love the winters in Florida. I'm on the other side in Bradenton now. Still getting to know the place but so far I like it. A manatee swam past me at the beach. I had never experienced that before.

[Trish]

I'll bet the bug talk doesn't phase her, either. 

 

On the one hand there are more bug issues in Florida. On the other hand, Floridians deal with them better. I had worse problems with bugs when I lived up north.

 

Example: every time we'd try to eat outside on our deck up north, there'd be persistent problems with flies and bees. It ultimately fell into the Not Worth It Category to eat outside.

 

Here in Florida, eating outside is no problem (at least in the winter, spring and fall) because many people (including us) have a screened-in lanai. (that's like a back porch/patio area, although bigger than what we had up north)

 

Also, we have a pest control service that comes out quarterly, and will come out anytime there is a problem with bugs/pests.

 

On the other hand, Florida can't hold a candle to our snowplowing prowess up north! We're pretty good at driving in snow, too. I just don't want to anymore.

 

[Heather in Neverland]

Florida is very diverse. Are you looking for more rural, urban, suburban? Do you want near the beach, on the beach, inland near springs, away from water?

 

 

 

We like the suburbs but near a large city for the amenities. Being at least somewhat near the ocean would be great.

 

You sure you like the weather? Cause it's, um, hot. As in you must run a/c year round. Then there are the tropical storms/hurricanes that come through every now and then. Basically, plan on not being outside for the entire summer.

 

 

(putting on my local accent for flavor):

I'mma tell you a secret ....it's HOT.  Hot as Hades. 

 

After fives years of living on the equator where temps are 95 degrees with 90% humidity every single day of the year and a monsoon season that's 6 months long, it's gonna be tough to scare me when it comes to hot weather. Snow OTOH... that's when I run. :)

 

I'll bet the bug talk doesn't phase her, either. 

 

Definitely not. I've learned to live with cockroaches so big I can hear them breathing. :)  Snakes don't bother me anymore either. But someone mentioned alligators and I admit that gave me pause.

[AmyontheFarm]

5 Pictoral Reasons to not live in Florida (I am Canadian and will not be snow birding in Florida!)

 

Scorpions

http://s2.hubimg.com/u/4850921_f260.jpg

 

Giant sized FLYING!!!! Cockroaches

http://s1.hubimg.com/u/4850878_f260.jpg

 

Asian snakes

http://images.nationalgeographic.com/wpf/media-live/photos/000/002/cache/kudzu-snake_263_600x450.jpg

 

Giant snails

http://www.google.ca/imgres?imgurl=http%3A%2F%2Fimages.entertainment.ie%2Fimages_content%2Frectangle%2F620x372%2FGiant_snail_Africa.jpg&imgrefurl=http%3A%2F%2Fentertainment.ie%2Fwtf%2FGiant-snails-invade-Florida-Giant-Mothertrucking-Snails%2F177565.htm&h=372&w=620&tbnid=R7jxKcSDUwggGM%3A&zoom=1&docid=X23J_2Frr3VZjM&ei=X9niU5-XAsmbyASQuoDwBQ&tbm=isch&client=firefox-a&ved=0CCAQMygDMAM&iact=rc&uact=3&dur=641&page=1&start=0&ndsp=23

 

Very large snakes

http://www.google.ca/imgres?imgurl=http://abovethelaw.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/snake.jpg&imgrefurl=http://abovethelaw.com/2012/12/florida-im-tired-of-these-motherfkin-snakes-in-this-motherfkin-state/&h=196&w=257&tbnid=R-bk9cL0aJQIcM:&zoom=1&docid=Z8CEBX6UO9CngM&ei=gdniU5eGKoq1yASli4DADg&tbm=isch&client=firefox-a&ved=0CFsQMyg4MDg

 

And you already know about the alligators.

[Occasionally]

We like the suburbs but near a large city for the amenities. Being at least somewhat near the ocean would be great.

 

 

 

After fives years of living on the equator where temps are 95 degrees with 90% humidity every single day of the year and a monsoon season that's 6 months long, it's gonna be tough to scare me when it comes to hot weather. Snow OTOH... that's when I run. :)

 

 

Definitely not. I've learned to live with cockroaches so big I can hear them breathing. :)  Snakes don't bother me anymore either. But someone mentioned alligators and I admit that gave me pause.

 

We lived in FL when I was a kid. The taught us in school how to run away from an alligator.

 

ETA: I forgot that I had a substitute teacher for my first week or so of school there. The regular teacher had been bitten by a black widow spider.

 

And we had a scorpion in the laundry room. My mom was unhappy in FL, to say the least. We lasted about 2.5 years.

[Myeightkiddies]

 

Giant sized FLYING!!!! Cockroaches

http://s1.hubimg.com/u/4850878_f260.jpg

 

 

Palmetto bugs are everywhere.  They like to live in your house too. One of their favorite spots is your dishwasher.  It isn't uncommon to see huge antennas peaking through the vents of the dishwasher.  Also, they are clever and play dead. If you smack one, it will just be still.  When you walk away for something to clean it up, it will disappear.  One way to tell that it is faking is that it will lie there with its nose/head pointing downward at a slant.  You have to hit it hard to kill it.  Feet up is your goal.  I've had many fly and land on my head or shoulders - while shopping at stores.  After 50 years in Florida, I don't miss those things, at all.

[texasmama]

Texas

 

:D

[Myeightkiddies]

We lived in FL when I was a kid. The taught us in school how to run away from an alligator.

 

ETA: I forgot that I had a substitute teacher for my first week or so of school there. The regular teacher had been bitten by a black widow spider.

 

And we had a scorpion in the laundry room. My mom was unhappy in FL, to say the least. We lasted about 2.5 years.

 

Was it to run in a zig-zag pattern?

 

If there is water, there may be a gator.  I've seen them in small drainage ditches near fast food restaurants.  Every pond and creek near the houses that we've owned has had them.  Just have to assume one is there, and if not, one will be there soon.

 

One of our homes had a ton of black widows.  It was always a battle to get rid of them.  I was happy to move from that house.

 

I had only seen one scorpion before and that was when I was a child.  However, my daughter, who still lives in Florida, is seeing them frequently now.

[Joker]

 

 

Definitely not. I've learned to live with cockroaches so big I can hear them breathing. :)  Snakes don't bother me anymore either. But someone mentioned alligators and I admit that gave me pause.

 

We've been here 10 years and the gators give us zero pause. We actually have one living in our retention pond and he bothers no one. When we first moved here I was completely freaked out by the lizards, snakes, bugs, and gators. Now, I just share their space and deal with them when I have to.

 

I know you are thinking of the Gulf side of Florida but want to put in a plug for the Atlantic. St. Augustine is awesome and we're an easy drive to anything else in Florida.

[Joker]

As far as scorpions go, we had them everywhere when we lived in Texas but I've never seen one in our area of Florida. I've heard others mention them but I haven't seen them. They are the one thing I will not put up with again as I grew up with them and just can't do it again.

[Cindy in FL.]

The scorpions in Florida are no big deal. We get them in our house fairly frequently, but even if they sting you it's no worse than a bee sting. We've all gotten stung at least once.

[Cindy in FL.]

I love living in Florida. We live near Crystal River (home of the manatee). Definitely more rural, but we can be in Tampa or Orlando in an hour and fifteen minutes. Close enough to the big city for me!

[kroe1]

I was not going to respond. I am not sure why I am responding now.

 

We live on the west coast of Florida on one of the barrier islands. We also have a home on the mainland in one of the planned golfing communities Florida is so famous for.

 

We have sharks in the backyard at one home, alligators in the backyard at another. Your chances of a negative encounter with one of these predators is minuscule. They do not bother anyone and are both terrified of people. I work in an ER and have seen one bull shark bite in 6 years.

 

The weather is always perfect. Plan to spend at least an hour outdoors a day. Most homes have a lanai which is a covered patio. They also have a cage which extends out from the lanai and covers the pool. There are no Mosquitos or other creatures in a properly fitting cage unless you choose to bring in plants.

 

Most of the homes also have floor to ceiling sliders. These are big glass sliding doors that open an inside room completely to the lanai and cage. They are awesome. This allows me to live outdoors most days while still being inside.

 

The amount of stuff for kiddos and adults is unequaled except to New York where I live. There are ocean activities, theater, sports, fashion, wildlife, and multiple colleges all within a stone's throw. The biggest problem with living here is deciding what to do each day.

 

You have nailed down the right Floridian areas to check out. Stick with the west coast south of St. Pete.

 

Even a bad day in Florida is better than anywhere else.

[mom2att]

Most homes have a lanai which is a covered patio. They also have a cage which extends out from the lanai and covers the pool. There are no Mosquitos or other creatures in a properly fitting cage unless you choose to bring in plants.

 

Most of the homes also have floor to ceiling sliders. These are big glass sliding doors that open an inside room completely to the lanai and cage. They are awesome. This allows me to live outdoors most days while still being inside.

 

Even a bad day in Florida is better than anywhere else.

 

I love living in Florida, but "most homes" having these features is definitely a misnomer.  In the newer neighborhoods with home prices starting in the 250 - 300K range, sure.  But in my very middle class neighborhood of 70's ranch style homes, not so much.  Many more homes have a pool than up north, that's for sure, but I wouldn't say that even most pool homes are screened or have a lanai, since if your home was built in the 70's, your pool probably was as well.

 

Living in one of the newer, "planned community" neighborhoods means there's a good chance that if you don't have a backyard pool, you do have a neighborhood pool, some very fancy with resort-type amenities (and the accompanying HOA fees, of course!).  But lots of us just live in regular neighborhoods with plain old backyards and no pool, lanai, or indoor/outdoor space.

[pooh bear]

I love living in Florida, but "most homes" having these features is definitely a misnomer.  In the newer neighborhoods with home prices starting in the 250 - 300K range, sure.  But in my very middle class neighborhood of 70's ranch style homes, not so much.  Many more homes have a pool than up north, that's for sure, but I wouldn't say that even most pool homes are screened or have a lanai, since if your home was built in the 70's, your pool probably was as well.

 

Living in one of the newer, "planned community" neighborhoods means there's a good chance that if you don't have a backyard pool, you do have a neighborhood pool, some very fancy with resort-type amenities (and the accompanying HOA fees, of course!).  But lots of us just live in regular neighborhoods with plain old backyards and no pool, lanai, or indoor/outdoor space.

 

And where I live you would be lucky to see a lanai let alone a pool. Most of the homes around me are moblie homes but 5 mins down the road and you are in The Villages. Pools and lanais galore there.

 

And a couple of people have mentioned having the a/c going year round. Not in this house. From about October to April it is hardly on. There are times when it does get warm and we have been known to have the a/c during Thanksgiving and one year Christmas, but those are exceptions. Northererns do Spring Cleaning and get cabin fever in the winter. We (well I do) Autunm Cleaning and get cabin fever during the summer. The first day that the temps are comfortable and there is no humidity all the windows and doors are open in my house.

[Liz CA]

I agree. I live here.

 

Now I am curious what is going in Palm Beach County? Taxes? Crime rate? Climate?

[umsami]

If you are renting, you can still get flood insurance as a renter, and it's a good idea.  The policy was not iMHO expensive.  We paid ~$200 annually, but as we Iive on the Gulf coast, it makes sense.

 

Schools really do vary in FL.  Homschooling is easy, you just send a letter to your local county's school board (I sent an email).  Homeschool students can do dual-enrollment, can take classes through the FLVS, and are eligible for Bright Futures college scholarships.  It may be a little late in the game, but you can also check out FL's college savings plans.  

 

There are a lot of good state colleges…both private and public.  While most people know about the University of Florida, Florida State, and Miami….there's Florida's New College, which is a public honor's college in Sarasota.  There's also Stetson in DeLand and Rollins in Winter Park…both two very well-regarded small liberal arts schools.  

 

We had scorpions in Jacksonville, but I never saw them living in the Orlando or Ft. Myers/Naples areas.

 

One thing we have found is that renting is expensive in FL.  We went through trying to find a home in Orlando and the market was very tight.  DH would show up at an open house right before it started, and the owner would have 4-5 applications already.  I don't know if the Tampa/St. Pete area is as tight….but just allow yourself time.  Zillow, Realtor, Trulia, and Craisglist are all good sources.  You can get an idea on how nice an area is by looking at its Good Schools ratings.  In general, if the schools are a 8-10, then the area is probably good.  (Not always true, but it's an easy way.)

 

If you can find a house with ceiling fans and a screened in front door and lanai, life can be good.  If you rent a house with a pool, most will have a pool cage which is great.   Houses we've rented have included lawn care, outdoor pest control, and pool care.  If your lease does not say that, it's something to negotiate.   HOAs in the Naples area tend to cover lawn care.  In JAX and Orlando, that wasn't the case when I lived there, but things may have changed.  Otherwise, pool guy is $100 or so/month, same with a lawn guy.

 

Of course, if you buy, get a home inspection, and also have Massey or Truly Nolen do a termite check and then a bond.

 

Good luck. :)

[Liz CA]

We've been here 10 years and the gators give us zero pause. We actually have one living in our retention pond and he bothers no one. When we first moved here I was completely freaked out by the lizards, snakes, bugs, and gators. Now, I just share their space and deal with them when I have to.

 

I know you are thinking of the Gulf side of Florida but want to put in a plug for the Atlantic. St. Augustine is awesome and we're an easy drive to anything else in Florida.

 

I don't want to hijack Heather's thread but this intrigues me: You have an alligator living in your pond and he is friendly, crawls out every morning and waves "hello?" How big is this sweetie?  :ohmy:  :svengo:

 

[Joker]

I don't want to hijack Heather's thread but this intrigues me: You have an alligator living in your pond and he is friendly, crawls out every morning and waves "hello?" How big is this sweetie?  :ohmy:  :svengo:

 

 

He's only about 3 feet. The wildlife people will relocate once he is over 4 feet or is a danger. We've heard he likes marshmallows but we don't feed him because it's against the law (and I don't think that would be a good idea). We keep our dogs away but other than that he just swims and sunbathes.

[gingersmom]

Thank you to everyone for confirming why moving to Florida was not a good option for me.

 

I had a run in with a palmetto bug 20 years ago I am still talking about!

[Myra]

I lived in Florida - outside of Tampa in the Brandon area - for five years. It was a great place to raise babies as all they need to wear is an oversized t-shirt and a diaper all year round! But when my kids got to be around 4 years old, I missed the North again.  I got tired of the fire ants (my son was highly allergic), missed hiking and camping, the signs on the playground announcing that the metal was too out that day due to hotness of  metal slides, etc, and worrying about the amount of insecticides/pesticides used everywhere to combat the pests.  I yearned for mountains, hiking, camping, swimming in lakes, wood stoves, snow, seasons, etc.  After five years, I traded the beautiful gulf oceans, the sunny and bright weather, and being near grandparents to go back North and have never regretted it a moment. 

 

Myra  

[elegantlion]

He's only about 3 feet. The wildlife people will relocate once he is over 4 feet or is a danger. We've heard he likes marshmallows but we don't feed him because it's against the law (and I don't think that would be a good idea). We keep our dogs away but other than that he just swims and sunbathes.

 

When we moved from the midwest to Louisiana, I was freaking out about alligators. Shortly after we moved they pulled a 7ft one from the around the block. Honestly, they didn't phase me as much as I had thought. We ended up having two live in our drainage ditch for a time. One was bout 2 ft long, the other about 3 ft. Wildlife wouldn't relocate them either, and we would go out and watch for them. One was named Bandersnatch. They were kind of cute in an alligatory sort of way. 

[Pink and Green Mom]

I live in Pinellas county and have yet to see an alligator locally that wasn't in Busch Gardens or in captivity at the local mini-golf place.  But maybe I'm purposefully avoiding looking in the right places, LOL.

[5of5]

Gainesville is number 3 for work-life-balance:

 

http://www.forbes.com/pictures/fjle45hjhh/no-3-gainesville-florida/

[SebastianCat]

I agree with the others who said that if you have water, you'll have alligators.   90% of the time they are harmless, as long as no one is feeding them (which is against the law and causes them to lose their fear of humans).   We've lived on a pond in a suburban neighborhood for 5 years now, and only had 1 gator cause issues - and we had him removed.   We have a gator in the pond about 30-50% of the time.

[purpleowl]

I live in Tallahassee and will be happy to try to answer questions about this area if you're interested.  Tallahassee is basically south Georgia, except that it happens to be the capital of Florida. ;)  Oh, but you're reformed, right?  We do have a great OP church!

[Guest]

Thank you to everyone for confirming why moving to Florida was not a good option for me.

 

I had a run in with a palmetto bug 20 years ago I am still talking about!

HaHa! Exactly what I was thinking, though I already knew you could not *give* me a home in Florida and entice me to move there! (No offense meant to floridians, of course.)

[Liz CA]

And here I am whining about the heat and an occasional, harmless snake. I could be living with gators in my backyard. I shudder to think what my dog would do and in turn what they would do to my dog...

[Heather in Neverland]

The Malaysian equivalent of gators are monitor lizards. They only grow to about 5 or 6 feet but they are vicious when cornered. We see them everywhere since we live between an ocean and a jungle. One year a huge monitor lizard wandered into our cafeteria right in the middle of lunch. The screams could be heard for miles. :)

 

My dh and his assistant caught it and put the little cutie back in the jungle.

 

[Laura Corin]

I don't know Florida, but it sounds as if Florida has some similar disadvantages (heat, wildlife) to Malaysia, whilst having different advantages.  When we moved away from Asia, we were looking to deal with new disadvantages, not the same old ones, so that's something for Heather to consider.

 

L

[creekland]

I lived in Florida - outside of Tampa in the Brandon area - for five years. It was a great place to raise babies as all they need to wear is an oversized t-shirt and a diaper all year round! But when my kids got to be around 4 years old, I missed the North again.  I got tired of the fire ants (my son was highly allergic), missed hiking and camping, the signs on the playground announcing that the metal was too out that day due to hotness of  metal slides, etc, and worrying about the amount of insecticides/pesticides used everywhere to combat the pests.  I yearned for mountains, hiking, camping, swimming in lakes, wood stoves, snow, seasons, etc.  After five years, I traded the beautiful gulf oceans, the sunny and bright weather, and being near grandparents to go back North and have never regretted it a moment. 

 

Myra  

 

This is the same for us.  We moved to FL (St Pete) shortly after getting married as the great weather, beaches, and allure of the city called us.  All three of my boys were born there.  But, after 5 years (when my youngest was 6 months old) we moved back north with no regrets.  The heat and lack of true seasons were our main reasons, plus, both of us love living rural, but don't care for oodles of snakes.  (Bugs don't bother us - neither did gators, but yes, both were around.)

 

Now we just dropped my youngest off at Eckerd College (back in St Pete) as he's going to school there.  He's thrilled.  Heading there (and Disney) in Aug reminded me why we moved!  I still like FL from Jan - March (shortening winter), but I've absolutely no desire to live there year round again..

 

However, since the OP likes hot weather, I'll give a plug for St Pete, Gulfport, St Pete Beach, and some other surrounding areas.  If we had to move back, we'd move right back there.  For Florida areas, we love that one the best.  I also lived in Boca Raton for a year in my teen years (a few more moons ago).  I definitely prefer Gulf Coast to Atlantic Coast.