So why is florida real estate so dirt cheap... why did it crash so much?

[Circlenaut]

Hmm I'm doing an internship in Gainesville and it's not so bad. Plenty of people, decent bars, good weather (I love hot and humid). Maybe it's just because it's a college town. Though it does scare me from getting a job anywhere outside of Gainesville.

 

[RaistlinZ]

We should all just move to Gold Beach in southern Oregon.

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[bobdole369]

Hurricanes. When you have a huge chance of your house being scattered in 100 directions at least once a year, it better be cheap. Suppose brick houses might have a better survival rate though, or do those usually get destroyed too from the debris?

interesting, i wonder how much insurance costs

It's more like a huge chance 4-6 times a year. We (the state) got hit 6 times in 2004. Brick is useless and surprisingly weak against 150mph winds. Code (in most places you might want to live) requires poured concrete or filled block walls with roof straps that connect the roof to the concrete.

Insurance costs a LOT.

Take your typical midwest 120k house. Basic homeowners is about 400-600 yearly. I think they figure an extra mortgage payment is a rule of thumb or something.

Move that house to FL and its now worth 300k in a place you'd want to live (or in the dismal - soon to be ghettofied worse than detroit if not already cape coral/ft myers area - 30k lol) - Smack that house down in Weston or Parkland (fort lauderdale area) - and ignore the code violations, but the insurance on a comparable house costs 1200-1800 yearly for basic homeowners - now add wind coverage - a requirement for mortgages - which costs now 2000-3000 yearly. Now add flood coverage and you are almost 7k for just insurance.

BTW OP your folks are not making a wise financial decision investing in that area.

I think acts of God are usually not covered.

It's a separate rider on your insurance.

Truth be told - its got bugs like you wouldn't believe, its balls hot most of the time, the rain is miserably torrential (granted it usually lasts only 15 minutes), an average person sunburns outside in 15 minutes (even natives), horrible drivers, ridiculous traffic, unbelievable cost of living, and a job market based almost entirely on the service industry. There is nothing industrial to speak of. Oh yeah, and learn spanish for better job ops - and for buying groceries and gas - its a requirement.

 

[lxskllr]

I'd rather live in Detroit than Florida.

 

[Xonoahbin]

I've lived in Florida.. and will never live there again. The first ten years of my life and another three months after seven years turned me off of the place badly. Man, that entire state is a sinkhole.

 

[Phokus]

Originally posted by: bobdole369

Hurricanes. When you have a huge chance of your house being scattered in 100 directions at least once a year, it better be cheap. Suppose brick houses might have a better survival rate though, or do those usually get destroyed too from the debris?

interesting, i wonder how much insurance costs

It's more like a huge chance 4-6 times a year. We (the state) got hit 6 times in 2004. Brick is useless and surprisingly weak against 150mph winds. Code (in most places you might want to live) requires poured concrete or filled block walls with roof straps that connect the roof to the concrete.

Insurance costs a LOT.

Take your typical midwest 120k house. Basic homeowners is about 400-600 yearly. I think they figure an extra mortgage payment is a rule of thumb or something.

Move that house to FL and its now worth 300k in a place you'd want to live (or in the dismal - soon to be ghettofied worse than detroit if not already cape coral/ft myers area - 30k lol) - Smack that house down in Weston or Parkland (fort lauderdale area) - and ignore the code violations, but the insurance on a comparable house costs 1200-1800 yearly for basic homeowners - now add wind coverage - a requirement for mortgages - which costs now 2000-3000 yearly. Now add flood coverage and you are almost 7k for just insurance.

BTW OP your folks are not making a wise financial decision investing in that area.

I think acts of God are usually not covered.

It's a separate rider on your insurance.

Truth be told - its got bugs like you wouldn't believe, its balls hot most of the time, the rain is miserably torrential (granted it usually lasts only 15 minutes), an average person sunburns outside in 15 minutes (even natives), horrible drivers, ridiculous traffic, unbelievable cost of living, and a job market based almost entirely on the service industry. There is nothing industrial to speak of. Oh yeah, and learn spanish for better job ops - and for buying groceries and gas - its a requirement.

Thanks, i emailed this to my parents (they just got there today)

 

[SuperSix]

The ignorance/stupidity in this thread is deep.

< Lives in Tampa

 

[Phokus]

Originally posted by: SuperSix
The ignorance/stupidity in this thread is deep.

< Lives in Tampa

explain please!

 

[Newbian]

Originally posted by: SuperSix
The ignorance/stupidity in this thread is deep.

< Lives in Tampa

That's the problem with the heat there.

You spend enough time there you go crazy like everyone else.

 

[JS80]

Must be because all the repug rednecks.

Phokus.txt

 

[Phokus]

Originally posted by: JS80
Must be because all the repug rednecks.

Phokus.txt

Well if they're racist assholes like you, i could see how that would depress property values

 

[spunkz]

definitely wouldn't buy a house here. been here for 10 years and just about everyone i know has had trouble with their house, whether it's property taxes, hurricane damage, termites, flooding, price fluctuations, etc.

i love it here tho, but that's mainly because i've been renting and have avoided both the housing trouble and rush hour traffic. i've never had a problem finding a job, before or after graduating college, and the diversity of the population actually makes it really interesting. for every day that's extremely humid, there are 10 more that are beautiful beach days, and that goes for year-round so i find the weather to be excellent overall. plus there are plenty of nice, close vacation spots and no state income tax.

but if i were you, i'd tell your family that buying a house here would probably prove to be incredibly stressful and expensive in the long run.

 

[DT4K]

Real estate is cheap because everybody left.
Everybody left because the hurricanes drove insurance costs through the roof and nobody could afford to live there anymore.

Well, that's partially true at least.

 

[AyashiKaibutsu]

I lived in florida for 15 years. I liked it there... Would move there again if possible.

 

[Siddhartha]

Originally posted by: Phokus
My parents are in Florida right now trying to invest in some really dirt cheap florida properties for rentals (i'm talking 60K or less houses that would probably fetch at least 300k+ here in southwest CT). Our housing market barely budged, yet florida completely took it in the pooper, i'm talking homes losing 2/3rds of their price, and even at it's peak, the houses weren't that expensive to begin with. I noticed that unemployment in cape coral/fort myers (where my parents are looking) is 11.4 whereas unemployment is 7.4 where i live. Is that the main cause? Or are there other factors.

I have noticed that the areas that have been hit hardest by the current housing market downturn are the areas that had the highest housing prices three or four years ago. Certain parts of Florida and Los Angeles are examples of this.

 

[Gibson486]

Originally posted by: Phokus

Originally posted by: oldsmoboat
Because you have to live in Florida?

I live in CT... CT sucks balls, boring is hell. I bet i'd have a better time in florida.

Only negative i can see is the job market where my parents are looking is worse than CT. But i'm kind of surprised that a few percentage points would cause such a huge difference, unless there are other factors i'm not considering.

no you wouldn't. FL is just as boring. The only thing they have is the beach, and those properties cost alot.

But yeah...the situation down there sucks. My gf's parents bought a house down there years ago in Palm Coast. The house is worth next to nothing now.

 

[Siddhartha]

Originally posted by: Phokus
My parents are in Florida right now trying to invest in some really dirt cheap florida properties for rentals (i'm talking 60K or less houses that would probably fetch at least 300k+ here in southwest CT). Our housing market barely budged, yet florida completely took it in the pooper, i'm talking homes losing 2/3rds of their price, and even at it's peak, the houses weren't that expensive to begin with. I noticed that unemployment in cape coral/fort myers (where my parents are looking) is 11.4 whereas unemployment is 7.4 where i live. Is that the main cause? Or are there other factors.

Where in CT do you live?

 

[mrCide]

I've been here most of my life. I got suckered into the market and bought a preconstruction in 2006 (deposit in 2005). The stip was that you had to live there for a year (they wanted to attract homeowners/families and not investors). Well, I picked a 2/2.5 (2 masters) thinking it would be sweet to rent a room out or sell to a young couple after a year. Not so much. Paid 260 and value is around 150 now. Fortunately it's a decent area/community and I didn't get suckered into an ARM loan, but it's still expensive as hell. owe about 200 on it. Such is life I guess.

As for Florida in general. I hate it. I've wanted to get out of here for a long time, and the plan was to hit NC or TN or something after hopefully making a few bucks on the place. I can't stand the people here, the weather sucks, driving is awful (although I really like the simplistic streets and you're never far from anywhere you want to go), the people suck, insurance is sky high for everything, the people suck, and did I mention that the people suck?

There's no sense of community and just too many assholes. I yearn for a nice home on a small piece of land with good neighbors (all around) and friendly people.

Anyway, yeah. Screw south Florida. Can't speak for the rest of the state.

 

[Gibson486]

Originally posted by: Phokus

Originally posted by: Xanis

Originally posted by: Phokus
So wtf, there are NO liveable areas in florida or something? I see all the pretty pictures and i curse the POS state that i live in.

IMO, CT is beautiful in a different way. The are your parents are looking at (Cape Coral / Ft. Meyers) is actually pretty nice.

Well, it has some nice nature parts to it, but the cities blow

yeah, i went to hartford for 3 days for business. I was really dissapointed.

Fl has some decent parts. The parts that are pictured cost alot, though. Parts that are nice and you can afford, they are in the middle of no where.

 

[SunnyD]

Because of the limited sustainable income potential. Most retirees had a good chunk of their savings wiped out when the market tanked. The real estate in Florida was riding a HUGE bubble because of it, and that bubble popped. In the Orlando area for example, over the course of 8 years market values went up 4x-10x depending on the exact area. Finally, Florida's the retiree state - there's a lack of jobs, particularly skills well paying jobs. Making money down there is a pain, and definitely not easy to sustain the ridiculous real estate prices from 5 years ago. So people got screwed left and right, and the bubble popped like nuclear fallout.