OT: Central Florida Huskies?

[TWG236]

MS Nan, wife and I relocated to Clermont in May. Already have tickets for both South and Central Florida games. So, welcome to the warmth and enjoy the lower taxes. Also Huskynut is 100 percent correct, Town Tavern in Celebration is a fantastic restaurant. Great food and a better atmosphere. Nice place to take a walk prior to or after dinner. So let me join the rest, welcome. Oh by the way it has been in the 90's 80 percent of the time since we relocated. I hear better weather is coming.

 

[wbbfjlf]

My husband and I would like to relocate to the Orlando area, any suggestions as to where. Just too expensive in CT.

 

[uconnfan68]

My husband and I would like to relocate to the Orlando area, any suggestions as to where. Just too expensive in CT.

Depending on where in CT, it might be too expensive. Florida real estate is pretty hot.

 

[CTexpatinFL]

Welcome to Florida, been here in the Daytona area for 15 years. the normal temperature for this time of the year is 80-82 degrees, unsure why it's been so hot. When people want to visit I always say the last two weeks in October is the best. There will be cooler weather coming.

 

[tomcat]

If anyone decides on a Central FL UCOnn get-together, let me know. Would love to meet other BYers.

 

[huskeynut]

My husband and I would like to relocate to the Orlando area, any suggestions as to where. Just too expensive in CT.

Depends on what you are looking for. We started our search in 2013. Our first trip south took us to The Villages, Heritage Hills (55+ community) in Clermont and Solivita (55+ community) in Kissimmee. We also took a few days in Nashville checking out normal housing. We didn't have a realtor our first time down, we did it on our own.

Second trip down in August, 2014, we did Play & Stays in Arlington Ridge in Leesburg, Heritage Hills in Clermont and Solivita in Kissimmee. Stay and Plays are 3 day/ 2 night stays were you have a guide/ ambassador to show you around the community and give you a sense of life there. Notice that The Villages was not on our list the second time down. By this time we had a realtor because we had listed our home in Newtown.

When we finally sold on July 1, 2016, we set up a series of homes to see over 9 days. The first two days we saw over 20 homes in five different communities. We put in a bid on one home and signed the papers the next day.

We purchased in Solivita. Its a community of about 5,000 homes. A quick summary - there are two major club houses with pools, spa, excercise rooms and meeting rooms. There are an additional 12 pools in the community. there are over 200 clubs to join. The community has a village center with a ballroom, a bistro and 2 restaurants. We also have two 18 holes golf courses, a driving range, puttig ad chipping greens and a pro shop. The list of concerts, special dinners (upscale) and special events like the 4th of July, Memorial Day are too numerous to mention.

We pay a monthly HOA fee and a monthly maintenance fee. They do all the mowing and trimming. For us, the move to Solivita was the right one for us. We are more busy now than any time during our retirement. My wife is and instructor for computer software applications and is the choir director for a church down the road. I play in 2 different bands (retired band director here) as well as our Community Emergency Response Team and the Neighborhood Captains Program.

I have gone on enough. There is much to see and do.

 

[tomcat]

As for relocation, the big question is whether you want a 55+ community or not. They have their advantages and disadvantages, so it's good to think about that before you even begin to look. If you decide on one of those, there are all kinds, ranging from entire cities (the Villages or Top of the World) to small developments. If not, then it's all a matter of what kind of community you choose to live in, We started in a 55+ and this year moved to a regular neighborhood, where we are much happier.

BY the way, Orlando is a wonderful place to visit and has some very nice surrounding communities, but you need to consider the disadvantages, chief among them the truly oppressive traffic. If you have to go anywhere involving a major road, you will experience traffic. It's okay when you are visiting, but to go through it on a daily basis is not fun. We visit Orlando a lot to use its airport and to go to the parks, but I would not live there on a bet.

I wanted to live in a coastal community, and we picked Vero Beach because it's the northernmost point where you can comfortably get in the ocean 12 months of the year. It seems like a little thing, but when you're moving to Florida to be able to go to the beach, you want to be able to do it at any time of year, it seems to me. So now we live about 5 miles from a beach and have access to maybe 20 more. We're not so close to the water that hurricanes or flooding should be a problem. And I feel a lot more connected to the town than I ever did in a 55+ community, where, in our experience, you get connected to that development and not much outside it.

 

[wire chief]

We looked at New Smyrna Beach but like the energy of the Orlando to Cocoa area better. We’re looking at Rockledge but will rent near Orlando for a while until we can decide.

You should know about this then.

Red tide in Cocoa Beach, Satellite Beach, Melbourne Beach, Indialantic: What we know

 

[OviedoFLHusky]

Hi HuskyNan - welcome to Orlando!

As my handle implies, I live in Oviedo, one of the suburbs of Orlando. I "escaped" from the Great White North of CT over 35 years ago. Still don't miss those ice storms, leafless trees, and relentlessly gray skies in the winter.

Back in 2004, we were hit with 3 hurricanes fairly close to each other (Charley, Frances, and Jeanne). I recall my then-nail tech telling me that her sister's town, Viera, either never lost power or else got it back very quickly. This was because in Viera, which is a relatively new town, they bury the electricity wires underground. Don't know if that will help you in your house hunt; but if you're considering that area anyway, it's something to be aware of.

In the meantime, if you ever get homesick for "normal" seafood (cod and haddock, as opposed to mahi mahi and red snapper), try Boston's Fish House (near the corner of Aloma and Forsyth). The owners are from Massachusetts. Best seafood in town.