The Question is: What Moves You?
Here’s the thing about Florida: it’s always temperate. The state is a sub-tropical jungle in most places. It’s hot, it’s humid, little green lizards skitter all over the place year-round, and some of the best beaches in the country can be found there.
Beyond that, marshy wetlands filled with alligators, saltwater crocodiles, and all manner of wildlife dominate the state’s center in a national park called the Florida Everglades. These everglades are a beautiful national park that has an almost primordial feel.
Beyond these pristine ecological locales, some of the best cities in the country are in Florida. Jacksonville, Orlando, Miami, the exceptionally affordable Tampa Bay Area—these metropolitan hotspots have a reputation, and they’re a lot of fun. The oldest church in the country—St. Augustine—is on Florida’s east coast; and it’s not the only old Spanish area.
There’s a lot to recommend Florida to people in all economic classes and age groups. So at the end of the day, what do you like most about this sub-tropical paradise? Here we’ll cover a few regions and tips to help you choose your new home.
Beautiful Beaches
If you’ve been to California, you may be surprised that it’s easier to park on or near Florida beaches. They’re usually not as crowded, and you don’t always have to pay an arm and a leg to leave your car the day. Certainly, some beaches are costlier than others, but it’s a lot harder to find a temperate beach like that on the west coast. Also, the water is warmer in Florida.
Even better than that, though, is the fact that the cost of living in Florida—though slightly higher than the national average—isn’t nearly so prohibitive as what you’ll find on the west coast. In fact, it’s comparable to many midwest states.
The difference is, you’re going to have way better weather. But, there are also regular annual hurricanes. So if you are going to cozy up to the coast, you need to find property designed to withstand the worst wind and rain.
While most properties are constructed with this in mind, there wouldn’t be annual losses from these storms if everybody properly maintained their premises; so before you take a sweet deal on a coastal home, assure it’s got architecture requisite to withstand future storms.
Cost-Effective Inland Properties
The most cost-effective and safe properties in Florida will be inland, though since the state is quite flat, it’s wise to choose homes in an area where you’re not at an increased risk for floods. That said, you’re always within a few hours of the beaches, and traffic—though it can be a bit iffy—generally isn’t nearly so bad in Florida as it is in other states.
In California, people who were born and raised in Riverside just forty miles from the coast may live their whole lives without ever visiting the ocean. While that does happen in Florida, as some people just never leave home, it doesn’t happen to owe to traffic or costs. You can get to and from the coast from most places in Florida in a reasonable time with mild traffic.
World-Class Everglades
The Florida Everglades is a beautiful wetland area full of wildlife. While the saltwater crocodiles are usually toward the south, on occasion they’ll sneak north along the varying marshy channels—mostly you’ll see gators there, though. Regardless, this pristine area is full of natural beauty and a jungle vibe that feels downright primordial.
The Placid Gulf Coast
Tampa Bay is right on the coast, then north you’ve got Kissimmee and the state’s capital, Tallahassee. Property is generally quite affordable, and though the beach isn’t quite as grand as on the west side of the state, it’s still cost-effective and easy to access. Also, it’s warm year-round.
The Miami Tip And The Keys
Miami is perhaps the state’s most prized jewel, as are the Key Islands that are connected by highway stretching south. Property tends to be a little more expensive here, but when you compare it to the west coast, it seems like a massive bargain. If you’ve never checked out Miami or the Keys, you ought to.
Making Your Move
There are many different regions and reasons to make the Floridian move. To help you more efficiently coordinate your move to “the sunshine state”, this moving to Florida blog article by ISoldMyHouse.com has a lot of very pertinent information, tips, tricks, and fun facts.
The weather in Florida is fine—save the hurricane season—year-round, property is affordable, the cost of living is affordable, everything is beautiful, and the sunshine seems to never end. There’s much to recommend in Florida. If you’ve never been, visit; and if you like it enough to stay, why not put down some roots?