Florida Prices are RIDICULOUS 😳 | We Had to GET OUT! 

Now that you’ve seen the numbers: Was selling our Florida house a bad move? What would you have done?

Having a house won’t mean squat if you can’t get insurance on it or can’t afford the property taxes. You guys do what is best for your family.

Florida native scrolling by... I am also trying to get my family out of this state and i don't blame you one bit for making the move.. it's sad because this place is all I've ever known but it's hardly recognizable now and it's a very hostile place to raise a family for many reasons these days. Wishing you lots of peace, luck, and prosperity for 2024 🎉

57K profit is awesome. Go team Wildflowers!

I left Florida 14 years ago, best move I've ever made...

Do what’s best for you. Some folks love judging and being mean.

We paid cash $60K in 2009 and enjoyed the beach & Parks and then costs went crazy as did traffic. Sold in April 2023 for $225K. It was a fun place while we could afford it. I do miss the 10 minutes to the beach.

My cousin lives in Florida. It is paid for. She is retired on SS. She cannot afford house insurance because it is $5,000/yr. Her utilities are very high even though she conserves. She is selling her house and moving to Ohio. Insurance is cheaper, taxes are cheaper, everything is cheaper. People who are not rich are being priced out

You sold your house at the high...good move

I live in south FL and it is very expensive here, fl has changed a lot!! rent is very expensive ,cost of living here is insane, food, etc, love it , we love the beach but it is enough, and salaries are very low, we are relocating this year to texas, as an RN i get double in texas

Y'all made a wise decision. We left coastal SC for some of the same reasons & made a slightly smaller profit. We were asked why we didn't use our home for rental income, too. NO WAY, after witnessing how some (even "good") renters absolutely disrespect rental properties. I wish you & your family all the best in 2024!

You did a great job on that little place, but I can sure understand how crazy those 3 years were for you! I do agree with your assessment of the situation and think we are in for a wild ride over the next few years. I own my home in Arizona but am planning on buying an RV just in case something happens here with crazy costs. I'm "mature" and on a fixed income - being debt free sure doesn't guarantee you a low cost of living anymore.

We moved to FL in 2002 from IN, originally from PA. We bought a brand new house and we are 40 miles inland from the west coast. We love it. Home owners Ins and Car ins is def more than any where else we Kate lived. It really does make a difference where in the state you live. The closer to the coast the higher everything is and the higher the ins. We have been here through many hurricanes and because if where we live we have not had issues. It blew our roof cap off during Ian and that was the worst we experienced. I do not miss the cold and snow at all.

This is really important information to know -- thank you! You're not the 1st person I've heard this about Florida (unaffordability). Those numbers are eye opening.

We live in Central Florida and our Ins. for home and auto is absolutely crazy!! I am so ready to move back to NC mountains, just waiting for the kids to graduate from UF and UCF.

The house is beautiful! Great job! You do what is best for your family!

You were so open about your finances and i thank you fir sharing. You did an awesome job with your reno! The buyers are lucky! ❤

Well all this now in the rear view mirror. Time to step forward on your new journey. We live here on the east coast and really have zero regrets. We knew what we were getting into. We sold our NY for a nice profit and got our home here as part of a family’s (wife’s side) estate since it was going to be sold so we jumped on it. 7/20 we arrived here and we noticed in ‘22 it was getting more expensive. Now in 2024 is the year we will be debt free. Just usual expenses like FPL, wifi, the mighty insurance bills, and taxes ( which are still less than what we’re paying in NY. Pending if something happened to myself or husband, moving back to NY would be an option since family and friends are up there and hopefully, our son would be out of this situation he is living with and be on with his life. Your budget book is a great tool. Please recommend to others. We appreciate your honesty with us and no holding back.

What was your asking price? $237,000 seems like a steal for a 3BR in Florida

Thanks for being transparent and sharing actual numbers. I think you made a wise decision. I’m glad it all worked out in the end. It’s sad what’s happening in Florida. I always thought a move there would just be the best but that’s no longer the case.

At least you all had a fun 3 year adventure! Glad it sold for a great profit :)

Lived in FL most of my life, looking to move out of this state when I retire in a few years. Never thought I'd say that, but the prices in this state have hit the stratosphere.

Good video. Nice and honest with the numbers, pros/cons etc.

I’m so proud of you! Good job. Once 2025 hits I think we will see you made the best decision. ❤

I live in Scotland and don’t know much about Florida but I think u made a very good decision. Not everyone will agree with you but as long as YOU know you’ve made the right choice then that’s all that matters.

Your home renovations look really nice!❤

I've been following your channel since the beginning, and I am inspired by your courage and 'can do' attitude. I love your content, so don't be put off by mean comments ❤

Good timing to get out of Florida. Been here 50 yrs, Miami, and would leave if I was not so used to the heat. A lot of Florida is going to have water issues, too much and too little. Water table is going to have to go up to prevent sea water ingress into the aquifer. That is going to cause flooding when it rains too much and restrict water use during dry season. Draining canals before storms is going to be more difficult. The people who study these things for Insurance companies know this and are telling there bosses to get out.

I think you made a wise choice to sell the house. I retired 3 years ago and was looking to move to FL but saw all the issues with homeowners and car insurance and decided FL was out. I currently live in NJ and taxes suck over 10k, Homeowner insurance 1170. per year auto 1100 per year 1 vehicle. I was looking in TN and also KY to buy a bigger property with less expenses.

I support your decisions. It's a big change to your life but also an adventurous move too.

We bought a small house in California in 2020 and paid 650.000 such a huge difference . I now worth 800.000 . Things are so expensive here barely making ends meet.

Smart! You did a great job. You did your research and your timing is good. My insurance quadrupled in 2 years. Am considering moving out of Florida after 40 years.

I really appreciate this video a lot. For the past two years I’ve been dreaming of retiring to Florida. Thank goodness I’m a researcher because you just confirmed what I have been seeing. I really glad that you were able to sell your house when you did. I do believe that in the near future that many will not be a fortune as you. Good for you to have the timing that you did.

I’ve lived in Florida for 52 years and WOW the cost of living is insane and about to be worse 2025 comes in with the new laws that allow insurance companies to have no limit on how high they can charge you for coverage. Also the new HOA’s fees are going through the roof nearly if not out doing mortgage payments for some! (Some, and not all but yet to see when 2025 comes.)

DeSantis should be in Florida helping people, instead of wasting his time, and other peoples money, chasing after the presidency!

You and your husband have done so well! You always put a lot of thought (and what is best for your family) into your decisions. You both work hard and are smart with your money. I'm very happy for u and your family! :)

I am very happy for you I am looking forward towards your journey

I’m in Australia and don’t know the USA at all I admire your strength and the way you get things accomplished. I couldn’t have left my house, proper shower, flushing toilet with 2 teens and a baby, cat etc to live in the trailer you are now in. I couldn’t cope with the cramped, close contact either. Hats off to you all Are houses cheaper in Tennessee ? Nicer area ? Your house is very very cheap compared to Australian cities. It’s really bad here for affordability in the big cities.

If I had to move, I'd far rather live in Tennessee any day than in Florida. I HATE the heat and humidity even here in SW Ohio in summer and love the change of seasons. I actually like winter. I've been to Florida; nice place to visit, but I never understood wanting to live anywhere a body of water. Living there has to be a whole other mindset, I guess. As a frugal gal myself, I think you guys are sharp, very hardworking and made a smart decision for your family. I watch a gal here on you tube (The Productive Homemaker); she and her crew moved to West Virginia, and she seems far more contented there.

Flipping houses is good money….seems like a great thing!

I wish people would stop with the negative comments! Move along if you don't agree then this channel is not for you! I find your informaton very valuable regardless if you are moving or not, each person has to decide if they want to try another state for savings, jobs impact a move but some companies have locations in several states and a transfer might be possible. Taxes are a real issue for everyone! I enjoy your information and pray for your continued success!

Hi Katie, i understand exactly how you feel. The property taxes as well as the homeowners insurance went up and the mortgage increased in my city and state. You have to do what is affordable for your family.

Thank you for sharing your story. 4 years ago, hubby and I bought our retirement home in FL... in that time, my property tax has doubled. Homeowners insurance has doubled. Car insurance up by 60%. Not sustainable for two old geezers living on a fixed income. Don't know how much longer we can hold on before we have to leave. I know things are expensive everywhere - but at least Las Vegas doesn't get hurricanes!

You made a good decision of moving your family out of Florida. Even if your house was paid off, the property tax and home insurance made it feel like you were still paying for mortgage. Hell imagine others paying all that on top of their high mortgage. My husband has a battle buddy who moved there in Clearwater in 2021. Just 3 weeks after moving in, there was a major leak inside the walls and they gutted the bathroom walls, part of the bedroom walls, and living room and then they had a hurricane that destroyed their roof that took months to fix bc of the insurance. They are in so much debt and currently selling the house for $500K almost the same price as when they bought it in 2021 😬 It’s been sitting on the market for 2 months now bc interest rate is almost 8% 😬 It’s a bad time to buy and sell, it’s even worse in expensive states. I also live in Tennessee, it’s where our family is from thank goodness but you can’t pay me to live close to a place where it gets hit with hurricane multiple times a year.

It’s always the right decision if it fulfills what you want in life.If you invest that money in vtsax then you will make a profit without the anxiety of home ownership.I wonder if you would like to live in another,cheaper country eg Mexico,south of France as part of your journey.Well done on taking chances and living a life that makes you happy.

Y’all did great! Anyone would be happy to have sold there house and made gains like y’all did! And you got out before it got worse too! ❤

Life is not perfect and there are ups and down. It’s best to be satisfied with what you have and make most of it!!

Wow great job on the renovations ! Great talent & taste! 😍what you did with the master bedroom!

Good job getting out of there with a few bucks before prices drop for many of the reasons you mentioned. I'm sure you'll have much less stress and be happier in a lower cost state with less flooding and storms.

your renovation skills are amazing! I really wish that I had that skill set. Congrats

I think you did a great job and have more freedom to do what you want for you and your family!

Very Very smart move. Older FL homes will not be able to get insurance in the future.

You’ve made a series of excellent decisions! I wish I’d had that much sense when I was younger.

Beautiful remodel!

I lived in Florida. I will never go back.

The east coast of Florida is definitely an expensive place to live. I have managed to live fairly frugally on the west coast of Florida but I renovated a park model in an rv park where you own the lot and I don't carry homeowners insurance. Not sure I would want to live in any other state but it would be nice if I could travel during the summers.

I think you made all excellent points. I would have done the same thing. Many things the average person wouldn't think to consider. I think your video is very informative and will help other people in the future.

I think you did a great job with the renovations, especially since it was an older home. I agree, that you made the right decisions, especially since you're young enough to start over moving to a new state. I, also live in Florida, Tampa area. I purchased this house in 2010, it has doubled in value, built in 1945. I purchased with a 3% interest rate, that has increased in this area also. I get texts and calls a couple times a week asking if I'm interested in selling. There are very few empty houses in my area, folks are desperate for housing especially rentals. Rents have doubled in price in this area over the past few years, I have had 4 different home owners insurance since purchasing, the companies have left Florida. My insurance has increased 300-400 a year over the past few years as well and the guidelines to even qualify are outrageous. I don't live on the coast, I'm 100 miles inland, not in a flood zone. My insurance is requiring a separate flood policy this upcoming year. I've been in Florida since the early 80's, it has changed so much. It amazes me that folks still keep moving here despite our higher cost of living.

You did a really nice job on the Florida house

At least you made a profit and learned a lot. Renting out the house would have been difficult as a long distance owner and the profit is a lot less than people think. I’ve been a landlord for 10 years and it can be very expensive , low profit, and you can have nightmare renters.

Someone paid 270k for that crap ???? good job girl! best decision you've ever made

We had to get out as well ! We had an 1100 sq ft condo our utilities were more then our 3000 sq foot home in New Jersey ! Crazy utilities insurance ( prop and vehicle) HOA taxes u name it

So glad you made some money for the next adventure !!!! 😊

What a pretty house. You’re very talented.

So much for the retirement Florida dream! Too expensive now because of insurance and rising HOA fees.

Insurance companies in California are raising prices 20-30% this year.

I just wanna say thank you so much for sharing. I was wondering if you can go into a little bit more detail of how much your insurance went up from the time you bought to the time you sold and your property taxes so we can get an idea and also you mentioned about your teenagers. How do they feel and how do you make the decisions to take them out of high school and put them in another high school? I’m facing the same deal in my life and I’m just trying to see Howyou are dealing with that situation. Thank you.

You did good! I don't think I'd have paid that price for a house in FL to begin with but that's where maybe you're smarter than me. I would have looked at that highly inflated price and walked away, shaking my head. You successfully rode the wave and turned a profit. Whether that was luck, hard work, good economic sense or all of the above, I'm happy for you and wish you continued success!

It least you saw the writing on the walls. I’ve heard recently that the insurance companies are cancelling insurance daily even in richer areas.🇺🇸🇬🇧

Even being from TN the FL summers were to hot? I always think of the ocean breeze in FL is you live near the ocean vs. TN with that stale air that is so thick not is hard to breath

*You made a smart decision. Thanks for the insight. My dad lives in Daytona beach right on the ocean and, he has several small rentals. He is Retired, and I haven't spoken to him because he is struggling and his dream was to retire in Florida* 😢

It's beautiful ! 😮😊

Older homes were built on piers which allows for small amounts of water to not cause property damage. Houses built on concrete slabs are stuck when the water rises.

That’s so great you made a profit. I’m not surprised with those improvements. I can’t believe you did all that for 5k. That is impressive!

It was a very wise decision

Hard to believe you paid so much for that house in the year when rates were so low. It must be a popular area. You got a great price when you sold it, so good move.

Im about to sell my Florida house cause of high insurance rates

I think you absolutely did the right thing. I would not want to live in a state where it was hard to insure your most valuable asset. Did you leave things like your washer and dryer behind and do you think you got your money back for those?

Even if you own your house doesn’t mean you afford your house today ! That’s how ridiculous it is! Every bill you have insurance utilities credit cards other loans not even lose your job ! Everything nickel & dime you to death! Everyone circumstances are different but we are all hurting every nickel counts as savings ! Blessings everyone!🙏

Congratulations!

Great job on house. Good call on leaving Florida. It will only get worse.

Holy crap those realitors fees are crazy huge! Where I live their fees are anything beteen 3 and 6% of the cost of the house. We bought a house last summer and the realitor got around 4% of the cost. 😬 N.B. I dont live in any of the Americas.

It was a good decision. I think the break even point for the selling transaction costs is only a year or two with the increase in property taxes and homeowners insurance. Also, with the condo/association fee law kicking in next year means you sold before condos flood the market. Insurance companies pulling out of Florida is the clearest canary in a coal mine with regard to climate change. Texas and California are having similar issues due to hurricanes and wildfires respectively. It makes living in the Midwest more sense if one can tolerate the winters which are getting warmer.

you did the right thing

Florida sucks, but I wouldn’t live in Tennessee not even for free.

Thanks

If I would move to Florida I would only consider a place with no HOA, not in a flood zone, At least 10-20 miles in from the Coast. Also Paying cash for the house, and self insure if you have the means to do so. This seems like the best way to mitigate your risk and keep your costs as low as possible. Thoughts?

i don't blame you. it is getting expensive to live in florida now. insurance is the biggest budget killer.

Anyone else wonder where the cabinets are??

I have learned so much from your channel, and then some other videos came up. We owned that property in Salt Springs and are buying more property up north in Florida. After hearing all of the insurance and taxes, I told my husband that anything more than a RV pull up station we’re not gonna do. We will just on these cheap little structures outright and not being ensuring them for anything but fire and theft. If they won’t give us a policy for that then we just won’t have a policy they’ll only be like $40,000 pull up stations. Now farmland will be in this parcel lots of land that we own in Florida. In the future, I might build a farmhouse on that land depending on where we are all at 3 to 7 years from now? But the one thing that I feel y’all did wrong was not just stay in your house and sell it yourself. Your parents live right up the road also so they should’ve helped you. You could’ve kept most of that money for the closing costs and you wouldn’t have wasted money on Airbnb’s in Tennessee. I already knew this, but I was just reiterating to my husband during this video that unless I have to and I mean have to have a realtor sell my property I never will. We are going to developer Port Royal land and I am going to put signs up and be selling it myself guaranteed! In the future, I know that we will be leaving the country and if I have to get out of here and have a realtor sell it then so be it.

I feel everyone knows what’s best for them , to me it seems you guy’s know what you are doing , and😂 I love 💕💕 the quality work you guy’s do . As a landlord here in California I could really say taxes, Insurance, and sometimes repairs 🙈🙈🙈🙈🙈.Beautiful home .

We are also selling and leaving Florida for the same reasons. I don’t want too leave, but can’t afford to live here anymore. We close on the 19th and then we are headed up to MI to live on 30 acres with no mortgage. But if our house was paid off down here I would not be moving. We bought ours in 2018 for 150k and will have around 65k in pocket after all is said and done. We did maybe 1,500 - 2,000 in repairs while here. I’m just south of where you lived in North Brevard County.

Personally I think you did the right thing. Tennessee has become more expensive as well, so I dont if its worth it to move back there, but I am sure there probably are some areas that havent appreciated as much. Also you'll have to get a new mortgage, with probably a higher interest rate. There are still parts of this country that have a good standard of living and have cheap homes, like parts of Ohio, Iowa, Kentucky and Alabama, so your 57k profit might actually go a long way. I would definitely be interested to hear how much you are saving by this move to your new area.

Can’t believe the mean comments! Keep up the great work, you have a lower income it seems but have way more financial smarts than most.

How do ou not know these things before moving…2 yrs in a house….

Renters can do more damage than it is worth. I owned a duplex, lived in one side and rented out the otherside. It drove me nuts to hear kids bouncing balls on the walls, outside doors banging because they couldn't be bothered to close them, finding out they got pets when the lease clearly stated no pets, not paying rent on time. Nope, i work too hard for what i have for someone to come in and cause damages. I offered them $1,000 to move out in 30 days or leave in 90. They took the money and after repairs i put the unit on the market and sold and i moved into a smaller single family home. I am not cut out to be a landlord.

we moved from Florida to Tennessee 5 years ago

It’s to each it’s on. For my husband and I we are ready to settle in Florida. We have 3 homestead properties and a large city house still to sell in Tennessee before we make the jump. We are with State Farm and they have been on us big time for 2 very small claims over 3 years even though we had not had a claim in 15 years! Yes 2 small claims in 3 years after 15 years with no claims. And they were threatening to cancel us after being with them 40 years. So we are looking at different types of homes in Florida. One thing we like is 10 acres plus. Because we learned a long time ago we don’t like being on top of neighbor. So we are looking at homesteads. And homesteads in Florida are great ! Beautiful places. Great prices too. As far as natural disasters we live in Tennessee and I have seen huge storms in Tennessee and insurance companies are already saying things like if you file a claim we will drop you. It’s coming soon to Tennessee too. We have watched our homeowners insurance increase by the hundreds in the last 2 years. Hundreds! I’m my life I’m never seen this happen. In my lifetime I was used to a $30 increase over a decade. Now hundreds in 2 years. I believe the real issue is the solar flares ! It’s changing the magnetosphere. Just like in the movie Leave the World behind. The birds don’t know directions , we see the Aurora borealis in Texas now. Some see it In Florida. All animals are confused. They are coming out of the deep woods. Even human are acting differently, seen any true crime news lately? At the end of that movie we see what many believe is an invasion- war , but it’s not it’s astroids. That’s what is expected if these solar flares continue to increase. All the insurance companies know what’s coming, you can’t run from it. All of the United States will be effected. Especially where earthquakes and volcanic activity are prone. I laugh at people who go out to Yellow stone. I am Thinking do they not know that volcanoes are going off like crazy all over the world. Every time we have a huge X flare more volcanoes and more earthquakes happen. And these flare go off almost daily now. As we see more videos of confused birds to wild animals walking out like the mountain lion who walk into a popular trail In Arkansas not long ago around people. We see humans acting completely crazy killing their children and entire families and just this past month we see a 41 week pregnant Savanna Soto killed along with her boyfriend. And we find out an entire family a father mother an son killed all 3 of them. That same week that news hit out at a huge job my husband works on a father son tried to kill another co worker. And it’s daily fights. I can tell you my dad is a 60 year union. Electrician and my husband a 30 years. There have been big job like this all of my life and never ever has there been fights or threats of murder. People are definitely acting differently. The magnetosphere. That’s why they know natural disasters are coming and they are going to be everywhere even in the center of the US and especially where we know about earthquakes and volcanic activity but new evidence is showing there are earthquakes possible in places though not to be near a fault. So just know that if you buy anywhere again it’s subject to increasing in insurance premiums. At this point in my life I just want to be where I want to be and the price is just less of a thought. Because you can find very inexpensive places in any state. Buy land build something thats suitable for your family. I like unrestricted land that doesn’t require you to build to a certain code. An when I look at unrestricted land in Florida in nice area the taxes are not anymore than Tennessee. But we are willing to pay more because we want to be near our daughter in Florida, she’s now a doctor working in a Florida hospital. And we love Disney! So we will live within 1 hour of Disney. We went 2 sometimes 3 times a year when the children were young. So it feels like home to us. But there are many health benefits In Florida for me. Better doctors too. We like the Advent hospitals. Age has a lot to do with what people do too. For us our retirement is going to be in Florida. Although I’ve been retired for 14 years now I had to stay in Tennessee due to several things. Caring for a sick parents and the great jobs my husband has had to support putting a child through a doctorate program. But soon our time is coming. I’m ready to be in the sun. In my pool 365 days a year! And in Florida, yes I’m leaving a daughter in Tennessee. But that’s another reason for the land. She can have a house on our property and visit as much as she wants to. Maybe she will decide to stay but that up to her. I’m just always going to have a place for my children to live. Another reason no suburban settings. Hope y’all find your way ! I don’t know what a good place is for a young family anymore. But I would suggest getting a homestead, home schooling, raising food and figuring out your own water source. God bless leslye

Regarding Citizens Insurance - it doesn’t cover flooding, so those with property in a flood zone are out of luck if the house floods due to a natural disaster, hurricane or whatever weather could cause flooding; so, best to also have a separate flood policy. I do like the way you multi-purposed the Florida room, so much space to enjoy.

Great job. We were in the same exact situation & we’re able to cash out . Do what is best for you guys! other peoples opinions don’t matter . 😏