Huge life changing move to Florida!

[MDK]

Well at 55 my wife and I have decided to finally stop talking about it and move to Florida. I just accepted a position that will cut my pay almost $13 an hr... YIKES! I been looking for awhile and this is easily the best offer I have gotten. I been at my Power plant for 20 years this year which accounts for why my pay is as high as it is. If I was to lose this job and get another here in NH I would take a very similar hit.

After 20 years I am so burnt out on this job I cannot even beging to explain it. Not a really bad job but I desperately need a change more for my mental health and lower stress level than anything else. Although the stress the last 2 weeks has been crazy pondering all the possibilities of what can go wrong, is this the right move, what if I lose my job soon after starting, where will I play my drums with no basement : ) etc. etc.

The job is in Orlando, not our 1st choice by far but still Florida. We will be renting for the 1st 6months to a year before deciding where to purchase. My wife gets to keep her current job and will be working remotely from home so that is a positive. Being 55 and empty nesters we are both willing to make a few sacrifices if we have to to make this work.

Is it scary?? Oh hell yeah, we do not know anyone at all in Florida other than some friends in Leesburg, but it is also exciting at same time. I hope to be able to retire or atleast semi retire in 6-8 years and would like to already be established in Florida barring everything goes well.

I am flying down this Thurs. - Sat. for drug testing, physical, etc and I am supposed to start 2nd week in April. We have not told family or friends yet as we are waiting till we get back this weekend and had a chance to tour area, clear our heads and make our final decision before I put my 2 week notice in.

Anyone here from the area? Any tips for making the move or has anyone ever done something similar? Hell am I crazy? LOL

[drummer]

Exciting news and I'm so very happy for you! We become comfortable and a bit spoiled but we also can stagnate. We're trained to sort of want our cake and eat it too but that's just being comfortable. Stepping out of our comfort zone usually brings greater rewards ahead. We'll usually have to sacrifice a few things but that's just life. Enjoy your new home and your new journey!

[SpazApproved]

big change for sure!!! We're rooting for ya!

[thunderstruck]

You need to do what is best for you and your family. There is nothing wrong with a "reboot" for you health and well being. I, as well as everyone here, will be wishing you the best.

[MDK]

Thanks guys, Nice to have a place where you can vent. I am going back and forth with this. Yesterday I was notified of what my bonus will be next week and I realized i will not be getting those anymore so I was starting to seriously doubt if I should do this. This morning though I feel much better about it, got an email from my new manager last night welcoming me aboard and sent me his cell # and will call him this morning to set up a meet and greet/tour of where I will be working on Friday.

[inthpktplayer]

F1A64378-0907-4F6B-BCCD-003453A45B2B.jpgCongrats on the big move! You will love it down here. I'm just a bit south of Orlando on the coast. Welcome to the home of the brave, land of the free. Also, remember that there is no state income tax so your financial hit will not be as bad as you think.

[MDK]

F1A64378-0907-4F6B-BCCD-003453A45B2B.jpgCongrats on the big move! You will love it down here. I'm just a bit south of Orlando on the coast. Welcome to the home of the brave, land of the free. Also, remember that there is no state income tax so your financial hit will not be as bad as you think.

Thanks, thats true for most people moving there but there is no state income tax in NH either although the property tax is really high here. Coming to grips with it slowly, a 30% paycut is huge but I think the mental stress relief should be worth it, so we do not eat out every weekend like we do now and cut out our ridiculous direct tv bill etc...I am feeling more and more optimistic.

[noreastbob]

Well we'll be sorry to see you go MDK!
You may not want to read my take on your dilemma. HA!
I'm the opposite to you in that I moved NORTH when I retired in '17. From near Keene to Columbia up near Colebrook. I couldn't afford the taxes down south and love the mountains and forests of northern New England. I ride a sport bike despite my advanced years and the roads along the rivers and in the mountains are sublime. I absolutely could not live more than a month or so per year in the land of max 40' elevation and every kind of tree you like... as long as it's a palm tree...

[inthpktplayer]

So, you coming down to the sunshine state?

[Ricardo]

Congrats, MDK.
I live in Florida one month each year -- almost always in November when she has glorious weather.
The water is still warm and the air is in the 70s every day.
We love the Emerald Coast (Ft. Walton/Destin) -- The shrimp and grouper are the world's best.
But WOW...…...I also love New England in July...…...where the Italian food is amazing !
For me, the answer is the freedom to live in all these great states.
We will be spending May in New Mexico...……..can't wait.

[noreastbob]

Not really off topic...speaking of summer in New England: I mentioned in my post above that I moved to northern NH when I retired... Ricardo brings up July in NE... I sit on my deck/porch during the summer, brief as it seems, and marvel at the absolute perfection of an environment for humans. low to mid 70s, low humidity, slight breeze out of the west or stirring out of the mountains.........

[MDK]

Funny how plans change so fast. We were all set to go, wife and I flew down and started looking to rent houses and was shocked at the prices and condition of the houses that were in our price range. I mean who shows a potential tenant a house with roaches crawling everywhere? Ughh, so after about 3 more houses we decided well I could stay at an extended stay for a month or 2 and we could start searching to buy earlier than planned.


Well I don't know if anyone has looked at housing market lately but my gawd, we were looking up to $400k and they were literally broken down houses that needed alot of work. We searched for 2 days and could not find anyting even close. I started getting really anxious, I went to physical and did drug test and my blood pressure was 153/101... They had to take it 2 more times before it got down to 135/95.. My blood opressure has always been really good rarely over 115/80 so to say I had anxiety about all this was a huge understatment. I did not sleep more than 3 hrs a night for the whole time I was in Florida.

We flew home on the 4th night and had a long long discussion and decided to stay put for a few more years here in NH and try to stick this job out a few more years but even if that does not happen we have our house, almost paid off and we should be fine here. The housing market, low pay, and unstability of the economy right now is just too big a gamble right now.

On a happier note I started playing again 2 weeks ago and really getting into it, Just bought a new complete set of Sabian HHX Legacy cymbals and OH MY!

[Ricardo]

Glad to hear you are taking some time to be thinking this over again.
Perhaps there is a better time (or place) down the road for your big move. (?)
The housing market is in seller's skew right now.

[drummer]

Happy that your trusting your instincts. Timing is everything. So glad to hear you're out playing again.

[noreastbob]

Thumbs up MDK. Fla is weird. It seems like you largely have the choice of little stucco cubes packed in beside each other, gated communities of much more expensive homes with a million rules/covenants, a condo, or a mansion.
You're better off up here lining your pockets at the peak of your earning curve a few more years and then if you need to flee the polar influence you can take another look around.
Ya know there are other warm places. They may not cater quite as much to the older crowd but they are, IMO, much nicer.
I looked seriously at the Flagstaff, AZ area for nicely (pine) forested mountain landscapes with sufficient altitude to temper the desert heat.
But I returned to settle up here because it's near my sons slogging out a living down below in Merrimack and I'm just a northeasterner by birth and apparently by choice. (see forum ID)

[inthpktplayer]

I dunno who your real estate person was but we got this about 15 minutes from the beach, 2700 sq. ft., 4 bed, 3 bath, 3 car garage all high end finishes on half an acre in the price range you described. Sorry it didn't work out for you. I'm a firm believer that everything happens for a reason.
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[noreastbob]

I dunno who your real estate person was but we got this about 15 minutes from the beach, 2700 sq. ft., 4 bed, 3 bath, 3 car garage all high end finishes on half an acre in the price range you described. Sorry it didn't work out for you. I'm a firm believer that everything happens for a reason.
76CAF95D-C285-48A5-AF2A-BB325880745F_1_201_a.jpg
4BAB45DB-F9D8-4C62-9D5C-83ABD4C24DA9_1_201_a.jpg
1EBAD8C8-C26D-4FC1-9A3F-6D9E0A96D07E.jpg

I'm guessing his real estate agent is not in possession of a functional time machine.