Some Snowbird questions.

[Miss Prim]

This is the first year that my husband and I have been snowbirds.  We rented a condo in Venice, Fl. and we love it down here (well, I do, hubby is not adjusting as well, so I flew him home for a week!).  This place is a little small and the furniture is so uncomfortable that I just want to buy a place down here so I can get more comfortable furniture.  My mother and sister-in-law have been down to visit us and both want to come back for longer next year and would kick in for rent. 

We have a main home in Michigan that my husband will not entertain selling, a cottage about 40 min from our house that is bigger than our main home and is owned with my sister in law.  We also have a rental property.  My kids and grandkids all live in the same town as our main home, and I babysit one day a week when I am in town. 

What I would really like to do is sell the rental, do a 1031 (?) exchange, buy a rental down here and then eventually inhabit it as a 2nd (3rd!) home.  I'm trying to get husband on board, but so far he isn't buying it!  He doesn't seem to want to be tied down in one place every winter, but rents are really rising fast down here, so I would like to buy something.  We really should just sell the main house because we could actually live at our cottage as it has 2 separate units.  I could just drive in to babysit once a week.  We spend 3-4 days a week between both places in the summer.  But, as I said before, hubby just stubbornly won't entertain the idea of selling our main house.  We built it and he put a lot of sweat equity into it and he is very proud of it.  We do have a renter in our basement apartment and rent out pole barn space for storage of cars/boats etc, so it doesn't cost us a whole lot and we have enough stash to live comfortably.

I have become quite attached to this area because I am volunteering to prepare taxes down here and the volunteer opportunities and the weather and everything are just heaven to me!  When hubby gets back he has agreed to try some volunteering and get involved in something, but he really just likes to tinker in our garage at home and visit the kids and grandkids.  I think he would eventually adjust.

Good idea, bad idea, too many houses (not very mustachian although they are mostly making us money and we may rent our cottage out on AirBNB and daughter may hold scrapbooking parties in the fall there).  Just anyone's thoughts in general.  I know I have an obsession with owning houses and maybe we should just keep renting.

Thanks in advance.                     Miss Prim

[redrocker]

This is the first year that my husband and I have been snowbirds.  We rented a condo in Venice, Fl.
...
but rents are really rising fast down here, so I would like to buy something. 

I'm not familiar with that area but I'm curious how you were informed about rising rents if this is your first time there?

Instead of rushing to buy a place, maybe before you head back up to MI, shop around for a rental for next year and check out their furniture?

One of my parents tried to get my siblings and I to go in together to purchase a Florida condo nearly 15 years ago, because "real estate is surging" and "we should get in now." So very thankful I invested the money instead. Hurricanes are a regular occurrence for that entire region, which causes sudden increases in house insurance (which I'd be much more concerned about than rising rents or real estate prices). Then there's the sea level rise which could hurt your real estate value in certain areas.

I don't mean to take sides but I kinda agree with your husband it might be nice not to get tied down just yet, especially if you both aren't settling in nicely to the new climate/surroundings. Maybe rent somewhere different (same area, just different building) and see how you like it.

[FernFree]

I'm with RedRocker.  I would never buy a condo in Florida due to the coming sea level rise and the hurricanes.  As much as everyone in Florida wants to put their head in the sand about climate change, they will be among the hardest hit in the entire country, which will decimate their economy even if your personal property wasn't directly impacted. 

By the time it's bad enough that everyone stops pretending it isn't happening, the real estate market will already be impacted.

[startingsmall]

I grew up in Sarasota and would give almost anything to move back down there. So jealous of your snowbird status!

As for climate change, not sure about Venice but (last I checked) Sarasota actually is expected to fare better than many other coastal areas. Obviously rising sea levels are a concern anyway, but I was surprised to see that Sarasota is expected to be less affected that many areas of (for example) the NC/SC coast.

Real estate prices are very cyclical down there, though... they're up now and may continue to rise or may come down significantly if the economy makes any sort of downturn. It wouldn't be wrong to buy now, but it also wouldn't be wrong to wait it out as prices may be even lower a few years from now. Lots of fluctuation makes it hard to know when to 'jump in.'

Glad to hear you're enjoying yourselves!

[Miss Prim]

Thanks everyone!  I guess I have decided that we will continue to rent for a few years and see if I can get hubby to adjust to spending 3 months down here.  I am looking for a bigger place to rent for next year as my mom and sister-in-law agreed to kick in some money.  As soon as our rental house we own is vacant, we are going to sell and then I will look into a 1031 exchange. 

Thanks for all of the advice, it is very appreciated! 

                                                              Miss Prim

[soccerluvof4]

I also would have to take your husbands side. I dont see myself wanting to go to the same place all the time. If he cant adjust to what you want then hes not going to be to happy so then what? Think your renting decision is the right thing for now but maybe also offer up going to a few places he might want to go. Maybe you will be surprised. Yes I think you have to many properties , I use to be in your shoes and at least in my case it felt good to cut the ties on my northern vacation home though we loved it.

[Miss Prim]

I also would have to take your husbands side. I dont see myself wanting to go to the same place all the time. If he cant adjust to what you want then hes not going to be to happy so then what? Think your renting decision is the right thing for now but maybe also offer up going to a few places he might want to go. Maybe you will be surprised. Yes I think you have to many properties , I use to be in your shoes and at least in my case it felt good to cut the ties on my northern vacation home though we loved it.

I agree with you, we do have too many properties!  That's why I would never buy anything unless I sold something else.  But, I would rather get rid of our main house than the family cottage.  We can live at the cottage as it is only 40 min. away from our home town and has 2 separate residences.  We own it with my SIL and it is set to be inherited by my children.  SIL is single and has no children and is very close to my kids.  So, I can not sell the cottage, but I would love to sell the main house, but hubby doesn't want to.  Anyway, I also agree with you that I will rent for the next few years and see how he adjusts.

Thanks.                               Miss Prim

[Dicey]

Good conclusion for now. Fl is very cyclical. There is a lot of housing there and to put it bluntly, people who go there to retire tend to die eventually, so always a steady stream of housing for sale. Plus, my FL friends tell me Homeowner's Insurance expense is a budget killer. More research is a good idea.

[BTDretire]

"he really just likes to tinker in our garage at home"
 This is the line that caught me, if you take him from his tools and his space to tinker,
 I see that as a red flag. He may need to create that type of space in Fl.

[Reynold]

"he really just likes to tinker in our garage at home"
 This is the line that caught me, if you take him from his tools and his space to tinker,
 I see that as a red flag. He may need to create that type of space in Fl.

Yes, Miss Prim, while you may enjoy volunteering to do taxes, if he put a lot of sweat equity into your home and enjoys tinkering in the garage you may want to look for activities like that in FL which accommodate his hobby.  Perhaps working with a local school's robotics club, if he is handy that way, or Habitat for Humanity. 

Regarding hurricanes and sea level rise, while hurricanes may be more of an issue going forward and are likely to be reflected in homeowners insurance rates, the latest prediction I see for sea level rise from NOAA is 3.2mm per year, or a little over an inch a decade.  While FL is a pretty low state (I lived there), you would have to be planning a rather lengthy retirement to worry about that. 

[FIREby35]

Interesting thought, I just spent 2 months in Mexico as a "snowbird." (Sidenote: it was interesting because my wife and I were about 25 years younger than everyone). My biggest complaint was the furniture was totally uncomfortable! I was really glad to be home and have a nice chair to sit and read in.

I am wondering if it is worth buying some furniture for a few hundred bucks in the first few days I arrive. If you compare it to paying tens/hundreds of thousands of dollars on property - it doesn't sounds so crazy.

[Miss Prim]

I know what you mean Fire by 35!  It's awful to have to sit on uncomfortable furniture and we actually entertained the idea of picking up a few pieces from the thrift store and then just donating it before we left. 

We do have a line on a rental for next year.  It is in the same 55+ park as my husband's cousin who we are close with.  It is up in Bradenton, which I don't really like because it is too busy here, but husband could hang around with his cousin's husband and be pretty content.  And the rent is cheaper and quite reasonable.  So, if we get in for next year, we should be good for a few years so buying is off the table. 

We can also bring my mom and her dog.  I can volunteer to do taxes here and there is plenty of opportunities for my husband to volunteer if he wants.  So win-win all around!

Thanks for all of your feedback!                        Miss Prim

[juggleandhope]

If you haven't found Casperson's beach yet, visit there, and also go to Oscar Scherer to see the scrub jays. 

[avrex]

If you haven't found Casperson's beach yet, visit there, and also go to Oscar Scherer to see the scrub jays.

Hey, I'm camping at Oscar Scherer this weekend.  Thanks for the tip on Casperson's beach.

[Miss Prim]

Loved Caspersen beach!  We found quite a few shark teeth there sifting through the sand at the shoreline.
Venice beach was very nice too!  Have fun!  We are home now and it is still cold here in Michigan!

                                                              Miss Prim

           

[sun and sand]

Miss Prim, you will be in Bradenton, so you need to go across the causeway to Anna Maria Island.  Absolutely heaven!

[Greenback Reproduction Specialist]

Regarding sea level rise.... You could always look into a place that sits up on stilts and get your self a boat with a low draft :)

Don't like you neighbors? Give it a few years, they will move away when the water rises lol