It’s been forever since I updated this blog. I missed
going on and on about a cruise on the Fantasy again in October (marvelous!). Totally skipped over the holidays (lovely!). I
didn’t mention going down for race weekend and doing my first 10K (superb!). It’s
probably because every free brain cell has been focusing on moving to Florida.
This is something that has been in the works for several years now, and it is
just such a relief that it is all smoothly proceeding towards fruition.
The main question I get from people is…why? (Well,
aside from those who have already made the move to Florida. Those people just
ask “Why did you wait so long?”)
Before we move next month, I figured it would be a
good idea to get these reasons down to help answer everyone’s question. So here’s
the top ten reasons why we are moving to Florida, in random order.
1. Financial Benefit:
Now that we’ve got estimates in for what our bills
will be like down in Florida, we’re saving 10-40% for the “basic living” bills
(electric, Internet/phone/cable, water/sewer, homeowner/renter’s insurance,
mortgage/rent, and car insurance).
Groceries are cheaper, not only because of price
(which is only about 5-10% cheaper), but because I’m not driving 1 hour round
trip to go to a grocery store I like (Wegman’s). We also save some money
because I won’t have access to the Wegman’s convenience foods that add to the
bottom line – not to mention the waistline! Walking the quarter of a mile to
Publix works for me in terms of price and health.
We also no longer will be paying for pest control
service (included) or home security system until we get into our new home, so
those bills are gone (at around $100/month, so it adds up).
Fuel is about 10-15 cents per gallon cheaper, and the
distances we will be driving are less. We will be doing some travel on toll
roads every now and then, but the tolls are a lot less than up here. My husband
also won’t need to pay for parking, so that’s close to $150 a month going back
into our pockets. Less driving also means less wear and tear on the cars.
That being said, in all likelihood, my husband’s
salary will decrease a bit when he settles in a full-time local job. My work
will remain the same, so my income will not change, however. It still would
take a huge cut in pay for my husband in order to eat away all of the money we’re
saving on our day-to-day bills.
2. Tax Benefit/Florida Resident Benefits
Coupled with the financial benefit is that there’s no
state income tax in Florida. It also means I don’t have to pay someone to do my
state income tax! Sales tax is 0.5% higher in our county in FL (or 1% higher
the next county over), but as we don’t go shopping like we used to, it isn’t
going to be a major impact.
There’s a decent number of places in Florida that
offer Florida resident discounts, especially in the tourist zones. From hotel
reservations to cruise bookings, these discounts will help us save quite a bit
on things we pay higher prices for right now.
3. Weather and Air Quality
In the summer, weather is a toss-up in terms of
temperature between here and there: it is equally as hot in the DC area as it
is in Florida, just without the benefit of the 4 PM thunderstorm that blasts
out the heat and humidity. In the winter, no question…Florida beats DC for more
livable temperatures. No leaves to rake. No snow to shovel.
For severe weather, in Maryland I’ve had to go through
hurricanes, tornadoes, blizzards, earthquakes, a derecho, and all sorts of
other problematic bits of weather. Those types of things come into play in
Florida as well—except the earthquakes.
But where the real difference comes into play is air
quality, especially in the summer. Baltimore has the highest rate of premature
death due to air quality in the country – more than NYC, LA, and so on. What
kind of price can you put on 10 years of life that are sucked out of you with
every breath you take? Across the board, air quality is better in Florida at
present. (Historically there was higher lead particles in Florida than up here,
but when a smelter was closed down a few years ago, that number dropped below
the number up here.)
In the summer months, we cringe whenever Lily goes to
the playground and see her come home coughing. We have certain days and certain
times of day when even going out to get the mail from the mailbox is a no-no
because we come inside wheezing and coughing. We have an air scrubber in her
room for half of the year, but it isn’t an ideal way of life for her to live.
The rest of us aren’t keen on it either.
The only hiccup in it all is that Florida can have
wildfire outbreaks that puts smoke into the air. Then again, last year there
were far more fires up here at the local peat factory down the road, so again,
I think it is a wash.
4. Fitness
This almost could be 3B, because it is so closely tied
to the air quality. I’m not an athletic person – never have been. The only
forms of exercise that I have done well with were dance (when I was younger),
swimming, and walk-running. I don’t think dance is something I’ll be getting
into, but certainly up here swimming isn’t a very viable option the way it is
in Florida. For the walk-running, around 9 months out of the year, it is
dangerous for me to be outside trying to walk or run. From October through
March, it is simply too cold for me to comfortably and safely be outside, which
also is problematic for my breathing. From June through August, the air quality
is too bad for me to spend time outside doing physical activity.
In addition, because of where our house is located,
sidewalks aren’t always an option, and running along the shoulder of busy
streets isn’t ideal. Because my husband spends so much time in the rat race
commute, he isn’t able to get a run in before he leaves for work, and by the
time he gets home, it is dark (so no safe running on those roads without
sidewalks). That means when we are training for a race, every weekend is pretty
much tied up with training runs. The only way we’ve managed to get it all in
was having a treadmill in the house. Having more options means a greater chance
of success in our fitness plans.
There are also a lot more really cool 5K, 10K, and
half marathon races in Florida than there are up here. Being able to wake up
and do a fun run on a Saturday morning is a wonderful motivator to keep in
shape. There’s also a lot more encouragement to either walk to get to places or
walking around places as fun things to do. Getting up and moving is half the
battle in any fitness goals!
At some point, the area where we’re looking to build a
house will have a “health and fitness complex”. Not sure on the details yet,
but looking at the amount of land it takes up, it probably will have everything
from medical and alternative medicine practitioners to spas and health resort
treatments to actual fitness facilities. I can’t wait to see how that works
out!
5. Schools
We’re very lucky that there’s a good preschool in
Maryland that Lily is doing well at. Even though we’re shelling out almost the
price of our two car payments combined per month, it has been a great benefit
for her. After our move, we have found a comparable school for her to finish up
preschool. The area where we are planning to live has amazingly good public
elementary schools, so we won’t have to keep paying for private school. That is
a HUGE savings long-term.
On the off chance that a brick-and-mortar school doesn’t
work for her as she gets older, Florida does a lot more with having good
options for virtual education and online programs than is available up here at
present.
And looking very long term, should Lily decide to go
to college, Florida has a greater number of really good in-state tuition
options than Maryland, just because of the size of the state. If college is not
where she wants to go, there are many more good options for trade schools in a
variety of disciplines. There’s also good options for continuing education
options for Erwin and I. (And not just at Disney Institute, although….)
Since this is getting long, let me put up these first
five right now and get the other five up tomorrow. For those who are curious,
the other five are: Access to Healthy Food, Better Socialization
Options, Overall Quality of Life, Better Home and Career Options, and
Disney/Beaches/Cruises/Vacations/Other Florida Things.
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