Who lives in Florida?

[Gracie]

Gracie, look up FloraBama. That's the area I lived in (Perdido Key) before moving to Baltimore. It's tropical and really nice.

Prices there are the same here...out of my bounds. Or, they are auctions. Or just land.

 

[Gracie]

I'll probably stay here. We are on 5 waiting lists now. May as well hang in as long as we can until one of them comes up available.

 

[AyeCantSeeYou]

It may not take as long you think for something to come up. Call the places that have you on a waiting list on Monday and see if anything has come up. Keeping your name fresh in their minds is the way to go.

 

[charwin95]

Well, I would love to meet Theo, but like I said..it's a pretty long drive for two oldies and too poor to fly out there for a look see.

Sounds like he has a heck of a deal and I bet once he gets back to Puerto Rico, he will be back mui pronto.

We would not be interested in driving your cars or your boats or help ourselves to anything else of yours. We have this little thing called pride, and honor, and loyalty, and if it isn't ours, we don't use it. Not that we could anyway. I don't go anywhere unless I am in my own van and hubby likes his truck. Can't do yer lawn, don't want your food. The pay sounds overpriced but that I would take for house sitting and taking care of your fur babies, lol. However....if we were younger, i would jump on the chance to check it out even though I don't know you from adam, nor you us. But since we are old codgers not quite as old as Theo, we are hermity. Still...with my limitations...not a heck of a lot I can do.

Mostly, I was teasing you with that pic, lol.

I wouldn't worry about it too much...Theo will be back. After 18 years, you are his family now besides his son. Don't give up on him.

Then again..if you are that rich, send yer private plane and MrG and I will go take a quick peek but we want to just go and come right back so I hope your fancy pilot doesn't mind flying fast both ways. I don't like leaving my furkids alone longer than a day.

Lol. I don't own a plane. We interviewed 5 applicants but so far no luck.

 

[Gracie]

I interviewed two roommates for the room I have coming up, but no luck here either. Yet. One was a drama queen, the other one..well, I liked him but he had other places to look at and I guess found one better than what I was offering. Sigh.

Anyway..don't give up! There has to be a college student around there somewhere that comes from good family, has common sense, is honest and would love to have what you are offering. I would, too! But I am no college student and eventually I will fall further apart along the MrGracie...then what? You are stuck with two old fogies that might wind up needing caregivers and we two would be very unhappy not being able to do what we were hired to do. It's that Pride thing again. Pride. He and I were raised to earn what we get. And we would, but...our time is way past for what you need. We probably still have another 10 years but then he will be 79 and I will be 74. I just can't guarantee our work performance with our medical probs...which means joints working like they are supposed to but don't any more.

I wish you luck though. And I sure wish we were just 10 years younger. Alas..we are not.

Give Theo a month back home in Puerto Rico. He will miss you and his job and come back. Betcha a dollar!

 

[Toro]

But they get hurricanes too, probably as much as S FL

Nope, not near as much as S FL.

Pretty close. These are the hurricanes that have hit landfall in Florida since 1950.

BTW, I meant SE FL. I would view the SW coast differently.

 

[AyeCantSeeYou]

Cat 1 and 2's don't do much damage - usually just knock old or weak branches off trees and throw debris around. More of a nuisance than anything.

Cat 3 and up is nothing to play around with. Those mean business and will leave the area they hit looking like a war zone. When Ivan hit, we were without power for 2 weeks. We ran a temp line across the tops of the oak trees in the yard until one of the emergency crews was able to put a new pole in the ground.

 

[Gracie]

Middle Florida looks the safest to me.

 

[Toro]

Middle Florida looks the safest to me.

The area with the fewest storms have been in the NE around Jacksonville.

Most of the damage comes from storm surge. So if you are worried about that, stay away from the coasts.

You can find lots of cheap places off the coasts.

 

[Gracie]

Been wandering around in Zillow and I have found A LOT of mobile homes for under 5K in the southern Tampa area and Clearwater areas. Question is...why so cheap? Do they get a lot of hurricanes or something? Space rents are 400-ish per month, which is doable. But my question is why is it so cheap there? Something has to be wrong for mobiles to be that inexpensive. Unless I am numb to it since mobiles HERE got for not less than 200K with space rent at 1000 per month. Then again, we don't get hurricanes either.

 

[Care4all]

Been wandering around in Zillow and I have found A LOT of mobile homes for under 5K in the southern Tampa area and Clearwater areas. Question is...why so cheap? Do they get a lot of hurricanes or something? Space rents are 400-ish per month, which is doable. But my question is why is it so cheap there? Something has to be wrong for mobiles to be that inexpensive. Unless I am numb to it since mobiles HERE got for not less than 200K with space rent at 1000 per month. Then again, we don't get hurricanes either.

close to the water in a mobile home is a risk I would never take, rule out Tampa and clearwater/st pete area and try the Ocala area or the surrounding Ocala towns, which is inland.

Near the water, you will need flood insurance on your mobile or any home which can be costly as well....

And yes, mobile homes are death traps with hurricanes.

Mobile homes for 5k in Florida are trailers...

 

[Gracie]

Trailer/mobile home. Same thing. House with wheels. Stationary or not. Or, if one wants to be totally politically correct..one should say "manufactured homes". I was looking in gainesville too. And Ocala. I am trying to avoid the coastal areas. Found a lot that look nice but they are all auctions.
Mostly I am just browsing. But thanks for the info!
I am looking in senior parks as well. I don't want a family park at all.

 

[strollingbones]

ocala is horse country nice are

 

[Care4all]

My parents & sister live right outside the Ocala city area and it is lovely horse country!

Gainesville is lovely too with bigger than big Oak trees that you can drive a vw bug through they are that wide, but it is higher priced due to all the college students and due to all the Doctors at their teaching hospital/Shands hospital University of Florida....homes and cost of living is higher there due to great demand...

 

[Gracie]

I will focus there then, in that area. I have other plots and plans flapping around in my head. What would be ideal is finding one for 5k and low space rent. What would work is owner carry if it is 10K with 5 to 8K down. But the payments have to be low since I have to pay that PLUS space rent PLUS utilities. So owner carry would be perfect. Then again....that is IF I can get a loan for that, I could go higher a bit.

What I really want is a life estate but those are hard to come by. I live in the home, make rent/own payments, and in return...once both of us are dead and gone, owner gets it all back. So not only did he/she get paid "rent" (if not paid for by the time we kick the bucket), they also get it back again to resell. Win win. They also get all we own..which ain't much but I do have a few things that will fetch some bucks. Maybe. Depending on the market. Plus two cars.
However, explaining all that to a complete stranger, is difficult. And, I don't know them from adam either. So..I will go with just buying the damn thing IF i can save up enough to do it, and owner carries. Then they get the surprise at the reading of our will that they own it again to resell..or give to a needy senior couple like we are. Sort of a pay it forward thing.

Yes. I know. I'm dreaming. But sometimes dreaming can be soothing.

 

[Gracie]

However....if we get called soon to the low income senior housing here in town...we will stay put if the landlord decides to change his mind on us having to leave this house.

So many ands, ifs and buts, eh?

 

[strollingbones]

if you get called ...simply tell the landlord you need that time or you will file for a hardship case ....he will go along with giving you the time i am sure

 

[Gracie]

If I tell him I am on the list for low income housing..I think he will let us stay. He HAS been good to us. I know he wants his house back because he had been ill...and where he lives has lots of steps....so if worse comes to worse...why not live here too with us and when the housing comes available...we move out and he gets the whole place to himself.
Then again, I don't know what his plans are but I DO know he will give us time if he knows I am trying my best to give him the house back..and it will just take a bit of time.

 

[strollingbones]

he wont come live with you ...and allow you to be his caregiver in exchange for housing?

 

[Gracie]

Some years back...he told us if we wanted to purchase a small home in Missouri (we were thinking on it about 8 years or so ago..maybe 9 years) he said he would help us with the down. But I don't know if he even remembers saying that. And I won't ask. If he OFFERS, I might. Missouri, Florida..doesn't matter.

He also said a couple of years ago that this house is free and clear..no mortgage. He said he might get a loan on it and buy himself a mobile home on the other side of town. Damn things cost a helluvalot, too, but whether he still is playing with that idea..I don't know.