# Moving to Sarasota, FL!



## Michael R. Hicks (Oct 29, 2008)

After living in MD since 1986, it's time to split! My wife Jan and I took a trip to Florida for our 10th anniversary (and met Gertie in person for the first time on the way) and wound up in Sarasota for what we'd planned to be a week on the beach in a timeshare. We loved it so much, and housing prices are so low compared to where we are in MD, that we decided to move there. Now that I'm writing full-time and am not tied down to a day job (nor is Jan), it was pretty much a no-brainer.

Of course, getting our house ready to sell has been fun - just where does all the junk come from, anyway?? - but we're hoping to get it on the market by next weekend, and once it sells we'll pile in the RV and head to Sarasota to do our house-hunting in earnest.

Siesta Key beach, here we come!


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## telracs (Jul 12, 2009)

remember, kindleboard meet up in florida July 2014.


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## Gertie Kindle (Nov 6, 2008)

telracs said:


> remember, kindleboard meet up in florida July 2014.


Would that be a certain chanteuse's birthday trip to Orlando?


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## Gertie Kindle (Nov 6, 2008)

Mike, good luck to you and Jan. Hope that house sells on Day one for top price. 

It was so cool to meet you guys.


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## Kimberly Llewellyn (Aug 18, 2011)

Congrats on your decision! It'll be sunny and really sultry when you arrive, and then come late fall & winter, you'll be saying stuff like, "So glad we live here," and crank calling folks back in MD asking how many inches of snow have fallen! I love Sarasota/Siesta Key. Not far from me.

Jan will LOVE shopping at St. Armand's Circle, if she hasn't hit that yet. Here are pix: http://www.picturesfrom.com/lido-key/default.htm

Did you visit the Ringling Bros. mansion/museum? http://www.ringling.org/

Oh, right, Stephen King lives in Sarasota; his FL home. http://www.celebritydetective.com/Celebrity_Homes_Stephen-King-house.html

If you like sports, Dick Vitale is in the area too. http://www.dickvitaleonline.com/

-KL


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## Gertie Kindle (Nov 6, 2008)

I've been to Ringling. Very cool.

Stephen King living in Sarasota has to be a good omen, right?


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## The Hooded Claw (Oct 12, 2009)

telracs said:


> remember, kindleboard meet up in florida July 2014.


Florida in July?! Eeewwwww, worse than DC!

Sent from my DROID RAZR using Tapatalk 2


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## telracs (Jul 12, 2009)

The Hooded Claw said:


> Florida in July?! Eeewwwww, worse than DC!
> 
> Sent from my DROID RAZR using Tapatalk 2


Fine, you don't have to come.


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## Lisa Scott (Apr 4, 2011)

Sarasota.  So jealous.  Would love to live there! Enjoy!


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## Michael R. Hicks (Oct 29, 2008)

Thanks, all! Yeah, Jan and I can't wait! The boys are divided on the issue: Ben, the younger one (13) is ready to go right now. His older brother Samuel (almost 16) would prefer to stay in MD, although he's not exactly digging in his heels about the whole thing. 

Kimberly - haven't seen Armand's Circle yet, but I'm sure Jan will "discover" it in time. LOL! I knew that Stephen King has a place down there, and apparently hits one of the local CVS pharmacies three times a week. We'll check out the Ringling Bros. museum when we get down there; we saw signs for it on our anniversary trip (which was also a biz trip), but didn't scope it out yet.

Claw - Hate to tell you this, but the hottest I've ever been (and I grew up in Phoenix) was in Baltimore one year, and I've roasted in DC, too, quite a few times. LOL! But in Sarasota there's almost always a sea breeze going, so even if it's hot & humid, at least the air's getting stirred around. Besides, if you get too hot, you just jump in the water, which when we were there in April was almost 80 degrees. w00t!

Anyway, we're putting the house on the market this weekend, so we'll see what happens. And I guess I'll have to look up the dates for the FL meetup (in a year and a half??)...


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## Jeff (Oct 28, 2008)

telracs said:


> remember, kindleboard meet up in florida July 2014.


.erom su lleT

Happy for you, Mike and Jan.


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## geoffthomas (Feb 27, 2009)

Mike, I only wish the best for you and Jan.
One of my twins lives in West Palm Beach - the other side of Florida.
I know you will be happy wherever you go .... together.


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## Michael R. Hicks (Oct 29, 2008)

Thanks, Jeff & Geoff! And BTW, Jeff, good to see you back on your feet (or at least on your keyboard fingers) again!


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## Gertie Kindle (Nov 6, 2008)

geoffthomas said:


> Mike, I only wish the best for you and Jan.
> One of my twins lives in West Palm Beach - the other side of Florida.
> I know you will be happy wherever you go .... together.


Hey, I'm only about an hour north of WPB, so when you visit, let me know.


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## geoffthomas (Feb 27, 2009)

Hey Mike,
What happened to the plan to drive the RV all over the country - living in it?


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## Not Here Anymore (May 16, 2012)

Good choice. Love Siesta Key and Lido Beach. They're our favorite in this area.

St. Armand's is great, too. There's a wonderful Italian place there, Venezia. Best bruschetta ever!


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## Michael R. Hicks (Oct 29, 2008)

To echo Gertie's invite, anybody passing through the Sarasota area, just lemme know! Well, when we get down there, of course. And we're close enough that we could link up in Florida.



geoffthomas said:


> Hey Mike,
> What happened to the plan to drive the RV all over the country - living in it?


That's still the plan, but we can't go full-timing until the boys are off to college (or whatever they decide to do after high school; staying at home playing video games is NOT an option! LOL!). Even full-timing in the RV, we still needed a home base, and Sarasota's perfect. We can toodle around the country during the warmer months, then follow the 78 degree line back home to Florida when the weather starts cooling down... 

And we'll have to check out this St. Armand's place - we missed that, as we only stayed in the Siesta Key area (which is where we plan to buy, although not on the key itself).


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## Geemont (Nov 18, 2008)

The Hooded Claw said:


> Florida in July?! Eeewwwww, worse than DC!


Nothing is worse than July in DC expect August in DC. Speaking as an ex native.

And oddly enough I'm flying to Cape Coral on the red eye in a few hours.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## 25803 (Oct 24, 2010)

Michael R. Hicks said:


> To echo Gertie's invite, anybody passing through the Sarasota area, just lemme know! Well, when we get down there, of course. And we're close enough that we could link up in Florida.


We're going to end up with quite a KindleBoards enclave in the area! I'm near Kimberly and Lisa, and simply love it here.

Good luck with selling your house!


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## Gertie Kindle (Nov 6, 2008)

Yanno, I'm pretty sure I was here first, guys. 1958. Anybody got me beat?


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## Michael R. Hicks (Oct 29, 2008)

Geemont said:


> Nothing is worse than July in DC expect August in DC. Speaking as an ex native.
> 
> And oddly enough I'm flying to Cape Coral on the red eye in a few hours.
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## hsuthard (Jan 6, 2010)

Good for you! We moved to Tampa from D.C. In 1994 and next week we're moving to Hawaii 

You're not going to regret it. Have you found a house yet? Cause if not, I've got a great one for sale! Lol. Did you consider Tampa? We've really enjoyed our time in Florida, the weather is truly wonderful. The gulf coast is gorgeous and Publix is the best grocery store ever- I don't know how we'll make do without it. 

My 14 year old is a bit nervous about the switch, but our younger two are excited about moving.


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## Michael R. Hicks (Oct 29, 2008)

Well, if your house was in Sarasota I'd be giving you a call! 

We've got a ton of possibilities in our price range mapped out, but we're not going to do anything down there until we get the one up here sold (which hopefully won't take too long once we get it on the market in the next week or so). My wife and I drove into Tampa for Khaotic Kon, but didn't really get to see much of the city - but the big bridge we had to cross to get into the city was sure cool!!

I liked Publix a lot, but the downside is that they didn't seem to have much in the way of organic food. On the other hand, there seemed to be several places that were oriented toward those things, so I suppose we won't starve.

Our younger boy (13) is ready to go right now, although the older (15) isn't hot on the idea, but I guess that's understandable, and it's an interesting parallel with your kids.

And you're going to Hawaii? Sweet! Took a few TDYs there while I was with NSA, absolutely loved it!



hsuthard said:


> Good for you! We moved to Tampa from D.C. In 1994 and next week we're moving to Hawaii
> 
> You're not going to regret it. Have you found a house yet? Cause if not, I've got a great one for sale! Lol. Did you consider Tampa? We've really enjoyed our time in Florida, the weather is truly wonderful. The gulf coast is gorgeous and Publix is the best grocery store ever- I don't know how we'll make do without it.
> 
> My 14 year old is a bit nervous about the switch, but our younger two are excited about moving.


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## skyblue (Dec 23, 2009)

Once you get there, be sure to go downtown and eat at *The Drunken Poet*. The food is divine and the service is superb! 

There's a *Whole Foods* downtown as well, so you can pick up your _organics_ on the way home.


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## Michael R. Hicks (Oct 29, 2008)

skyblue said:


> Once you get there, be sure to go downtown and eat at *The Drunken Poet*. The food is divine and the service is superb!
> 
> There's a *Whole Foods* downtown as well, so you can pick up your _organics_ on the way home.


Ah! Cool, on both counts!


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## ellesu (Feb 19, 2009)

Oh, you are going to love it there! And....once you're full-timing I think you'll find FL is an excellent location for services you might need - like mail forwarding, etc. Hope the move goes smoothly!


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## Lisa Grace (Jul 3, 2011)

I live just north of Kimberly Llewellyn. I live on the water in Hudson. We almost always have a breeze coming off the Gulf. If you move on the water you'll be fine temperature wise. If you go inland, you can lose the breeze quick and summers can be very hot. 120 degrees in the car with the windows up. (Don't leave a pet in it for even five minutes.) 
Siesta Key is beautiful and you're going to love it.


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## Michael R. Hicks (Oct 29, 2008)

LisaGraceBooks said:


> I live just north of Kimberly Llewellyn. I live on the water in Hudson. We almost always have a breeze coming off the Gulf. If you move on the water you'll be fine temperature wise. If you go inland, you can lose the breeze quick and summers can be very hot. 120 degrees in the car with the windows up. (Don't leave a pet in it for even five minutes.)
> Siesta Key is beautiful and you're going to love it.


 We can't wait!


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## balaspa (Dec 27, 2009)

That's a big move.  Good luck and best wishes.


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## Michael R. Hicks (Oct 29, 2008)

balaspa said:


> That's a big move. Good luck and best wishes.


Thanks! Appreciate it! Just hope we can get ou house in MD sold quickly...


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## Gertie Kindle (Nov 6, 2008)

Michael R. Hicks said:


> Thanks! Appreciate it! Just hope we can get ou house in MD sold quickly...


How is the market up there?


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## Michael R. Hicks (Oct 29, 2008)

Gertie Kindle 'a/k/a Margaret Lake' said:


> How is the market up there?


It's still a buyer's market, but it's alive and kicking. The main thing going for us is that there are a lot of federal workers and military who live in this area, both upscaling their homes and moving in from other places. Houses in our price range are selling, but it's always a question of finding the right price for the right buyer. We're hoping to have it on the market by next Sunday, so we'll see.

In the meantime, we're keeping a close eye on houses coming on/off the market in Sarasota!


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## Gertie Kindle (Nov 6, 2008)

Michael R. Hicks said:


> It's still a buyer's market, but it's alive and kicking. The main thing going for us is that there are a lot of federal workers and military who live in this area, both upscaling their homes and moving in from other places. Houses in our price range are selling, but it's always a question of finding the right price for the right buyer. We're hoping to have it on the market by next Sunday, so we'll see.
> 
> In the meantime, we're keeping a close eye on houses coming on/off the market in Sarasota!


The housing market in my area is starting to stumble to its knees. It's going to be a long, slow recovery for us. Hope it sells fast for a decent price.


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## hsuthard (Jan 6, 2010)

Gertie Kindle 'a/k/a Margaret Lake' said:


> The housing market in my area is starting to stumble to its knees. It's going to be a long, slow recovery for us. Hope it sells fast for a decent price.


This is our Tampa market, too. My price range is pretty stagnant, although there are some price points (the lower ones) that are really picking up speed. Being patient was never my strong suit, unfortunately.


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## geoffthomas (Feb 27, 2009)

My son purchased west of the Interstate in West Palm.
They got their home significantly below market at the time.
But the only reason they are not below water now is that they put a lot down.
It is real sad that some overzealous greedy people blew the market up and then it dropped.


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## D/W (Dec 29, 2010)

I am so excited for you and your family, Michael!


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## Michael R. Hicks (Oct 29, 2008)

Thanks, DreamWeaver! 

And yes, the whole housing thing was a horrible shame. Unfortunately, I've read that there's some concern about investors buying up so many properties now, and what could happen later if they try to dump them back on the market. Oy!


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## Gertie Kindle (Nov 6, 2008)

hsuthard said:


> This is our Tampa market, too. My price range is pretty stagnant, although there are some price points (the lower ones) that are really picking up speed. Being patient was never my strong suit, unfortunately.





geoffthomas said:


> My son purchased west of the Interstate in West Palm.
> They got their home significantly below market at the time.
> But the only reason they are not below water now is that they put a lot down.
> It is real sad that some overzealous greedy people blew the market up and then it dropped.


All of Fla got hit hard. I bought my house just before things got really crazy, but it's still only worth about 40% of what I paid. Since I don't have plans to move any time in the near future, it's okay because the side benefit is my taxes are now at a reasonable rate.



Michael R. Hicks said:


> Thanks, DreamWeaver!
> 
> And yes, the whole housing thing was a horrible shame. Unfortunately, I've read that there's some concern about investors buying up so many properties now, and what could happen later if they try to dump them back on the market. Oy!


Investors came in early here. Patched the walls, slapped on some paint, and made an easy $10-20K in a couple of months depending on the size of the house. So many of those houses were snapped up that we're lower on inventory than a lot of other places in Fla. I think that's why houses are starting to sell a little faster.

Commercial properties are selling and buyers are building on them. Hopefully, that will increase the job market and it's not just investors looking for a tax loss.


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## Meemo (Oct 27, 2008)

LisaGraceBooks said:


> I live just north of Kimberly Llewellyn. I live on the water in Hudson. We almost always have a breeze coming off the Gulf. If you move on the water you'll be fine temperature wise. If you go inland, you can lose the breeze quick and summers can be very hot. 120 degrees in the car with the windows up. (Don't leave a pet in it for even five minutes.)
> Siesta Key is beautiful and you're going to love it.


Small world - my daughter's in-laws live in Hudson. We're up in the Panhandle. Love it here.


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## Lisa Grace (Jul 3, 2011)

Meemo said:


> Small world - my daughter's in-laws live in Hudson. We're up in the Panhandle. Love it here.


We love it. I feel like I'm on vacation everyday when I walk out in the backyard.


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## Michael R. Hicks (Oct 29, 2008)

LisaGraceBooks said:


> We love it. I feel like I'm on vacation everyday when I walk out in the backyard.


That's how we felt when we were there. Of course, we were *on* vacation (well, mixed with business, as well), but it just felt so perfect for us. Even when I was just driving around, it seemed a lot like where I grew up in Phoenix, only not as hot and with an awesome beach and warm ocean water just a stone's throw away!


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## Gertie Kindle (Nov 6, 2008)

Reminder to budget for a propane generator.


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## Michael R. Hicks (Oct 29, 2008)

Gertie Kindle 'a/k/a Margaret Lake' said:


> Reminder to budget for a propane generator.


Lots of power outages? Well, we can do that - have one up here. Of course, if we luck out, we'll be able to keep the RV at the house, so will have a 7kW generator right there...


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## Gertie Kindle (Nov 6, 2008)

Michael R. Hicks said:


> Lots of power outages? Well, we can do that - have one up here. Of course, if we luck out, we'll be able to keep the RV at the house, so will have a 7kW generator right there...


Hurricanes.


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## Michael R. Hicks (Oct 29, 2008)

Gertie Kindle 'a/k/a Margaret Lake' said:


> Hurricanes.


Yeah, we get those little buggers up this way, too!


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## Gertie Kindle (Nov 6, 2008)

Michael R. Hicks said:


> Yeah, we get those little buggers up this way, too!


No longer just a tropical event.


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