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question everything

(51,822 posts)
Mon Jan 12, 2026, 09:24 PM Jan 12

The Dream of a Florida Retirement Is Fading for the Middle Class

(snip)

The experiences of both couples reflect a new reality about the Sunshine State: Its older population is transforming as the state’s costs of living balloon. Wealthy individuals make up a growing share of people at or near retirement age arriving in Florida from other states, according to U.S. Census Bureau data, while many working-class and middle-class older people who feel priced out are moving elsewhere.

The new patterns of migration are helping reshape Florida’s identity, swapping its long-held reputation as a paradise for retirees of all stripes for one that primarily caters to the well-heeled. The decades-old promise of an affordable sun-drenched sanctuary is fading in the face of high home prices, insurance premiums and property taxes, among other costs.

The cost of owning even a modest condo has increased because of recent laws aimed at shoring up condo safety and finances in the wake of the 2021 building collapse in Surfside, Fla.

Mobile-home parks that once provided a cheap option are becoming pricier, as large companies acquire them and raise rents on the land beneath, according to advocates for residents. Or they are disappearing altogether when builders buy them and convert them to costlier housing.

More..

https://www.wsj.com/real-estate/luxury-homes/the-dream-of-a-florida-retirement-is-fading-for-the-middle-class-a29a5687?st=H6Hvdj&reflink=desktopwebshare_permalink


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19 replies = new reply since forum marked as read
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The Dream of a Florida Retirement Is Fading for the Middle Class (Original Post) question everything Jan 12 OP
Florida, one of the last places i want to go to. dem4decades Jan 12 #1
it has never appealed to me, either Skittles Jan 12 #2
I grew up in Tampa. I love Florida and would have gone home in a heartbeat. But. ms liberty Jan 12 #3
That is exactly my position on my home state. OldBaldy1701E Jan 13 #13
I grew up just outside Tampa in the 50's and 60s. The change has been immense for sure. dameatball Jan 19 #17
What about all the Canadians trying to sell their second homes? RockCreek Jan 12 #4
Hard to say how much, can't be helping. carpetbagger Jan 14 #15
Yup. buzzycrumbhunger 19 hrs ago #19
The Repukes have ruined it here buzzycrumbhunger Jan 12 #5
Unless you're MAGA/Republican why would you consider it? Buddyzbuddy Jan 12 #6
Never been my dream. Marie Marie Jan 12 #7
mine either... but here in California, we get the sun without the humidity BlueWaveNeverEnd Jan 21 #18
I'm reminded of a Murphy Brown episode BigmanPigman Jan 13 #8
Ah yes, the Wall Street Journal. flvegan Jan 13 #9
I love it too but mostly the nature aspect flamingdem Jan 13 #10
While you're trying to convince people to stay away Conjuay Jan 16 #16
The dream of any retirement is fading... Chemical Bill Jan 13 #11
Of course, the middle class is fading. Chemical Bill Jan 13 #12
Florida Jughead Jan 13 #14

ms liberty

(11,047 posts)
3. I grew up in Tampa. I love Florida and would have gone home in a heartbeat. But.
Mon Jan 12, 2026, 09:32 PM
Jan 12

They would have to make some serious changes for me to go home now.

OldBaldy1701E

(10,571 posts)
13. That is exactly my position on my home state.
Tue Jan 13, 2026, 08:57 AM
Jan 13

I love it, I miss it, and I wish I could live there.

But, certain elements are making that impossible. They would destroy it all rather than have to live with a single thing that they do not like.

carpetbagger

(5,435 posts)
15. Hard to say how much, can't be helping.
Wed Jan 14, 2026, 07:50 AM
Jan 14

There's a depressed real estate market. Part of it is national trends, part insurance/regulatory, part climate, part overcrowding which is making some areas less attractive. adding reduced foreign demand is the topper.

buzzycrumbhunger

(1,728 posts)
19. Yup.
Sun Feb 1, 2026, 07:59 PM
19 hrs ago

I suspect those homes are now being snapped up by hedge funds, exacerbating the impossible cost of affording a home here.

buzzycrumbhunger

(1,728 posts)
5. The Repukes have ruined it here
Mon Jan 12, 2026, 10:26 PM
Jan 12

Overdevelopment, crowding, impossible traffic with endless road repairs, hedge fund landlords, unattainable mortgages so that we can’t afford rentals *or* mortgages, and fascists everywhere you turn.

And yes, the Canucks have bailed and won’t be back, but it’s not helping the housing situation.

I hate to say it, but no state income tax was always a big plus—but the fact that it attracts the oligarchs negates that several times over.

I’d love to run to Scotland (family ties, but third-generation doesn’t give me a free pass), but I’d sure as hell run to Canada if I could. Should’ve trolled the singles groups when I was still young enough to snag a guy. *sigh*

Buddyzbuddy

(2,286 posts)
6. Unless you're MAGA/Republican why would you consider it?
Mon Jan 12, 2026, 11:05 PM
Jan 12

Something's been very wrong ever since Bush v. Gore.
No offense to the sane Floridians intended.

BigmanPigman

(54,763 posts)
8. I'm reminded of a Murphy Brown episode
Tue Jan 13, 2026, 12:03 AM
Jan 13

when the staff went to a retreat in FL. Murphy said, "I've never been to Florida and I always prided myself with this fact". That's how I feel. I still have family and friends there but I will NOT visit them, ever. Been there, done that and it was always a "blah" experience for many reasons.

flvegan

(65,924 posts)
9. Ah yes, the Wall Street Journal.
Tue Jan 13, 2026, 02:47 AM
Jan 13

It's nice that they basically isolated all their "findings" to Sarasota, Miami and Naples. Three of the most expensive places to live in Florida. Don't really expect much more from such a shit rag as the WSJ.

I live here (obviously). Property prices are coming down, thankfully. Insurance is high, yes. Taxes are high if you buy a home at that escalated price. HOA and Condo Assn fees...well, that's your fault for choosing to live there. Positives, no state income tax, no Florida estate tax. Yes, the comparison of hard costs (gas, milk, eggs) certainly doesn't have the chasm it used to between a lot of other areas. When I moved here I was legit shocked at the difference and how cheap it was to live here. Regardless of the WSJ, you can still buy acreage here for $6k-7500/acre if you look for it, and Realtor shows a couple hundred thousand listings under $300k. Um, hmm. Hold on...

Actually, you know what, on second thought, the WSJ is right. Everyone should just forget Florida and stay out. Nothing to see here. We have the worst drivers on the planet. All of them. They all live here. Yes, our government is largely bootlickers and asskissers of the Cankles McTacotits party. And yes, hurricanes are a real threat every single year. And the gators and snakes! Spiders as big as your hand! And the beaches suck, too many sharks and the crowds are bad. Oh, the parking! And the heat. Did you know that if you so much as go outside 6 months of the year, you'll just drop dead. Instantly. Bad place! Bad place!

flamingdem

(40,826 posts)
10. I love it too but mostly the nature aspect
Tue Jan 13, 2026, 03:36 AM
Jan 13

Wading birds, gators, crocs, otters, so much to see.
Manatees, panthers, beautiful landscapes.

It has grown on me in spite of Magats.

Conjuay

(2,955 posts)
16. While you're trying to convince people to stay away
Fri Jan 16, 2026, 10:48 AM
Jan 16

Mosquito County is the historic name of an early county that once comprised most of the eastern part of Florida. Its land included all of present-day Volusia, Brevard, Indian River, St. Lucie, Marion, Martin, Seminole, Osceola, Orange, Lake, Polk and Palm Beach counties.

The only part that retains this link to the past is "Mosquito Lagoon".

Jughead

(133 posts)
14. Florida
Tue Jan 13, 2026, 09:01 AM
Jan 13

I remember an old friend telling me years ago that Florida is shaped like a penis for a reason…lol

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