RadioBanter - View Single Post - Beware of hams planting dis-information...

June 15th 05, 01:45 PM

On Mon, 13 Jun 2005 11:39:40 -0400, (I
AmnotGeorgeBush) wrote:

.Like that guy in the swamps of Tampa that

was just forced, by eminent domain, off his

land to the tune of 5 mil?

Ain't that something?

Yea. I guess everyone's different. But I could find another secluded
place and have money in the bank with that 5 mil.

_
They have
survived Indians, draughts, plagues (such as citrus canker that
decimates entire industries and family enterprises) hurricanes on a
regular basis..on it goes. Florida has never been the cushy place your
ads in between Homer Simpson and reality shows depict. Miami and Disney
have always presented an unrealistic portrait of Florida. It is still a
very much undeveloped state,

That's because much of it is swamp.

Most of it is scrubland, not swamp.

Swamp mostly in the south, scrub mostly in the north. Except for the
coasts of course.

There's an on-going battle between rabid
developers who want to drain the swamps,
and the ecologists who want to preserve the
natural ecosystem

Yep,,,,a damn good time to support the "whacko" environmentalists.

I'm not fan of developers. I much prefer to live in a sparsely
developed area. I am also not a fan of destroying critical habitat.
When we kill animals, we indirectly kill ourselves.

I can always sell my home and move north (or inland) and buy incredible
acreage and 4 or 5 times the home I have here and still have enough left
over to live fairly well.

I could do the same. For the price that my
home can get in today's market, I could move
to an unremarkable (READ: not in demand)
area and by a similar place for a fraction of the
cost. But there's no place to work at a livable
wage. But when I retire, that's probably what I
will do.

Our home values increased over 70% in the last ten years in some areas.

My home appreciated about 70% in the 5
years that I've lived here. It's unreal, and it
won't last.

Hell, I was talking Florida as a whole. My home value increased 100% in
the last 8 years, as has many in the flood zones (near or on water).

Go figure. People see what happens when mother nature throw them a
curve ball, yet they flock to those areas in droves. Then when they
get hit, they have the nerve to act surprised........

I pity the people who are buying into the
market now with a 10% down payment and
will likely find themselves upside down when
the bottom finally falls out of the market.

Some say the bubble will hold here, some say there is no bubble.

The bubble will "ease" when interest rates inevitably go up again.

The
problems will be those who took on bigger and better homes when the
rates were at all time lows instead of paying off their debts.

From an investment perspective, it's not such a bad idea. Many
financial planners will tell you than it's better to carry some debt,
and borrow money to invest, rather than tying up your own. It seems
like reverse logic, but as long as you are earning a greater return
than the interest rate you are borrowing, it makes sense.

*Taxes
when I bought my original home here were less than 300 bucks a year.

I'd die for that rate. Right now, I'm approaching
$5500

Now they are over 3G.

Even 3G would be better than what I'm paying
now.

Well, we'll hit that in a few more years. Houses on the actual tourist
beaches are paying above and beyond that.

Makes you want to run the tourists out on a rail. Except that they
dump a lot of money into the local economy. But it also drives up the
costs to the residents.

_
Houseboats are another option for those of us
who tame the sea.

I once toyed with the idea of living on a boat.
But I have far too much junk to make it
practical. Especially with family
considerations. If I was a loner, I could live in
boat or a trailer and I'd be just fine.

Dude, check out some of the yachts,,,,I know a guy who lives in the
Vinoy Basin and has two dirtbikes on board for he and his son.

I know, but those yachts are a bit rich for my blood. Although, I
could get a fairly nice one for the price I could sell my house for.

Of course, I can always throw a
trailer or mobile home near JerryO's place after selling my home and
never have to worry about money again.

At least you'd have a drinking buddy ;-)

Coca Cola only. Besides, I'd rather talk skip than drink. I'd save a lot
of truckers, as Jerry would be chasing my impossible-to-find signal all
the time.

Keeping moving does make it tougher to track. Although the FCC
supposedly has gear that can track moving signals. But I'm sure Jerry
doesn't.

Dave
"Sandbagger"