It’s Cold Out There! (Here’s 10 Things To Consider If You’re Thinking About Buying A Second Home In FL)

It’s FREEZING in most of the country today…

And if you’re like a lot of people, you might be thinking about warmer temperatures.

Here are 10 Things To Consider If You’re Thinking About Buying A 2nd Home In FL

More and more people are moving to FL every day. And the baby boomer population continues to hit retirement age. Basic supply and demand suggests that FL is a fairly safe bet for long term appreciation. Buying a second home in Florida could be one of the most fun and best financial decisions you ever make!
Make sure you visit in person! (it’s worth the plane ticket). You might be tempted to save time and pick a property based on the recommendation of a 3rd party, but this isn’t always a good idea. Your friend or relative will never view such a large purchase as carefully as you, the person laying out the money, will.
Before falling in love with a condo make sure the project is “warrantable.” A lot of condo complexes have pending litigation and other issues that might set off last minute underwriting “red flags” that kill your deal.
If you take cash out of the equity in your home, you may be able to get a seller to negotiate a better price. Cash offers generally favored over offers with financing.
If you’re able to use the equity in your home to make a cash offer in FL you might save a lot in closing fees. For example title insurance is usually higher on a purchase than it is on a refinance.
Choose A Realtor carefully. There are a LOT of Part Time agents in FL. You’ll almost always have a better experience and get a better deal if you work with a full time agent with adequate experience in your target market.
Renting out your property when you’re not in town can be a great way to earn additional income to help pay for your mortgage and other expenses. Be sure to look into airbnb rates near specific locations in order to guage demand and likely short term rental rates.
If you’re thinking about renting out the property when you’re not there, do your homework, many Homeowner’s associations have strict rules a about renting units out.
FL doesn’t have state income tax! You might want to consider spending at least 6 months and 1 day in your new place in order to take full advantage of this.
Consider the other tax benefits. A 2nd home or investment property can help provide deductions against your other income. At the end of the day, you might find that owning a 2nd home in FL is much more affordable than you might think.