I'm at LOTO 25-30 days a Summer.
I own a timeshare week at Vintage Landing/Four Seasons. It pretty much cost me nothing to buy it off ebay. Its OK, but if I had to buy in, it would not be worth it.
I have run the numbers and renting/timeshare maintenance probably cost me 30% annually of what it would cost to actually own a condo.
I would only buy for the convenience factor of having all my stuff there.
Owning and then renting out will not even cover half of your mortgage and dues.

I grew up in New Jersey and Pennsylvania so I am comfortable with 4 seasons. The only thing I miss is hunting season for turkey and chicken soup because it is actually refreshing to warm you up. People say Florida is hot but it isnt that bad in the coastal areas. Inland sucks! I lived in Atlanta for 12 years and it is hotter in Atlanta by about 5-8 degrees most of the summer. Heck, most of the northeast had a hotter summer than we did.

That being said, aint nothing like going out on the boat in October/November and watching college FOOTBALL in shorts and a T-shirt! I still giggle like a school girl and razz all my buddies up north...

It's great to hear the different ideas and opinions and not arguing about it, one is not better than the rest, they're all perfect for what each of us wants out of life.............................. a drama free zone, thanks.

Advantages and disadvantages to every place. What really makes the most sense is personal preferences, friends/family, and finances.

I had two full seasons of ski bumming, 140 days straight for both of them. Hard to do now with the lack of snow, and I no longer like the cold. I once, truly did like it.

I like the seasons sometimes, but Fall is shorter than summer, which is shorter yet than winter.

58 years in the Northeast is a bit much for me. I don't do winter sports, I bowl indoors

It's all about what you want to do, and where you like it. If I won last night's Powerball, I wouldn't have spent too much time thinking about it. But alas, wasn't me. It was 35 degrees one morning this week. I counted on Global Warming to prevent it, but I think it's back.
If I didn't work, I'd think about Clearwater area, although I still love Jupiter area on the other side.

i like living in the mid south . 4 seasons . never too cold in the winter but can get a little sticky in the summer . spring and fall are great . if i lived in somewhere warm all the time i would have be flat broke and not able to use my boat after the first year ....

Pacific Northwest is not good...I am talking from Seattle to Vancouver....I just winterized my boat cause the rain is starting...will be very inconsistent til May....rains all winter long but not much snow...anyway nice boating with the scenery here in that 4 month window but rather be in Florida

dayum, and all this time i thought ILL was the crotch of the united states. lol but hey look on the bright side, chicago was named murder capital of the usa in the news today...props

i was living in clearwaer 20 some years ago, my grand parents retired there in the late 60s, it was really awesome back then, we would build big bon fires on the courtney cambell causeway back when it was a two lane road with killer beaches on each side, and party every weekend. now you can;t even have a beer on the causeways, it has become a police state full of ahole redneck good ole boy cops... back in the day there were no speed limits on the inter coastal from clwtr to st pete beach!

Chicago here and theirs a reason they call it the windy city..if i had my choice i would stay here for the summer and head to florida until march then go cross country to san dimas ca and visit some friends then hit lake havasu az to visit some of my cousins then head back to chitown ....BTW 40' American eagle diesel pusher would suit me just fine..

I might be the only guy here with an "end-game" plan for...BOATING. I abhor Illinois (lived here my whole life), which is why my wife and I find ourselves LEAVING the state almost every weekend to go have fun. We boated in 6 different states this year, and my local launch ramp is 25 minutes from the house with access to one BIGASS lake. I love winter, summer, and fall...spring just plain sucks.

To my initial point...our plans is to be outta here in 5 years or so. Moving WEST. I fell in love with the mountains when I first visited 15 years ago, and the Colorado Front Range is where I want to be. I enjoy boating, but my true passions are for mountain biking, trail running and snowboarding.

I promise to keep my AT all nice and pretty for whoever wants it in 5 years!