THE FOLLOWING ARTICLE HAS APPEARED IN THE RECORD ON April 2, 2003

Thinking of spending winters
in Florida?

Last month I dealt with the option of buying a park trailer in a Florida community/RV park resort as a way of avoiding our prolonged winters. I suggested that it wouldn't be a sound investment even though a whole array of social and sporting activities are offered to the 55-and-over.

Those who demand a taste of luxury at every level may want to consider a second alternative, namely an adult "manufactured home" community/ village. These homes consist of doublewide mobile patio homes that are built on blocks and strapped to the ground with tie-downs so as to help brace them against earthquakes and hurricanes. The double wides are actually two single units that are towed to the site and then joined to make one large mobile home. The ones we visited had screened porches, carports, manicured lawns and central air-conditioning. They were selling new, between $84,000 and $110,000 US.

The "secluded and peaceful village" just happened to be located on the opposite side of busy Highway 41 where we were staying in our RV park. Nearby were fields of ashen brush, citrus farms (Navel oranges, red grapefruit) and other retirement communities, hardly the type of Florida destinations most tourists have at the top of their sightseeing list.

The development consisted of over 100 lots with concrete driveways, well-maintained landscaped gardens and a small lake occupied by cranes, herons and pelicans. Some of the other amenities included a heated swimming pool, a Jacuzzi and a large clubhouse equipped with a kitchen, meeting hall, billiard room, library and exercise room. The vast majority of residents were snowbirds from northern United States. Fewer and fewer come from Canada because of our Canadian dollar and skyrocketing health insurance premiums. If you are hoping to mingle with a young crowd, forget it - the average age is closer to 65. As in so many RV parks in the U.S where we stayed, the residents showed little desire to spend their money on tummy tucks or Botex eyelids.

The residents I spoke to repeated, over and over again, that they returned each year because of both the community spirit and the many park amenities. As for being within easy walking distance to downtown shopping -forget it, the nearest decent size grocery store was at least two miles further south. As there are no trolleys or buses, having access to a vehicle is a necessity.

Any purchaser of either a spanking new or pre-used model pays a monthly lot rental of up to $466. The amount includes $285 for the base lot lease, which also covers maintenance of the clubhouse, swimming pool, Jacuzzi, roads and real estate taxes. The other items currently included in the monthly rent are $71 for electricity, $20 for the basic telephone service, $40 for cable TV and $50 for water sewer and trash collection.

Any Canadian who would want to live four months a year in such a community would have to be prepared to pay close to $6,000 a year or in the vicinity of $1,500 US for each of the four winter months. A third alternative consists of a buying into a community cooperative where all of the residents are shareholders. One such community co-operative with 381 residential home sites was located not far from our RV park. Seventy per cent of the 55-and-over residents were snowbirds.

The main difference with the previous community was that the residents not only owned their doublewide modular homes, they also owned shares in the land. This feature also meant that they owned and administered all of the community property and had full control over the monthly association fees. While the amenities and activities were identical to the two other community parks, this one was particularly clean and well maintained. At the time of my visit, the pre-owned doublewide mobile homes were selling from $66,000 to $115,000 US, which also included their shares in the land. The few remaining vacant lots measuring 65-by-70 feet were selling for close to $25,000.

With an annual budget of $514,000 the co-operative succeeded over the years in building up a reserve of $800,000 all of which explains why the monthly fee for each home owner was only $85. This amount included water and sewer service, cable TV, lawn mowing and maintenance of all common facilities including clubhouse, swimming pool and three small lakes. Another reason why the monthly fee was so low was because the maintenance was handled by the residents themselves.

On the other hand the co-operative concept requires that each owner must pay property taxes on his or her lot, which can vary between $600 and $1,200. By the time all of the expenses are factored in it is safe to say that the annual costs can climb up to $4,000, or between $750 and $1,000 US a month for any owner one who spends only four months per year in Florida.

With regards to the three options I am hard pressed to find many redeeming economical advantages for any Canadian. The land-rental option is particularly unattractive. It would mean sinking money into a depreciating asset while every year the rent and association fee increases in US dollars. It would be much cheaper to sublet anyone of the comfortable models.

For the record, Madeleine and I still belong to the category of "rabid" RVers, which explains why there was never any question of buying a park model or mobile home. After a week or two in one location a gauge flashes telling us it is time to pack up and move out. Fortunately we own a RV, albeit a small one but one which still gives us all the comforts of home as well as the freedom to go where we want to. However, being on the move can also be expensive which, of course, explains our need to occasionally boondock.