Choosing a property in Florida

Condominiums (condos)
A nother word for an apartment in a block that can range from a small building containing six apartments to a huge skyscraper overlooking the ocean. In this case, the higher the floor, the higher the price. Condos usually have shared facilities such as a swimming pool.

Town Homes
Buildings built side-by-side with a number of identical houses (known as townhouses in the UK and Spain). There are usually communal facilities including a swimming pool. You also usually pay a community charge for waste collection, pool maintenance and general maintenance of the outside of the building and shared facilities.

Villas or Single Family Homes
Free-standing detached houses either on one or two levels, usually with their own swimming pool. Many villas are now found on purpose-built developments called “communities” where you pay a monthly fee for a number of services such as security and maintenance. These communities often have a sizeable population of foreign buyers who rent out their home regularly to pay the community charges and cover mortgage costs.

Off-plan or resale
As with any destination, you need to decide whether you want to buy a new-build (also known as off-plan) property, or an existing – or resale – property.

You may instinctively know which you prefer. Otherwise ask Lighthouse about the relative merits of each type. Off-plan is a popular way of buying in Florida, with thousands of new properties emerging around the Orlando area in particular. If you are buying partly for investment, off-plan has a greater chance of yielding higher capital gains as the property’s value will increase during the time it is being built.

You may not wish to wait a year or two for your property to be built, however. Or you may want a more individual home, not on a new development. In which case, a resale would be more suitable.

Rental
If you, like many UK buyers in Florida, intend to use your property partly for your own holidays and partly to rent out to other holidaymakers, do your research – and ask the experts – as to what kind of property will bring in the best rental returns and where.

Florida’s regions are greatly contrasting, so if you can, visit first to establish which one offers the kind of atmosphere and experience you want.
If investment and rental potential are key, Orlando and Central Florida in general are the safest bet, as the various Disney attractions ensure a year-round supply of visitors.

The number of bedrooms in your property is likely to determine the rental returns more than the value of the property. Also make sure there are no restrictions on rentals in your intended destination. Some developments impose restrictions on short-term rentals, which means you will limited to four lettings for a minimum of 30 days each.

Florida is also a haven for retirement properties, with an excellent climate, high standard of living and sophisticated infrastructure and facilities. But remember that, as a non-US resident, notions of retiring there will be limited to six months (or 183 consecutive days). But that’s still an enviable does of sunshine, then you can rent out the property for the rest of the time you are not using it.

When it comes to finding an agent, Florida – like Spain – has an over-abundance of agents touting for your business. By going through Lighthouse, you will have peace of mind that you are dealing with a reputable, trustworthy agent.