thinking about moving to south florida

[mitch777]

hi,
my partner and i are thinking of moving to south florida soon from connecticut.
visited ft lauderdale (wilton manors area) in march and liked some of what we saw.
seems to me that there is alot of poverty in the area as well as the super wealthy.
would like to know more about being hiv+ living there.
we are both in our early 50's and i have been poz for about 29 years. partner is negative.
it would be a HUGE change. new doctors, new state, new everything.
would like to hear both the positive and negative comments from those who know.
i am unable to work and my partner wants to work forever.
curious about the neighborhoods that are nice in the area but not too expensive.
we explored a bit, but not much. we were on vacation after all and needed some fun and relaxation.
people in general seemed to be very friendly.
thanks for any help!

[leatherman]

if you use ADAP, then remember that FL has a waiting list and you would end up another statistic, perhaps without meds.

[mitch777]

thanx mrleather,
just applied last week for ssdi. not sure of all of the implications yet.
copay for drugs while on the waiting list?
could deal with that for awhile.
any other warnings?
are you from the area?
we are just a couple of mid-west boys at heart and would like to scale down and relax a bit more.

[leatherman]

SSDI can sometimes take quite a bit of time to receive (like 2-3 yrs). As long as you have good information from doctors about how your disabled, things can go more quickly.

Most if not all of the drug manufacturers offer co-pay assistance through the various pharma websites
http://www.aidsmeds.com/articles/PAPs_Copays_19740.shtml
http://www.positivelyaware.com/2011/11_02/copay_chart.shtml

I relocated back to SC 2.5 yrs ago after 25 yrs in Ohio. I always said if I tried to move back home, I'd just keep driving until I got back to Pensacola FL (where I lived 2 yrs while going to college) or the Sarasota area; but that didn't happen. LOL So I certainly understand wanting to live in Florida.

[Joe K]

I lived in Broward County for 12 years and the state of Florida treats poz people like shit.  Their ADAP is administered by the state, through the counties and the hoops and uncaring attitudes are very hard to stomach.  They change eligibility rules constantly, rarely telling anyone in advance and it's not unusual for you to wait 2 to 4 hours to pick up your medications each month.

Florida is ruled by Republicans who don't like poz people and have no problem making pozzies lives as miserable as possible.  If you don't have private insurance that covers drugs, I would think twice about going to Florida.  You can't apply for ADAP until you actually reside there and even then, there is no guarantee you will be accepted.

Joe 

[phildinftlaudy]

Having lived here in South Florida for 14 years, I would say that unless a person has a good paying job lined up, it is a difficult place to live. Public transportation sucks. Everywhere you go there is traffic and crowds. Most people are rude or not overly friendly. It is expensive. If you have to get HIV services, options are getting more limited.

While I enjoy living here - mainly because of the weather and because I have a good career - I also would not rule out moving away from South Florida within the next few years as each year that goes by, I tend to like it less.

Most people that live here are not from here originally - and a great many people only stick around for a few years before relocating.

There are definitely better places to live. And South Florida is definitely the land of extremes --- you are either doing extremely well or living close to poverty.... haves and have nots.

Wilton Manors is one of the pricier areas to live; although, it is a nice area and very, very gay friendly.

Best to you whatever decision you make.

[tednlou2]

My partner and I talk all the time about how nice it would be to have a winter home there.  Not sure I would want to live there all year round.  His parents were able to get their place for a steal.  However, that was on the Gulf side near Ft. Myers.  I like that area, but probably too sleepy for us.  So, we like the Miami/Ft. Laud area, but it seems like it would be hard to find a full-time home, not to mention a winter home we liked and could afford.

I'm surprised with the huge gay community Florida has and the large poz community it has that the gov't isn't more gay/poz friendly.  I suppose all those rednecks and old folks just out number the gays and keep the repubs in office.  Or, are the gays and poz folks just not very active--so many not living there full-time, so don't vote and don't get involved??  I have no idea.  One would think (watching from KY) that there are thousands of gays and lesbians there that they would have power in numbers.  I remember being shocked (about 12 years ago) to learn Florida banned gays from adopting.  We didn't have a ban like that here, so it surprised me a state full of gays had a ban like that. 

Anyway, Mitch, I wish you the best on the relocation, if that is what you and your partner decide.  About the SSDI, 2-3 years can be the norm.  However, my friend got his in 17 months.  But, it all depends on the state.  The judge puts his disability back to when he last worked (which was over 2 years), so he was elegible for Medicare immediately.     

[MitchMiller]

If you're looking for warm weather, you might want to consider Palm Springs - gayest small city in the country.  The recession in CA has knocked a hole in real estate prices even there.  However, it probably won't last too much longer.  If you can afford to buy something, your property taxes cannot exceed 1% of value and can go up no more than 2% per year (proposition 13).  Once someone buys a house, they don't want to move because of the sweet deal on property taxes (assuming the prices are going up). 

Even though I'm not ready to retire quite yet, I've been pondering the Palm Spring real estate listings.

[mitch777]

thank you ALL for all of your comments, warnings, and suggestions!
hmmmm...
maybe connecticut isn't so bad. grass is always greener until we get on the other side of the fence.
we did take a couple of trips to palm springs. (both times in march)
much more beautiful than i imagined but yikes it was hot.
102 degrees even with "dry heat" was a challenge not to mention that in the summer it often can be 115 degrees plus.
during the last trip the winds were blowing the desert sands around to the point of getting sandblasted.
tried to look at it as a free dermobrasion appointment.
that being said, palm springs may still be an option. (no snow or hurricanes)
as for the ssdi...
know it will take awhile.
hired an attorney to help me out as i am self employed but no longer work at my business (retail kitchen shop) thanks to my partner running the show.
unusual situation to explain to the ssdi because it doesn't fit into norm.
guess i have never fit into many peoples "norms". ha.
tried to find gay retirement communities on line but the selection was pretty limited.
why is that?
maybe because we have a harder time admitting that we are getting older? tee hee.