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AMERICAN INFO.NETPRESENTSTHE FLORIDA RELOCATION & RETIREMENT GUIDE[Florida Introduction] |
PREFACE |
| It's difficult to know exactly how many persons retire to Florida each year. For one thing the definition itself is a bit slippery. Americans are "retiring" younger, sooner, remaining active longer and filling their new found leisure time with avocations we'd have called "jobs" twenty-five years ago. Today they're "labors of love", pursued in large measure beyond the borders of the states where we spent our professional lives. We do know however that more of us have, are, and will continue to "retire" to Florida than to any other state in the Union, maintaining her reputation as America's favorite Retirement Haven. |
| More Americans relocate to Florida than to any other state, nearly 70% of her residents having been born elsewhere (the largest such ratio in the country), and annual immigration figures unfailingly place her at the top of the list (622,000 persons during 1991 - over two million from 1985 to 1990). In 1992 Florida ranked third in the nation in the value of non-residential construction contracts, second in residential contracts, and first in numbers of residential building permits. Overall, the state's population has grown by over 38% since 1980, the fourth highest growth rate in the nation and more than triple the national average. 18% of her population is 65 or over, 23% are aged 60 or more; again, the highest such ratios in America. Why such popularity? Sun? Surf? Disney World? Good enough reasons for a two week vacation spree perhaps, but not for the best part of a lifetime. The answer of course must lie in a combination of factors. Climate's a part of it, naturally, as are the low taxes, an equitable cost of living, and unmatched recreational opportunities. But there's so much more to the story than that; so much in fact, that it takes a book to tell it. |
| This guide is intended to help provide the information you need to acquaint
yourself with America's Number-one leisure time location. You'll find it
divided into easy to read chapters, each covering an important relocation or
retirement related topic. It also contains additional material on the state's
historical, financial and educational background. We've designed it to cover
as broad a spectrum as possible, so that whatever your questions, priorities or
interests, you'll be better prepared to choose. Remember too, that further
information is readily available through state government agencies, Chambers
of Commerce, and local newspapers. Florida will be glad to hear from you.
She's been welcoming out-of-towner's inquiries perhaps longer than any other
state. Some even claim both The American Vacation and our modern concept
of Retirement was invented right here, sometime after the Civil War. Could
be.
One thing at least is certain, whether your retirement plans call for small town or large, for solitude or society, for the country life or for a seaside villa; Florida offers a wealth of possibility few other states can match. |