Pollyana

Point Of Entry Officers - the officials at the point where you enter the USA

How can you be sure you will even qualify for a visa when you retire?

Mai838

Thank you Dorothy. I've entered the US many times with the Esta Visa. Is this what you all mean? Sorry, but do some of you actually own a property in the states, have experience and British? I just feeling lots of negativity but I appreciate your information!

Mai838

Oops sorry I'm new on this site and working it out. I think I was meant to say Pollyanna not Dorothy.

Bob

Well what do you think?

These folks live in the US and have a visa, greencard or became US citizens, so they have a good understanding.

There is quite a cost in maintaining a property in some parts of the country, Florida is certainly one of them. You don't have a visa, owning property is another reason for POE to deny you entry on the VWP, potential problems with insuring the place and maintaining it are also very real concerns.

It's tough enough for folks living in the country to manage property out of state, especially if they don't already know the area well.

Moses2013

Have you actually looked on the website what monthly fees you'd have to pay? The usual property websites will show you crime rates in the area and taxes you have to pay and don't forget that Florida is flooded with empty properties. You might be stuck with a property you'll never be able to sell and will still have to pay all the fees.




You'd be better off renting a home when you're on holiday and just keep saving money until you actually can afford to buy in a desirable area, or really know what you have to look out for. In general it's always better to buy in the place you work and live, rather than paying rent there. I know London is expensive, but maybe you have other options in the UK.

Mai838

Thank you Bob. That makes sense. This does make me think twice about the maintenance of the property in a area I don't know well. I didn't know owning a property could cause problems to enter.

Mai838

Umm, yes I thought about that. I do wonder why it's flooded on empty and so cheap but was in hope it might go up one day. It's a dream but not knowing the ins and out is scary to me. I'm secure in England. Would like a new lifestyle in another country with sun and beach. Nowhere in England inspired me as I've lived here for decades.

Mai838

Yes, I looked at the charges of a property I liked

Canveydave

Almost everyone who answers your question will be a British Citizen, living in America on some sort of work or marriage visa, and I know you think people are being negative, but almost everyday somebody comes on here asking about moving to the US and they have no way of doing it.

We moved here from the UK on a work visa and even though we have been here 15 months now I have zero intention of buying a house. My visa is tied to work, I could get the sack tomorrow and then be trying to manage a house from 6,000 miles away, it would be a nightmare.

I have however owned houses in Florida, when I was in the UK. It was the hardest work, for the least return imaginable. They got fairly regularly burgled, I had to rent them out 32 weeks a year to break even, and that doesn't just happen, and people who stayed their treated them like rubbish.

The reality of owning a home overseas in a country you have no guarantee of ever living in is horrible.

I don't mean to be negative, just being realistic

Mai838

Gosh. That is horrible! Thank you so much for letting me know what it's really like for you. I don't know how this forum works but I found it when researching so tried to get some answers. Thank you for spelling out the truth and I guess your all living there so know the complications. It's making me feel like it's not worth it.

mikelincs

POE, point of entry, ie immigration when you arrive in the US, they have the right, and ability, to turn you away at any time, even with a valid ESTA, and there is no appeal. Owning property in the US might well be something they hit on to deny entry

Mai838

That's strange! Why would they deny entry when is Brits are doing a good thing by buying their property? We are helping their economy!

mikelincs

To be honest they aren't interested in any of that, they are there to keep people out of the US unless they are just tourists or have a legitimate reason via a visa to be allowed in. The ESTA is not a visa, its the travel document of the VWP, Visa Waiver Programme, and as it's name implies the requirement for a visa has been waived because you will be there for less than 90 days, and will not be doing any sort of work.

Bob

Owning property is a indicator that you might want to stay longer than 90 days and also possibly that you might want to work.

As Mike said, they're really looking for reasons to not let you in.

If you were of retirement age and actually retired and could show that you can afford to live without working, the odds change and become more favourable again, especially if you got a B2 visa, but as you're not retired yet, that is not likely to be given and will cause more problems if you try to get that visa.

Pulaski

Lots of good advice so far, and not "negative", just realistic. I am, like most of the others here, British and lived here long term. I got a visa because my wife is American.

Houses in the US are usually money pits, in a way that people from the UK find hard to understand. A roof on a US home typically only lasts 15-20 years and often less than that, and will cost from $5,000-$10,000 to replace, or more for a larger home. The heating and AC system will typically last 10-15 years and cost as much as a roof to replace. Very often cheap houses are cheap exactly because they are due for a new roof and the heating/AC doesn't work.

Other smaller repairs are a constant battle in ways that didn't seem to be the case in the UK - toilet flush mechanisms wear out, window screens break, door locks wear and get loose, painting, especially exterior surfaces, seems to be a perpetual chore, etc. The costs are relentless, unless you're handy and can do repairs yourself; I sometimes joke that my house isn't just a home it's a hobby too! Except that isn't funny.

In Florida you'll need to leave the AC on (intermittently) when you not living there because it is likely your home will get a mold problem because of the heat and humidity. You would also need regular yard maintenance because things grow very fast and your yard would quickly turn into a jungle while you're away.

If you really insist on buying somewhere, then you would do best with a condo(minium) which means leashold, and could be either a flat or a townhome. You would have to pay a monthly fee to cover (hopefully) repairs to the roof or outer shell (you could still be billed for your share of the cost of major repairs not covered by available funds in the condo association reserves account), and for maintenance of the "common areas", which might include a pool. The monthly fees could easily be $500/mth, and quite possibly more if there is a pool.