Cathy, I have moved from Miami area to central Florida 5 years ago for similar reasons. Now Blue Cross/BS is 180.00 a month with 4,500 ded. I am healthy though. You will love it in St Augustine . Good luck with your move. Walter
Christ, is this ever the truth or what? All of the goods and services (particularly the latter) I purchase regularly have gone through the roof. My monthly cable bill, for example, is simply insane and I don't have any premium channels beyond Disney and HBO. I don't even want to discuss my auto insurance (premiums increasing geometrically despite the fact that nobody on the stinking policy has filed a claim nor had a ticket in years). The kind of stuff I buy, say, every five years (but typically longer), such as TVs, telephones, computers, camcorders/digital cameras, washers/dryers, et al, have all declined in price. But, these decreases don't even come close to making up for the increases I've seen in my utility bills, property taxes, home maintenance expenses (some plumbers charge more per hour than lawyers), insurance premiums (our homeowner's has doubled in the last two years; no claims filed), kids' education expenses, medical, and the like. I'm seriously considering moving to that island on which Capt Jack Sparrow was marooned (provided there's some rum left).
Yes, what is it with the cable company? I have enhanced basic service and it is $41 a month. It used to be $9. I guess it is my choice to watch TV so I can't complain.
In 1787, String Quintet in G Minor by Mozart required five people to perform it. It still does. Also still takes just as long for college professor to grade papers, give lectures and educate your kid. Same amount of time to fix radiator hose. So you pay through nose for cost of labor. Or more for the same thing while in places in the economy where productivity rages, you pay less for more. Called "Baumol's cost-disease" and is endemic to labor intensive business. Search google for more if interested. I took everything above from the July 7 New Yorker in The Financial Page. So I will give this cultured, thoughtful, plagiarized spiel at a cocktail party this weekend to all who will listen and then slither off and put my boning knife through all tires on my insurance man's Porsche. Geo. Wonder what "Insurance Bureaus" do in my state; your state; any state?