Florida

One of the best areas to scuba dive within North America is in the Florida Keys, a long string of islands just south of Miami. For any scuba diver traveling to southern Florida, even a quick day trip to the Florida Keys is worthwhile. There’s great scuba diving all along the Keys from the first community of Key Largo, through to the middle at Marathon and all the way to the end where Key West is located. One can get to Key Largo in about 45 minutes from Miami and the protected Pennekamp marine park in the surrounding waters offers much more marine life to see than the waters off Miami or Fort Lauderdale. Key Largo in particular is a scuba diver’s town with numerous dive operators and some retailers who carry diving equipment and gear.

One of the great things about scuba diving in the Florida Keys is the variety of dive sites for every level of diver. Many of the nicest coral reefs loaded with fish are located in beginner level dive sites like Molasses Reef and French Reef. With depths of 30 to 50 feet, these are perfect dive sites for newly certified scuba divers as well as those who wish to do night dives. There’s even some good wreck diving in shallow dive sites like the Benwood wreck where the resident marine life will not disappoint any diver. For more advanced divers, there are some spectacular deep dives featuring large wrecks like the Duane, a former coast guard ship sitting upright. The most recent ship that was sunk for scuba diving is the Spiegel Grove which again is for advanced divers.

Many scuba divers from North America and other parts of the world come to the Florida Keys for their open water certification dives as well as more advanced training. Accommodations are plentiful right in the communities along the Keys and range from simple motels all the way up to high end resorts. Many have special packages just for scuba divers where there’s an arrangement with one of the local dive operators. There’s also relatively inexpensive accommodations in Florida City which is the closest community back in the Florida mainland about 20 minutes from Key Largo. After the day of diving, there are lots of restaurants serving fresh seafood for even the hungriest of divers.

Another attractive feature of Florida Keys diving is the cost. Especially for the quality of the dive sights, the cost of diving here is lower than in many of the Caribbean destinations like the Bahamas and Cayman Islands. For those who are not ready to try scuba diving, there are some decent sites to snorkel in the Keys including one of the best in the U.S. at Looe Key. The marine life that can be seen here has convinced quite a few snorkellers to finally pursue scuba diving certifications. The Florida Keys has enough other activities to do besides scuba diving to keep non-divers busy. There’s interesting shopping, water sports, beaches (near the western part) and even two places to interact with dolphins. Of course, there’s also the funky scene at Key West.

The one aspect about scuba diving in the Florida Keys that some divers may not like is that the dives are not guided by divemasters from the various scuba operators. Divers who are used to following a local divemaster like the diving in destinations like Cozumel, will just have to team up in buddy groups here in the Keys. Despite this drawback, the Florida Keys still offers great tropical scuba diving without leaving the USA.

New Yorkers are buying homes in Florida (particularly in Boca Raton, Delray Beach and Boynton Beach) at a record pace, either as a second home or permanently relocating to the sunshine state. This brief overview is intended to give readers from New York an idea of what to expect when embarking on the process of shopping for a home in So. Florida.

Although home prices have skyrocketed in the last 5 years, relative to NY prices, you can still buy a lot more house for your dollar in Florida. Homes in South Florida are currently selling pretty quickly with the average time on the market being about 30 days. If you are working with a real estate agent here and are serious about buying something, be prepared to make a trip down here on short notice. If you leave it until your next trip in a couple of months, chances are the home will no longer be available. Homes here typically sell anywhere from full asking price to $10k or $20k below asking price. Often times, homebuyers from other areas make offers of 10% below the asking price, only to loose a few homes before understanding that sellers here consider this insulting and typically won’t even respond with a counter offer. With 1,000 people per day making Florida their permanent residence, the demand for housing continues to increase while there is limited supply. For this reason it is anticipated that prices will remain strong for the foreseeable future.

Real Estate taxes are calculated using a millage rate which is applied to the assessed value of the property. Although the millage rate varies from one area to another, as a rule of thumb, your annual Real Estate taxes will be 2% of the value of your home. Property is re assessed every time it changes hands, so when you buy a home, you should expect it to be assessed at or about your purchase price, therefore your annual taxes will be about 2% of what you paid for your home. There are several tax exemptions available to Florida residents, the most significant one being the Homestead Exemption which is available to all permanent Florida residents. This exemption lowers your assessed value by $25k and shields your property from creditors, but more importantly homestead properties are protected by the Save Our Homes tax cap which limits the amount your taxes can increase by 3% annually. Since property values have been increasing about 25% annually, it is extremely important to file for homestead exemption as soon as you close on your new home. At the same time, since many current homeowners are paying a fraction of what they would if their homes were not protected, when looking at homes, you should pay no attention to what the current owner’s taxes are, instead you should calculate your new tax based on your purchase price. If you are discouraged by the high real estate taxes in Florida, don’t despair, there is good news yet – Florida has no income tax. When living in NY, you pay Federal, State and possibly City taxes on the money you earn. In Florida, while you still pay Federal income tax, there is no state income tax at all.

Most single family homes in Boca Raton are built in planned communities and are governed by homeowners associations. Townhouses or condominiums are similar but are governed by condo associations. In either case, the governing body will be responsible for maintenance of common areas and will impose rules on homeowners regarding the upkeep of the homes. Homeowners are required to pay monthly assessments to the association to cover the common costs of the community, which vary depending on what the association is responsible for. If you purchase a home in Country Club, membership in the club may be mandatory. Country Club membership typically entails an up front equity contribution to the club ranging from $20k to $100k and yearly membership dues ranging from $2k to $15k.
Your mortgage company will require that you maintain an insurance policy on your home equal to at least the amount of the mortgage or the replacement value of the home whichever is less. They will require that you have hurricane coverage and if you live in a flood zone, then flood insurance as well. Flood zones are determined by an elevation survey and while you may not be required to carry flood insurance, the incremental cost above your standard policy is minimal and it is worth having it anyway. There are several factors that will affect the cost of your homeowners insurance most of which are a function of the age of your home. Homes that are more than 20 years old are significantly more expensive to insure. Homes that where built after the new hurricane code was put into effect in 1998 are significantly less costly to insure due to the changes in how the homes are built including the requirement for storm shutters.

If you are relocating and seeking permanent employment in Florida, keep in mind that due to cost of living differences between NY and So. Florida, you need not earn the same dollar amount that you are currently earning in NY. As a rule of thumb, your FL salary should be approximately 80% of your NY salary. In other words, if you are earning $100k per year in NY, you need to earn $80k here in order to lead a similar lifestyle.

Home shopping can be an exhausting experience, especially when doing it long distance. With more than 16,000 Realtors in Palm Beach County, it is important that you select the right Realtor to work with. Make sure you are working with someone who is a full time Realtor, not a part timer who has a license and tries to make a deal here and there. A Realtor who is Internet savvy will make the process a lot easier by communicating with you via email, sending you listings, pictures and even virtual tours. It is also important to understand that unlike New York where Attorneys handle the contract, here in Florida contracts are prepared and executed by the Realtor, so a competent and professional Realtor can make all the difference.

Each state, under the federal constitution of the United States of America, is given the freedom to litigate or debate on a particular legal issue through their own judiciary system.

Every state judiciary adopts their own effective procedures in dealing with the cases under their jurisdiction. The hierarchy or the movements of the cases from the district courts up to the Supreme Court and back again to the Court of Appeals is one example of a procedure that the judicial branch of the states have. This does not exempt Florida being a member of the federal government.

The judiciary department of the state of Florida has their own adopted rules and regulations in treating cases and other movements in their legal facet. All states’ judiciary have several similarities particularly in the general scheme however, there are differences because of the varying state legislations that is passed for the constituents.

Among these differences are in the forms that each state uses. Florida legal forms, though different from other states, still is incorporates the basic entries that most other legal forms have.

The need for the legal forms to be original is rooted on the primary problems of fraud and forgery. Because these crimes are ever growing not just in Florida but as well as in other states, authorities must make their own legal form authentic and original. However, there are forms that are easily downloaded in the internet. These forms are those that have something to do with agreements tri-part covenant forms. Here are some of the Florida legal forms that can be obtained over the net:

Bankruptcy Forms – these are submitted to the government to claim for assistance in case that a business has basically lost market. This form is often submitted together with several proof of bankruptcy including the declaration of assets and loses.

Bill of Sale – this is a form that is similar to a binding contract of sale which is submitted to a counsel for proper documentation. Bill of sale is often given to both parties; the seller and the buyer.

Divorce Forms – the primary form submitted for the nullification of marriage.

Heirship Affidavit – this is an article that gives proof to a person of being a legitimate heir over a particular property and asset.

Premarital Agreement – this is filled to ensure financial security over spouses before marriage. This also tackles conjugal claims in the events of divorce or death. This form is also known as the pre-nuptial agreement.

Promissory Notes – this form is a financial form that specifies delay of payment and the corresponding conditions due to the delay.

There are other legal forms used in Florida. All of which, when properly processed, are admissible in courts in the state. These forms are not valid if there are no legal intervention in the contents and agreements thereof.

Florida State legal forms can also be acquired through packages. This is because one particular case or issue may need as many forms possible and it is a requirement for one another. For example, Divorce Forms may contain one or more forms that are needed for the whole case. Just the same, the form packages can be acquired in their respective department or through the internet. Just be sure that when Florida legal forms are downloaded from the internet, those are the ones that are authorized by authorities.