A series of blog posts about life in Ocala Florida.

Homeowners Insurance and Roof Age

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In Florida our very hot summers along with strong thunderstorms limit the useful life of a roof. Most insurance companies have a 20 year cut off point with some going as low as 15 years where they will not insure a home. This is true for even architectural shingle roofs with a 30 year warranty. My home is a 1998 with a 30 year architectural shingle roof and when I decided to look for a different company that my present one I discovered that many Florida insurance companies were not interested in my business. I did find a new company but my choices were more limited than I expected.

Roof age is a consideration in buying a resale home. The seller is not expected to replace a roof just because it is old. The age of a home is already factored into the list price. If a home inspector says the roof is at the end of it’s life but does not leak then that is not a defect under the florida real estate contract. Many homes between 1995 and 1999 are either due for a new roof or getting close. When showing homes I always point out the age of the home as shown on the MLS printout to make my buyers aware of the home’s age.

Ocala Florida weather report for December 2015

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Tangerine tree loaded with fruit

Joe’s Tangerine tree December 1 2015

November Was an unusually warm month with temperatures in the mid to high 80’s. That’s about 10 degrees above normal. It also rained more than usual in the beginning of the month.

December is a great month in ocala ! Temperatures are in the 70’s and the air is dry. As you can see from the picture of my tangerine tree it is also the time of year to harvest citrus. My tree looks a little ragged because I had to prune a lot of fruit off to keep it from breaking the branches.

If you don’t look forward to the winter season like I do then move to Ocala ! The long hot humid summers are a small price to pay for no snow or ice.

 

Ocala Florida weather report for August 2015

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Normally the summer weather here in Ocala is pretty predictable. It will be 90 every day with a chance of afternoon thunderstorms. Normally it’s sunny all day with an afternoon thunderstorm 3 or 4 times a week that lasts for an hour or two and back to sunshine. The summer of 2015 has been different. I have never seen so many days where it rained all day since I moved to Ocala in 2004. I’ve also never seen so many cloudy days. It’s normally sunny every day for at least part of the day. I haven’t seen the flooding here in SW Ocala like they have had down near Tampa but there might be some in other parts of Marion County. Let’s hope things return to normal soon.

August is also the first serious month of hurricane season. Hurricane season technically starts in June but the ocean water doesn’t really heat up enough until August. Ocala is one of the least likely areas in Florida to get hit by a hurricane but I watch the news and keep track of them any way.

Thunderstorms in Ocala Florida

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I heard in the past that central Florida is the lightning capital of the world. I just read that it is actually in Africa. There is a area that stretches from Tampa to the Space Coast that has more lightning strikes than any where in the US. Although Ocala is a little north of that area we get serious thunderstorms and lightning is a real problem.

My personal experience with lightning was 3 or 4 years ago. A huge blast shook my house so much so that I went outside in the pouring rain to look for a hole in the roof. Seeing nothing I went back inside. A short while later I went to the garage and saw the clock for the irrigation system in the middle of the floor. A bolt of lightning hit the ground in the back yard. It got into the wires that lead from the sprinkler clock to the control valves. The electricity followed the wires inside and blew the clock off the wall. Then it traveled into the house wiring and blew up my desktop computer in my home office on the opposite side of the wall. I learned my lesson and now have every electronic device in my house plugged into a high quality surge protector. I also have a surge protector on the electric meter to protect the major appliances.

 

Fishing near Ocala

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You can fish from shore in the Gulf not far from Ocala. Yankeetown and Crystal River are about a 45 minute drive from SW 55+ communities. The state has fishing docks all along the coast. I like fishing in the Barge Canal. At different times of year you can catch different species of fish including redfish, sea trout (not a real trout), Amber Jack, Sheepshead and Sharks among others.

Just another reason to move to Ocala.

Fishing dock florida barge canal

Fishing dock florida barge canal

View from fishing dock

View from fishing dock

 

I don’t miss the winters up north at all

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snowblower in front of high snow bank

Joe’s sister’s house Chelmsford Mass

My sister sends me pictures of what this terrible winter has been like where we grew up in Massachusetts. I never realized how much I hated snow and ice until I moved to Florida where I don’t have it any more. As a matter of fact I don’t even like seeing snow on TV ! My only regret is not moving to Florida sooner.

Gophers in Ocala Florida

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gopher mounds

Gopher mounds

Gopher mounds are often mistaken for fire ant hills by newbies to the Ocala area. Unfortunately I am somewhat of a gopher expert and can tell you from experience that these are not ant hills. Much like Bill Murray in Caddyshack I too am plagued by gophers. All these pictures were taken by me in my yard in SW Ocala. The little buggers seem to come out in the late fall and winter. They are hard workers and can dig several feet of tunnels a day creating multiple mounds in just one day.

gopher sticking it's head up out of a hole

Industrious little Bugger

 

Ocala Florida home buying advice……..heat pumps

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Most Ocala area homes are cooled and heated by a heat pump. Although a heat pump looks like central AC unlike an air conditioner it heats as well as cools. You can only get away using a heat pump in very mild climates like here in Ocala where we get very few winter nights below freezing. The winter here in Ocala is really only about 6 to 8 weeks long.

There is natural gas for heating in some areas. Generally it doesn’t pay to lay gas pipes in areas without high heating costs. You do find gas in some areas of the city of Ocala and in a few retirement communities where there are a lot of homes closer together. People who are looking for gas are usually looking for cooking rather than heating. Some people use propane for cooking but it is expensive.

Heating is not the issue or expense here in Ocala. The expense is air conditioning which is also supplied by the heat pump. You will need AC from late May until late October 24/7. From Late October until around Christmas and from mid March until May you might not need heat or AC.

Someone said to me just recently that energy efficiency isn’t as important in Florida as it is up north. The rational was that even if the outside temps are in the 90’s you will only be trying to cool the inside down to the high 70’s. A difference of less than 20 degrees as opposed to trying to heat a house to 70 when the outside temps are in the 20’s a difference of 50 degrees. His point being that expensive windows and insulation doesn’t have the pay back it does in more extreme climates.

 

 

Ocala and the Preakness Stakes

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4 horses standing under a big tree in a field

This is a follow up to my previous post about the Kentucky Derby and why Ocala is the horse capital of the world. Last Saturday was the Preakness Stakes which is the second leg of the Triple Crown. Once again horses bred, broken or trained here in Ocala came in first, second and third places.

If you’re interested in a farm here in Ocala, call me, email me or use my Dream Home Finder .

Ocala and the Kentucky Derby

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horses next to a white fence under a tree

Ocala is often called the horse capital of the world. There are some world class horse farms here. It has to do with the soil which has a lot of lime rock in it making for some of the world’s finest horse pasture. Yesterday  was the 139th Kentucky Derby. All of the 6 top finishers had ties to farms here in Ocala. Some were bred here, some were broken here and others were trained here. That’s why Ocala Florida is the horse capital of the world.