TOP TEN: A reader counts down the top 10 economic reasons to
live in Florida rather than Bradford:

“10.) No snow, sleet, ice, or mud and low heating and home
maintenance bills.

9.) No state income tax.

8.) $25,000 off real estate assessments every year due to
homestead discount.

7.) Increase in value of purchased real estate has tripled in
the past 15 years and building boom is ongoing.

6.) Low unemployment. Secretaries making $55,000 per year, and
Pizza Hut delivery drivers making $12 per hour plus tips.

5.) Purchasing only one wardrobe per year; no hats, coats,
boots, mittens, or galoshes thus saving money and having a choice
of tons of outlet malls promising low, low prices as they compete
for your business.

4.) No annual car inspections or emissions taxes.

3.) Highways in super shape with no potholes or hills and
average 70 mph speed limits with six lanes giving you better gas
mileage for your cheaper gas.

2.) Strawberries in February and watermelons in March and
grocery stores that still offer ‘Buy One, Get One.”

And, the number 1 reason to live in Florida rather than
Bradford…..

1.) The cost of coming “home” to visit once a year on a great
summer vacation to the cool mountains … priceless!

“Yes, I agree, many people have fled Bradford for economic
reasons after having raised their kids in such a great place with
so many nostalgic memories.

“But, the reason that they do often return for retirement is
that their nest eggs have been made, their kids have great jobs and
lives as they followed them South, and with Bradford real estate
prices kept so artificially low, it is the perfect place to
downsize to or purchase that summer cottage.

“Of course, there are the rest of us who once moved away but
decide that we still want all the benefits of the South but we
don’t want to miss the change of seasons and a simpler life, so
instead we retire to East Tennessee, west North Carolina, north
Georgia, or northwest South Carolina.

“We used to be known as ‘snowbirds’ for our original flight
south. But, those who return to the above areas are fondly known
now in the South as ‘half-wits – those who move to the Deep South
and then return halfway back home.

“But, as Dorothy once said, ‘There’s no place like home.’

OUR 2 CENTS: We must plot and ponder our response but, trust us,
we will have one soon. Help from readers appreciated!