“The Florida promise of sun, growth and upward mobility remains alive, but it is getting expensive to hold on to,” she added. “For most Floridians, financial security feels one expense away from collapse. Many of those surveyed attributed the high cost of living to not being able to save more.”

Other survey takeaways…

Homeownership: Still the dream, but out of reach for many: Seventy-seven percent still see homeownership as part of the American Dream. Yet only 51% are at least somewhat confident they could buy a home today, and 79% say buying a home is harder than five years ago. The top barriers include home prices (36%), high interest rates (15%) and down payment cost (11%).
Living paycheck to paycheck is the norm: Forty-three percent say they live paycheck to paycheck. Another 26% say they sometimes do - meaning nearly 70% experience that strain at least occasionally. Only 48% have an emergency fund covering three months of expenses.
Economic optimism with a pragmatic edge Forty-one percent rate the U.S. economy as excellent or good - higher than expected given cost-of-living pressures. Thirty-six percent are very confident their household will improve in two to five years, and another 43% are somewhat confident.

Meanwhile, “The moving consideration rate suggests that while Florida attracts new residents, many current ones feel squeezed enough to think about leaving,” said Eric Levy, assistant director of FAU’s BEPI. “An affordability anxiety shadows Florida’s boom economy: can residents afford to live here and provide for themselves?”

Special Reports /

Nearly half of Florida residents ‘considering’ a move out of state

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