POLY LOVER
Well-Known Member
I made the move to celebration when I did it. It has it all.
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Retiring to WDW
- Thread starter magicwand
- Start date
As someone who has worked retail - including the horror that is Black Friday - I'm in 100% agreement.
WDW isn't responsible for the lack of state income tax....the people living in The Villages and other such communities are. Imposing a state income tax would require an amendment to the state constitution - that will never pass due to those folks in The Villages.
Lived in Florida since the mid 60s - there wasn't a state income tax when we moved back then. Which made my parents happy, coming from LA.
GlassHalfFull
Well-Known Member
As a naturally "Tigger" type person.. I cannot imagine/put myself in the shoes of the negative people who go to work at Disney.
Yes it's minimum wage-ish, yes it's hot, and yes you are working for a massive company, and will probably be managed by a person 20+ years younger than you if you start as a CM at retirement age. Unfortunately, that's not why people like myself want to do it.
I worked my way up from Floor Cleaner/Dishwasher up to Head Supervisor between Sophomore Year of High School and my junior year of college at Kings Island. Now as a full time Engineer I miss that job every day. I did it by working 60-90 hours a week in heat that rivals Florida Heat(we'd have breaks from it, but it still gets to 90s/low 100's for up to a week at a time), and never did it for the $$. I did it because I loved being able to help deliver a product that made people feel like they were escaping life. Yes there were issues with management, there were issues with having to work summer holidays where every one of my friends were getting blitzed out at the lake. I though, am almost always an eternal optimist, and even to this day love stopping on Main Street to enjoy peoples first reaction to looking down at the castle. I am a grown man who gets tears in his eyes when a kid wraps his arms around his dad and says things like "Thanks so much for taking me here", or as my nephew stated the first time with tears in his eyes(at 5), "I never thought I'd get here".
Disney is not a company for negative or even slightly negative people to work at, but for people who generally look at the glass half full. I am not stating that a bad manager can't ruin a sunny person, but remember managers change ALWAYS especially in a high turnover job like WDW. The "negatives" as listed countless times, are negligible compared to the joy that place brings to so many. I can't wait to be apart of that! Remember the place doesn't run itself. It's not the magic that makes it work, it's the work that makes the magic.
Yes it's minimum wage-ish, yes it's hot, and yes you are working for a massive company, and will probably be managed by a person 20+ years younger than you if you start as a CM at retirement age. Unfortunately, that's not why people like myself want to do it.
I worked my way up from Floor Cleaner/Dishwasher up to Head Supervisor between Sophomore Year of High School and my junior year of college at Kings Island. Now as a full time Engineer I miss that job every day. I did it by working 60-90 hours a week in heat that rivals Florida Heat(we'd have breaks from it, but it still gets to 90s/low 100's for up to a week at a time), and never did it for the $$. I did it because I loved being able to help deliver a product that made people feel like they were escaping life. Yes there were issues with management, there were issues with having to work summer holidays where every one of my friends were getting blitzed out at the lake. I though, am almost always an eternal optimist, and even to this day love stopping on Main Street to enjoy peoples first reaction to looking down at the castle. I am a grown man who gets tears in his eyes when a kid wraps his arms around his dad and says things like "Thanks so much for taking me here", or as my nephew stated the first time with tears in his eyes(at 5), "I never thought I'd get here".
Disney is not a company for negative or even slightly negative people to work at, but for people who generally look at the glass half full. I am not stating that a bad manager can't ruin a sunny person, but remember managers change ALWAYS especially in a high turnover job like WDW. The "negatives" as listed countless times, are negligible compared to the joy that place brings to so many. I can't wait to be apart of that! Remember the place doesn't run itself. It's not the magic that makes it work, it's the work that makes the magic.
Beacon Joe
Well-Known Member
POLY LOVER
Well-Known Member
As a resident now for over two years what I am finding is that Florida has more fees for things, more toll roads etc. it seems like anything I need to do has a fee attached, if you want to get to the airport there is a ridiculous amount of tolls for a small stretch of road. Oh and the no car inspection is really a safety hazard because people drive cars that are unsafe. When there are no inspections people tend to let things go. Car inspections tend to cause irresponsible people to be responsible for the vehicles they drive. However overall I like the Disney life.
HauntedMansionFLA
Well-Known Member
Sounds like a challenge to avoid the toll roads - even with the back roads
This is my dream job too! But I'm about 37 years away from retirement give or take so…who knows if it will ever happen.
We used to have annual automobile inspections, but they were abolished in the 1980s. I agree about fees....and not just toll roads. People don't realize that revenue generated by an income tax will be made up via other means - usage fees, higher sales/property taxes, etc.
RustySpork
Oscar Mayer Memer
You don't have to pay tolls to get to the airport. Also, just because a state or county has a car inspection that doesn't mean people don't do things to bypass them. Growing up in the north, you just slip the attendant a 10 and you've passed inspection.
I'd much rather have optional/usage fees that one can avoid if they can't afford than mandatory taxes. Our sales tax is much lower than many other states that also have income tax.
RustySpork
Oscar Mayer Memer
It's really not that challenging to avoid toll roads if you want to avoid toll roads here.
In one state I used to live, any car older than 5 years would have something that would have to be "fixed." If the shop guy liked you, it was your headlights that would have to be aligned. That was relatively cheap, and all labor for him.
If he didn't like you, it was your brakes, and that was always expensive.
Chef Mickey
Well-Known Member
I worked at the ultimate retail cesspool....Walmart. Even at 16, I knew this place was hell and customers were impossible. Retail is a very difficult and humiliating job. Any job you have to work directly with the public is extremely challenging and unsatisfying. I think Disney might be even harder because you're expected to be so nice to guests. Walmart hires a lot of dregs.
My advice if you're looking to retire to Florida is to actually retire and not rely on a job at a place you love most. You'll probably be disappointed in your management and co-workers, ultimately making you dislike Disney. WDW employs great people that do a great job for little pay, but most are using it as a temporary job to other things. They burn out quickly and you'll probably be better off not seeing the inside story.
If you can somehow get in a good situation with a good manager, good hours, and decent co-workers your age, it could work. I'd rather just go there as a guest as often as I like with my annual pass as a guest.
If you absolutely need a job, rethink retirement or get something part time if you need something to do.
My advice if you're looking to retire to Florida is to actually retire and not rely on a job at a place you love most. You'll probably be disappointed in your management and co-workers, ultimately making you dislike Disney. WDW employs great people that do a great job for little pay, but most are using it as a temporary job to other things. They burn out quickly and you'll probably be better off not seeing the inside story.
If you can somehow get in a good situation with a good manager, good hours, and decent co-workers your age, it could work. I'd rather just go there as a guest as often as I like with my annual pass as a guest.
If you absolutely need a job, rethink retirement or get something part time if you need something to do.
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21stamps
Well-Known Member
Now this is a retirement goal that I understand!
My perfect dream retirement - OBX Summers. Keys Winters. With several international travels and Viking cruises in the mix. I'll add a stay at a Poly Bungalow with the grandkids..once or twice.
Gotta have goals, right?
lpet11984
Well-Known Member
My husband and I have planned for years that we want to move down to FL when we retire- he wants to work in Lakeland for the Flying Tigers, and I want to work at Disney. We are both teachers, so we are used to doing the things we love for joy rather than income. Can't wait to get out of the ice/snow/4 month winter depression to work at our happy places. We are of the mindset too that even if we only work for a small time, at least we will have the experience... it's always been a dream to be a CM and bring some magic to other people's days!
You should move to Hillsborough County and check the insurance rates/property taxes there. Where I live now, I insure 3 cars for what it used to cost me to insure one.
Yeah, those of you in Dade/Broward/Palm Beach/Hillsborough/Orange counties pay much higher insurance rates than we do up here in Leon...the price of living in the big cities....
