Merv's Politically Incorrect Audio Blog

Other than payola, I can't see any rationale for that law to exist.

“The new car dealer is the customer’s advocate...." LMAO, ROFL The stealerships in FL must be completely different than the ones I've dealt with in PA over the course of the last 30 yrs.

 

Like any state, there's some good but a crap ton of bad. In FL:

• $500ish new tag fee.
  • No income tax, we need to get revenue some how the state said.
• No law on limits of Dealer Fees.
  • FL have highest dealer fees in the country. Very common to pay $1k-$3k just on dealer fees alone for their profile.
  • Pre Covid: Low below MSRP but we will rape you on Dealer Fees. Post Covid: Above MSRP and we will still rape you on Dealer Fees.
  • This is why FL residents go up to AL or GA to buy cars since they want to avoid these stupid fees.
• Extended Warranty is an Insurance "Product" in FL.
  • If FL resident, can only buy it from a FL Dealer and the price is the same regardless of which dealership you go to.
  • Example: I just paid $1900 with tax for Subaru's Extended Warranty for 7 years/70k miles (which I really called CVT Transmission Insurance, since is it cost $10k to replace the damn thing in Subarus). It's the same price from all Subaru dealers in FL, but if I purchased the car from GA or another state then the cost would been a hell a lot less. I wanted to get the ten year plan, but that would be $3050 before tax in FL. I only thought this crap was worth less than $2k max (since that is my budget ATM), so I went with seven years since having the car for seven months, I only got 2479 miles on the damn Legacy.
    • Remember, FL law states residents must buy from a FL dealer.
• Very steep car insurance rates (which is going up like most of the country).
  • 1 out of 4 drivers are not insured or underinsured in FL. I have to pay $1,600ish every six months to cover a 2015 Honda Fit and the new 2023 Subaru Legacy with 250/500/250 and same coverage for Uninsured Motorist because like drivers from Cali and NYC, they suck donkey nuts here in FL since the drivers are from Cali and NYC.
  • Those who are moving into FL mostly have money, so they can afford the steep insurance cost. But if you are middle or lower class, prices stings.
  • Why the f**k I have these high coverage? While in FL your house if homestead is except from lawsuits, your future wages when you work aren't. Better the cover, the more the insurance company lawyers will fight to make sure they are paying out the least amount and cover your ass at the same time (FL is no-fault state).

With those negatives out of the way, here's the only positives I can think of:

• You only pay tax on the vehicle as sales tax at time of purchase. Vehicles aren't consider property for property tax sake.
• No vehicle inspections.
• Tag renewal is based on weight of your car, but most people can pay $50-$70 for a two-year tag renewal and don't worry about yearly taxes on your car.
  • Speciality tags cost more, which I recommend if living in FL just get the regular Sunshine State tag since you don't own your license plate in FL (driving is a privilege) and the longer you keep the same tag, the cheaper it is since you avoid the $500ish new tag fee.
• You can renew your tag online at FL's website, at some supermarkets in bigger counties at their kiosks, or visit any tax collector office in any of FL's 67 counties.

End of the day, every state have good and really bad shit with regards to owning cars.

 

I moved to Florida last year and this was the biggest surprise for me. Car insurance rates are crazy. More than twice what I was paying per year in DC, and I drive a 2005 Ford Five Hundred, so I'm obviously just getting minimum coverage. Of course a big part of that is Florida being a no-fault state.

 

Welp, I can cross FL off my list of places to move to (at least, as long as I am driving a car). That list is crazy. In PA we have annual inspections, which set you back around $100-150 for inspection/emissions/stickers. Renewal for registration is about $50/yr and its online. We only have sales tax, no property tax on anything but real estate. We have none of your negatives.

and did I read that right? If you live in FL the law requires you to buy your car in FL??? I've gotten my last 4 cars in PA, OH, WV & NY. I do have to pay sales tax back to PA (the dealer in the other states takes care of that transaction), but otherwise I can buy the car wherever the hell I want.

For insurance, we have 4 cars insured, 4 drivers... 1998 pickup, 2008 highlander, 2016 Volvo & 2018 Subaru Outback. I pay $1520 annually and I have 2x the coverage you have.

Hell, a car in FL is crazy...

 

You can buy cars outside of FL, people do it all the time. Only tricky part if you want extended warranties, normally most out of state dealers will not sell it to you. However, a lot of them do anyway...

I so wish I was paying your car insurance rates......it is pretty bad plus the recent hurricane caused rates to go up due to losses. It's pretty painful....

 

The public transport systems are not that good anymore. In Amsterdam, after the completion of the Noord-Zuidlijn the municipality of Amsterdam and public transport companies cut off or changed many handy routes. All in favour of getting people on a multi-million project that was almost a disaster. Without return on investment that metro line can embarrass the municipality of Amsterdam.

Recently in the weekend of the Harry Styles concert in Amsterdam, the NS failed so hard that people were either disgusted or shocked. Guess what happened a day after the huge fail? The NS announced price hikes and decreased compensation in case of delays or other issues. It is hard to believe, simply awful.

I am going back to cycling on my mountainbike again. I love biking. The worst part of cycling are the phone users, ear phone wearers, electronic bicycles next to the wannabe Lance Amstrongs. After cycling through Amsterdam for years, I expect an accident behind every blind corner. Dodging idiots and tourists on a daily basis does that...

 

Yeah i rarely go to Amsterdam and i live in a small town so my perspective is a bit different.

 

Assuming this is the off the rails political thread. My prediction is a 60% probability Biden is not the Dem nominee.

 

and if Trump isn't the republican nominee then could we actually have a decent choice this time??? probably not...

 

You guys are too hopeful

 

Why do you think Biden won’t be the nominee? And if not him, who can consolidate a large enough base of support to get the nom?

 

Because he's dead/critically ill or because he's primaried? I think there's zero chance anyone serious challenges him for the nomination, but I suppose the former is possible.

 

You virgins...this shit is still too early. Talk to me once we are hitting primary season.

The "death" of DeSantis campaign is too early, we haven't even hit the first debate yet. Not like I'm voting for DeSantis in the FL Primaries anyhow.....

 

would be a catastrophically sad, virgin-esque choice to vote for desantis, thank u for your service

 

Are folks writing off DeSantis? Maybe it's because I'm a Floridian, but I kinda just assume that if Trump doesn't get the Rebulican nomination for some reason, it's DeSantis' for the taking. After those two, it's Pence and Haley, neither of whom are polling very well. And DeSantis has been on a roll lately, taking bold positions on legislation and policies to position himself for a presidential run. C'mon - being tough on Disney? Terrible for Florida, but great for raising his national profile.

I'm also with @caute - too early to say Biden's a lock, but it's more likely a function of health than any legitimate primary challenger. It isn't going to be Harris or Buttigieg, and maybe Bernie, Warren or some upstart progressive will run, but that will be to push the party platform to the left a bit, rather than a legitimate presidential campaign. Some billionaire is bound to put their name in the hat, but like, read the room - that strategy only works in the other party.

Anyway, my $0.02.

 

It's way too early to make any solid predictions on the Republican side, I wouldn't at all count out DeSantis at this stage, but you don't challenge an incumbent President in a primary outside of some serious extenuating circumstances, so I don't think there's anywhere near the same level of uncertainty on the other side. Just thinking historically, I think the last really close primary challenge to a sitting president was Reagan almost beating Ford, but Ford had never been elected President (or VP) and was tainted by Nixon, yet still eked it out. It's very hard to see any serious candidate challenging Biden rather than waiting til 2028.

 

I nominate Connor Roy.

 

I'm gonna vote for this guy...