I agree with the 7 month thing.. or really, if you want to get fancy - buy it, rent it out for the high season, and you can basically live in it for free from May-September.
I know it is backward - but the only difference is the heat. We are letting our renters pay for the house, and we use it 3 weeks a year (in the summer and early fall). To be honest, there is always a breeze so if you stay out of the sun, you are fine. There are less crowds everywhere, which is nice. Just a thought - be a reverse snow bird
Only negative is going up North in the winter.....