Leonid had good opportunities in New York but the cold climate affected his health. He was constantly struggling with arthritis and muscular pain caused by drastic temperature changes. Thus he moved to Fort Lauderdale in April 2002, The rest of the family joined him a few months later. In Florida, Afremov faced the same changeless like in New York, selling only certain themes and subjects that the galleries wanted and were able to sell.
In 2004, after graduating high school, Leonid’s son Boris was introduced to ebay by his friends. They tried to sell a couple of paintings by auction and immediately received positive approval. Paintings were sold for hundreds and sometimes thousands of dollars and everything sold without exception. For the first time Afremov was given the opportunity to paint what he really wanted. At this point the real artistic journey began. He began painting what he really wanted from his personal inspirations and finally was able to explore his artistic vision and abilities all the way.