Moving to Florida: HELP!

[bostonbred]

Well, finally the consistently bitter New England winters have done me in. The day after Christmas I will be leaving for Florida (for a variety of reasons, but lack of snow in FL is one) to search for a place with a few others. I'm not sure which part of the state I should look into.

Ideally, the location would be south of Tampa and north of Miami, near some water, good sized town or city that has somewhat affordable renting available, and a solid nightlife and things to do with not too much crime.

Any help or advice would be appreciated, Florida SJ's!

 

[Boobie Miles]

You're leaving in four days and you don't even know what part of the state you're moving to?

 

[bostonbred]

You're leaving in four days and you don't even know what part of the state you're moving to?

I have some family to stay with in West Palm Beach until I find a place of my own.

 

[friend of a friend]

Well, BB, since your Red Sox train in Fort Myers, is that too obvious a suggestion?

 

[SixToe]

Key West has an opening, or did have one recently.

 

[friend of a friend]

Key West has an opening, or did have one recently.

I think the "somewhat affordable rentng" rules out Key West.

 

[frozen tundra]

West Palm's not a bad option. Has some night life, has some good bars (O'Shea's and Roxy's are two of my and Mrs. Tundra's favorites), has two spring training teams (well, the Marlins may not actually count), is close to Miami and Fort Lauderdale without actually being in either one of them. You're also close to Marlins games, complete with heat stroke; close to Dolphins games, just bring your own paper bag to put on your head; close to Heat games, with plenty of tickets available right now; ditto, Panthers in the NHL.

Plus, West Palm's right on the ocean and the intracoastal, with a lot of golf courses around.

That being said, me and the missus would love to leave the area soon. Want to buy a house?

 

[friend of a friend]

West Palm's not a bad option. Has some night life, has some good bars (O'Shea's and Roxy's are two of my and Mrs. Tundra's favorites), has two spring training teams (well, the Marlins may not actually count), is close to Miami and Fort Lauderdale without actually being in either one of them. You're also close to Marlins games, complete with heat stroke; close to Dolphins games, just bring your own paper bag to put on your head; close to Heat games, with plenty of tickets available right now; ditto, Panthers in the NHL.

Plus, West Palm's right on the ocean and the intracoastal, with a lot of golf courses around.

That being said, me and the missus would love to leave the area soon. Want to buy a house?

That was quite an endorsement.

 

[HandsomeHarley]

Lived three years in Orlando and bitched the whole time I was there. Moving to Oregon made me miss Orlando terribly, though.

I actually loved living there, but I was so cynical that all I could do was point out the negatives.

That said, tourists drive like Stevie Wonder and Ray Charles in a drag race. The love bugs are a pain in the ass, too.

That said, there was ALWAYS something to do. I got to swim in the Atlantic and the Gulf of Mexico (which is warm as bath water). I got to see Spring Training games out the wazoo (tons of autographs, too). I got to go to Tampa, St. Pete, tour the weather center in Melbourne, drive down to Key West. I got to party all night at Church Street Station and a couple of other places in town.

And the best thunderstorms in the world, bar none.

One warning: You will have to pay $400 per vehicle to bring a car into the state. My company that relocated us didn't want to have to pay the fees, so they offered us $250 for every vehicle we sold. I sold both beaters for $1,000 each, took the $500 and bought a nice car.

 

[frozen tundra]

I've been in a few different cities in Florida for a total of 12 years. I'm grudgingly beginning to enjoy it, sort of. It has its benefits, but plenty of drawbacks, too.

And recently there was a survey that showed one in five Floridians was ready to leave the state. Thanks go to hurricanes, ridiculous property insurance and low-paying jobs.

Enjoy!

 

[bostonbred]

Well, BB, since your Red Sox train in Fort Myers, is that too obvious a suggestion?

Fort Myers is on the list of places to scope out. So is Sarasota and a few locations closer to Miami. I also have some friends in Port St. Lucie who have been urging me to give it a look. Right now, I'm kind of in a "rut" so I'm hoping a fresh change of scenery, warmer weather with plenty to do, and a different approach and outlook on things will help.

And I'm kind of excited that I can see the Sox (in Tampa) more often. Then again, it IS Tropicana Field so it's hard to get too pumped. I also will be attending WrestleMania for the second straight year at the Citrus Bowl in Orlando this spring. Atleast it'll be warmer than Detroit!

 

[Chi City 81]

I happen to know someone who works at the Fort Myers paper. But you have to know how to spell Superbowl.

 

[frozen tundra]

I might heartily suggest unlooking at Port St. Lucie. I say this with some experience.

 

[bostonbred]

I happen to know someone who works at the Fort Myers paper. But you have to know how to spell Superbowl.

Super Bowl.

Hook me up, Doc.

 

[bostonbred]

I might heartily suggest unlooking at Port St. Lucie. I say this with some experience.

Why is that?

 

[frozen tundra]

Port St. Lucie is a strip mall, basically. It has few redeeming values -- no nightlife, few good restaurants...it doesn't even have a downtown. There are a few good qualities: good golf, the Mets have spring training here, you're right on the water and you're still relatively close to Palm Beach, Fort Lauderdale, Miami, Orlando.

It used to be a cheap place to live, but that's changing. It's essentially a residential area for people who work in Palm Beach or Broward counties, who bought here because they couldn't afford it down south. And it's been hit hard by the housing crunch, because really, this is just a bedroom community for other places.

It's also a haven for weirdness. I swear, each week it seems like there's a new story coming out of PSL that leaves you scratching your head. Take, for instance, the story a few years ago about a guy who took a chunk out of another guy's ear at a Little League all-star game. Or the dozens of pot grow houses that have sprouted like mushrooms here. Or the guy who sexually molested a puppy. There's just a lot of stuff.

I've worked in the area for awhile, worked with people from their mid-20s to early 40s and for the most part, all of them cannot wait to leave. There are a lot of other places in Florida that I would recommend before PSL.

 

[Tommy_Dreamer]

Since I recently moved back down to the land of sunshine and palm trees, might I suggest Central Florida, along the I-4 corridor. Not only are you close to Tampa/Orlando/Daytona Beach/St. Pete etc. but the area is booming and you're not far from everything.

Where I'm at right now, I can easily jump on I-4 and be at Sea World, Busch Gardens, Disney, Universal all in under 45 minutes.

I'm outside of Lakeland btw, in case you were wondering

 

[david kaye]

I happen to know someone who works at the Fort Myers paper. But you have to know how to spell Superbowl.

Super Bowl.

Hook me up, Doc.

Somebody mention me?

 

[Simon_Cowbell]

I live on the I-595 corridor in Broward County (Davie/Plantation). Area with young families galore.

Living here gives me access to I-95, or I-75, or the Turnpike each in 10 minutes or less.

An international airport is 15 minutes away.

NHL team is 15 minutes away, Dolphins/Marlins are 20, as is an airboat ride in the Everglades or a deep-sea fishing charter or boat ramp for your own vehicle.

Key West is less than 2 hours away, Disney is 3 and a half and Tampa is 4 and a half.... again, all-highway driving.

I couldn't imagine a better spot to be in Florida.

 

[Tommy_Dreamer]

I live on the I-595 corridor in Broward County (Davie/Plantation). Area with young families galore.

Living here gives me access to I-95, or I-75, or the Turnpike each in 10 minutes or less.

An international airport is 15 minutes away.

NHL team is 15 minutes away, Dolphins/Marlins are 20, as is an airboat ride in the Everglades or a deep-sea fishing charter or boat ramp for your own vehicle.

Key West is less than 2 hours away, Disney is 3 and a half and Tampa is 4 and a half.... again, all-highway driving.

I couldn't imagine a better spot to be in Florida.

I can