Best area on Merritt Island (Naples, Satellite Beach: movers, loan, houses)

[zprface]

We are moving to the Space Coast in June or July. I was wondering which parts of Merritt Island are better than others. I know school ratings are a good indicator, however my daughter goes to school online, so that's not an issue. My husband works for the DOD and will be working in Cape Canaveral. I work in IT and will be working from home. I want to be in an area where my daughter would feel safe at home during the day. I don't by any means want to be in a gated community, but I don't want neighbors that have yards that look like dumps either. What area's should I start looking in when we come down in May?

ps. We are not new to FL, we've just been away for 12 years. We lived in Naples for 15 years before we came up here, so we are just coming home. :-)

[clnewman]

Most of the island is an eclectic community, where old mixes with the new. You'll often find houses built in the 60s on the same street as MacMansions. This is kind of what makes the island cool. What you won't find here are perfectly manicured lawns on every house on the block... except for the NE area up by the golf course. And even that area isn't "perfect". As I recall, there aren't a lot of gated communities here... and those that are, aren't really "hoity-toity". Most of the island is safe. I'd not worry too much about that.

Neighborhoods: Both spurs of the island south of the 520 remind me of the "Old South". Laid back and quiet. This area is Forrest Gump's "Box of Chocolates", and is where we found our little gem of a house.

Between the 520 and 528 is more "mainstream". Most of the island's commercial district is here, as is most tract housing (planned neighborhoods). Again, neighborhoods are a mixed bag of old and new(er).

The area north of the 528 might be what you're looking for. The houses tend to be newer, on larger lots. They also tend to be pricier.

You can see most of the island in one day. There are only 2 major north-south "corridors". My advice in May is to look at a map, break the island up in sections and spend a day just cruising around. We did this and thoroughly enjoyed it.

[zprface]

Great information! Thank you.

[2 Da Beach]

Have you looked in Satellite Beach area? Beachside?
I feel you can't beat leaving walking distance from the beach

[zprface]

We decided on a house on the west side of central Merritt Island. We just loved the house! And the location. Walking to the beach would have been nice, but it would not have been an everyday thing. Not having a yard large enough for the dogs would have had a negative impact every day. :-) And my husband gets the garage of his dreams.

Now if we can get everything here packed up and get our house rented.

We can't wait though! I wonder what fun events the locals like during the summer. When I was in Naples, there were a lot of events that the locals really enjoyed. It was like we had a really cool secret that we didn't have to share with the snowbirds.

[clnewman]

Congratulations! I hope you'll be as happy here as we are. If you have any questions on service providers, or anything else related to life here on the island, don't hesitate to drop me a message here.

A friendly piece of moving advice that we learned the hard way: If you are being professionally moved, have the movers do the packing, too. That way, they "own" the entire move in terms of responsibility/liability. Packing anything yourself can (and for us, did) result in a lot of finger pointing over lost/damaged items and inventory discrepancies at the end. IMHO, it's worth the additional $$.

[WingWalker]

Originally Posted by zprface

We decided on a house on the west side of central Merritt Island. We just loved the house! And the location. Walking to the beach would have been nice, but it would not have been an everyday thing. Not having a yard large enough for the dogs would have had a negative impact every day. :-) And my husband gets the garage of his dreams.

Now if we can get everything here packed up and get our house rented.

We can't wait though! I wonder what fun events the locals like during the summer. When I was in Naples, there were a lot of events that the locals really enjoyed. It was like we had a really cool secret that we didn't have to share with the snowbirds.

So is that between 520 and 528? Do you know the school district?

[Rabflmom]

Originally Posted by zprface

We decided on a house on the west side of central Merritt Island. We just loved the house! And the location. Walking to the beach would have been nice, but it would not have been an everyday thing. Not having a yard large enough for the dogs would have had a negative impact every day. :-) And my husband gets the garage of his dreams.

Now if we can get everything here packed up and get our house rented.

We can't wait though! I wonder what fun events the locals like during the summer. When I was in Naples, there were a lot of events that the locals really enjoyed. It was like we had a really cool secret that we didn't have to share with the snowbirds.

There will be some, but not like the rest of the year. Most events happen in fall, winter, and spring when you have a chance of cooler weather. Even our county and state fairs are not in the summer. There will usually be local fireworks for the 4th, but activities like concerts, games, town picnics, to celebrate the 4th generally start later-like about 4 or 5 hours before dark. Mostly we spend time at the beach, head North for cooler vacations, and try to find things to do in doors during he hottest part of the day.

[zprface]

Originally Posted by WingWalker

So is that between 520 and 528? Do you know the school district?

It is between 528 and 520 on the west side of the island. I have no idea what the school district is. My daughter goes to school online.

[zprface]

Originally Posted by zprface

We decided on a house on the west side of central Merritt Island. We just loved the house! And the location. Walking to the beach would have been nice, but it would not have been an everyday thing. Not having a yard large enough for the dogs would have had a negative impact every day. :-) And my husband gets the garage of his dreams.

Now if we can get everything here packed up and get our house rented.

22 days! That's how long it took to Get the loan CTC, the house packed up, and rented! We leave Virginia in less than 2 weeks.