[Need_affordable_home]

A decent wage here wont come close to affording a house. My dad has a PHD and if he and mom didnt buy this house over 10 years ago, they would not be able to afford much of a house today. They would have not settled in south Florida then. Actually, they wanted to settle in south California to raise a family(that of course was before I was born) but couldnt afford any house there so they bought one here for a third the price of south California!

[Susan058]

Check out St. Cloud/Osceola county. Less than an hour to Orlando. I came here from Miami and raised 2 children here. Definitely an imrpovement from Miami. Still maintains some small town atmosphere. My home if for sale under $235K, taxes apx. $1,200.00, homeowners insurance- apx. $600.00, not in flood plain. How do you beat that in FL? I just love mts. Kids are grown and gone, and it's time for ME.

[donnarooty]

I would highly recommend staying away from the central gulf coast (Pinellas, Pasco, Hernando, Citrus) and most of the inland counties that touch them....Hillsborough, Polk, etc. Our homeowners insurance rates are doubling and tripling every year!!! The only company that will write policies in these counties is Citizens (the state run insurer of last resort which has become the company of only resort, as all other companies (state farm, allstate, etc) have pulled out of Florida and are refusing to write new policies). Please, do your homework first before you decide where to root. If you think I am exagerating, insurance on my $154,000.00 home was $700.00 in 2003 when I bought it. 2004 it went up to $1,128.00. 2005 it went up to $2,236.00. This December it is going up to $3,186.00. Yep, same house!!!! Be careful of the bait and switch technique Citizens uses.

[mk1116]

Wellington in WPB is a great place to live. It is upscale and out of the hustle and bustle of a big city yet within driving distance to major areas. You can have a nice home for about 350-400K. The air is clean, virtually no crime and the schools are excellent. Great shopping also to be had.

[jamesdsimpson]

Look into the North Port area. It is closed to Sarasota and the gulf. New 3 bedroom homes sell for under 200k.

[sunrico90]

Originally Posted by ev314

Greetings,
We are a family with an 11 year old daughter. Originally from NY, we have been in Phoenix, AZ for 5 years and are looking to get out. We're considering Florida to be near the ocean. We are unfamiliar with Florida (except for Disney World). We are looking for a family friendly place to live, near the water (not necessarily on the beach). Must have good employment and lots to do (Phoenix is super-boring!) Any suggestions? Thanks!

Just finished reviewing the posts and I don't know what work field you are looking for. Give us an idea and we might be able to get you better advise.

[JVALHALLA]

If you find the Phoenix area "super-boring", you better define what "lots to do" means! Phoenix is a big city with arts, culture, sports, and plenty of entertainment opportunities. Plenty of things to do outdoors as well with lakes and mountains within reasonable driving distances. While I wouldn't try to convince anybody that Phoenix is the end-all-be-all, it has loads of things to do. You might very well find Florida boring as well.

[Prichard]

You will be most comfortable in Tampa or Orlando, based on your profile. I personally like Jacksonville very much, but I'm a southern cracker and don't mind the southern influence that is a little more prevelant in Jacksonville than in Orlando or Tampa.

[floridadragon]

Originally Posted by Need_affordable_home

This explains why houses in Ocala are a little over half the price of houses down south and the land is like 5 times cheaper! $20 an hour is decent for Ocala. Get a roomate or girlfriend and combine the salary and with the dual salary, a house should be affordable in Ocala.

i agree with the guy above.. south fl is horrible and the worst schooling systems ever. i was raised in south fl so was my sister and brother. i didnt learn anything in school. miami to west palm is the worst places to live in fl. half my friends are all still on drugs and they are almost 40 years old. take it from people who have lived in all the cities. i have lived in deerfield beach, boca raton, west palm bch, been to miami and broward/dade counties tons of times.i have lived also in port saint lucie (getting pretty bad now with traffic and homes everywhare) its a terrible place to live unless you like the crazy city life with tons and tons of traffic, drugs, crime, etc. hope this helps.. sorry its so negitive.

[sturner22]

Kenneth City is 10 minutes from the Gulf of Mexico, and a small community. An elementary school is less than a mile away and there is a high school also in the center. I used to live in Pheonix too, lived in Gilbert, AZ after my parents divorced, (in KY), then moved to Mesa. I moved back to Pheonix for a short time in my 20's. Healthcare Industry big in Florida, many local Hospitals and Nursing Fields, I am an RN. St. Petersburg College is also close.

Hope this helps

Susie