Housing in FWB (Hollywood, Greenacres, Wright: relocating, real estate, condos)

[EMERALDGIRL]

Is it possible to find nice apartments for rent in a decent area in FWB for $900.00 a month? I will be relocating to the area at the end of November and need to get a head start on looking for a property to rent. Thanks!

[deckardc]

Originally Posted by EMERALDGIRL

Is it possible to find nice apartments for rent in a decent area in FWB for $900.00 a month? I will be relocating to the area at the end of November and need to get a head start on looking for a property to rent. Thanks!

It depends on how many bedrooms you want. If you only want 1 bedroom, it shouldn't be difficult to find one for your price. There are very few apartment complexes here. The majority of those that are here I wouldn't let my daughter walk past, much less live there. There are 3 complexes that are decent but one is income restricted.

Chez Elan on Racetrack Rd. Apparently they have 5 one bedroom floorplans for $900 or under.
Chez Élan - Apartment homes for rent in Fort Walton Beach Florida, near Eglin and Hurlburt AFB, Navarre, Destin, Crestview - Southern Ventures Corporation

Cayo Grande on Racetrack Rd. They have 3 one bedrooms and 1 one bedroom for $900 or less.
Cayo grande-Fort Walton Beach Apartments for rent in Destin, Navarre, Florida, near Eglin and Hurlburt, Luxury and Corporate Apartment homes

Heather Glen on Hunt Club St. They have 1 one bed and 1 two bed for under $900. Apparently they are income restricted which means your household income has to be below a certain level to qualify. I'm not sure what the income limits are, you would have to call them to ask. I don't know if your income would qualify but I thought I'd throw it in just in case. It seems like a nice, relatively new complex. It is not a housing project.
Concord Management : Heather Glenn


Of the two on Racetrack Rd., Chez Elan seems like the nicer complex. Racetrack is a fairly busy road and Elan is set back from the road a bit. They are in the process of constructing a new building so they must have demand. As I said, most apartments around here are questionable and these three are the only ones I would consider nice.

[EMERALDGIRL]

Thanks for the response Deckardc! I actually would rather not live in an apartment complex. I know that I would not qualify for income restricted properties. I bedroom/2 bath is what I am looking for. It will be just my fiance and I and we have no kids.

What areas should I avoid living in?

[deckardc]

Where will you and your fiancee be working? It may help expand your search area and narrow down the decent neighborhoods. Also, what other things are you looking for. Parks, stores, etc. BTW, have you ever been to FWB or are you coming from out of state?

FWB neighborhoods can be weird. You can have a trailer park on one street and a $400,000 house two streets away. Some neighborhoods aren't bad but you probably don't want to live there due to the proximity of runways on the Air Force bases. F-15s and F-22s are incredibly loud.

[EMERALDGIRL]

Originally Posted by deckardc

Where will you and your fiancee be working? It may help expand your search area and narrow down the decent neighborhoods. Also, what other things are you looking for. Parks, stores, etc. BTW, have you ever been to FWB or are you coming from out of state?

FWB neighborhoods can be weird. You can have a trailer park on one street and a $400,000 house two streets away. Some neighborhoods aren't bad but you probably don't want to live there due to the proximity of runways on the Air Force bases. F-15s and F-22s are incredibly loud.

Yes, I have been to FWB before and we really loved the little beach community. We both love going to the beach and the water. We live in Norfolk, VA right now so we are familiar with living next to military instillations as well as the hurricanes! He is a supervisor right now at a boat company and I am in the legal profession. We would even live as far as Navarre but would like to stay on the coast. We just really liked the Panhandle area but wanted an honest opinion from a native of the area and what the neighborhoods are like.

[sandlovertoo]

Originally Posted by EMERALDGIRL

Yes, I have been to FWB before and we really loved the little beach community. We both love going to the beach and the water. We live in Norfolk, VA right now so we are familiar with living next to military instillations as well as the hurricanes! He is a supervisor right now at a boat company and I am in the legal profession. We would even live as far as Navarre but would like to stay on the coast. We just really liked the Panhandle area but wanted an honest opinion from a native of the area and what the neighborhoods are like.

I just moved here a few months ago and it seems fine.I live in a nice neighborhood,no problems,got police that live all around me,I feel safe.Navarre has a lot of traffic and it is 20 to 25 minutes away from FWB,I wasn't impressed with the area or Crestview.
And I kinda like watching the boys playing in the planes during the day,it isn't all the time and yes it can be loud but it doesn't last long,and when I say watch them play I mean it ,it is pretty cool to watch!

[deckardc]

Originally Posted by EMERALDGIRL

Yes, I have been to FWB before and we really loved the little beach community. We both love going to the beach and the water. We live in Norfolk, VA right now so we are familiar with living next to military instillations as well as the hurricanes! He is a supervisor right now at a boat company and I am in the legal profession. We would even live as far as Navarre but would like to stay on the coast. We just really liked the Panhandle area but wanted an honest opinion from a native of the area and what the neighborhoods are like.

I forgot about Somerset Apartments. They are on the beachfront on Okaloosa Island. From what I have heard, they have like a 3 year waiting list for apartments but I suppose it wouldn't hurt to call and ask.
Delaney Development Corporation - Real Estate, Real Estate Investements, Services, Property Management, Forestry

Also, check with some of the condos on Okaloosa Island. Most are vacation rentals only but some people rent long term. A lot of people buy a condo for retirement a few years before they retire and they don't want a different bunch of strangers in there every week before they move in, so they will prefer a long term tenant. Call the leasing offices and ask if they have any 2 bed long term rentals in your price range. You might be surprised.

I used to live in Navarre and I prefer it hands down to FWB. Unfortunately I work at Eglin AFB and the commute from my house in Navarre was 45 min to an hour during what passes as rush hour here. I felt it was too much time on the road and away from my family.

As far as neighborhoods in FWB, you will get differing opinions. Some people can live in a housing project and think it's paradise and some people can live in a million dollar per house development and think it's a ghetto because there's a crack in the sidewalk. Mostly FWB is a working class to middle class city. There are a few pockets of what most people would call a ghetto and a few pockets of super wealthy housing. The wealthy tend to live in the waterfront areas.

If you define a good neighborhood by crime then most here are fairly safe. This area has a low crime rate compared to most cities. Many of the houses here were built before 1975 so you will see a lot of cinderblock rectangles with only 1 bathroom. On the other hand, those tend to be the most hurricane resistant. Most of the condo complexes on the mainland are pretty shabby. The nicer ones are out on the beach on Okaloosa Island.

The ok areas would probably be Mary Esther, Elliot's Point, Cinco Bayou, Oakland Heights, Shalimar, Kenwood, Garnier Beach, Poquito Bayou, the area between Beal Pkwy and Hollywood Blvd., and Bayou Woods. The areas I would personally avoid would be Sylvania Heights, Ocean City south of Racetrack Rd. and north of Mayflower Ave., Greenacres, Wright, the area south of Hollywood Blvd between Eglin Pkwy and Memorial Pkwy., and many of the areas east of Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
Just my opinion.

[EMERALDGIRL]

Originally Posted by deckardc

I forgot about Somerset Apartments. They are on the beachfront on Okaloosa Island. From what I have heard, they have like a 3 year waiting list for apartments but I suppose it wouldn't hurt to call and ask.
Delaney Development Corporation - Real Estate, Real Estate Investements, Services, Property Management, Forestry

Also, check with some of the condos on Okaloosa Island. Most are vacation rentals only but some people rent long term. A lot of people buy a condo for retirement a few years before they retire and they don't want a different bunch of strangers in there every week before they move in, so they will prefer a long term tenant. Call the leasing offices and ask if they have any 2 bed long term rentals in your price range. You might be surprised.

I used to live in Navarre and I prefer it hands down to FWB. Unfortunately I work at Eglin AFB and the commute from my house in Navarre was 45 min to an hour during what passes as rush hour here. I felt it was too much time on the road and away from my family.

As far as neighborhoods in FWB, you will get differing opinions. Some people can live in a housing project and think it's paradise and some people can live in a million dollar per house development and think it's a ghetto because there's a crack in the sidewalk. Mostly FWB is a working class to middle class city. There are a few pockets of what most people would call a ghetto and a few pockets of super wealthy housing. The wealthy tend to live in the waterfront areas.

If you define a good neighborhood by crime then most here are fairly safe. This area has a low crime rate compared to most cities. Many of the houses here were built before 1975 so you will see a lot of cinderblock rectangles with only 1 bathroom. On the other hand, those tend to be the most hurricane resistant. Most of the condo complexes on the mainland are pretty shabby. The nicer ones are out on the beach on Okaloosa Island.

The ok areas would probably be Mary Esther, Elliot's Point, Cinco Bayou, Oakland Heights, Shalimar, Kenwood, Garnier Beach, Poquito Bayou, the area between Beal Pkwy and Hollywood Blvd., and Bayou Woods. The areas I would personally avoid would be Sylvania Heights, Ocean City south of Racetrack Rd. and north of Mayflower Ave., Greenacres, Wright, the area south of Hollywood Blvd between Eglin Pkwy and Memorial Pkwy., and many of the areas east of Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
Just my opinion.

Thanks! I now have an idea of what areas to consider and what areas to avoid!

[EMERALDGIRL]

[quote=doni;1533126]MODERATOR CUT: ORPHANED POST...
Oh- that sounds awesome Doni but we won't be there until the end of November and I am sure you will want to have it occupied before then. Sounds great though and below the price range that I intended to spend! Hopefuly I will be able to find something similar by the time we move to the area.

[EMERALDGIRL]

Originally Posted by doni

ORPHANED POST

just food for thought

Thanks Doni, I will talk to my fiance and see what his thoughts are on the property!