Recs on a FL city for retired and mentally disabled relatives (Jacksonville: for sale, apartments)

Alkonost · 05-09-2015, 10:03 PM

I'm looking for Florida city that has a light but sufficient transportation system, decent hospitals, and nice condo apartments available- I'm not looking for high-rise ultra lux, low-rise is fine as long as the neighborhoods are safe. I'd like to avoid the Miami/Ft.L area.

I'm trying to plan ahead for places to buy an apartment property in the near future (1-5 years). This wouldn't be for myself, or even as in investment.. I'm bailing out some family members. My one of my relatives is appx 6 years from retirement, but realistically their health is not going to hold out, and due to many bad decisions they don't have the financial resources to buy a modest condo. This relative also has a mentally handicapped adult child who will need a home once they pass on. I have no choice but to intervene otherwise one (or both) might end up on the street. Both currently live in Miami/Ft. Lauderdale but I have no intentions of keeping them there because of the cost of living (I also think the condos there are a poor value). Whatever location I move them to must work for both individuals: when the elder caretaker passes on, the location will need to be sufficient for the mentally disabled adult who cannot work or drive.

A decent bus system will be required, it doesn't have to run as extensively as Miami, as neither will need to commute to a job when the time comes to relocate them. But it must be robust enough where they can get to doctors appointments and do some light shopping. My disabled relative will never be able to drive a car, so being able to get to shops using the buses will be very important. Since neither are physically capable individuals, we're looking more towards apartments since it's less maintenance to worry about.

So if you know of a good city for a retiree with a good bus system, I'd appreciate any info. Outside of the Miami area, I haven't been around Florida much to know what the different cities have to offer. I'd been looking at Ft. Meyers/Cape Coral as a possibility, but there my well be numerous places in FL that fit the bill so I'm open to suggestions on where to direct my research.

Fl1150 · 05-09-2015, 10:51 PM

Have you looked at the Melbourne/Satellite Beach area as it has a bus service that runs at some frequencies and also it's not as crowded as the Miami area but still offers a lot of amenities as it does still have about a half million people living there.

Alkonost · 05-10-2015, 06:12 AM

Thanks, I'm looking at their bus map now and it's pretty good, thanks so much for the recommendation.

kyle19125 · 05-10-2015, 07:07 AM

Dunedin would be an excellent option as it has pretty extensive bus service plus easy access to shops and quality medical facilities as well.

Bus Schedules
https://baycare.org/mph
https://baycare.org/mch
https://baycare.org/mdh

Alkonost · 05-10-2015, 10:50 AM

Thank you for the recommendation on Dunedin. The Tampa Bay area was one of the places on the list and it's great to have lots of options around there.

So far here's the places I'm looking at:

Cape Coral / Ft. Meyers

Tampa / St. Petersburg / Clearwater / Dunedin

Melbourne Beach / Satellite Beach

Port St. Lucie

Let me know if you think there's a city that should be on my list.

Thanks very much!

annerk · 05-10-2015, 11:12 AM

Melbourne is a possibility, but St. Augustine might be a better choice. They offer an EXCELLENT door to door bus service for the disabled and seniors and it is a very safe and still affordable area.

Alkonost · 05-12-2015, 08:21 AM

Thanks for the heads-up on St. Augustine, adding it to my list.

Alkonost · 10-31-2015, 11:40 AM

It seems my parameters have changed.

We're now looking at areas that are within an hour's drive of Lakeland. My relative's disabled kid will be moving there, and they'd like to be within an hour's drive. Realistically that's looking like a tie between Orlando and Tampa areas, possibly Sarasota too.

Also, I'd like to shift importance towards good restaurants (not chains) and an artsy/cultural vibe. I'm close to this relative so I'm interested in making sure they have a good quality of life. I want my relative to enjoy living in the golden years in an enjoyable neighborhood where one can go out and keep busy. This relative is not the community center bingo type, or the kind that likes casinos or senior early-bird breakfasts. Think world traveler who loves farmers markets, cultural festivals, walkable downtowns, good food, Pilates classes, and museums.

I've heard Dunedin has a good thing going with culture and the arts. I've also heard Sarasota might be worth looking into as well. But Tampa and Orlando have a lot of areas to pick from, if there's others that may fit the bill I'd love to find out.

Another concern is investment value. If possible I'd prefer to buy in an area that has gentrified or will gentrify in the next 10 years. in 20-30 years I'll need to sell this property, it would be nice if the location isn't fad or boom dependent, but have a location that is likely to be desirable despite the mood swings of the housing market to come.

kyle19125 · 10-31-2015, 12:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Alkonost

It seems my parameters have changed.

We're now looking at areas that are within an hour's drive of Lakeland. My relative's disabled kid will be moving there, and they'd like to be within an hour's drive. Realistically that's looking like a tie between Orlando and Tampa areas, possibly Sarasota too.

Also, I'd like to shift importance towards good restaurants (not chains) and an artsy/cultural vibe. I'm close to this relative so I'm interested in making sure they have a good quality of life. I want my relative to enjoy living in the golden years in an enjoyable neighborhood where one can go out and keep busy. This relative is not the community center bingo type, or the kind that likes casinos or senior early-bird breakfasts. Think world traveler who loves farmers markets, cultural festivals, walkable downtowns, good food, Pilates classes, and museums.

I've heard Dunedin has a good thing going with culture and the arts. I've also heard Sarasota might be worth looking into as well. But Tampa and Orlando have a lot of areas to pick from, if there's others that may fit the bill I'd love to find out.

Another concern is investment value. If possible I'd prefer to buy in an area that has gentrified or will gentrify in the next 10 years. in 20-30 years I'll need to sell this property, it would be nice if the location isn't fad or boom dependent, but have a location that is likely to be desirable despite the mood swings of the housing market to come.

Using those parameters I would say in/around Downtown St Petersburg. Check out neighborhoods like Crescent Heights, Woodlawn, Allendale-Five Points, Magnolia Heights and Historic Uptown.

Downtown Revitalization: St. Petersburg | Metro Jacksonville

Alkonost · 10-31-2015, 02:18 PM

Thanks Kyle, I checked out what was available and it doesn't look like there are a lot of condos for sale in the Crescent Heights, Woodlawn, Allendale-Five Points, Magnolia Heights areas. Downtown St. Pete did, but the prices were out of our range (300-400k for a 2br/2ba is a tall order). Are there other areas nearby in St. Pete that might work?