[OwiesMom]

Hi all. We live in SFL at the moment and want to relocate somewhere more rural and more family-oriented. We have heard good things about N. FL. Can anyone point me toward some good areas near Gainesville and Tallahassee? We are looking for a bit of land, good schools but not too far out in the boonies. Any other additional info will also be greatly appreciated.
Thanks

[BlueWillowPlate]

Owiesmom
Did you see the other thread with Tallahassee and Gainesville?
It is towards the top.
I really do not know too much about Gainesville, or schools in either city (my youngest is graduating high school this year), but I was interested in a new development near Tallahassee called White Fence Farms.

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[House4Sale]

but never have been to Tallahassee. Spring Hill over Brooksville. You might look into Land o' Lakes. Nothing stays rural for long. That's a good thing, bad thing.

[wendalynn]

Tallahassee, IMO, is a better area to live than Gainesville. There are several areas around here that bear looking into, depending on your price range and exactly what you are looking for.

If you want to be close to town, but still rural, you can actually find a few different options in tallahassee. You can still buy large plots of land in the Chaires/Capitola area, it's nice and rural, but very close to town (just 10 minutes really, and your in TOWN). It's reasonably priced compared to most of Tallahassee and the elementary school there is really great. My husband and I have actually just about decided on this area, if we stay in FL. The NW side of town out by Lake Jackson also has good prices and rural areas. Canopy Oaks Elementary is a really good school. If you can afford to go a little more expensive, Killearn Lakes is a very nice area. It's close to town, but out by Lake Iamonia it's very secluded, with lots of beautiful trees and the schools anywhere in Killearn are excellent. Leon Co. has a lot of good schools, but it's hit or miss so you have to check each place out by the individual schools.

If you'd rather go for a small town, Crawfordville, in Wakulla County is a very nice community with good schools. It's less than 45 minutes South of Tallahassee, close to the coast, and a popular area right now with homes in all price ranges. Cairo, GA is also a good area and about the same distance North of town, but very SOUTHERN. One thing you will find about N. Florida, though, is it's a southern area, not culturally like SFL at all. Stay away from Quincy. Also, Havana, FL is a nice town, but don't go unless you want to put your kids in private schools. Gadsden county schools are abominable. The same goes with Monticello, in Jefferson Co. I would move there, but the schools are terrible.

If you want to go a little farther from Tallahassee both Perry and Madison are nice areas with good schools. They are both really small towns, for me anyway, and kind of far from the city. Just depends on what you are looking for.

Oh, and that White Fence Farms is probably a good bet. I can't figure out exactly where that would be, but there are limited options from the description and they would all be good areas to be in. In Tallahassee you want to be North and East, for the most part.

[peacepf25]

I lived in Perry for about 5 years. It was a nice quiet little town. We moved from Miami, so it was a big change. It took some adjusting, but I still call it home. I have been moved away from there now about 5 years. The people are very friendly. You said you are from a small town already, so you know how people can be. Always in your business. There is not much to do there. I don't know if you have children, or what your ages are. There are many churches if that is your thing. There was a skating rink for the kids. It was open on the weekends and Wednesday nights only. There were quite a few fights there last I was there with my kids. There is a movie theater which also keeps very strange hours. There were quite a few bars. THERE IS ALOT OF DRUGS! ALOT. I bought my first home there. It was a 3 bedroom 1 bath house for $35,000. There is not much in the way of work. Still I call it home. Pouncey's restaurant has the best club sandwich I have ever had. The bbq reataurant is wonderful. There is also a place downtown across from the courthouse called Rosehead junction. They have the best potato salad. Every year in Perry, is the Forest Festival. It's a huge deal. They have the worlds largest free fish fry. So much fun. They also have a cracker museum. Check it out. If you want to know anything else, please don't hesitate to e-mail me....I would be more than glad to tell you about it. About any neighborhoods that I can tell you about. Oh word of advise...there is an odor to the town sometimes. Buckeye paper mill is in the town, and at times it stinks! Fair warning. Don't let that scare you off though. Keaton Beach is very close.
[email]Peacepf25@yahoo.com[/email]