Sebastian / Vero Beach ? Relocation (St. Lucie: property taxes, homes, crime)

[Sueilp]

Well I have lived in Sebastian for almost 3 years (although my address is Vero beach i am nearer to Sebastian than to actual Vero).

Sebastian is a nice quiet town, low crime etc etc - all been said before....dont judge all Sebastian like Schumann Drive....yes there are spots like that and it is all very laid back but there are nice properties here and the people are nice....I have experienced myself mostly friendly people with the odd strange character but they have mainly been at work....lol

So come and see for yourself....it isnt for everyone but if you like the quiet life and want somewhere to chill or bring up your kids then go for it. Just be aware (like you should be anywhere) of where the trouble spots are and dont go there!

you make it what you want it to be!

[runswithscissors]

Originally Posted by Sueilp

Well I have lived in Sebastian for almost 3 years (although my address is Vero beach i am nearer to Sebastian than to actual Vero).

Sebastian is a nice quiet town, low crime etc etc - all been said before....dont judge all Sebastian like Schumann Drive....yes there are spots like that and it is all very laid back but there are nice properties here and the people are nice....I have experienced myself mostly friendly people with the odd strange character but they have mainly been at work....lol

So come and see for yourself....it isnt for everyone but if you like the quiet life and want somewhere to chill or bring up your kids then go for it. Just be aware (like you should be anywhere) of where the trouble spots are and dont go there!

you make it what you want it to be!

OK, so driving from say, Wabasso Rd 85th st, North on Route 1 to say, Main Street, where are the nice areas west of Rt 1? (Not including Schumann of course which is about 3/4 of the way up there it seems to me). But maybe I'm missing something. Can you name some streets to look at?

Also we can leave out the mobile homes and Vero Lake Estates (which has problems too , IMO)

I know about the condos on the East side and housing along Indian River drive ...

[Sueilp]

Originally Posted by runswithscissors

OK, so driving from say, Wabasso Rd 85th st, North on Route 1 to say, Main Street, where are the nice areas west of Rt 1? (Not including Schumann of course which is about 3/4 of the way up there it seems to me). But maybe I'm missing something. Can you name some streets to look at?

Also we can leave out the mobile homes and Vero Lake Estates (which has problems too , IMO)

I know about the condos on the East side and housing along Indian River drive ...

I cant name all the streets.....I would be here all night!!!!!!!!! There are plenty of housing estates off the 512 that are decent neighbourhoods with decent people and "look" pretty and tidy. I
There is nothing wrong with Vero Lake Estates either!!!!! That is where I live and is a nice neighbourhood mostly - yes it has some rotten eggs but most places have dont they? I am quite happy living where i live - nice decent land and a nice house.

If you are looking for upmarket stuff then look on the beach side- if that is what appeals to you. Too expensive for me (on a nurse's pay!!!!!!!!)

[andrea7902]

lmao. your replies have me cracking up!

anyway, which towns do you like? i was in vero this past weekend and it seemed really nice. i considered sebastian until i read your replies. we're looking to relocate to Fl onc our house sells and plan on renting first but not sure where to look..

[runswithscissors]

I was up in Sebastian again on Sunday thinking I missed something but I really didn't see anything I'm interested in. AND there's really nothing to do there, I am single no kids and at 55 don't feel like being bothered with other ppls lol. The only "development" that I saw that didn't have deferred maintenance (no offense to residents) was up the main drag (completely torn up by construction I might add) I think it was called Sebastian Lakes. There are CBS singles and a small amout of condos but they are frame and nothing to see up there.

Remember I worked my whole life to retire, my goals are different than alot of ppl. And I can get STUCK if I make a wrong choice.

Andrea if you wanna direct message me I can tell you what my conclusions are about Vero neighborhoods. I can give you my agent's info too. She has a few condos on Hutchinson island listed but there's REALLY NOTHING over there ha ha.....but its beautiful thats for sure. You'd have to drive about 15 min to get to stuff.

Anything on the barrier island is a winner but the mainland has alot of variety. Like the small 2 br old school houses from the 60's that I love are now in neighborhoods of deferred maintenance or wierdo ideas like putting up a giant tent on metal rods as a carport. Then removing the tent part and leaving the rods hahahaha.

I was headed to an open house in Sebastian on sunday....that looked ok online, and going down the road, I'm like, OK, this is pretty good and just when I got to the house I look at the DIRECT neighbor behind....the only freaking house with a big mess there. HAHAHA

Some boat, a home made carport garage, home made screening thing, stuff you hook up to Trucks....ummmm you know, like for landscapers, oh,,,yeah a big TRUCK, yeah they had they're whole back loaded with crap. Meanwhile, the poor real estate agent went to all this trouble setting out tons of signs and balloons etc lol.

Then I went to some on the River and they were good.

Apparently I'm the HOA type. It offends me to see houses that had fires just sitting there, and other broken down stuff around...and no lawn care etc.

Over east of route 1 the condos are coming down and there are some excellent affordable units now, several SEVERAL thousands less than when I began looking here last year. In Sebastian.

However, Vero Beach has that too, and plenty to do compared to little Sebastian, which I really WANT to like, I'm into the whole animal conservation thing but ....

In Vero you can live near the mall there are several good places with rentals (singles too like where I live) and other sections but I would say why not rent right on the barrier island ...beach? It's awesome and that's what you are coming to Fl to see. The beaches are empty and beautiful with little walk paths and a small boardwalk, some small parks every few streets at the beach for picnics etc, the main big park is excellent with a little art museum and stuff, it's over by the river and causeway they are gorgeous and especially for a walk, and there are stores and restaurants. And sea turtles and no real crime.

I met an agent on Sunday who has a duplex for 970 !!!! right at the South Beach section of Vero Beach. She spruced it up she said but no takers....both sides available. I'm quite sure she'd take 900 too or even less. Otherwise she's gonna get foreclosed.

[Doris K]

We are building a home in Sebastian now and look forward to escaping Ohio's snow. We have friends who live in Vero Lakes Estates and they love it. Everyone we have met in the process of selecting items for our house has been absolutely wonderful. We've also met our future neighbors at length and they too have been so very nice. This is a wonderful blog/resource. Thank you all for your comments.

[tamcim72]

Originally Posted by runswithscissors

OK, so driving from say, Wabasso Rd 85th st, North on Route 1 to say, Main Street, where are the nice areas west of Rt 1? (Not including Schumann of course which is about 3/4 of the way up there it seems to me). But maybe I'm missing something. Can you name some streets to look at?

Also we can leave out the mobile homes and Vero Lake Estates (which has problems too , IMO)

I know about the condos on the East side and housing along Indian River drive ...

my older parents have lived in Sebastian for about 13 years and really like it. They moved from S. Florida when dad retired. S. FL wasn't there thing, mine either I found out later!

they live off Barber (which is the only main rd I remember) a large area of homes ranging from 20 years to new. To the south of the Winn Dixie.

Gosh when they moved there I think the empty lots out numbered them 20 to 1. Now it's the opposite, but they are lucky the have 1/2 their neighbor's still empty. Maybe it's my parents!!

They've had no crimes except a few weeks ago someone stole the light off my dad's boat that he was working on. He normally keeps it in the marina and has had the city issue him if he leaves it in the driveway (it must be hidden on side)

[Phoenix lady]

We lived close to Sebastian for 4 years and I didn't care for it. It's very quiet, if you like boating, fishing, a very, very low-key life, it might work. No movie theatre, shopping, basics like that, but it is a very pretty, safe and relaxing area, very little crime, etc. You should visit a few times before deciding.

[vbbd]

I don't think I could elaborate much more on what anyone else has said, but I'll try.

I have lived in Vero Beach since 1977 except for the four years that I served in the Marine Corps, so I know a little about Vero Beach as well.

In an attempt to supplement what city-data.com has provided on this site, and to help local businesses and residents, I created a directory of businesses, parks, beaches, movie times, gas prices, local news, and other content that may be of value.

You can view the site here: http://www.verobeachbusinessdirectory.com

In addition to the site, I created a forum with an event calendar for all the "hip hop happening" things that take place in our county. (ha ha)

The forum is here:
http://www.verobeachbusinessdirector...rums/index.php

and the event calendar is here:
http://www.verobeachbusinessdirector...ction=calendar

Thanks for stopping by my little corner of Vero Beach!

Bret

[floridasandy]

the best thing to do is just come down and see for yourself. i personally cannot wait to get back to sebastian. good thing that i did not sell my house. i am currently in new jersey working and miss florida a lot!