[backtofla]

you may want to start a new thread and ask he/she where that place could be that is affordable/good economy/good schools. psloldtimer posts a lot, and is very knowledgable. if you read some of his posts, you'll see what i mean. also, what are the ages of your kid(s)? i can give you a list (nationwide) of the "top 100" schools and many of them are in fla.

you know on the outskirts of melbourne area may be worth checking into. i bet there are small towns close by that are more affordable. plus, prices are starting to drop i think

[momof2boys]

Thanks, I will check into Melbourne area. My kids are 10,13. One will be in 5th grade, and one in 8th. I think I might just have to start a new thread. Thanks for the info, I won't cross Florida off my list just yet!

[backtofla]

since your kids are getting to the high school age, here is newsweek's top 40 high schools in the nation. i was going to post all 100 top high schools that are on newsweek's top 100 list, but it said "too many characters" and i had to re-post. so i just copy and pasted the top 40:



1 | Jefferson County* | Irondale | Ala. | 10.755 | 2
2 | International Academy*|Bloomfield Hills|Mich.|8.422 |0
3 | Stanton College Prep* | Jacksonville | Fla. | 7.385 | 7.8
4 | Eastside* | Gainesville | Fla. | 6.682 | 39
5 | H-B Woodlawn | Arlington | Va. | 5.747 | 14
6 | Science/Engineering Magnet |Dallas|Texas|5.545|37.8
7 | Paxon* | Jacksonville | Fla. | 5.373 | 13
8 | Pensacola* | Pensacola | Fla. | 5.362 | 63
9 | Raleigh Charter | Raleigh | N.C. | 5.089 | 0
10 | Hillsborough* | Tampa | Fla. | 5.085 | 50
11 | Richard Montgomery* | Rockville | Md. | 5.029 | 13
12 | Highland Park | Dallas | Texas | 4.588 | 0
13 | Coral Reef* | Miami | Fla. | 4.528 | 27.5
14 | Jericho | Jericho | N.Y. | 4.347 | 1.6
15 | McNair Academic | Jersey City | N.J. | 4.342 | 40
16 | Cold Spring Harbor |Cold Spring Harbor | N.Y. | 4.317 |1
17 | Wootton | Rockville | Md. | 4.307 | 2
18 | Atlantic Community* | Delray Beach | Fla. | 4.291 | 23
19 | Eastern Sierra Academy| Bridgeport |Calif. | 4.250 | 18
20 | Dreyfoos School of the Arts|West Palm Beach|Fla.|4.205|5
21 | Troy* | Fullerton | Calif. | 4.165 | 1
22 | Great Neck South | Great Neck | N.Y. | 4.161 | 3.7
23 | George Mason* | Falls Church | Va. | 4.098 | 8
24 | Interlake* | Bellevue | Wash. | 4.018 | 31
25 | Harding University* | Charlotte | N.C. | 4.017 | 38.3
26 | Edgemont | Scarsdale | N.Y. | 4.015 | 0
27 | Wilson Magnet* | Rochester | N.Y. | 3.895 | 63
28 | Los Angeles Center for Enriched Studies | Los Angeles | Calif. | 3.892 | 37
29 | Bethesda-Chevy Chase* | Bethesda | Md. | 3.874 | 10
30 | Manhasset | Manhasset | N.Y. | 3.853 | 4
31 | Lincoln Park* | Chicago | Ill. | 3.811 | 51.3
32 | Newport | Bellevue | Wash. | 3.809 | 6
33 | Design & Architecture | Miami | Fla. | 3.804 | 41.6
34 | W.T. Woodson | Fairfax | Va. | 3.748 | 6
35 | St. Petersburg* | St. Petersburg | Fla. | 3.742 | 22
36 | King* | Tampa | Fla. | 3.715 | 40
37 | Myers Park* | Charlotte | N.C. | 3.686 | 17.9
38 | East Chapel Hill | Chapel Hill | N.C. | 3.622 | 12
39 | Pittsford Mendon | Pittsford | N.Y. | 3.584 | 1.8
40 | Science Academy of South Texas | Mercedes | Texas | 3.570 | 42


fla pretty much dominates the top 10, the top 20, and is possibly the most represented state on the list.

[summergal]

Originally Posted by backtofla

let's be fair and not trash fla.

tn (knoxville and especially memphis --- one of the most dangerous places in the nation)...

ok now memphis is pretty high up there, but knoxville?? lol I just can't imagine it's as bad as you want us to believe.

[backtofla]

oops..... not knoxville. i meant to say nashville. sorry.

this is according to a website i saw..... and i'm sure there are many different sources that could make the top 10 differ.....


Most Dangerous 10:
1 Detroit, MI
2 Washington, DC
3 Memphis, TN
4 Dallas, TX
5 Philadelphia, PA
6 Nashville, TN
7 Milwaukee, WI
8 Columbus, OH
9 Charlotte, NC
10 Houston, TX

[summergal]

Originally Posted by backtofla

oops..... not knoxville. i meant to say nashville. sorry.

Wheew! you had me a bit worried there for a minute... Knoxville is one of my considerations for a move (as well as Pittsburgh). OK feelin' better now

[pslOldTimer]

Thanks for all the kind words, but I'm not going to be much good at pricing houses, almost anywhere. I appear to be knowledgeable because I Google a lot. I can name median prices, but individual properties are beyond me.

The best I can do is recommend my own approach -- Google "Florida multi-list". I like the second one on the list, MLS dot com. Choose Florida, then choose any of the cities listed. Have fun.

[backtofla]

i thought maybe, off the top of your head, you know of a few places that are still affordable, nice area, good schools, etc... i was thinking northern fla or the palm coast/melbourne area... titusville??? anyone know anything about titusville? it's on the coast isnt it??? affordable housing???

[NYJV]

Originally Posted by shopzilla76

I live in Orlando, FL (for 20+ years). I was a teacher in Orange County for a few years also.

**IMPORTANT: STAY AWAY FROM ORANGE BLOSSOM TRAIL (aka OBT) - IT IS NOTORIOUS FOR HOOKERS, DRUGS, CRIME, ETC. IT IS THE ARMPIT OF ORLANDO**

I can tell you that in Central FL you will want to generally stay away from Orange County unless you are planning to move to Winter Park (historical Winter Park is best). Osceola County (Kissimmee) is not a good one either.

Seminole County is one of the best counties in Central FL as far as education. Of course that's b/c of the $$. If you are interested I'll tell you the scoop on Seminole County, were to live, where not to live.

Speaking of Orlando. There is a "urban renewal" happening in Downtown. Many of the older, run down homes are being replaced with $500,000+ homes.

Please do tell me the scoop about Seminole I am trying to research everything I can school is very important to me since I have 3 kids 13,12,6

[pslOldTimer]

Originally Posted by backtofla

i thought maybe, off the top of your head, you know of a few places that are still affordable, nice area, good schools, etc... i was thinking northern fla or the palm coast/melbourne area... titusville??? anyone know anything about titusville? it's on the coast isnt it??? affordable housing???

I think Titusville is pretty close for the Space workers and so there is probably pretty good demand.

I can't think of any place along either coast that is still affordable by my standards, and I'm not destitute. As a matter of fact, I can't think of any place in Florida that is still affordable by the standards of many of our visitors.

Most of my friends are saying things like, "I can't afford to stay in my house. I can't leave that much money tied up in equity. I'm selling out and moving somewhere cheaper." When I ask where that might be, they reply, "Nowhere in Florida. We're thinking about Tennessee or Kentucky."

And, indeed, property values are much lower in those areas, along with West Virginia and SE Ohio, A friend of mine recently purchased 18 rolling acres on a bluff overlooking the Ohio River with a fairly new 4/3 house and a large barn complete with tractor for about 180,000. That would be a million dollar property almost anywhere in Florida.

I lucked out. I bought my 5 acres in rural Okeechobee, FL about 3-1/2 years ago for $36,000, which was $7,200 per acre. Last October, an identical piece on the next corner sold for $50,000 per acres. Eight months later, my guess is $60,000 per acre or more, or at least $300,000 for my $36,000 investment.

And, that's in a rural cattle-raising county with few amenities, good 'ol boy government and more than 50 miles from the coast. I'm not even safe from crime -- transients roll through the area and break into anything not locked down and protected with a big dog. Shopping? There is a Walmart, and we enjoy the Goodwill Thrift Store. Restaurants? Beyond Skip's BBQ, the biggie is Golden Corral Buffet. 65% of the county residents live in mobile homes.

Yet, property prices have still gone up almost 10X in the past 3 years! I repeat, there is no affordable place in Florida any longer; I could not afford this property at today's prices, and if it were not next door to my grandchildren, I'd be selling out myself and taking my profit.

The worst part is that governments are enjoying the windfall; they have not cut tax rates to balance the increases in property values. When I bought that property, it was assessed at $27,000. Today, it's assessed at $175,000 and will definitely go up again next year. Yet, the millage rate is the same. So, I'm paying almost 7 times the taxes I did 3 years ago! By the time I get a house on the property, I probably won't be able to afford the taxes.

Not to mention the insurance -- my home insurance rates have tripled in the past 3 years, and will likely go up again next year.

At least in my present house, we fall under the State of Florida homesteader's tax cap, and our property assessment can't be increased more than 3% per year regardless of what happens to values. But, all that really does is make the taxes even higher for new owners, whether they're moving in from out of state or simply buying a different house or building a new house within the state. The cap goes away whenever there is a trasfer of title or a major remodeling. Some retired folks are stuck with large houses they can't afford to operate or keep in good maintenance, because they can't afford the jump in taxes on a smaller, less expensive place where there cap starts all over again.

Florida is still one of the greatest places to live. I've got sand in my shoes, and I ain't going anywhere else. I love it out in hick town Okeechobee with no shopping, no beaches and no good restaurants, because I've got my little front end loader and I'm moving dirt. When we want good food, we take a cruise. When we want culture, we drive 75 miles to West Palm Beach. Mall shopping? 60 miles to Vero Beach.

Folks, there is no free lunch. Florida is now officially expensive. It hasn't caught up to California yet, but it's trying mighty hard to catch it and pass it. Schools are mostly mediocre due to misguided efforts of state officials. The exceptions are really exceptional -- 11 of the top 40 high schools posted by backtofla are in Florida -- but look closely; many of them are magnet or private schools. Your child can get a decent education in Florida, but it's going to take hard work on your part to make up the difference.

The Milk and Honey is still here; you just have to do more research, look a lot harder and pay a lot more.