[White Shark]

Hello everyone! Thank you for reading my post

I just received a job offer in Eglin AFB and need to make an important decision about relocating my family to the new work place. I have never been to Eglin AFB before and don't know anything about this area. I researched and found that Crestview is ideal location to buy a house. It is located inland, away from direct hit by the Huricane and has less fighter jet noise. Housing and Insurance are cheaper than Ft. Walton Beach or Niceville area. Most of the information I read over the internet were posted in 2006-2008. Are these information still valid for 2009?

Can anyone tell me how long it will take to commute from Crestview to the Base? How is the daily traffic on I-85? Do I have to worry about flooding and huricane if I reside in Fort Walton Beach or Niceville area?

How is the job market in the private sector? My wife has a degree in Finance and wants to find a job in accounting or tax audit. What is the chance of finding works in these areas?

Any information that you can offer is greatly appreciated. Sorry for asking too many questions. I need to get as much information as I can before making the final decision.

[beachmouse]

I'm not a huge Crestview fan unless you're looking for country living- poorly thought out to the point of urban sprawl hell, five degrees hotter in summer and five degrees colder in winter (it gets a lot more nights below freezing than the coast does) and you have to seriously drive in order to get to what makes the area unique.

As for hurricanes, the damage doesn't just stop five miles from the coast. You can still see significant damage 100 miles or more inland. The direct air speeds fall off at that point, but there are still pop up tornadoes and flooding rain. Okaloosa County has some flood/surge maps up here:

Welcome to Public Safety GIS

Whita areas are considered to not be in a flood zone. There are also areas near the rivers in Crestview that will flood during a bad spring rainstorm. (A couple times a spring or summer, we'll get 10+ inches of rain in 24 hours)

Housing prices have fallen since the peak in 2006, but not as much as in other parts of the state. Median resale price of a single family home in Okaloosa County in May was $197K. (Which counts as, oddly enough, the second most expensive housing market in the state after West Palm Beach) If you're looking to sell in 3-5 years, homes south of I-10 are seen as more likely to hold value well than homes north of I-10 because they're scarcer and the commute is better.

Have your wife apply for every civil service status candidate and contracting position she seems elgible for. The white collar sector off base can be very hard to break into if you don't have local good ole boy credentials. It's not impossible, but it's not easy. If she's headed toward a CPA, there are a couple of financial services companies that occasionally hire outsiders.