[CaptainFill]

Hello,

I am a current resident in Minnesota, and with the brutally cold seasons (3 of the 4) I am about to give in and move somewhere with a much more warming climate.

I am self employed and doing quite well $1xx,xxx so the location doesn't matter in regards to commuting, I am also very young - 23. I have been doing quite a bit of research and I cannot seem to find anywhere that is really "perfect", but the keys look appealing to me.

I would love to be on, or very close to the ocean. I love to boat and would end up getting a 40 foot sailboat. My ideal weekend would be sailing around the keys/bahamas, snorkeling and relaxing. The keys would be perfect for that.

The reasons why I don't like the keys is that it looks like an old people haven and I worry about hurricanes and having my home destroyed. If not destroyed, I can't imagine home owners insurance to be anything less than a lot. Is this a valid concern or is this a tolerable inconvenience?

I looked at Miami, but I think that is a too "slummy" for me, I'm not a huge night-lifer either. I could also be very wrong, that is just the impression I have gotten from others.

I also would like a generally Caucasian area. I have nothing against ethnic diversity but I don't speak spanish and don't want to feel alienated whenever I go somewhere.

So my real question is, where in Florida (or on earth) can I find

1. Close to the ocean (either on or very close to a marina - close to the bahamas or similar style area)
2. Generally younger area
3. Not drug or poverty stricken
4. More "white" friendly
5. Not extremely lux, I don't make that much!

Thank you all for helping with my hunt! I will be very appreciative for any input!

Phil

[Ian T.]

Let me know what you find out I am from Minnesota as well and looking to move to that area but have some concerns of my own I was checking out Marathon, FL seems quiet and a nice place but here is my email maybe we could exchange some information I am young myself 25
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[Spagettio]

I live in Key Largo and I do love the Keys. The people who live here or come to visit generally love to boat, sail, fish and snorkel. Our main industry is tourism and we only have one main highway which runs up and down the Keys - Highway 1 - so it is not like you can avoid the tourists. They are part of your everyday life. And Florida is a retirement state and so most of the population is older. Lots of snowbirds from the Northeast and some from the Midwest. There are some families and younger children - I hope so since I'm a teacher at one of the local schools. Spanish speakers represent at least half of the population - after all, this is South Florida and we are very close to Cuba. There is lots of drinking and drugging, but not everybody partakes - I don't. But, it can be hard to find friends who abstain, unless you are in recovery. The newer concrete homes are very sturdy, but hurricane insurance is high - just part of the premium a person who lives here chooses to pay. I do like Marathon. It seems more like a real town and less like a tourist town than Key West. Jobs are a problem right now in Florida because we were hit hard by the real estate bubble. If you don't need a job or can work from home, then that gives you more options. The Keys are beautiful, but I especially like the people here. We are very laid-back and casual. There are a lot of characters that live here and we could always use one more.

[crisp444]

Originally Posted by CaptainFill

So my real question is, where in Florida (or on earth) can I find

1. Close to the ocean (either on or very close to a marina - close to the bahamas or similar style area)
2. Generally younger area
3. Not drug or poverty stricken
4. More "white" friendly
5. Not extremely lux, I don't make that much!

To answer your questions for the State of Florida:

1) Anywhere along the coast.
2) Avoid SW Florida, the Panhandle, the Treasure Coast, and to a lesser extent, the Keys. Lots of old people.
3) This really depends on the particular town/city/area and neighborhood.
4) Florida is mostly white. Even most "Hispanics" in Florida are white. Most areas of Florida are "white friendly," I'd think.
5) Avoid Palm Beach, South Beach, Coral Gables, Brickell, Windermere, Winter Park, Hyde Park, Davis Island, Key Biscayne, parts of Boca Raton, and parts of the Keys. Those are the most expensive areas in Florida.

To answer your questions with JUST the Keys in mind:

1) The Keys are completely surrounded by water. The furthest you can get from the water is about a mile.
2) There are a lot of old people everywhere in the Keys. The highest concentrations of them are in Bluewater Key, Venture Out (Cudjoe Key), and various mobile home/pre-fab home parks in the Upper and Middle Keys. The best possible place to meet young people is in Key West.
3) Honestly, nowhere is really dangerous or hardcore ghetto in the Keys. There are some rundown areas in Key Largo, Marathon, Big Pine Key, Little Torch Key, Big Coppit Key, Stock Island, and Key West, but these rundown areas do not represent the majority of the neighborhoods/towns I've just mentioned.
4) I can't think of anywhere that isn't "white friendly" in the Keys. The majority of the population is Anglo-American and there are lots of white Cubans and Cuban-Americans. In Key West, there are many Eastern European immigrants as well. There are some small "black neighborhoods" in Marathon and Key West, but that's about it. Everything else is majority-white. In regards to speaking Spanish, it is not a necessity. There are lots of Spanish-speakers in the Keys, but most of them speak English as well. One thing you'll find in the Keys is a lot of people with "Hispanic" last names who speak little Spanish - this applies to many young and younger-middle-aged people who were raised in the Keys.
5) The Keys are expensive when it comes to cost of living. With that said, monthly rents are manageable if you don't demand waterfront property with lots of amenities. As a young person, you should think about getting a roommate to split costs. A two-bedroom apartment or small house in most areas of the Keys costs about $1600/month to rent.