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Old 02-21-2010, 08:05 PM
 
Location: Bayside, NY
4 posts, read 56,979 times
Reputation: 11

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Hi everyone. I'm so happy I found this forum. I've been researching the different areas of FL just like so many other people and keep going back and forth deciding between Miami and Ft. Lauderdale areas. These are just thoughts my husband and I are having right now.

I've been reading so many negative views on Miami and different opinions that have me confused, like the high crime in Miami, high taxes etc. I don't think it could be worse than NYC, can it? I was born and raised in NYC, Queens to be exact, so nothing really shocks me or scares me that much. My husband is Dominican born and raised and has been in NY for the past 10 months. I'm Italian/American and speak both Italian and Spanish fluently so I know it wouldn't be a problem for me with the Latin culture down there. It seems my Spanish is better than my Italian now anyway since I'm constantly speaking it with my husband and his family. I also have worked in the travel industry for 10 years so I'm sure I could find a job in one of the hotels or tour operators since I have a lot of contacts down there.

We eventually would like to move down to FL once we save up money but are not too sure where. He has family in the Miami area, I forgot which city though. His aunt and cousins live in Orlando(which I'm not considering though) and some friends of ours live close to Ft. Lauderdale. I also have friends that live in Kendall and Naples. My husband's cousins and friends have told him they could easily get him a job in construction with them so that wouldn't be a problem. I'm just getting confused with all the different areas of Miami. I definitely want to be very close to the beach since I'm a beach nut but I know South Beach and Miami Beach are too expensive. Honestly I've never been to Miami, however, I was in Orlando on a business trip 2 year ago, which I know doesn't even compare at all to Miami or Ft. Lauderdale.

I can acclimate pretty well as long as I know where I'm going and have a decent job. I lived in Sicily for 1 year when I was in my 20's and I survived that! I also traveled back and forth to my husband's town, La Romana, in the Dominican Republic for 2 years constantly and believe me, if you can survive the humidity, crime etc there, then you can survive it anywhere!

Is there a huge difference between Miami and Ft. Lauderdale? I've been looking at apartment/condo rentals in both areas and I see Ft. Lauderdale is a lot cheaper but I don't know any of the areas.

Any advice and suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.
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Old 02-22-2010, 09:56 PM
 
Location: Sebastian, FL
16 posts, read 35,710 times
Reputation: 12
Quote:
Originally Posted by DorieG View Post
Hi everyone. I'm so happy I found this forum. I've been researching the different areas of FL just like so many other people and keep going back and forth deciding between Miami and Ft. Lauderdale areas. These are just thoughts my husband and I are having right now.

I've been reading so many negative views on Miami and different opinions that have me confused, like the high crime in Miami, high taxes etc. I don't think it could be worse than NYC, can it? I was born and raised in NYC, Queens to be exact, so nothing really shocks me or scares me that much. My husband is Dominican born and raised and has been in NY for the past 10 months. I'm Italian/American and speak both Italian and Spanish fluently so I know it wouldn't be a problem for me with the Latin culture down there. It seems my Spanish is better than my Italian now anyway since I'm constantly speaking it with my husband and his family. I also have worked in the travel industry for 10 years so I'm sure I could find a job in one of the hotels or tour operators since I have a lot of contacts down there.

We eventually would like to move down to FL once we save up money but are not too sure where. He has family in the Miami area, I forgot which city though. His aunt and cousins live in Orlando(which I'm not considering though) and some friends of ours live close to Ft. Lauderdale. I also have friends that live in Kendall and Naples. My husband's cousins and friends have told him they could easily get him a job in construction with them so that wouldn't be a problem. I'm just getting confused with all the different areas of Miami. I definitely want to be very close to the beach since I'm a beach nut but I know South Beach and Miami Beach are too expensive. Honestly I've never been to Miami, however, I was in Orlando on a business trip 2 year ago, which I know doesn't even compare at all to Miami or Ft. Lauderdale.

I can acclimate pretty well as long as I know where I'm going and have a decent job. I lived in Sicily for 1 year when I was in my 20's and I survived that! I also traveled back and forth to my husband's town, La Romana, in the Dominican Republic for 2 years constantly and believe me, if you can survive the humidity, crime etc there, then you can survive it anywhere!

Is there a huge difference between Miami and Ft. Lauderdale? I've been looking at apartment/condo rentals in both areas and I see Ft. Lauderdale is a lot cheaper but I don't know any of the areas.

Any advice and suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.
Hi,

I lived 16 years in different areas of Miami and relocated to Sebastian (North of Vero Beach), Fl in 2007. Yes, it could be worse than NYC. Unless you have family in Miami, there's no reason to live there. Even with all my family still there, I left. The traffic is horrendous at any time. The highways are the worse. Property taxes are very high and values of homes are high too. People are soo rude!!!

Kendall is one of the most populated areas. It's a traffic jam day and night! The difference between Miami & Ft Laud is that Miami has more hispanics (mainly Cubans). Nice areas to live in Miami are Doral, Aventura, Miami Lakes, but once agian, there's traffic everywhere..In Broward good places to live are Plantation, Pembroke Pines, Miramar & Hallandale (close to the beach). Broward is a little less congested.

If I had to pick between Miami & Orlando, I will decide for Orlando. I only visit Miami 2-3 times a year and is to see family & come back the next day!! Believe me, not the best decision. I'm in the process of relocating to TN now. Have you not heard that millions of people left FL this year? There must be a reason....
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Old 02-24-2010, 04:51 AM
 
3,769 posts, read 8,802,427 times
Reputation: 3773
Miami v. Ft. Lauderdale depends on what your lifestyle looks like: Kids? are they in school? What is your profession/work? Do you anticipate living on Sbeach or in the suburbs? what does your housing budget look like? What do you like to do for recreation? I would find out where to work first becuase traffic in Miami is horrendous and only slightly better in most of FtL. Once that was decided I would live close to work - if any of the other factors matter i would sum it up with - childless and ready to live on the beach - miami hands down; family or more low key lifestyle wanted - fort lauderdale.
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Old 02-24-2010, 08:10 AM
 
Location: Boston MA, by way of NYC
2,764 posts, read 6,768,637 times
Reputation: 507
Quote:
Originally Posted by StilltheSame View Post
Miami v. Ft. Lauderdale depends on what your lifestyle looks like: Kids? are they in school? What is your profession/work? Do you anticipate living on Sbeach or in the suburbs? what does your housing budget look like? What do you like to do for recreation? I would find out where to work first becuase traffic in Miami is horrendous and only slightly better in most of FtL. Once that was decided I would live close to work - if any of the other factors matter i would sum it up with - childless and ready to live on the beach - miami hands down; family or more low key lifestyle wanted - fort lauderdale.
I agree completely Still (thank you so much, I'll DM you later why).

To the OP - I am moving to Florida in the next couple of months and as soon as I'm told where I will work Ft. Lauderdale or Miami, that is when I will chose where I will live and not until then. I am leaning toward Doral if I work in Miami and if I work in Ft. Lauderdale, there are many choices - the winner will be the shortest time in the car. Now that being said, you haven't mentioned where you are in your life. Do you have kids, are you planning to have kids, etc. As I'm sure has been beat into your head already, People say the schools are horrible. I take that with a grain of salt. However, I would definitely investigate big time if you do have kids. While some will say all the schools are horrible there are some that are better on the scale and that is personally where I would like my children to go.

Good luck!
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