family relocating from Florida (Loveland: rentals, high crime, how much)

[wewantseasons]

Hi there!
My husband and I, with our 2 children(7months & 3years) are considering moving to Loveland. I've done ALOT of research on this area, and have fell in love with the town. From what I've read it seems to be a very family-friendly town.
Yes, I realize this will be a HUGE change for us, coming from North Florida. But change is what we are looking for! We really want small town life. We are sick and tired of the high crime, traffic, and just over-all largeness of where we are at. Not to mention this not the kind of environment we want to raise our children in. We hate the LONG, HOT summer, non-existent winters, and lack of REAL seasons.
We would really love to live in the kind of town were you can pretty much walk to anywhere you wanna go, is this realistic for Loveland?
I've already researched rentals, and they look pretty reasonable to find and priced.
Some of my questions:

1. Cellular service? I read a thread that a couple of years old, so just curious what the current best services are? And if there are any GOOD non-contract companies?

2. Cost of living? How much is a gallon of gas? a gallon of milk? a box of diapers? Things of that nature, we try to be pretty realistic with our budget.

3. Is Loveland accepting of new comers(outsiders)? From everything I've read on the forum, it seems so, just want some honest opinions. my husband and I are friendly and social, as well as my kids, I don't want to move them somewhere they won't be accepted and able to make friends.

Any other input would be great! I greatly appreciate it, and thank you for any info and/or advice you may have for me!

[Mike Weber]

Originally Posted by wewantseasons

Hi there!

We would really love to live in the kind of town were you can pretty much walk to anywhere you wanna go, is this realistic for Loveland?

Depending on where you end up in town, you can walk to many things, but to be able to walk to everything you need is unlikely. From a distance standpoint, not everything is within walking distance. From a safety point, most people feel safe walking various places in town. There is a bus service in town that may make carless transportation easier.

Originally Posted by wewantseasons

Some of my questions:

1. Cellular service? I read a thread that a couple of years old, so just curious what the current best services are? And if there are any GOOD non-contract companies?

I have good luck with Verizon. For a non-contract option, I think Cricket is pretty strong here.

Originally Posted by wewantseasons

2. Cost of living? How much is a gallon of gas? a gallon of milk? a box of diapers? Things of that nature, we try to be pretty realistic with our budget.

As of today, gas is around $3.15 - $3.20. We have milk home delivered for $2.32 / half gallon, but I think it is around $3.39 a gallon in the stores. It has been about 12 years since I bought diapers, so I can't help there.

Originally Posted by wewantseasons

3. Is Loveland accepting of new comers(outsiders)? From everything I've read on the forum, it seems so, just want some honest opinions. my husband and I are friendly and social, as well as my kids, I don't want to move them somewhere they won't be accepted and able to make friends.

About 5 months ago, I helped a member of this forum from out of state purchase a home in Loveland. In our discussions he seems to be happy with the friendliness and accepting nature of the area.

Originally Posted by wewantseasons

Any other input would be great! I greatly appreciate it, and thank you for any info and/or advice you may have for me!

I don't know what part of North Florida you are from, but when my parents were here around Christmas time, we actually had a couple of days that were warmer than what their neighbors were experiencing in Tallahassee at the same time. Of course, they also got to experience snow while they were here.

[wewantseasons]

Thanks for the info! It was very helpful! As they always say, it's not so much the heat as the humidity!!! It's like getting hit in the face when you walk out your front door lol! Anways, we are quite used to warm weather, it's more that we are looking for a little bit shorter of a summer, and being able to enjoy 4 real seasons