relocating to... oakland park? (Fort Lauderdale, Coral Springs: for rent, insurance, crime)

[Razz2525]

We're relocating from NJ to FL in 6 days and we're looking to rent a single family home within 5-10 miles of Deerfield Beach so we can live close to my mother-in-law. We are an interracial couple with a 6-month-old son (with a 55-pound terrier/boxer mix) and we both work from home so we don't have any commuting concerns (other than traveling to Deerfield Beach). We're looking for a diverse, young-ish area with lots of activities/parks for young children and places to play with our dog.

We're looking at Coral Springs, Coconut Creek, North Lauderdale, Ft. Lauderdale, Margate, Delray Beach, Plantation, Dania Beach, Boca... and we saw a fantastic house on realtor.com in Oakland Park. Is Oakland Park a bad neighborhood? We can't find much info about it. Is it not a great area? I've been able to gather there are not so great areas in Lauderhill from the pics of some houses there... I could be wrong there. Any areas to stay away from within that 5-10 mile radius of Deerfield Beach?

[compelled to reply]

Originally Posted by Razz2525

We're relocating from NJ to FL in 6 days and we're looking to rent a single family home within 5-10 miles of Deerfield Beach so we can live close to my mother-in-law. We are an interracial couple with a 6-month-old son (with a 55-pound terrier/boxer mix) and we both work from home so we don't have any commuting concerns (other than traveling to Deerfield Beach). We're looking for a diverse, young-ish area with lots of activities/parks for young children and places to play with our dog.

We're looking at Coral Springs, Coconut Creek, North Lauderdale, Ft. Lauderdale, Margate, Delray Beach, Plantation, Dania Beach, Boca... and we saw a fantastic house on realtor.com in Oakland Park. Is Oakland Park a bad neighborhood? We can't find much info about it. Is it not a great area? I've been able to gather there are not so great areas in Lauderhill from the pics of some houses there... I could be wrong there. Any areas to stay away from within that 5-10 mile radius of Deerfield Beach?

Oakland Park is really spotty, I would not live there. Lauderhill is not too good either, neither is North Lauderdale. DElray Beach looks pretty, but crime there is really bad. Plantation is a suburbanish area. Boca Raton is cool, the east half could be considered young-ish with plenty to do for you and your kids/dog. Good schools, too. The rest is full of retirees. Coconut Creek/Coral Springs are moslty suburban communities, but you may like Coral Springs because there is a fair amount to do and plenty of nice parks, as well sa good schools for your kids if you pick the right neighborhood. Margate is mostly retirees, with a fair amount of working class people. Its fine, but not what you are looking for! Ft. L is NO place for small children. If it werent for the kids, that would probably be the place for you! Deerfield itself has a lot of retiress but also a large Brazillian population. In general Deerfield has seen better days, but it is still decent. I would say...

1. Boca Raton(EAST!) because of the thriving downtown area
2.Coral Springs (more diverse, but more SUBURBAN)
3.Coconut Creek
Forget the rest

If you going to have your kids in private schools, you should also look into parts of Fort Lauderdale for that cool, youngish vibe. For any more specifics, feel free to PM me, and I should be able to respond tommorw, as I am off for bed now!

[Mike Peterson]

I would tend to agree with the above poster.
To give you an idea about Lauderhill, I lived in The Bronx for 25 years and in one year in Lauderhill I had guns pulled on me more than I ever did in my 25 years in The Bronx.

[compelled to reply]

Originally Posted by Mike Peterson

I would tend to agree with the above poster.
To give you an idea about Lauderhill, I lived in The Bronx for 25 years and in one year in Lauderhill I had guns pulled on me more than I ever did in my 25 years in The Bronx.

I tried to prevent someone from making the same mistake, I knew somebody who was moving down here and kept on sticking to Lauderhill because of the lower prices. I can't blame him really, because Lauderhil does not really look that bad, and to tell you the turth, depending on WHERE in Lauderhill, its not that bad. A lot of Jamacians have settled there. Most of them are pretty cool, but the crime element there shatters the community. There is a lot of violence in some of the complexes there and your going to have to deal with a crime element not really present in most Broward communities if you were to live there. I mean, its not East New York (or even Flatbush), or like anything in Dade County, but it can be pretty rough there.Honestly though, it really is NOT that bad, I don't hear about many murders there or anything. I just checked CD crime facts, and although the index is over 400 (which I consider to be elevated, not out of control) I bet a lot of crime is under reported in comparison to surrounding areas. They only had three murders in 2005, though, a pretty low rate.

Anyway, those three communities are the ones for you, avoid the rest since you have a child! I mean, honestly, if you had kids in private schools, Margate, Deerfield, PARTS of Delray, and even Plantation would be DECENT, but they lack the vibe you are looking for.

[rkumar3]

If I have a choice, i would recommend Boca, Delray or Deerfield. They all have decent options for renting/buying at various price points/location. As some one already posted east part is generally more vibrant and hip where as western parts are more suburban. I am kind of in between and live in Delray Beach right off of Military Tr which is not completely east (so I don't have to pay premium price for the house/insurance)... at the same time it is not very west and still very mixed.... and ez 10 minutes to downtown/Beach etc.

Please feel free to IM if you have any questions or need more help and Welcome to Sunny Florida

[Rcm58]

Lauderhill has'nt been nice since the early 70's, with something like 365 schools in just Broward County it says alot about the public school system, everyone that can aford it wants to get their kids into private schools, from Lauderdale beach way north of Boca there is no public beach left, all high rises. West Oakland is'nt that bad, west of 441 that is.

[THX 1138]

If your from Northern NJ you won't feel out of place in Broward or Palm Beach County.

[PBCboy]

Oakland Park is not exactly what I'd consider a good area. It's one of those bland, taseless areas that you'd never find yourself in. Also, it's very "odd" feeling and it's not the safest place in Broward either. I have family that lives in Lauderhill and it is not a good area... Deerfield and Delray Beach have both nice and ghetto areas, but the ghettos areas are often right next to the nice ones...

Coral Springs is very nice, my friend just moved there but he doesn't like it because he says the people are snobby and jerky, but it's like that in most western communities in my experience. Boca Raton is among the best PBC has to offer, although many people are snobby there it's a very safe area with alot of shopping and the environment is good looking too. It's even better if you're Jewish because of the large Jewish population.

[compelled to reply]

Originally Posted by PBCboy

Oakland Park is not exactly what I'd consider a good area. It's one of those bland, taseless areas that you'd never find yourself in. Also, it's very "odd" feeling and it's not the safest place in Broward either. I have family that lives in Lauderhill and it is not a good area... Deerfield and Delray Beach have both nice and ghetto areas, but the ghettos areas are often right next to the nice ones...

Coral Springs is very nice, my friend just moved there but he doesn't like it because he says the people are snobby and jerky, but it's like that in most western communities in my experience. Boca Raton is among the best PBC has to offer, although many people are snobby there it's a very safe area with alot of shopping and the environment is good looking too. It's even better if you're Jewish because of the large Jewish population.

I will tend to agree that it is even better if your Jewish. The delis there are really good, lol. Coral Springs isint that jerky, but he hit it right on about DEerfield, Delray, and Oakland Park.

[shawna69]

Dear All:

My wife and I live in North Andrews Gardens in Oakland Park and I have nothing but praise for the neighborhood. We bought a home here 2 years ago and prior to that we rented here for 2 years to see what it was like.

It's a very mixed neighborhood with very quiet street on the west and east sides of Andrews Avenue off of Commercial Boulevard. All our schools are "A" rated schools.

The neighborhood is quickly shifting from a mix of working class and professionals to professionals. We also have a large number of gay couples, Hispanics, and Whites and have some African Americans (on our block there are 2 African American families). I've never experienced any crime here since living here. I'm an avid triathlete so I ride bike around the neighborhood at least once a week and also walk my two dogs at 9pm without any hassles.

We are close to the beaches, shopping, restaurant, and colleges.

The above comments by folks who don't live here are disingenuous at best, lies at its worst. Hope this was helpful! Good luck!