What are the best things about living in Florida? (Jacksonville: rent, condo)

[Graceful2]

Hello....I am a professional single (old fashion values) lady looking to move to Florida area. I am just not sure what area would be best for me to explore. Areas that I am interested in are Fort Lauderdale, Boca, Delray Beach, West Palm or an area that maybe I don't know about?

I love the outdoors and am very active. Love walking, hiking, biking, beach, travel, the arts, exploring, etc. Want to be in milder weather coming from the North and close to a bigger city where there are more opportunities. I'm just not sold on Florida yet as my favorite season is Fall and love to hike and be in the woods

Would appreciate any input with regards to meeting people (professional, honest, available men) and job opportunities. I am not a person that frequents the bars/night club scene. Where would the best place to locate myself in an upscale community. I work in healthcare with seniors and I also have a jewelry business.

[Nolefan34]

Graceful>

All of the areas you mentioned are good for singles. Honest men? Good luck with that one. I am a guy and can tell you that we are bad. As for everything else, not so sure. There aren't many woods here. Everything is very built up and not much natural foliage. The cities each have some artsy stuff. Not as cultured here as New Jersey or NY. It is completely different here than New Jersey. Just keep that in mind. Have you visited South FL? You might want to book a trip here and spend a few days getting familiar with the area before committing.

Pro's of living here: Beaches are awesome. You're never far from the beach and can go all year around. You sound like you have some money, so you can probably afford to live right on the beach. Maybe rent a condo for a year, see how you like it, then buy a home or condo after a year.

Cons: Fort Lauderdale and West Palm are not very walkable unless you live downtown, and there is poor public transportation. You will be dependent 100% on your car. There is also lots of crime here. I'm sure you are used to that in NJ, but FL isn't really any better. Some areas are better than others. But just don't think it is some safe haven here.

You don't get seasons here. Its either hot or cool. It doesn't get cold really other than a few days in the winter where it dips below 50. It is very hot and humid here most months. The weather is not for everyone. The winter months are very nice, but around April and May it starts getting brutally hot outside. It stays that way through late October, early November.

For more natural outdoors type stuff, boating, fishing, and watersports are the big thing here. For lots of woods and hiking, you have to travel up to central FL or elsewhere. Because in South FL, once you go outside of the urban areas there is nothing but swampland.

[Angel Calzadilla]

One of the best thinks about living in Florida? Well, we do not have to pay state taxes and nobody lives more than 45 minutes from the beach!.

[Graceful2]

Thank-you both for your input. I'm also considering the Carolina's or Atlanta area. You both make great points and I appreciate it.

[Nolefan34]

Best things about FL: (Broward, Palm Beach counties)

1. The Beach- you never live more than 30-40 minutes away
2. The weather- is either hot, warm, or cool all year around. No cold or snow.
3. The traffic- Is not that bad for a major metro area, roads are well-planned in a grid pattern, you typically have 4 different ways to get from point A to point B. Highways are all 6-lanes and expressways are all wide.

Worst things about FL:
1. The weather- very hot & humid 6 months (April to Sept.), hurricanes, tornadoes, heavy rainfall, lightning, thunderstorms, flash flooding, blistering sunshine much of the time
2. The drivers- We have the WORST drivers in America. Lots of very agressive borderline suicidal driving from the Miami school of driving has made its way north. Couple that with all of the tourists and elderly driving slow and conservatively and you have the perfect storm of chaos on the roads.
3. Crime- Murder rate is lower than average. But all other crimes seem to be higher than average for metro areas. Lots of drug-related activity and crimes due to close proximity to Miami.
4. Lack of culture- Not as bad as the rest of FL. We have some culture here. But it is NOTHING compared to NY or NJ.

[AliciaMaria]

Check out North Florida! We're from South Florida and moved up to the Jacksonville area about a year ago and we absolutely LOVE it.

We have the big city, we have a big airport, we have the beaches, the hiking, the mountain biking, the river, the shopping, the history, the ocean!

We also have less humidity, no hurricanes have landed here in what, 100 years?? We have seasons.. Hell, its 35* out right now! BUT, it doesn't snow here! We have a Fall and it's breathtaking. It smells so good outside right now because there are a few people in our neighborhood who have fires going in their fireplaces! Jacksonville is a part of the South, which generally includes a kinder, more polite group of people (Southern hospitality!)

I personally love South Florida, but I REALLY love it up here. I miss Fort Lauderdale, but I don't miss the congestion, the humidity, the hurricanes and the anonymity associated with it. I don't miss insane traffic on 595, or horrendous commutes. I don't miss the aggressive drivers and rude people..!

Come to Jacksonville/Jacksonville Beach and check it out. You might find that Florida really DOES have everything you're looking for!!

Here's the view from our driveway.. the leaves were changing colors and falling.

http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc4/hs1170.snc4/154206_1546144407420_1049319829_31233961_5782330_n .jpg (broken link)

[Rock Newman]

Originally Posted by AliciaMaria

Check out North Florida! We're from South Florida and moved up to the Jacksonville area about a year ago and we absolutely LOVE it.

We have the big city, we have a big airport, we have the beaches, the hiking, the mountain biking, the river, the shopping, the history, the ocean!

We also have less humidity, no hurricanes have landed here in what, 100 years?? We have seasons.. Hell, its 35* out right now! BUT, it doesn't snow here! We have a Fall and it's breathtaking. It smells so good outside right now because there are a few people in our neighborhood who have fires going in their fireplaces! Jacksonville is a part of the South, which generally includes a kinder, more polite group of people (Southern hospitality!)

I personally love South Florida, but I REALLY love it up here. I miss Fort Lauderdale, but I don't miss the congestion, the humidity, the hurricanes and the anonymity associated with it. I don't miss insane traffic on 595, or horrendous commutes. I don't miss the aggressive drivers and rude people..!

Come to Jacksonville/Jacksonville Beach and check it out. You might find that Florida really DOES have everything you're looking for!!

Here's the view from our driveway.. the leaves were changing colors and falling.

Agree with you .... North East Florida is very underrated ... weather is beautiful and you actually have a change of seasons ... people are friendlier ... more southern .... Ponte Vedra and St. Johns County are upscale and beautiful ... Jacksonville itself it very underrated with lovely neighborhoods and parks ... including riverside , san marcos , springfield , jacksonville beach ... you are near Amelia Island and San Fernandina .. a two hour drive from savannah , georgia ....I also like south florida but plan on moving north in a few years .

[acegolfer]

Originally Posted by AliciaMaria

Here's the view from our driveway.. the leaves were changing colors and falling.

Beautiful.

(that's a lot of leaves to clean up. It was a chore when I live up north.)

[Graceful2]

Thank-you to everyone that gave input. I am taking all your suggestions and will at least explore and keep my options open. I do love the 3 seasons and I adore southern hospitality. Definitely alot to consider here.

[compelled to reply]

Originally Posted by Graceful2

Hello....I am a professional single (old fashion values) lady looking to move to Florida area. I am just not sure what area would be best for me to explore. Areas that I am interested in are Fort Lauderdale, Boca, Delray Beach, West Palm or an area that maybe I don't know about?

I love the outdoors and am very active. Love walking, hiking, biking, beach, travel, the arts, exploring, etc. Want to be in milder weather coming from the North and close to a bigger city where there are more opportunities. I'm just not sold on Florida yet as my favorite season is Fall and love to hike and be in the woods

Would appreciate any input with regards to meeting people (professional, honest, available men) and job opportunities. I am not a person that frequents the bars/night club scene. Where would the best place to locate myself in an upscale community. I work in healthcare with seniors and I also have a jewelry business.

You might actually want to look further south. There are not many "woods" in South Florida, but there are a few state parks as well as Everglades and Biscayne National Park. If you like city but prefer to be around greenery, and like a more upscale community, I would actually look around the Coral Gables area and some of the surrounding communities south of downtown Miami and east of US1. This would include some of Coconut Grove, some of South Miami, and maybe Pinecrest or Palmetto Bay. You would probably want to zero in on the Old Cutler Rd corridor. These areas put you in somewhat closer proximity to Everglades National Park as well as other natural areas in South Florida, while maintaining a more cultured/urban feel compared to the Broward County area. There are many things to do in this area, but it is not really a night life centered area. Another area that might be worth looking at is the Jupiter/Palm Beach Gardens area, which is much newer and somewhat less "cultured" than the places I named towards Miami, but also less congested. If you like Fort Lauderdale, I would say neighborhoods like Rio Vista Isles, Victoria Park, and Coral Ridge are the places to check out. Keep in mind that Fort Lauderdale is somewhat distant from the state and national parks that are in Miami-Dade and Palm Beach County, but not unreasonably so. Broward County also has some parks that are good for hiking and cycling, but probably not places that someone in Coral Gables or Palm Beach Gardens would take a special trip for.