Fort Lauderdale...How bad is it? (Miami, Hollywood: real estate, rentals, high crime)

[Switchback]

Hello CD friends... I'm in the final running for a job in Ft Lauderdale. It's a promotion-move with my agency, and although I put in for, I'm now hesitant/concerned about moving to the area..

The real estate and rentals seem ridiculously expensive and every thread I read about Ft Lauderdale mentions a lot of crime. Being a govt investigator, that means job security for me, but I'm worried about my family's safety and don't.

I've read about the Weston area and it seems decent..

Also, my sister lives in Royal Palm and my wife and I like the area she lives in, and the houses seem much more affordable than down near Ft Lauderdale.

Would a commute (company car, so no worries about gas prices) be doable from Ft Lauderdale to Royal Palm?

[kyle19125]

Like any larger city there are some areas with high crime but it's far from accurate in terms of the whole city and certainly not a reason to commute the 50 miles from Royal Palm Beach. Weston is a viable option if you like a cookie-cutter planned community. Other desirable suburbs that are safe, much closer to work and that have excellent public schools are Cooper City and Davie.

Cooper City, Florida - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Town of Davie, FL - About the Town of Davie Florida (http://www.davie-fl.gov/Pages/DavieFL_Admnstratn/about - broken link)

[Nolefan34]

The City of Fort Lauderdale is pretty rough with crime, but there area some very good suburbs. Weston, Cooper City, Coral Springs, Sunrise, Davie, Plantation, Southwest Ranches, and Pembroke Pines are good areas with a few exceptions. They are also more affordable than living in the city or on the beach, and you can get more home for your money.

[Rock Newman]

Originally Posted by Switchback

Hello CD friends... I'm in the final running for a job in Ft Lauderdale. It's a promotion-move with my agency, and although I put in for, I'm now hesitant/concerned about moving to the area..

The real estate and rentals seem ridiculously expensive and every thread I read about Ft Lauderdale mentions a lot of crime. Being a govt investigator, that means job security for me, but I'm worried about my family's safety and don't.

I've read about the Weston area and it seems decent..

Also, my sister lives in Royal Palm and my wife and I like the area she lives in, and the houses seem much more affordable than down near Ft Lauderdale.

Would a commute (company car, so no worries about gas prices) be doable from Ft Lauderdale to Royal Palm?

Weston is much more than decent ... it is one of the best places to live and raise a family in South Florida IMO and it is not really part of Ft.Lauderdale . Royal Palm Beach to Ft.Lauderdale is a hell of a commute ... you are looking at 45- 60 minutes every morning ... by the way Royal Palm Beach is a hole compared to Weston .

[Nolefan34]

Originally Posted by Rock Newman

Weston is much more than decent ... it is one of the best places to live and raise a family in South Florida IMO and it is not really part of Ft.Lauderdale . Royal Palm Beach to Ft.Lauderdale is a hell of a commute ... you are looking at 45- 60 minutes every morning ... by the way Royal Palm Beach is a hole compared to Weston .

Weston is a suburb of Fort Lauderdale as is Sunrise or Davie. 95% of the residents commute outside of Weston for work. I am willing to bet the majority work in Fort Lauderdale and Miami. So while it isn't part of the Fort Lauderdale technically, it is most definately a suburb.

Royal Palm Beach is at least 60 minutes because you have to go east first, then south. In rush hour it is more like 75 minutes.

[Rock Newman]

Originally Posted by Nolefan34

Weston is a suburb of Fort Lauderdale as is Sunrise or Davie. 95% of the residents commute outside of Weston for work. I am willing to bet the majority work in Fort Lauderdale and Miami. So while it isn't part of the Fort Lauderdale technically, it is most definately a suburb.

Royal Palm Beach is at least 60 minutes because you have to go east first, then south. In rush hour it is more like 75 minutes.

Nolefan .... semantics ..... Weston has been an incorporated city since 1996 and is not really a suburb of Ft.Lauderdale .... also the look , feel and lifestyle of Weston is much different than east in Ft.Lauderdale .. you are correct on the commute it is probably a little longer than what I posted .. although I stand by Royal Palm Beach being a hole compared to Weston .

[casualobserver]

Take it from this Victoria Park/Sunrise Key resident........stay away! don't take the job! I am accosted, beaten and robbed on a near daily basis.....had I only been able to move to Weston or Parkland, life would be grand.

[Nolefan34]

Rock Newman-

Its not semantics. Weston is the definition of a suburb in my book. It is one of many satellite cities of Fort Lauderdale. It is a bedroom community and most of the residents commute elsewhere for work in either Fort Lauderdale or Miami. There is very little business going on in Weston and it is not self-sufficient in any capacity. There is no industry there. Weston would not exist without Fort Lauderdale. Also, I don't see how being incorporated precludes it from being a suburb. Sunrise, Davie, Plantation, Coral Springs, Pompano Beach, Hollywood, and Pembroke Pines are all incorporated. Does that mean they aren't suburbs?

[SierraDog]

Thanks Nolefan....

Weston is a suburban community by any standard. Whether it's incorporated as a municipality is irrelevant. It's a bedroom community, there is little commercial or office development and 99% of residents must commute for jobs (either to the downtowns of Ft Lauderdale or, god forbid, Miami or the office parks throughout suburban Broward County).

I know a number of families who reside out in Weston, and no one is employed within Weston. It is a planned community that was designed to provide residential housing, and limited small-scale commercial development which supports the residential.

LOL at the sarcasm of CasualObserver.

I'm not sure where one would get the idea that crime is bad in Fort Lauderdale. I lived in Fort Lauderdale (Palm Aire Village, and then Coral Ridge) for about 5 years and never had a problem. Some areas are better than others as far as burglaries and petty crime, as with any decent sized city.

[Nolefan34]

SierraDog-

Thanks for the compliments. But I could not disagree more on crime in Fort Lauderdale. You mentioned Coral Ridge which is a nicer area of town on the East side. But once you go too far west of US1 or Dixie Highway it gets really bad. Drive down Broward Blvd or Sunrise Blvd, or through the back streets west and north of downtown and your opinions will change quickly. Ever driven down Sistrunk Blvd?

The cities that surround Fort Lauderdale are pretty bad with crime too. You mentioned Palm Aire in Pompano Beach which is a small bubble of nice surrounded by the worst area of crime in Broward County. You say you never had a problem, but I am guessing that is because your community was gated? Did you ever drive outside of Palm Aire? It is very bad especially along Hammondville Road in Pompano.