relocation to Broward! (Miami, Davie, Fort Myers: real estate, wages, jobs)

[airbucket]

new to this forum, broward relocation
hello,



anyone who can help...we are a family of three, thinking of relocating somewhere in broward, currently stuck in Fort Myers. Seeking an area with some culture and activities, not "redneck" (no offense meant) as that is what we would be running from here, and msot importantly affordable (middle class without being ghetto) and best public schools. My son is in special ed and he is 8. I dont know how broward divides the school district, here a special ed student can choose any school even if they dont live in that zone if the parent can prove its the best classroom for their child. Right now i have no idea how to find out which districts/zones have the best schools. I would hate to move to X city only to find that Y city had the better schools for special ed but we cant move again or my son cant go to a school outside our zone/neighborhood.

Also, there is definitely a recession here in Lee county, are things very bad there too job wise?? I notice the rents are higher than here by a couple hundred, are there jobs? Here people have lost their jobs left and right, its a bad situaiton, my own husband was out of work for months! Anything like that in broward? I am attempting to get hired by the broward public schools as a teacher, i passed my exam but i dont have classroom experience so i do not know if i will be able to find a job, i dont know how desperate the schools are, if there are major teaching shortages. Thank you veyr much for info about relocation! All i lknow in broward is Ft Lauderdale (i lived in miami many yrs) but i think thats a very expensive city? Thank you!

[compelled to reply]

Originally Posted by airbucket

anyone who can help...we are a family of three, thinking of relocating somewhere in broward, currently stuck in Fort Myers. Seeking an area with some culture and activities, not "redneck" (no offense meant) as that is what we would be running from here, and msot importantly affordable (middle class without being ghetto) and best public schools. My son is in special ed and he is 8. I dont know how broward divides the school district, here a special ed student can choose any school even if they dont live in that zone if the parent can prove its the best classroom for their child. Right now i have no idea how to find out which districts/zones have the best schools. I would hate to move to X city only to find that Y city had the better schools for special ed but we cant move again or my son cant go to a school outside our zone/neighborhood.

Also, there is definitely a recession here in Lee county, are things very bad there too job wise?? I notice the rents are higher than here by a couple hundred, are there jobs? Here people have lost their jobs left and right, its a bad situaiton, my own husband was out of work for months! Anything like that in broward? I am attempting to get hired by the broward public schools as a teacher, i passed my exam but i dont have classroom experience so i do not know if i will be able to find a job, i dont know how desperate the schools are, if there are major teaching shortages. Thank you veyr much for info about relocation! All i lknow in broward is Ft Lauderdale (i lived in miami many yrs) but i think thats a very expensive city? Thank you!

I haven't really noticed any slowdown in any industry other than real estate. So far it's actually holding itself together. Realize we have two adjacent job markets between Miami and the Palm Beach County area. HOWEVER, wages are still sucky in most industries, and Broward schools are dropping enrollment. Pay is high by FL standards and benefits are good, but pick your school carefully, especially if you are looking to teach middle or high school. Many of the schools have safety issues.

But before I recommend a city, I need to get an idea of how much you are willing to spend for rent. I would say the most affordable school/price balance is Davie, which "unfortunately" has a little bit of a "redneck" undertone to it, although I personally haven't had a problem with them (I have some redneck friends) and there aren't all that many.

[eaglecall]

Originally Posted by compelled to reply

I haven't really noticed any slowdown in any industry other than real estate. So far it's actually holding itself together. Realize we have two adjacent job markets between Miami and the Palm Beach County area. HOWEVER, wages are still sucky in most industries, and Broward schools are dropping enrollment. Pay is high by FL standards and benefits are good, but pick your school carefully, especially if you are looking to teach middle or high school. Many of the schools have safety issues.

But before I recommend a city, I need to get an idea of how much you are willing to spend for rent. I would say the most affordable school/price balance is Davie, which "unfortunately" has a little bit of a "redneck" undertone to it, although I personally haven't had a problem with them (I have some redneck friends) and there aren't all that many.

LOL. C'mon...is not redneck. Is "country" that's different.

[compelled to reply]

Originally Posted by eaglecall

LOL. C'mon...is not redneck. Is "country" that's different.

Well, look at his post .Notice I put "unfortunately" in quotation. I personally don't consider Fort Myers to be any more "redneck" than Davie. Ok, maybe a little more. Yeah, actually a lot more in parts. The further south you go, the further north you go in Lee County.