ft lauderdale vs south beach (Miami, Fort Lauderdale: apartment, car insurance, condos)

[bri33]

heys guys i been hearing good things from both places and i need help choosing where i wanna live. im a 21 year old girl and I speak english and spanish. and i would like to live in a place thats safe and thats close to everything. can someone advice me? =]

[Nolefan34]

First of all, where are you from? Both places are great to live if you're in your 20's and enjoy the nightlife scene and the beach. You speak Spanish which is a big plus if you chose South Beach/Miami area. You do not need to know Spanish to live in Ft. Lauderdale. South Beach is more like a big city, more congested, has more tall buildings, more nightlife than Fort Lauderdale. But Fort Lauderdale still has lots of nightlife compared to most areas of the country. Living in South Beach you don't even need a car really because you can walk everywhere or take public transportation. In Fort Lauderdale you will need a reliable car because you have to drive just about everywhere. Another area to strongly consider is Brickell which is in downtown Miami. Its the newer section with lots of big, highrise condos and lots of nightlife. You might wanna consider living in Brickell. Its actually less expensive than South Beach because you get more apartment for your money. And its only a 10 minute drive from Brickell to South Beach.

The areas I would focus on are South Beach or Brickell in the Miami area, and Las Olas (downtown Ft. Lauderdale) or Fort Lauderdale Beach. Each of these areas is predominantly younger people who enjoy the nightlife scene, and each place is either on the beach or close by. In Fort Lauderdale, most of the nightlife is in Las Olas so if you live in a condo there you can walk to the bars/clubs.

The type of nightlife also differs between South Beach and Ft. Lauderdale. South Beach is the club capital of the U.S. There are more fancy nightclubs there than just about anywhere, and people come from all over the country and world to go out there. Lots of high-rollers come there to party. Fort Lauderdale has a more laid-back nightlife scene that consists of more bars than clubs. So it really depends whether you prefer bars to clubs.

Safety- these areas are relatively safe because they are heavily patrolled by police since they are nightlife districts. That said, you still should not go out at night alone walking around. There are lots of wierdos, creeps, perverts, criminals, homeless, druggies, etc. walking around these places. Always go out with a group of people at night. Don't walk alone down alleyways. Watch your back, etc. And you'll be fine. If you want a really safe area, you have to live further outside of the cities in the suburbs. Then you are not close to the nightlife or the beach. So its a trade-off.

Other differences- Miami/South Beach has a much larger Hispanic population than does Fort Lauderdale. Ft. Lauderdale is a diverse mix of caucasian, Hispanic, black, European, Native American, and so on. Miami is predominantly Hispanic, which a sizable black population and far less caucasian people. Not sure if this matters to you, but just throwing that out there. Miami is a huge city that is about twice as congested as Fort Lauderdale/Broward County. South Beach is to Miami what Jersey City is to NYC. Both are built up with tall buildings, congested streets, etc. The drivers in Miami are worse than in Fort Lauderdale, but both areas are bad for aggressive drivers, hit-and-runs, etc. Your car insurance will go up when you move down here.

[Wild Style]

Nolefan

You forgot to mention South Beach has a HUGE Jewish population as well. I have been hanging out down there a lot lately, I have been running into a LOT of Europeans, Jews and even Anglos. The Latino presence is there but they didn't seem to dominate to me. And in no way would I say Ft. Lauderdale is more diverse than Fort Lauderdale. You have tons of Africans (a lot of Nigerians), Brazilians, Haitians, Arabs (seems to be mostly Leb) and the like. I am encountering these people int he design district, S. Beach, and the Grove (my weekend stomping grounds these days).

To the O.P.

IF you are looking for a more urban environment Miami is the choice to go with. If you are looking for a more laid back atmosphere then Fort Lauderdale.

[Nolefan34]

Wild Style>

You are correct in everything you say. South Beach is very diverse. I was referring moreso to the city of Miami and the greater area because its predominantly Hispanic/Latino. South Beach is a bubble world I guess because you don't need to leave the island very often.

One other thing, most of those Europeans are only there on vacation. They are coming over in droves right now because of how cheap the U.S. dollar is to the Euro. Its cheap for them to vacation here compared to a decade or so ago. South Beach is definately an interesting place though. I think the OP willl love it.

[Wild Style]

Originally Posted by Nolefan34

Wild Style>

You are correct in everything you say. South Beach is very diverse. I was referring moreso to the city of Miami and the greater area because its predominantly Hispanic/Latino. South Beach is a bubble world I guess because you don't need to leave the island very often.

One other thing, most of those Europeans are only there on vacation. They are coming over in droves right now because of how cheap the U.S. dollar is to the Euro. Its cheap for them to vacation here compared to a decade or so ago. South Beach is definately an interesting place though. I think the OP willl love it.

If I were to be the one moving to Miami. The only places I would look at are S. Beach, Design District, Southern Half of Little Haiti, Mid Town, Wynwood, Brickell, Downtown Miami proper, Coconut Grove, and the area around Jackson Memorial. I love the city core of Miami, reminds me a lot of home (Brooklyn) in look and feel. Oh and the Roads, is nice too. Other than that, I couldn't see myself living anywhere else in Miami though.

[Nolefan34]

Yeah the city core of Miami is great. The greater Miami area though has lots of rough areas. The Southern portion of greater Miami has some really nice homes and cool areas, but the traffic is terrible. I wouldn't wanna commute that far in that traffic, and be that far away from the beach. NW Miami-Dade is garbage, and I wouldn't consider living anywhere in that portion. The traffic down there is too bad for me to even consider living anywhere in West Dade or South Dade and having to commute in and out of downtown.

[EnjoyTheSilence]

Fort Lauderdale is more "adult", IMO. If you're younger & want to hit bars & clubs, I'd shoot for South Beach.

[runswithscissors]

Originally Posted by Nolefan34

. But Fort Lauderdale still has lots of nightlife compared to most areas of the country.
.

Well it's a big country. Unlike any other in the world. Yes there's more nightlife than say, the farms of the midwest or the mountains of the West, or a fishing village in Maine.

If you're comparing FLL to CITIES in the USA, however, it does NOT have any particular abundance of "nightlife", nor any unique "anything" except the proximity to canals and beaches, without which there'd be little to recommend, IME. I love FLL but I'm realistic I think.

[kevinkagy]

I would pick South Beach, just because of its convenience and city life. I also love South Beach's diversity with people from all over Europe, USA, Canada, and Latin America. South Beach is really urban so you can walk everywhere and a lot of people have bikes or motorcycles as driving in South Beach is a big pain. The buses are convenient to get around South Beach and to Downtown, but otherwise, I'd suggest getting a bike or something.

If you're going to work in Downtown or Brickell, South Beach is a good option as it's about a 20 minute bus ride away. I'd also suggest you look into either Downtown or Brickell, as both are very urban, great public transit, close to all the big jobs, lively, safe, clean, lots to do, close to South Beach, Grove, Miracle Mile, Midtown and the Civic Center. Best of luck!

[e.ortega]

21yrs old? SOUTH BEACH baby that's where I would live if I was 21 again........lol