Looking for neighborhoods - Davie, Weston, others? (Hollywood, Pembroke Pines: HOA fees, new home)

[southflgirl]

Hello, I'm new to the group. I am an "old" south Florida girl. I grew up here and lived here until college. After that I lived in northern Florida. I have recently moved back due to my husband's job and we are looking for a new home. We are currently staying with family, but are looking to purchase a home soon. We have two young children (4 & 2), so school zones are extremely important to us. Many things have changed since I lived down here, so I was hoping to get some info from all of you. We have looked at Weston, and love it, but wanted to hear any pros and cons (HOA fees, etc) that you all may know of. Additionally, we have heard some great things about Davie. Most importantly, we are looking for family friendly neighborhoods, great schools, and minimal commute for my husband. His job is in Plantation. We do not need a lot of land, but a little bit of space between our home and our neighbor would be nice. (Hard in S. Fl. , I know.) I would love to hear what you all have to say about any of these two areas or other suggestions.

Thank you so much!

[hOlliewood Boi]

My first recommendation is to look into school options for your children as your top priority. That being said, I would nix Plantation. Hollywood Hills is great for grade school, but I really would look at other options for middles and high schools. Maybe private school?

I would concentrate south of 595, Davie, Weston, Pembroke Pines, Cooper City, and Hollywood.

Or, with some commute, maybe northern Broward county like Parkland.

[compelled to reply]

North of Pines Blvd, South of 595, west of Pine Island/Douglas Rd and your good.

[StilltheSame]

plantation acres would be my first choice.

[Momma_bear]

Originally Posted by StilltheSame

plantation acres would be my first choice.

Plantation HS would be your first choice? Remember little kids grow up to be big kids really quickly.

[southflgirl]

Thank you so much everyone for your responses. We have been doing our research and so far we like Weston alot, and Davie (off Nob Hill and Pine Island) area. We know the schools for Weston are good, and we have heard the elem. and middle school for the above areas for Davie are good. So, that is good. We are looking into the highschools. In the Davie area, are there any neighborhoods the are nice for families with young children? Are there any that you recommend, and/or would suggest staying away from. Please keep the comments coming - they are so helpful. Thank you!!

[compelled to reply]

The high school in Davie is Western High, and tend to think that I came out fine after going there. Parts of Weston are also zoned for it. It's not considered as good as Cypress Bay, Cooper City and probably (although this isn't proven) the new high school, West Broward, but it's still considered at least fairly highly. As far as families with young children, most local neighborhoods will meet that criteria, but Shenandoah is a solid bet. If you want more space, I would acutally not look into the Pine Island/Nob Hill area as these are the more crowded parts of Davie...you probably want to be looking into areas off of Hiatus, Flamingo Rd, or 136th Ave.