Need Information on Fort Myers (Lee: school district, maintenance, fence)

[inftmyers]

Originally Posted by FedUpInFtMyers

inftmyers - So, for a quick recap based on what you are saying here on the thread entitled "Need Information on Fort Myers", City Data is just speaking of the ghetto area of Ft. Myers, not the city in its entirety. Cape Coral is a neighboring city with very low crime; however, Cape Coral is not Ft. Myers? And Ft. Myers is in Lee County; this would be the same Lee County located in SW FL which you have stated as having housing cheaper than most other areas of Florida?

That is correct. Ft. Myers is the core of Lee County. Its population is only 58,428. The Metro area population 544,758. You do the math. Yes in the big picture, Ft. Myers is a very small area of Lee County. As far as home prices go, I always see threads of people wondering what the catch to living in Cape Coral is considering houses are cheaper than the rest of Florida.

[121804]

Originally Posted by inftmyers

people wondering what the catch to living in Cape Coral is considering houses are cheaper than the rest of Florida.

Water/Sewer assessment I know it is a short-term issue but it sure is an issue for some there. How do those on a fixed income afford a $18,000 assessment?

A realtor told me I could offer $200 on a $250k home in the NW or NE area of Cape Coral & probably get people jumping on it b/c they are going back up north to "take care of family"or some bs he was trying to throw my way. When I asked him about the assessment issue, he stalled

Personally, I don't know enough about Cape Coral to make a judgement. Driven around it a few times & it isn't some horrific ghetto w/ thugs walking down the street. All areas have their bad spots, though.

But, that water/sewer thing definitely strayed us from Cape Coral plus dealing w/ a toll bridge everyday.

[inftmyers]

Originally Posted by 121804

Water/Sewer assessment I know it is a short-term issue but it sure is an issue for some there. How do those on a fixed income afford a $18,000 assessment?

A realtor told me I could offer $200 on a $250k home in the NW or NE area of Cape Coral & probably get people jumping on it b/c they are going back up north to "take care of family"or some bs he was trying to throw my way. When I asked him about the assessment issue, he stalled

Personally, I don't know enough about Cape Coral to make a judgement. Driven around it a few times & it isn't some horrific ghetto w/ thugs walking down the street. All areas have their bad spots, though.

But, that water/sewer thing definitely strayed us from Cape Coral plus dealing w/ a toll bridge everyday.

You are right about that!

[John8210]

What I have seen since(2002) moving to the Ft. Myers Fl. area is the constant decline in water quality at our beaches. Politicians at election time address the issue however after the election you don't hear much.

Dead fish and red tide are a common occurrence. If you like swimming in brown water go to Ft. Myers Beach. The water quality seems to get better as you move further south away from the river(and we who reside hear year round know why that is). I am surprised that more property owners and especially the resort owners do not complain in mass.

One politcian in particular ran on this issue then did nothing.

[Mr.Goodbar]

Are there any teen events or teen nights for the kids in fort myers/Cape Coral to do on the weekends.Because fort myers doesnt seem like much

[flburgos]

i saw a list of some high schools and ft myers high was in the top 50 in america.i happened to drive through the mcgregor area and that looked like a nice area.i would assume it's expensive but very clean and a lot of normal people.

[aphro23]

Originally Posted by John8210

What I have seen since(2002) moving to the Ft. Myers Fl. area is the constant decline in water quality at our beaches. Politicians at election time address the issue however after the election you don't hear much.

Dead fish and red tide are a common occurrence. If you like swimming in brown water go to Ft. Myers Beach. The water quality seems to get better as you move further south away from the river(and we who reside hear year round know why that is). I am surprised that more property owners and especially the resort owners do not complain in mass.

One politcian in particular ran on this issue then did nothing.

you can say that again. I took a ride in Sanibel island, july 2005 and was completely GROSSED out with the water. Brown and disgusting. Nothing like the beaches on the East Coast, sorry. They don't compare. Esp. around Deerfield, Ft Lauderdale, S. beach area. Why I didn't do more research before jumping in and buying a condo in Ft Myers is beyond me. I can shoot myself.

[tomtedbear]

Originally Posted by inftmyers

THANKYOU! Youth drug and alcohol problems start because our kids down here see the examples set in Chicago, Atlanta, and New York by these rappers and hip hop artists.

I live in Chicago's far north side near 3 high schools and rarely see any problems. Just like anywhere else, there are bad areas, good areas and great areas. Of course, what I paid for my 2 bedroom condo could buy me an extremely nice and large home in some parts of SE Florida, while it would only make a small down payment in others. I am actually thinking of moving to SE Florida in the next year or so. I'm thinking it will be the Naples area, but the negativity and ultra conservatism I keep running into are not appetizing.

[FormerDogDad]

I'm with TJSTRAIN on this one. Mid 20's, 2 kids? If you aren't doctors or in the medical profession, then follow these two simple steps to preserve your future.

1. About face!
2. Forward march!

Now if you want to wind up looking for work at say $7 - $8 an hour and competing with half of the local work force for it, and you don't mind your daughter celebrating her sweet sixteen with her 1 year old kid after visitng her older brother in the Ortiz Ave Lockup on a vagrancy charge, please come on down.
There are plenty of vultures ....errr out of work real estate folks, down here eager to swindle, I mean sell you a place at 3 times what it will ever be worth unless they find oil, gold, or the real fountain of youth here.
By the way, do you have management experience? We need a new county manager since our old one just got fired for having porn on his county computer after he narrowly squeaked by an FBI investigation attempting to implicate him in a real estate scam with his son in law(then tried to play dumb and lost), who is now in prison for doing bad things with other people's money. His mentor washed up on the Jersey shoreline last year from an apparent "Kayak accident" right before the bust got really bad. Did I mention we need a new county manager?
All in all, it isn't bad, if you have work, and money. If not stay away, or you'll be stuck here too. There is a reason why Twisted Method Called their debut release, "Escape from Cape Coma". Those who live here try to escape, and those who land here minus rich parents, and inhertiance, or a large sum of money, get stuck here.
I have a 17 month old son, and last week we found out, we will have a new addition by the end of the year. Since we owe about $30k more than our house is worth, and State Farm Insurance will be dropping us and not writing any more homeowners policies in Florida for anyone, we will be adding our contribution to the G.W. Bush memorial fund (a.k.a. the national debt) in the form of one more over priced vacant house in SW Florida, that the bank owns, and doesn't take care of. Oh, well, they started the problem with risky bets, got bailout money form what was left in my pocket, caused my boss's customers to stop buying things, causing my job to diappear. Let them eat it, and this time, they can bring their own damn fork!
All BS aside, there is no industry here, a huge surplus of houses, crime, and no work at all. Target opened a new store last year in the area. They were looking to hire 36 or so people. 3,500 showed up at the event. That was when there was still work here. Choose wisely, this area can bankrupt you very fast if you aren't prepared for at least 1 year of financial stagnation and/or loss.

[FormerDogDad]

Originally Posted by Mr.Goodbar

Are there any teen events or teen nights for the kids in fort myers/Cape Coral to do on the weekends.Because fort myers doesnt seem like much

Considering you aren't allowed downtown under 21 probably not unless it's a church function or the boy scouts. I think the bowling alleys have glow bowling, but you may want to check and make sure that they are still open.