Relocating (Cape Coral, Fort Myers, Port Charlotte: apartments, rentals, crime)

[aecp]

Hi I am possibly relocating to the fort myers area at the end of the summer. I will be working at one of the hospitals. I am starting to get nervous reading about the crime and looking at the statistics. I come from a small town up north so there is really no issues with crime here.

I am wondering where safe places to rent would be. I wouldn't mind commuting to fort Myers if it meant I would be in a safer area. My husband and I came down a couple weeks ago and looked at rentals and houses in fort Myers and cape coral. Didn't have time to look in other surrounding communities though... Its so spread out!!

One of the apartments we looked at was was off Mcgregor and A&W bulb road?? Does anyone know anything about that area. We also looked at houses in Cape Coral and they seemed like nice neihborhoods but you just never know!!
I should be able to get down there one more time before we come so any information as to where to start would be helpful, I feel like I am going into this so blindly!
Oh one more thing, I have a dog so I would need to find a dog friendly rental =)
I wanted more information on Estero, Bonita Springs or areas north of Fort Myers (Punto Gorda, Port Charlotte)

Like I said safety is our number one priority, we dont have any children yet, but plan to in the future. We would like to stay around $1000 a month for rent. Is that realistic?
Thank you in advance
=)

[hiknapster]

Originally Posted by aecp

One of the apartments we looked at was was off Mcgregor and A&W bulb road?? Does anyone know anything about that area.

My MIL just moved to that area. She's not the best judge of anything, so I would be careful. My biggest concern is its proximity to Harlem Heights.

[yachtcare]

The Lee Co Sheriff's deputies DO patrol that area pretty heavily. As in the last several years there have been a few gated, upscale housing developments built along Gladiolus between McGregor and A&W Bulb. They have left about a quarter to half mile wide section of mangroves as a buffer between Harlem and the newer stuff.

But the Chamber of Commerce has been pretty good at suppressing adverse information within the county. So check carefully. But at face value, I'd say that area isnt the worst you could find.

You can realistically find some pretty decent places to live for under $1,000.00 a month these days, in Cape Coral, and south Ft Myers also, if you shop a bit. You might want to snoop around the Iona area as well, just a couple miles further down McGregor from the Gladiolus intersection, and out toward Sanibel Island. A pretty nice area also. Seems I recently saw a couple of for rent signs on John Morris Rd between McGregor and Summerlin.

[Angelala]

Nice pictures, I love Cape Coral too! It's great sitting on the lanai looking at a view like that.

[hiknapster]

Originally Posted by Angelala

Nice pictures, I love Cape Coral too! It's great sitting on the lanai looking at a view like that.

What pics?

[aecp]

The place is called bay harbor apartments. They are really nice and seemed pretty safe. Only negative is no garages. Would that be a problem in the area I mentioned? 33919 is the zip code if that makes any difference. What is bad about harlem heights? Thanks for all the information everyone, it is very helpful! I cant wait to get down to the warmth!

[yachtcare]

The history of Harlem Heights is an interesting one, from what little I know. Always wanted to do a bit more research on it, as I'm a history buff.

The story goes that it was originally a sharecropper settlement built right after the civil war. What I saw of it, when I first moved to the area in '91, the description fit well. It has been cleaned up, renovated, and most of the oldest buildings razed, and new stuff put in it's place since then. It is truly no where near as "bad" crime wise, etc, as it was then, but the reputation is hard to shake off I suppose.

Today, it is surrounded by new, gated subdivisions, and commercial malls. An interesting, and historic area. But the old stigma is still there.

[hiknapster]

Yachtcare, there are lots of drugs in Harlem Heights. Lots. There's also a low-income housing complex nearby, I think it's called Edisto Lakes.

[hiknapster]

Originally Posted by aecp

The place is called bay harbor apartments. They are really nice and seemed pretty safe. Only negative is no garages. Would that be a problem in the area I mentioned? 33919 is the zip code if that makes any difference. What is bad about harlem heights? Thanks for all the information everyone, it is very helpful! I cant wait to get down to the warmth!

Bay Harbor is moving away from Harlem Heights. That is a pretty decent area.

[yachtcare]

Originally Posted by hiknapster

Yachtcare, there are lots of drugs in Harlem Heights. Lots. There's also a low-income housing complex nearby, I think it's called Edisto Lakes.

Oh, agreed. I didnt say it was without it's problems. Edisto Lakes exacerbated many of the problems, and is likely the bigger problem today. But when you look at the area. The problems are pretty well "contained". If you're not hanging out on a street corner IN HH, you're probably safe from it's vices. My impression is they tend to steal from their own, and the area is kept somewhat isolated. I think had the boom lasted another five years or so, HH probably simply may have vanished completly.
None of that detracts from the historic curiosity that it is........that was the main gist of my post.
From a purely practical standpoint, and although progress has been made there, yeah, it's the rat's nest in the attic....