NEED HELP..Single female moving to Miami in Dec...where to live? - Florida (FL) -Miami-Dade County - Page 2 - City-Data Forum

305guy · 10-30-2007, 10:03 AM

Samantha6, Crime is not as bad as it is made out to be on these boards. I've been in Miami-Dade since I'm a kid and if you read stats and blogs you'd swear Miami is like something out of MadMax. I have friends who have moved here from Fayetteville, NC and have lived in other places and they are graduate students at UM. They are living in a nice area in Coconut Grove and love it here. Like every big city there are good parts and bad ones. My g/f is from San Diego and she hasn't seen any rampant crime or any crime for that matter because we're not hanging out in bad parts of town cruising around.

I went to FIU and I'd look into Doral, Coral Gables, Kendall, Some parts of Coconut Grove are really nice and have high rises off Bayshore Drive, ...these areas are all generally safe and for 1200.00 a month you should get something nice.

Samantha6 · 10-30-2007, 11:53 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 305guy

Samantha6, Crime is not as bad as it is made out to be on these boards. I've been in Miami-Dade since I'm a kid and if you read stats and blogs you'd swear Miami is like something out of MadMax. I have friends who have moved here from Fayetteville, NC and have lived in other places and they are graduate students at UM. They are living in a nice area in Coconut Grove and love it here. Like every big city there are good parts and bad ones. My g/f is from San Diego and she hasn't seen any rampant crime or any crime for that matter because we're not hanging out in bad parts of town cruising around.

I went to FIU and I'd look into Doral, Coral Gables, Kendall, Some parts of Coconut Grove are really nice and have high rises off Bayshore Drive, ...these areas are all generally safe and for 1200.00 a month you should get something nice.

Hmm ok..can you tell me exactly what parts of Coral Gables, Doral and are nice and safe? Like the exact adresses cause I dont exactly want to be wandering around looking for them if u know what I mean! And do I have to pass through more dangerous areas to get to them? I mean are these "good areas" just good pockets in a bad or unsafe neighbourhood?

So Bayshore drive is considered a safe area? Everyone agree? Again do I need to drive through a dangerous area to get to Bayshore drive? How long would the commute be to FIU with traffic lets say? What about the shore area around/in Pinecrest? Anyone know anything about there or is Bayshore dr better? You guys have been so helpful with all of your valuable information...THANK YOU!!!!

305guy · 10-31-2007, 11:51 AM

I think you really need to visit so you can get all your questions answered. Coral Gables is very safe overall, I can't give you exact addresses of apartments in Coral Gables. It's as if I were moving to LA and I wanted someone to give me an exact address of somewhere in Beverly Hills.

Doral is a good area with no bad areas. Bad area meaning violent crimes, high-street-drug sales, etc. A commute from Doral to FIU would be like 10 minutes, it's very close even with traffic you should be good. Check it out on a map. Commute from Coconut Grove/Coral Gables would be longer, about 20-25 minutes. Pinecrest does not have many high-rise apt. rentals if any and there are alot of Single Family homes there.

Coconut Grove has bad parts. People there are either very wealthy or very poor (think inner city) so you have to stay on high alert when visiting there. You shouldn't obsess so much about the crime factor. Miami is a very touristy destination and it wouldn't be so if it were like Baghdad. Hope I helped...

Think (Freedom) · 10-31-2007, 12:15 PM

Quote:

I am a 24 yr old single female moving to Miami for the first time ever. Im from a pretty peacefull place and never experienced or witnessed any sort of crime.

Do you mean face to face or never heard of crime in your area at all?? Because if theres no crime in your area now, Miami will be a big shock for you. I'm not saying its East L.A., but if you come from a rural small town, its a very big change. There's crime on the news everyday. Have you ever visited Miami before? If you havent, then I suggest you do that before moving so that you can at least get an idea of how the areas are.

That being said, I'm also a 24 y/o single female, native, and have lived here most of my life and have never had a problem. But I think I have become accustomed to the crime, traffic, hurricanes, and etc that most transplants are afraid of. Common sense goes a long way in any big metropolitan city.

I'd suggest Coral Gables as well.. though I'm not 100% sure of what areas are the 'safe' ones anymore.. I havent lived in that area since I was a kid. But it is overall safe. Very old historic neighborhood. Very pretty too. Look it up.

Good luck

Samantha6 · 10-31-2007, 02:04 PM

well I am actually from big city in Canada. There is alot of crime here but I have never experienced it face to face. I lived on my own since 18 downtown and would walk around after midnight plenty of times because I didnt have a car but never felt threatened.you get the occasional homeless person asking you for change but people dont just walk around assaulting or shooting other people on the streets for a wallet that has $20 in it cause if u do u go to jail and thats that. Any shooting that occur are usually drug or "gang" related and the victim and killer know each other.
I have been to Miami Beach and Fort LAuderdale but only driven through Miami. And I am not asking for exact addresses of apartment complexes I am asking for what streets I should stay within b/c it looks like gables is very large and its own city b/c some people say its good others not so good.

Dragonofillfaith you made me feel better knowing you have never had any problems and have lived there all your life. I think what Im gonna end up doing is renting on Miami beach or Brickell short term until I finish my masters and then see if I want to stay in Maimi or not. I dont know why but Doral is not appealing to me haha. Thanks all

diddiyo · 10-31-2007, 02:54 PM

A friend of mine lives in Coconut Grove, 5 minutes south of Cocowalk. To me it seems to be a very nice area. Check it out on Google maps. I'd say the closer to Downtown you get the worse the area is. But I'm not 100% sure about that. The UM area is very nice in my opinion. If my work wasn't that far away I'd definitely like to look for a place down there.

I've been living in Doral since January 07 and haven't seen any really bad places around here as of yet. A ton of gated communities etc, especially north of 41st street and along 107th ave. They're building new communities/apartments everywhere around there. Check it out on Google maps. Some of the new apartments aren't even on there yet.

I don't think it'll be that much of a change for you. I've lived in what is considered a bad neighborhood in Cologne (one of Germany's biggest cities) for four years and I wasn't shocked once I moved here. Yes, you see and hear a lot about crime, shootings, burglaries in the news but unfortunately I guess that's just what it's like in a major city in the US. Use common sense and you will be just fine

miamiblue · 11-02-2007, 01:46 PM

I'm a 28 y/o female who was born and raised in Miami. I never experienced a crime personally in 26 years (other than a guy shooting up his wife in their house less than a block away from my parents' house a couple of years ago). This happened in a nice neighborhood in a very nice home. You can't always tell by looking at someone or something what things are going to be like. I would never walk anywhere in Miami by myself at night. Doesn't matter what neighborhood I'm in, I just wouldn't do it unless I was walking from my car to my house and it was less than a block to walk. I lived in South Miami after I graduated from college and moved back to Miami. It was a very safe and walkable neighborhood right by a mall with a movie theater and other things to do such as bars and restaurants. Even there, where I always felt safe, I never walked anywhere without a friend.

If you don't make yourself a victim or hang out with the wrong crowd, you should generally be fine. But I must caution that Miami is very far from being a "tropical paradise" like you see on the movies and TV. You really need to visit FIU and the areas you are considering living before making the move just to make sure it will live up to your expectations.

applejuice · 11-05-2007, 06:53 PM

As a young female that lived in Miami and attended FIU...it ain't all that and it sure as heck ain't tropical paradise. As a mother would I want my daughter to attend college in Miami...no!

I think Boston is a great suggestion...I think someone else mentioned North Carolina.

Visit Miami during spring break, during vacation, etc.

I was always on guard (without realizing it) now that I left Florida I realized how on edge I constantly was. I never realized it because it was second nature. Now I live in an area where people leave their doors open, their cars unlocked with their purse inside!!! I can go on. You cannot do this in Miami.

You will be on your guard all the time...and it does not matter if you live in the "best area" it is a very survival of the fittest mentality.

Good luck

Adryheart · 12-01-2007, 02:26 PM

I am moving to FIU in the Spring too!! since I was kind of concerned about safety as well I decided to just live in the dorms for the first semester that way I will get used to Miami and learn by experience which areas are good or bad. In regards to crime, Miami is just like any other city you have to know where to go and when to go... If you idealize a place all you'll get will be disappointment whereas if you just take the chances and assume it will have its pros and cons, then your chance of actually enjoying Miami will increase. You definitely do not want to commute for 30 minutes, in Miami traffic those minutes will double or triple. Best luck to you, and hope to see you at FIU.

Oh yeah! and regarding having to dress badly so people don't steal from you, don't even worry about it!!! Miami is different from most beaches where you see people wearing the Florida uniform (t-shirt, flip-flops, and shorts). You really get to see fashion in Miami and people dress fearlessly.