Miami Beach Questions (Sunset, South Beach: apartment, foreclosure, mover)

[Machino]

1. How walkable is the Miami Beach area? Are you marooned if you live there without a car, or can you find what you need relatively close by?

2. Should I be leery of miami beach foreclosure properties? I am looking at a few listing right on the water but I am a little worried. Should bug infestations or non-hurricane proofing be a concern with theses properties at these prices?

3. If one wanted to use public transportation around miami beach and maybe heading towards downtown, are there any suggestions?

4. Does the ocean take some of the sting out of the weather or is it still brutal in the summers?

[burgler09]

1. miami beach is nice and walkable at pretty much any time. you won't really have public transportation to get you to the city but if you stay on miami beach you won't have problems.

2. couldn't tell too much on that, but i know throughout miami there is a lot of foreclosure problems

3. taxi basically, maybe a bus

4. what is brutal? the weather in the miami summers aren't really that bad actually

[rogerbacon]

Originally Posted by Machino

1. How walkable is the Miami Beach area? Are you marooned if you live there without a car, or can you find what you need relatively close by?

Miami Beach is the only part of Dade county that IS walkable.

3. If one wanted to use public transportation around miami beach and maybe heading towards downtown, are there any suggestions?

I don't know the specific bus number but my wife takes the bus from downtown to Miami Beach so I know it is possible.

[Machino]

5. What are the neighborhoods within miami beach? I know the southern tip is where a lot of the nightlife is, but are there distinct districts?

6. What are your Top 3 neighborhoods to live in on miami beach? Please mention street names.

[FlyMIA]

1. How walkable is the Miami Beach area? Are you marooned if you live there without a car, or can you find what you need relatively close by?
Living in Miami a car is a very very nice thing to have, Miami Beach and Downtown Miami are the only areas someone could get away with out having a car. South Beach under 24st would be the best area to not have a car. Over 24-27st it starts to get harder but it is still possible. I would recommend getting a car if you can afford it. It helps a lot getting around the county.

2. Should I be leery of miami beach foreclosure properties? I am looking at a few listing right on the water but I am a little worried. Should bug infestations or non-hurricane proofing be a concern with theses properties at these prices?

They might not have shutters but building codes in South Florida are very strict after Hurricane Andrew. Any county inspection should find any problems. Just don’t buy a home without an inspection.

3. If one wanted to use public transportation around miami beach and maybe heading towards downtown, are there any suggestions?
yes you can use the bus and since Downtown Miami is only a few miles away from Miami Beach it would not take too long. Just take the bus to omini center and than you can get on the people mover which takes you all around downtown.



4. Does the ocean take some of the sting out of the weather or is it still brutal in the summers?
Yes, it will be a few degrees cooler by the ocean than it would be inland. The ocean breeze does help. It will still be hot and humid but it is hot and humid everywhere during the summer. Also you will get less of those daily afternoon thunderstorms on the coast.

5. What are the neighborhoods within miami beach? I know the southern tip is where a lot of the nightlife is, but are there distinct districts?
Downtown, Midtown and I guess there is a Uptown. I would call anything below 24 Downtown. “South Beach” starts about 17th st but there are still some clubs and hotels up to 24st. Than there are the pure residential neighborhoods like Sunset island or the homes on Alton Road, North Bay Road.

6. What are your Top 3 neighborhoods to live in on miami beach? Please mention street names.
[SIZE=3]The top 3 neighborhoods I would want to live in are the places with $10 million homes. South Beach below 17th street is the best place for a nice condo and being able to walk around. After that it just depends on what you can afford. [/SIZE]

[Cougar Beach]

1. I live on South Beach and rarely use my car when doing anything in the area.

2. I'd be very leery of the health of any condo association. You need to find out how many people are not paying their condo fees. Also, if structural or electrical problems turn up, a condo's occupancy license can be pulled by city inspectors, which means you might get kicked out of your apartment for who knows how long.

3. The S & M buses (I'm not making this up) go downtown from South Beach. The S bus runs around the clock and is quite usable. South Beach has a circulator bus (the South Beach Local) for 25 cents. The buses run about every 20 minutes. (Sometimes they forget to come.)

4. South Beach has a microclimate (maybe all of Miami Beach does) where the temperature is normally more moderate than inland. It can still get hot as hell in the summer. The ocean here is very warm in the summer, but that's how I like it.