moving to ocala florida from NY HELP!!! (Tampa, University: transplants, apartments)

[dmccauley]

[quote=kshe95girl;8666395]thats why we have ways to defend ourselves our here![/quote


Ha ha... I don't blame you. I actually thought about going to the shooting range myself and becoming ma barker however I'd be afraid I'd shoot myself in the foot.

[KathyA11]

Originally Posted by Blue717

Ocala can be nice. I'm originally from Jersey too, and have lived in Fl for 7 years. I live in rolling Hills which is a very open part of Ocala. I have an acre of land and it still only takes me about 10 minutes to get to Wal MArt and just about any other store I would need.

Considering I live in a very urban part of NJ, and have to drive at least 20 minutes to a Wal-Mart (more in heavy traffic) or half an hour to a Barnes & Noble or Costco, that's not bad.

[kshe95girl]

[quote=dmccauley;8672182]

Originally Posted by kshe95girl

thats why we have ways to defend ourselves our here![/quote


Ha ha... I don't blame you. I actually thought about going to the shooting range myself and becoming ma barker however I'd be afraid I'd shoot myself in the foot.

I have been to the Ma Barker house here, its pretty wild. The owner is a friend of mine, the bullet holes are still in the walls.

[Slowcala]

Originally Posted by going2ocala

I live in wny and am moving to ocala in one to two months I have been looking for places to rent and have found many reasonable single family homes for under 750.00 I noticed the closer the homes are to the city of ocala the more expensive does that mean its a better area? would anyone recommend living close to the city? my kids are going to go to cfcc so I want to be closer for the commute. Also how are the jobs in the human services-social work field? as far as it being boring there it looks like theres malls and stores about the same amount as where I live now are there movie theaters? and things like that? last thing is the area very ethnically diverse? im leaning towards the NE area.

Truthfully, I would look elsewhere. Many businesses have closed their doors (especially on 200) only to move elsewhere. This used oto be horse town until many legitimate equine businesses went back to Kentucky finding cheaper land and better paying jobs. This is strictly a retirement town and called Slow-cala for a reason and currently maintains a 12.2% jobless rate as of March 2009 (the second to the last county in Florida). There is little in intellectual capital here, so if you are looking for good schooling, my advice is to look elsewhere since Florida was named 50th in the nation concerning education funding (i.e. last place). If I were an employer looking a prospective employees, I would hire someone from UNY a whole lot quicker than someone from CF.

[zaknaf]

Try the outskirts of Ocala for homes. CFCC is right in the middle of HWY 200, so almost ervery road in Ocala dumps off at some point to 200. Homes are cheaper on NE and SW side of ocala. I beleive for one we are not in the City limits.

[staywarm2]

Ocala
We drove last week from Gainesville to Leesburg on US 27 (441). I've never seen so many ramshackle businesses and just plain junk as along that stretch of road. The only relief was around The Villages. Better like being in the middle of nowhere if you move to Ocala...

[MoveNo8]

Moved here in Jan and I love it! Born and raised NYer, but I moved here from PA and if I had listened to everyone who told me it's sooo slooow why would you want to move there, I would have been missing what I am in love with. It's not slow at all, if anything where I was in PA was sloooower. They have movie theaters, parks, stores, resturants and my kids are in a great school. I have no complaints at all where I am. Makes me wonder if those who don't like it are living in the boonies of Ocala, or if they are young and haven't gotten out of their parents home yet. I always say get out and expand your horizons. I'm so glad I didn't take others opinions.

I think instead of others saying "Ocala", maybe they should name the town they are in. Ocala is big & that may make the difference. Some areas are really rural, and some are busy and the others are beautiful, open and nice. It's really up to you. Do research. And the one and only thing I may have to say is to have a job set up. As in EVERY place, jobs a low in number. Not just in Ocala.

[momof3heatherns]

Wasn't gonna reply but after all the bad vibes everyone has given I just have to say, being born and raised in Marion County...i'm leaving because it's gotten to big for me, way to many people have moved into the area. Disregard alot of the naysayers on here. Right on SR 200 we have a 16 screen movie theatre, 2 malls, and every restaurant or chain store imaginable. As for US 27 being run down. Thats a fact. However a simple turn onto east SR 40 takes you to "downtown". An artsy eclectic mix of privately owned businesses where one can find unique, and beautiful items. CFCC may well be below NYU standards however its a good place to get those pesky pre-req classes out of the way if your kids are looking at going to a University afterwards...it's also cheaper. Ocala is the countyseat also so you shouldn't have a problem finding a job in your profession. Many people read these boards and take what their told as gospel instead of with a grain of salt. One thing to remember. Alot of responders are natives and most of us have become disenchanted with the area for different reasons. I've listed mine but many younger people want out because as was already said, we do call it Slowcala

[kshe95girl]

Originally Posted by staywarm2

Ocala
We drove last week from Gainesville to Leesburg on US 27 (441). I've never seen so many ramshackle businesses and just plain junk as along that stretch of road. The only relief was around The Villages. Better like being in the middle of nowhere if you move to Ocala...

So you judge a whole city based on driving through it? ~rolling eyes in dismay~ Theres an informed decision-maker for ya!
Thats like saying Atlanta sucks based on driving through on I-75.

[staywarm2]

Originally Posted by kshe95girl

So you judge a whole city based on driving through it? ~rolling eyes in dismay~ Theres an informed decision-maker for ya!
Thats like saying Atlanta sucks based on driving through on I-75.

There are plenty of junky areas in Atlanta also, but it is a metro area of 5 million people with many, many beautiful areas. Ocala is small and I've read plenty of times about the city and its downtown. We drove for 1-1/2 hrs from Gainesville to Leesburg on 441 and except for The Villages area, it was mostly trashy looking. Sure, I didn't see downtown Ocala, I just know I'm not interested in living in a small town area that looks like that.