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I'm a 31yr old professional, with 2 kids. I hate it here in NY now, it's getting too expensive, for the past 3 years I've been saying I'm moving to Florida, but was always scared due to the job situation in every state, I'm in need of some good advice, if it will be a smart move to just pick up and leave on a drop of a dime and start all over, I visit Florida at least twice a year and always hate leaving. I love the heat and outdoors, I hate these extreme colds day Ny is experiencing. Can some Orlando natives tell some truth or opinions on life in Orlando. I would love to hear from you especially you've ever lived in New York. Thanks
I was raised in Orlando (born in NY).. thought for my entire life I wanted to move back. I now go to college in NYC but come home to Orlando for breaks, and I dread returning to NYC every time. New York is way too cold for way too long- right now, the temperature in Orlando is 76 degrees. It's perfect. Plus, you get a lot more for your money, and lots of outdoor activities to enjoy year-round.
I am a Social Worker from NY looking to relocate to orlando with my two kids and husband.
I myself have been talking about moving to orlando for the past two years. My brother lives there and after visiting with him i ended up crying in orlando airport because i did not want to return to new york. I am also scared to leave ny because of the lack of jobs. I am afraid that if i up and quit my job that i would not be able to find a positoin in orlando. Any advise is welcomed
I suppose a good first question is, what job field are you in? If it's something medical or nursing or similar, you're probably ok coming straight to FL, but if it's something that's highly competitive, or in a smaller market, it may be hard to move to FL and then find something quickly enough. You might be better off to job-search and interview remotely from NY first to test the employment waters.
That said, I lived in FL for 15 years, first Sarasota, then Orlando for a few years. I've also been around the east coast (Daytona Beach, Melbourne, Ft. Lauderdale, Miami). Now I'm back living up north again, but still miss FL now and then (especially now in winter!).
Orlando, honestly, I didn't much like living in. For my tastes, it's too sprawling, overpopulated, traffic is ridiculously bad (can easily take an hour+ to drive where you want to go, and those horrid red-light-cameras are everywhere now), and the overall, majority feel of Orlando is a combination of either fancy-fake, plainly cheap, or run-down and seedy. There are some nice spots too of course, but on the whole, it's not my cup of tea.
Sarasota/Venice, and that whole area I like much better (if you can find a job there, of course). First, you have the awesome gulf beaches right there, and the area is just much prettier compared to Orlando, in my opinion. Driving and commuting is much easier (the main hazard comes from too many ancient, slooooow-driving retirees). There are a lot of up-north transplants too. If I ever come back to FL, I'd move to this area again.
After living on the west coast, I wouldn't want to touch most of the east coast with a 10 foot pole. From Miami to Palm Beach is basically one continuous, overbuilt, seedy city, with some pockets of rich folks. Titusville, Cocoa, Daytona, and the like are mostly seedy or overdone too. Merritt Island I liked, and Melbourne isn't too bad, and St. Augustine seems very nice too.
Anyway, those are my opinions, based on my personal preference for place that's quieter, less overcrowded, naturally scenic and beautiful, with a little classier, more genuine feel.
As a refuge from the North East, (Ohio), I feel your pain with the snow, taxes etc...
- JOB - Get a job here before you move.
- Orlando itself is not so bad. It is a "big small town". There is a huge number of places to live, of course, a number of places you don't want to live in, but, for the most part, you can find a nice place. I'm surprised at times at some of the run down areas, but that is not so uncommon across America. I do think the city was foolish to build the basketball arena downtown, but like most cities, they love those things. Now they will have to figure out how to make a profit on it. There is another dumb idea with high speed rail between here and Tampa. The new gov. might kill it, but I bet he won't and tell us it is a "job creator". Yeah, right... The new guy also wants to push vouchers for everyone and let you put your child in private school with some money back in your taxes. I don't think that will happen because the teachers are too powerful to allow it.
- Traffic - It can be a real bear, but you can avoid or reduce the "pain" by where you live in relation to where you work. We picked Baldwin Park so we could avoid any highway traffic, especially I-4.
- Long Term for Orlando/Florida - FL has been a tourist/retirement haven for 50 years or so and won't change much in the future. The baby boomers will still retire and get the "heck out of the cold", if they can sell their homes. I wish we had a more steady job base other than tourism/retired people, but the leadership in FL is rather lame. They could build a good support base if they allowed more drilling in the Gulf, but noooooooo....
- Schools - A constant complaint, but actually FL has moved up this last rating to 5th in the Nation. Of course, you have to really, really, really look close at the local public schools. We have a A-F rating system that will help guide you, but still, you have to "peel off some of the layers of this onion" to find out exactly how good or bad the school is for you.
- Colleges - UCF is really big and getting bigger. So, long term, it is a good choice to live in Orlando and have your children attend that college. If they don't like it, they will learn to like it. It is a big savings for them to live at home and attend college there. At least, that is my plan for our children. There are other colleges in Florida too which rank pretty well. UF and U of Miami are very good.
- Housing - Big drop in the prices and much more affordable. It pays to really look around and rent for a year before you buy. There are a wide range of homes in different areas. We looked for a few years before moving here and it has worked out well for us. Winter Park is popular, but we could not find a home there that was not less than 40 years old. Since you have children, find the job, school, then home. Lake Nona and Lake Mary are very popular too. We did not want a huge yard to keep water/maint. costs down and found one that worked for us. I think going forward the "big yard,big house" is not economically sound anymore. Same with a pool, just move in a sub that has a community pool or join the Y. But, if you want it, there are many pool homes.
- Buy one of those big street maps or Orlando and put it up on the wall. As you research more about Orlando and the surround area look at the map so you are familiar with the area and can get a better idea. Especially for job, school and home.
Things to do - Or course, Disney World, which will let you make payments now, how nice...lots of parks, beaches are 60 miles away, NASA is over there too, well, Obama might have given that to China, Dinosaur World is 45 miles the other way, kids like that, not expensive, Key West is a day drive South, mostly for adults but nice drive down through the Keys. The countryside is still a nice place to drive on a Sunday. Driving down US1 is fun too. Lots of golf courses in the area.
I noticed a lot, a whole lot, of homes are just not being maintained well, or were built "quick and cheap". On Sunday I went to a home that was only 8 years old and the paint was pealing, trim falling off.
- Crime - Like every major or minor city we have crime. You are from NYC so nothing new about this problem.
- Hurricanes - I think Orlando got hit 2004/05 but not a massive amount of damage. However, home insurance in FL was a problem for a while. Now it is expected to get more expensive again. You need to really buy a new(er), well built home. We do get a lot of lighting during the summer. I think we are number one in the nation for that.
- Cost of living - Our home; 2200 sq feet; 285 for July-Sept. for water/sewer/electric. This is running a/c when humidity hits 48 inside the home or temp is 81. It might sound high, but with the ceiling fans running it did not seem hot to us. You can set your a/c to a much lower temp, but you will pay. The winter, running the heat, which is electric, can burn you again. This year we bought a electric space heater for the bedroom and that saved us a good bit of money. Once again, buying a new(er), well built home with new(er), efficient a/c, insulation, roof, windows, can save you money.
Car Insurance - Mine is with GEICO, but you can get a cheaper company. Two cars, 4 years old, 1200 per year. FL does have a problem with too many people driving with no insurance.
Home Insurance - Mine is 1200 dollars per year.
- Cable TV/Internet/Phone - I used Brighthouse, but not happy with the cost. 132 per month and that is just basic tv no hbo, etc...it is reliable but I think overpriced. You can get DSL from ATT which is cheaper and go with Direct TV but they required a 2 year contract and raise the price the second year. I would can the cable tv and go with "bunny ears" but my wife is stuck on that HGTV thing and the kids like "Dinosaur Dan" both of which I can't get on bunny ears. To think, at one time, all we had was 3 or 4 channels.
- Food - Walmart is the cheapest but we buy fruit/meat from Publix. Whole Foods is nearby too, but expensive. I don't care for Wynn Dixie which is more expensive. There is another one, Dutch Company owns it, Aldi, which is suppose to be cheap, but the big "W" is hard to beat. There is SAMMS club too, but unless you eat a lot or have a pretty big family I don't think you save much there.
- Gas - $3.09 at the local Mobil. StarBucks - Beats me. Two children I never have been in one since I moved here. There are some local coffee shops that look nice if you want something different.
Car Maint - I use Toyota (95 dollars per hour), but pretty good, well, except for this one time. The local Goodyear store is not so bad either (same price per hour). It is becoming more difficult to maintain the new cars with their computers, electronics. Sometimes you just have to bite the bullet and go to the dealer.
- Public Transportation - Bus system is here, but not so good. I feel sorry for those people during the summer with very little shade waiting for the bus. You really need a good car.
- Property Taxes - Can be expensive depending on where you live. We just got a ten percent increase in the school taxes so the school system could could feel good about themselves. One bad thing about Orange County schools is they waste money and just can't figure out how to track it very well.
Library - Actually, very good. Orange County Library has a good web site you can reserve a book and they will deliver it for free to your home. Of course, you have to take it back, but that is a pretty good deal.
- Flea Markets - There are around if you like those places. I went a few times but only like the one in Webster which is a bit of a drive. There are a lot of Estate Sales (Gods waiting room kicking in here), and Craigslist is a good place to save on some items. It depends on what you are looking for, but you can "ease the pain" when buying some stuff.
- Furniture Stores - I like LazyBoy, Haverty's but they are not cheap. Room's to Go seems a bit too cheap on quality, but affordable. Lanes is another big local brand but semi-good quality. Home Goods is a nice place and very affordable.
- Location - This can really save you. We are located in the center of our needs..i.e. doctor,school,shopping, etc...it really worked out well, we paid more, but it was worth it.
Medical - It was difficult finding a doctor for the kids. We wanted a "group practice" that was open 6-7 days a week like we had in South Fl. We got one that is open 6 days a week and they are "ok". There are these new "Minute Clinics" at CVS with a Nurse also the "Urgent Care Clinics" (Owned by Florida Hospital) opening up everywhere. That is a good option if they take your insurance. I used it a few months ago when I cut my finger and was in and out in 2 hours. No wait, but 750 dollar bill for 5 stitches, bandage. But a really good doctor, staff. Beats going to the Emergency room. My insurance covered it except for co-pay. Medical does not seem so bad here, if you have insurance, with many hospitals in the area.
- Long Term - Well, for us, we think we can hang here until the children graduate from college. We wanted them to live in a larger city so there are more jobs when they graduate. Also, with luck, they can have a good network of friends here too. I think our home will gain about 10-15 percent in value over the next 15 years which is a more normal rate than the last few years. Orlando gets slammed a bit, I wish it had a better job base, but all in all we like it here.
One thing I would note about the traffic is that if you are from NYC the traffic here is nothing. People love to complain about the traffic here, but compared to major metros like Atlanta, DC, and NYC it is not as bad. It gets very congested, but it always moves. I have yet to experience an infuriating, non-moving traffic jam where I want to curse the world in my 2 years so far in Orlando.
One thing I would note about the traffic is that if you are from NYC the traffic here is nothing. People love to complain about the traffic here, but compared to major metros like Atlanta, DC, and NYC it is not as bad. It gets very congested, but it always moves. I have yet to experience an infuriating, non-moving traffic jam where I want to curse the world in my 2 years so far in Orlando.
But the skill of the drivers here is lacking. I have lived in much larger cities, yet don't run into such rude and clueless drivers like you do in this state.
I have lived in 5 states and I can honestly say driving here is the scariest.
If it isn't an elderly transplant who shouldn't be behind the wheel, it is a poorly trained FL teen tailgating and texting at the same time.
But the skill of the drivers here is lacking. I have lived in much larger cities, yet don't run into such rude and clueless drivers like you do in this state.
I have lived in 5 states and I can honestly say driving here is the scariest.
If it isn't an elderly transplant who shouldn't be behind the wheel, it is a poorly trained FL teen tailgating and texting at the same time.
New York drivers are pretty rude, and terrifying (I can't imagine how anyone drives on Manhattan streets.. it's like there's no rules). I've seen a driver roll down his window and scream "F*** you!" at another driver. I haven't seen that in Orlando.
New York drivers are pretty rude, and terrifying (I can't imagine how anyone drives on Manhattan streets.. it's like there's no rules). I've seen a driver roll down his window and scream "F*** you!" at another driver. I haven't seen that in Orlando.
I was in Manhattan last month and I have never seen driving like that before. Lane markers and turning lanes were completely ignored. People making right-hand turns from 3 lanes over in crawling traffic...it was insane. The only way to live there is with public transportation.
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I am a Social Worker from NY looking to relocate to orlando with my two kids and husband.
