Should I move to Orlando (Melbourne, Sanford: crime, loan, house)

[smb5575]

I am thinking of relocating from the Northeast (Massachusetts) to Orlando...again. I think Florida is beautiful and I am a city kind of person. I left Orlando to come back to the Springfield area of Massachusetts where I am originally from. I was scared of Orlando, I basicly moved because of all the crime I was hearing about last year. I was a stay at home mom at the time with a new baby and used to watch the news and just be scared. I lived in a gated community in lee vista area at the time. I miss the weather and so many things to do. I hate the snow and our winters up here are so gray and ugly. But, I hear the crime, education and health care down there are AWFUL. One of the other things that scares me is the critters and animals down there. I have a two year old and i get scared of aligators and fire ants. I hear of little kids dying because of attacks and it freaks me out. We don't have to worry about animals like that up here. The only bugs we worry about are bees. Am I just being paranoid? Should I even bother to relocate? I will soon be a registered nurse and am looking for a place were jobs are abundant and my little girl will grow up safe. Please leave any comments......or suggestions on other places, etc.

[bdpop]

It sounds as if you may have already answered your questions.

[Alphaman]

If your scared of all that then I would say stay put, you already left once what makes you think it will be different?

[krock67]

Come on down, and stop watching local news, it can cause paranoia. I live near the Lee Vista area. It is a safe and beautiful part of Orlando, and its proximity to the medical research park that is under construction, should provide ample job opportunities in your field.

[**NoodLes**]

I'll make it simple, NO YOU SHOULD NOT MOVE HERE!

[smb5575]

okay so i guess im not being paranoid?

[EasyCheeze]

you're right about everything except the "critters and animals". kids don't get eaten by alligators on a regular basis. not really anything to worry about unless you lived right on a lake and didn't watch your kid. the crime and education(or lack of) is something to worry about though.

[smb5575]

yeah that's pretty much what i figured...my husband is not letting up on the idea of moving down there though...he can't stand the snow and his family lives in Orlando. He keeps telling me that crime is everywhere blah blah I shouldn't worry about everything I can't control blah blah...so now im on the fence about the whole idea. I know there are a few safer places around. I've looked at the Cottages in Hunters Creek area and some others in the Lake Nona area. They seem nice.

[Lindsey_Mcfarren]

There is insecticide to kill fire ants.

Don't allow your child to get near the sources where you find alligators. I have been here since 2001 and never seen one close up.

I grew up near Worcester and its a wonderful area, I still have friends there but I couldn't take the weather anymore. I am addicted to the sunny weather here now.

When we moved here, my daughter was only 4, she is 10 now and never had a problem with her.

[ucfjtm]

I've been in Orlando for over 5 years now, and have lived in various places of Florida for most of my life. With a military family, I had the benefit of 'test driving' other locations across the nation and world. Although my parents retired to the Destin, FL area, I ended up finishing college and finding a job in Orlando. If it weren't for a fantastic career for my current and immediate future, I'd have left this state upon college graduation. My girlfriend moved here after growing up and graduating from college in the Ohio/Pennsylvania area, and after a year and a half in Orlando, she's ready to leave as well.

I have friends who have taught or still teach in the Orange county school district, and it's atrocious. The ones who have left for better education (Illinois, Virginia, Washington, Ohio) understand this problem all too well. The ones that are still here only stay because of family or relationship commitment. Faculty have absolutely no power to control the schools - kids are out of control and they'll threaten fraudulent lawsuits if you give them a reason to do so.

Crime continues to be a major problem, and has only been getting worse every year I've been here. Unless you're living in Isleworth or similar community (think million dollar homes), there are problems. There are a few decent communities on the east side of Orlando, but none is far from neighborhoods with crime problems. If I were forced to stay here, I'd demand to be in Seminole county north and northeast of downtown Orlando. Sanford, Lake Mary, Winter Springs, Oviedo (my current location) - would all be places to look into.

Unfortunately, we hit the next problem - property taxes. My roommate built his house two summers ago. It's about 1800 sq ft 3/3 on .20 acres of land. Not a great neighborhood, but not bad - in Oviedo. It was appraised at nearly $350,000, and he couldn't sell it for $250k if he wanted to, but the county is still collecting nearly $6,000 a year in property taxes from him - and that's after his $50k exemption. There's a comparable house down the street that was finished with construction just over a year ago and still hasn't sold for $240k. I wouldn't be surprised if the house flipper just walked away from the loan - the house has never been occupied. County government doesn't want to take a loss in tax revenue by reassessing house values to where they should be now that the boom is over, so everyone is stuck paying far more than they should.

Is government going to change? I highly doubt it. Retirees don't see value in pumping money into school systems they won't use. Crime continues to get worse as schools continue to fail on the youth - I can't tell you how many daily crime stories I read involving felonies committed by those under 25. Yes, crime is in every community, but the trend of the Orlando area is going in a very bad direction.

I'm sure some will come to defend Orlando from my comments, and they have the right to state their opinion as well, however, they can't deny the direction of the city as a family-oriented location hasn't been righted yet. My advice - if you want to raise a family in Florida, keep far away from the larger metro areas. Melbourne on the Atlantic coast is a decent place, and although it's too far from any large city for me, the Destin / Ft. Walton Beach / Niceville area is alright as well.