Orlando vs. S. Florida (Miami, Pembroke Pines: highrise, real estate, gated)

[az4good]

I need some help...

We currently live in Scottsdale, AZ and my husband is thinking of getting a job through his former company somewhere in FL. I'm not sure there are positions on the west coast, but I know that there are a couple in Orlando and a couple in S. Florida. My husband grew up in S. Florida & we both went to FSU. He literally salivates at the idea of being near the ocean and all that comes with it so I'm trying to keep an open mind.

I'd love some insiders views on what would fit our family best. We have 2 kids 6 1/2 & 4. The 6 1/2 year old has tested highly gifted so schools are a huge priority, both public and private. We want to rent for a year or so. When we buy we'd be looking at the $450,000 + range.

I'm looking for safety, family friendly, good quality of life, people who live there because they want to not because they have to, etc.

The area in Orlando I find most appealing is Lake Mary (although this is strictly through online looking, never been there). It looks like the kind of community we live in now.

S. Florida scares me because I think of it as gangs, drugs & crazy old drivers. My in laws live in Boca (which also scares me, being so close to them).

Can you raise children down there? My husband's immediate and extended family have had quite a few problems with drugs. Is that the culture down there or are they just a messed up family? He's the only one who escaped unscathed. If you had to live near that Ft. Lauderdale/Miami stretch where would you start looking?

Any advice would be great. I need to arm myself with facts when he starts reminiscing about how great life was down there.

Thanks.

[Wilshire81182]

Lake Mary is a nice area, along with a lot of the other parts of Seminole County, SW Orlando and the Lake Nona area. It is much more family oriented than South Florida and offers so many entertainment advantages and is not that far from the beach, but you will also not see it on a daily basis. Lake Mary is pretty sheltered from the Central Florida crimes as well.

South Florida has some nice options, but for the most part is a really hard place to live. It is very exclusive, can be snobby and the cost of living is very very high. You are from Scottsdale though, so you may be able to afford a very nice area in S. Florida as well. I would advise areas like Ft Lauderdale, Boca Raton, and areas north of West Palm Beach that are nice. The worst areas of South FLorida are mainly all around and just north of downtown Miami. That is also where there is quite a language barrier. All in all, I love South Florida for a weekend visit. It feels much more urban than Orlando, it has the beach and highrises, and amazing homes, but it is also not where I could see myself moving to at this point in my life because it is very ostentatious and a rough place to live overall. If there is any part of Florida that is a deception of the Florida is paradise motto, I think it is S. Florida.

[doom1001]

I would choose Seminole county or other areas near Orlando like Windermere or Dr.Phillips.I wouldn't go near Miami-Dade county with a few exceptions like Pinecrest which is nice but overall the county has too many issues.If you decide on South Florida stick to western Broward county.

[BILLDEESE]

Lake Mary/Heathrow area is very nice but you will pay a premium for that area. My brother lives in Heathrow Woods which is a gated community of $million dollar plus homes. Lake Mary has better schools and higher paying jobs which is why there is less crime. Your less than an hour from the beach so that should help with being near the ocean. I would not live in the Miami/Ft. Lauderdale area. It has very congested roads, high crime and and their housing market is very depressed. People are flocking out of South Florida if they can sell their home. I get a lot of customers from South Florida wanting to move here where I live. I live in Mount Dora, FL where crime is rare and we have A & B rated schools and a friendly small town feel to the community. We are a short commute to Orlando and 30 minutes from Lake Mary and an hour to the beach. Check it out!

[rholborn]

i have lived in lake mary for over 13 years, and we love it! my daughter has done very well in the schools here, and we are 40 min west to disney and 40 min east to the beach. i love our location, and we have convient shopping and are close to everything! i'm so proud that last year we got #4 in money magazine's best places to live, i love this community!

[compelled to reply]

Originally Posted by BILLDEESE

Lake Mary/Heathrow area is very nice but you will pay a premium for that area. My brother lives in Heathrow Woods which is a gated community of $million dollar plus homes. Lake Mary has better schools and higher paying jobs which is why there is less crime. Your less than an hour from the beach so that should help with being near the ocean. I would not live in the Miami/Ft. Lauderdale area. It has very congested roads, high crime and and their housing market is very depressed. People are flocking out of South Florida if they can sell their home. I get a lot of customers from South Florida wanting to move here where I live. I live in Mount Dora, FL where crime is rare and we have A & B rated schools and a friendly small town feel to the community. We are a short commute to Orlando and 30 minutes from Lake Mary and an hour to the beach. Check it out!

Haha, I flocked from Winter Park to Weston because I was tired of the crime and congestion in Orlando. It's a much better place to live here, but some people just don't want to accept the fact that less expensive does not mean "better". It's not even that much less expensive, I pay about 50 dollars more a month for an equivalent place and day to day costs are about the same. Orange County has a higher crime rate than Dade (much higher than Palm Beach as well and shoots bullets into Broward) and I can also tell you that the traffic is worse anywhere in the Orlando area except for maybe in an isolated hamlet like Mount Dora, therefore you still have to set in traffic to get to any real shopping or employment opportunities even if your community is quiet. Granted, there are some nice areas in the Orlando area and I do think it is generally more family oriented in theory, but I would avoid anything that isn't in Seminole County. In South Florida I would stick with west Broward (not east) like Cooper City or Weston (there are many other communities), and avoid Miami-Dade. Palm Beach County has a lot of nice areas but it is a snobby vibe, if you can take that, than I suggest Boca, the unincorporated parts of Boynton, Wellington, and maybe Jupiter. Generally, the Orlando area is a clockwork of good and bad, whereas in South Florida, it generally gets better as you head further west. I would say the de facto dividing line in Broward County is University Dr and the line in Palm Beach County is Jog Rd (although some parts are nice all around like Boca). As far as traffic, yes South Florida has big wide roads and four stack interchanges, but it keeps the traffic moving. Orlando needs big wide roads and four stack interchanges.

All and all, if you don't have to commute down I-4, Seminole County is a great place for your family, but don't late the 80s Miami Vice image and the unfortunate path that your family members took scare you away from the southern part of the state if you can afford it. As far as gangs, Palm Beach County is infamous for them, I would say that Dade also its fair share of gang problems (no more than Orange County/Orlando), Broward mostly has more subdued gang activity although you will see tags/graffiti in some areas but not much in the way of violence. 450k buys you a nice house in both places, so my choice would be one of the western communities down south in Palm Beach or Broward County. Even though it is more crowded here, I don't see how the lifestyle in Orlando is an upgrade in any way, I think it's a downgrade. If your price range is 300k I would be singing a different tune, but keep in mind that both places have equally depressed housing markets.

[Breucklyn]

I agree with BILLDEESE.Stay out of the Orlando area. Lake Mary doesn't thrill me either. I have lived in Orlando since 1979 when it use to be a nice, safe area to live. If I remember correctly, Orange County Schools now rank 49th in the nation so Seminole County would be better especially since you have school-aged children.
We considered running away from Florida a few years ago but the real estate market crashed. Selling a home is possible but only if you want to give it away. However, looking on the bright side, it is a great time to buy one.
If you like keeping your doors and windows locked plus a lot of road rage, then Central Florida may be exactly what you are looking for. The beaches are nice but the drive is the challenge. It is not like your husband remembers it. :>)

[Crane's Rooster]

Central FL-Winter Park, Wekiwa, Lake Mary, Lake Nona, Winter Garden, Windermere, Altamonte Springs, SE Orlando

S. FL- Western Broward, Pembroke Pines, Miramar, Weston, Coral Springs
West Palm, Boca,
Miami Dade-Aventura, Pine Crest, Parts of Kendall

This is just based on my experience but Central Fl is more family oriented and S. FL is a single person's paradise. Traffic is same throughout most of both places but worse in S. FL the closer you get to I-95 and the coast. Obviously S. FL is 2 to 3 times as populated as Central FL so there are more entertainment, culinary, shopping, etc options. S. FL is much more fast paced and as such it's easy to get lost in the mix there. If you're a "speak english" person you may not like S. FL, just about everyone there speaks another language, regardless of race. You can go to Aventura and hear Russian, Polish and all types of eastern European languages. The majority of S. FL is heavily Hispanic, Jamaican and Creole. Central Florida tends to be mostly Spanish being spoken about town but not at the same frequency as S. FL. Crime is about the same in both places with Miami-Dade county being the worse in the two areas. I would strongly disagree with anyone who says Orange is as dangerous as Miami-Dade County. But the rest, Broward and West Palm are about the same as Central Fl. Seminole or Lake would probaly be the safest in both ares. For someone in your situation I would say Central FL is better option, more family oriented but S. FL is also very nice place to live.

[compelled to reply]

Originally Posted by Crane's Rooster

Crime is about the same in both places with Miami-Dade county being the worse in the two areas. I would strongly disagree with anyone who says Orange is as dangerous as Miami-Dade County. But the rest, Broward and West Palm are about the same as Central Fl.

Total Index Crime by County, 2007

Also, as far as the traffic, Miami is about equivalent to Orlando on a good day, but the rest of S. FL is an absolute breeze compared to Orlando on a good day IMO. My job depends on driving and the traffic flows a lot smoother, the road system is more efficient and the drivers here are more moronic rather than enraged.

[Crane's Rooster]

I based my opinions on my experience. I'm not too concerned about Stats but even by the stats Miami Dade had 228 murders, Broward had 105 (same as Orange) and Palm Beach had 96 murders. That's 429 murders in S. FL. I don't think the entire Central Fl area would add up to 200. I just know that when I lived in Miami Dade I was much more cautious of where I was and what was around me, granted I am aware of my surrounding here but that's just common sense. Based on my experience, I feel Miami-Dade is most dangerous out of all the counties in Central and South FL. I think most people would agree, I havent' seen a CSi Orlando or Orlando Vice or any blockbuster crime thrillers being shot in Orange County. Not to say that is the be all end all but that at least says something about the reputation of the two places.