moving to st petersburg area in august, need advice (apartment complex, for rent)

[mikejames2388]

My girlfriend and I are moving at the end of august from pensacola florida. We went to st pete to visit a couple of months ago and loved it but I know visiting a place is way different than living there. I lived in Hawaii for 4 years and love the laid back beach life-style. We are both newly grads and I have a little experience working in hotels (front desk and management). My girlfriend and I are on a newly grad budget and looking to rent an apartment or a really small house within driving distance to the gulf. To make this easy my questions are:

1. I have lived in high crime areas before, is st pete really that bad. Will it affect my everyday life if I know the areas to avoid?

2. I noticed that there are long streets throughout st pete with little houses and small yards. Are these affordable for rent in a safe area or am i better off in an apartment complex? (we want to get a big dog)

3. Is car insurance going to really increase if I am already paying Florida car insurance (USAA)

I know these questions could be a little hard to answer but any type of discussion is greatly appreciated. So what do you think?

[BBI]

1. If you stay out of the bad neighborhoods -- which you have no reason to visit anyway -- crime won't affect your everyday life. I mean, there's normal city petty crime, so lock your doors when you're away, etc. But that's not a big deal to most of us. Plenty of affluent neighborhoods within city limits, too. Lots of posts here on crime and southside St. Pete.

2. Hard to guess if you'd be better off in an apartment than a house since I'm not sure what you're looking for, what your price range is, etc. Seems like everyone here has dogs, so presumably you can find some pet friendly places in either.

3. I would assume car insurance will cost more here given how much busier the roads are here (and how much more likely you are to get in an accident as a result). No idea how much more expensive, but expect some uptick.

[mikejames2388]

Thanks BBI those were some of my more specific questions I had and appreciate your response!