Questions about moving to Pinellas Co. (Tampa, St. Petersburg: for sale, renting, hotel)

[coastaltide]

Hello all,

My wife and I are looking at Pinellas Co. for possible relocation. We've been talking about this area for a while, and some job opportunities are beginning to pop up for me. Hopefully this is the time.

However, we also have some other life changes possibly on the horizon -- we have been discussing starting a family. We are a late 20's married couple, and the jobs I'm looking at are probably in the $60K range, give or take a bit. She's a teacher, and from what I've read, that's a $40K range in Pinellas (give or take).

We have discussed the option of her staying home with newborns, so that would put our income at $60K for a while, but it could be $100K. We have looked at all different areas of the county, and we are not opposed to any of the areas per say. We would rather buy a house (3bd, 2ba), but renting at least for the first couple of years may be ok. We would like to be in a safe neighborhood, great for raising newborns. We live in an urban environment now, so we appreciate living in a place like St. Pete, but living in a smaller, quieter town is not out of the question (closer to the beach!). We would also like to be in an area with good public schools.

With that information (and I'm happy to provide more), where do you think would be a good area for us to look for living? Could we buy or should we look at renting for now? Do you think Pinellas Co. would be good for us? Thank you in advance for all of your comments.

coastaltide

[xlabel]

If you want a smaller town feel closer to the beach, I'd look into Largo. There are a lot of nice neighborhoods near Taylor Park, Highland Ave., Indian Rocks rd. If you have to commute to Tampa or the east side of the county it can be a pain, but you can get to Indian Rocks Beach, Maderia,Sand key etc pretty easy.

[coastaltide]

thank you for your insight. I have begun to look at those places. In all likelihood, we would be employed in Pinellas County, rather than Tampa.

Any other thoughts or suggestions? Thank you!

[Myopic Malcontent]

Try Seminole. It's not bad. As near to the beach as Largo is. It has a small town feel, and is just a quick drive away from St. Petersburg, some nice parks, and the Pinellas trail if the two of you fancy walks, or bike rides.

Good luck with the move, and your wife finding 40k work as a teacher. If she's looking to make that kind of money I'd suggest the private schools. There are quite a few around St. Pete, Largo, and Clearwater. But most teachers I know, or knew usually had second jobs. They were also single, so hopefully your wife won't have that issue.

60k a year can be pretty good for Fla. 100k is a LOT better, though.

Buying a house could probably be easy since there's a house for sale on almost every street you go down. Usually snow-birds who can't afford the COL of Fla and their home state (or country if they're from Canada) Public Transportation is a joke, though, so I hope both of you have cars or can managae with a single car.

[flmom28]

If you are truly going to want to live in an area with good schools, I would choose an area around Palm Harbor or Tarpon Springs. Both areas are still close to the water, and very family oriented areas. I am a single mother of 2 and can afford to live here just fine, so with your income you will do great. The schools are rated the best in the county and the people are great. The school my sons go to is a school that the parents fight to get their kids into. Taxes are actually not to bad and the market for buying a home is very good right now. My boyfriend just bought a 4 bedroom 3 and 1/2 bath in Eastlake for under $300k. So for what you are looking for you can have a good home with plenty of room.

[Fishhead]

Pinellas co. can be ok......just avoid PINELLAS PARK.

I live here and cannot wait to move.

[ukdame]

Think about Safety Harbor. Small towm. Huge spa/hotel boaters,little shops and eateries. Wirth a look at. Also found a little place called Ozona by the bay between Plam Harbor and Dundedin. Older homes and off the beat path.

[Fishhead]

Safety Harbor is a small town, but its completely connected to an entire metro area.

If you want small town, go to the midwest.

[coastaltide]

Thanks all for the input. We definitely want metro area. A small, beach community within a metro area is great, as long as there is a metro area attached. The Pinellas area sounds like a great spot for both of us to grow in our careers and start a family.

Why avoid Pinellas Park? I had wondered about that community. What are impressions of Dunedin, Seminole, Largo, and Gulfport? We've looked at those areas. Thank you for the recommendation of Ozona. Is this a municipality?

Thank you all. Please keep those comments coming!

[Fishhead]

Don't take my word for it, drive around Largo and Pinellas Park yourself.............if you like it, more power to you.

I find it disgusting personally and can't wait to move in a few months.