Riverview? (Tampa, Lakeland, Brandon: car insurance, how much, new home)

[LHBR702]

Riverview appears to be a developing community with lots of new construction. How would the typical rush hour commute be into downtown Tampa? Also, are there shopping, dining, entertainment options in Riverview? Are there any parks? Housing seems reasonable. Taxes may seem high in some places to others, depending on where you happen to come from, but coming from NJ (the highest taxes in the US), they seem pretty good to me. How much should be estimated for H/O insurance on a $200K home? Any other general info or opinions on the area would be appreciated.

[LHBR702]

Can anyone help with this?

[MortonR]

It depends on where in Riverview you're looking. Some areas are still considered rural, while others are being built out to the point of being overcrowded.

At this point there are no direct routes into the city of Tampa from Riverview, any commuting would need to be done via 41 or I-75/Crosstown or I-4, all of which are suffering from serious traffic problems.

Not to be negative, but from someone who has lived here long enough to watch the growth in this area practically explode, the biggest problem you will face is the inability of the infrastructure to keep up with the growth.

Other than that, Riverview is a nice area, and has many new developments that would be great places to live. It's just the getting to/from that's going to be an issue.

I can't vouch for taxes, other than to say they won't be cheap. The county has really missed the boat on this, and as a result is trying to play catch-up on the backs of new homeowners.

Insurance is also an issue, but if you're coming from Jersey it can't be that much of a change. If you can get insurance (other than a pool policy from the state) figure several thousand dollars, if not more, for a $200k home. That's a guess, but it should be in the ballpark.

RM

[Schilly]

I agree with what the Riverview guy said about getting to and from Riverview, but chances are good that you are used to worse traffic if you are coming from Jersey. Also, it isn't that bad if you take the crosstown, but really just depends on where in Riverview you are going. As for the insurance, I live in Valrico and pay $1500 for 2400 square feet (worth approx $300K. I don't know the difference between insurance for the two, but I'm about 5 miles away from Riverview, so I wouldn't think it is that different. A house built after 2004 can be cheaper than one built before, but you're probably talking about a $500-750 difference at most.

[Floridasunshine]

I love Riverview, but it is gone way up the last 2 yrs, I moved to Lakeland to get more home for the money, and taxes and Insurance, car insurance are cheaper. Its only 30mins from Brandon and really is what Brandon use to be like 10 yrs ago, everything here but no traffic. Love it here. I bought a home 2140 sq ft for 170 in Brandon Riverview it is at least 350 now.