Considering relocation around St. Pete's (Tampa, Largo: sales, rentals, low crime)

[NJNative80]

Hi All,

I'm hoping you can provide some advice.

My family is from Northern NJ, and we're looking to get OUT of this ice, snow, and high tax state. We're considering the St. Pete's area, among others.

Can you give some advice? What towns are great for raising a very young and growing family?

We are seeking:

Rent about $1,000 or a home max of $250K
Good schools
Low crime
Lots to do for kids
Variety in entertainment/restaurants.
Being within 20 minutes of a beach

I know, sounds like "paradise." I'm reasonable! That is everyone's wish list. Any advice is appreciated.

Thanks!

[Angler]

northeast st. pete might be a little pricey (Allendale is nice).

West St. Pete, like Jungle Prada, Live Oaks, Lake Pasadena, etc. would offer close proximity to both the beaches and downtown.

I'm not as familiar with farther north east neighborhoods like Riviera Bay, hopefully other posters can help you with those.

[lavender]

Seminole will work for you - rental may be slighly higher maybe 1200-1400 (I just rented my nice 3/2/2/ on a lake for 1400) very nice clean and good interior but a bit oldfashioned kitchen and I think it placed it well as I listed it and it went in about 3 days. Good schools, v close to beaches, not too far to drive to local shops/cinema/bowling/sports etc. Easy for most of the county as it's midway and nice neighborhoods relatively low crime.

[vaughanwilliams]

I prefer St. Pete more than other cities in Tampa Bay, basically because I'm very familiar with it. Seminole is nice but kind of dull.

[lavender]

I agree, but rental prices are going to be higher and schools are not perfect, so sometimes you have to drive to the delights of St Pete, like we do, to enjoy the other benefits.
Dull is good at times

[fmccarthy]

One thing I would say is that rentals are on the high side when compared to homes (not even a function of the current home sales situation; I found it that way when I first came down here from NJ 13 years ago). St. Pete itself has a lot to offer, other towns such as Seminole have a lower crime rate which still having proximity to downtown as well as the beach (sort of in between the two). Seminole High and Seminole middle are well rated.

One concept you will need to look at is "unincorporated" also called "in-county" locations. These are areas in between the limits of the main towns. For example, I live between Seminole and Largo "in county". There's perhaps a mile of space between the two in my area (they all have irregular borders so it may be more or less, depending on area). There are advantages and possible disadvantages. There are tax differences, more in a city. Sometimes more services are offered but it depends and they can be questionable. If you plan to have a boat or other rv in your yard, can't happen in a lot of areas. Also have to look at homeowner's associations. I can legally have a boat or rv in my side yard "in-county". It was odd to me at first as in NJ everything was in some kind of township.