Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
My husband and I are torn between moving to a lower cost of living place like Atlanta or enjoying the lifestyle of south Florida. We have 2 children a preteen and one in the 1st grade.
I am in human resources / office administration and he owns an automotive business. We have tried weighing the pros and cons but are still torn.
Pros for Atlanta:
Lower cost of living,MUCH more house for your money,4 seasons (which i really love), looks more like the north ( we are currently living in westchester county, ny), larger black educated population, more job prospects for me, A closer drive if my family wants to visit, Lower cost of living would make it possible for my family to join me if they wanted to move.
Cons of Atlanta
no family there, just a few friends, Not so great schools depending on where you live, TRAFFIC ( my husbands business puts him on the road 100% of the time, and i would also have to work inside the perimeter as well), Less opportunity for my husbands business ( this is in comparison to FL, in FL he can service businesses in Palm beach, Broward and Dade county, in ATL theres just ..ATL), Weather ( Atl has a lot of smog and was named the asthma capital of the world... I have asthma), Crime - of course that is everywhere. Not much character, seems like a lot of large homes but nothing else. The BLING factor.... housewives of ATL.. need I say more??? LANDLOCKED ( a big issue for us as we love the beach)
Pros of FL:
We have an increasing number of family that lives there, lifestyle ( the beaches, the parks, the attractions, cruises, boating fishing year round. Traveling up to Disney for the weekend or down to Miami for a girls night out. traveling inside of Fl), No state income tax, more business for my husband, winter weather. More physically active lifestyle. tropical fruits year round.
Cons of FL
Lack of job opportunities for me,house prices: taxes and insurance premiums off the roof, If there is another hurricane there is no saying how high insurance prices may go, also that might affect family joining me if they want to join us, constant heat, hurricanes, sucky schools, alligators, I hear that most everyone who lives in FL owns a gun ( MY BIGGEST CONCERN), bad/rude drivers, I hear the complaint about rude people but havent expereienced it, transient state, also the snowbirds during the winter months which makes the place more crowded, NO BASEMENTS. You can drive 6hrs and STILL be in FL. and if you are paying less than 500K, you can only afford an ugly home with zero lot size.
Ok so to wrap this up, we would look into moving to the Palm Beach Gardens/Jupiter area but I am concerned about not being able to afford the home that i want or enjoy the lifestyle for financial reasons. We invested in real estate in NY and now everything has taken a dive and we just want to stop the stress and go somewhere where we can be happy. i would HATE to have to move again...I LOVE ATL homes but i have expereienced nothing but boredom in ATL, if we picked ATL we would initially live in Rockdale county where our only friends are.
So the question is for those who have experienced both, or just live now in either place, please give us an idea of what to expect and which city would fit best into what we want. Let me know what you do for fun, and the life that you have expereienced in both places both good and bad. Fell free to point out some additional pros and cons.
If you have read this looong thread in its entirety... I THANK YOU.
"The Bling Factor?" It's worse in S FL if you think ATL is bad. Sounds like your mind is made up though. There are still a few good places to live in S FL.
I don't know Atlanta very well . . . I've got some relatives there, but they're relatives I haven't seen in more than 10 years, so that doesn't help. But just a few comment otherwise:
Quote:
Originally Posted by Newyorker2
Pros for Atlanta:
. . . larger black educated population
That's a backhanded knock against a large population of Florida. Where are you getting that statistic from? Is it simply based on high school or college graduation rates? (And where are you getting that statistic from anyway?)
Quote:
. . . Less opportunity for my husbands business ( this is in comparison to FL, in FL he can service businesses in Palm beach, Broward and Dade county, in ATL theres just ..ATL),
What automotive place gets a lot of business from Palm Beach, Broward AND Dade counties? That's not how Florida works socially. The sprawling urban/suburban area from the Palm Beaches to South Miami is about 120 miles long. Folks do not routinely go that far to get their cars fixed, or buy cars, or whatever your husband does. The business is going to be as local as it would be in Atlanta--probably just with less population density than you'd have in Atlanta (depending on exactly where in Atlanta and South Florida you are.) And just in case someone wanted to appeal to me being ignorant about that industry, my dad has been in the auto business (autobody and mechanic, and he's worked out of dealers, too) in Southeast Florida for about 35 years (after about 15 years in that business in Cleveland . . . yes, he's past retirement age and he's still working).
Quote:
. . . Lack of job opportunities for me . . .
I haven't been in a normal job market in Florida for awhile, but when I was, there was no problem getting office jobs there--I've worked various office jobs in the past, including being an office manager. I don't think we could know without you actually entering the job market in both Atlanta and South Florida that one has less opportunities for you than the other.
Quote:
taxes and insurance premiums off the roof
I don't know what Atlanta's taxes are like, but the property taxes in South Florida are FAR less than in New Jersey. Plus, don't forget that you can write property taxes (and mortgage interest) off. Re insurance, for the folks I know in Florida, for whom I know what they pay for insurance, many of them pay less than $1000 per year. To get a lower rate, you just need to have hurricane shutters, etc.
Quote:
If there is another hurricane there is no saying how high insurance prices may go
I don't know if there's a cap yet, but there have been legislative proposals for caps.
Quote:
constant heat
South Florida is warmer than most places. But it doesn't have constant heat, unless you define "heat" as "an average temperature greater than the high 60s".
Quote:
sucky schools
A child can do just as well in school in Florida as they can anywhere else. It depends on the child's personality and their interaction with their parents, friends and teachers, who are as variable as anyone else can be, no matter where you go.
Quote:
alligators,
Although if you go to the right places (like Everglades National Park), it's not that difficult to find an alligator, if you're in most urban and suburban places in South Florida, it's extremely unlikely that you'd ever see an alligator. Frogs and chameleons are another matter.
Quote:
transient state
One of my top pet peeves re complaints. Folks who live in multiple places or move around a lot aren't worse folks for that.
Quote:
and if you are paying less than 500K, you can only afford an ugly home with zero lot size.
That may be the most ridiculous thing you've said. What the heck have you been looking at in your real estate search?
.A child can do just as well in school in Florida as they can anywhere else. It depends on the child's personality and their interaction with their parents, friends and teachers, who are as variable as anyone else can be, no matter where you go.
I agree with almost everything you wrote except the above. The schools here are bad. Doing well in a bad school is not doing well.
I agree with almost everything you wrote except the above. The schools here are bad. Doing well in a bad school is not doing well.
The assessment of education quality, as exemplified here on City-Data, is another pet peeve of mine--and not just for Florida, but in general. It can turn into a big discussion, and if it is going to, we should probably start another thread about it. But I can just quickly ask you to tell me something about the criteria you're using to assess whether schools are bad or not.
I did ALL of my schooling in South Florida, by the way. I even went to public grade schools that were in the middle of the ghetto. So you're also saying that the schools I went to were bad. I'd like to hear a bit about how you're deciding whether a school is good or bad.
The assessment of education quality, as exemplified here on City-Data, is another pet peeve of mine--and not just for Florida, but in general. It can turn into a big discussion, and if it is going to, we should probably start another thread about it. But I can just quickly ask you to tell me something about the criteria you're using to assess whether schools are bad or not.
I did ALL of my schooling in South Florida, by the way. I even went to public grade schools that were in the middle of the ghetto. So you're also saying that the schools I went to were bad. I'd like to hear a bit about how you're deciding whether a school is good or bad.
Thanks very much for taking the time out to reply but my assessment of the schools in both FL and ATL was in comparison to the schools in the Northeast which is where i currently live. As we all know Education begins at home but its also the schools responsibility to ensure that the children are challenged and also have opportunity to excel in their interests. A complaint that many friends who have migrated both to ATL and SoFL have had is re: the school system in both areas.
(That's a backhanded knock against a large population of Florida. Where are you getting that statistic from? Is it simply based on high school or college graduation rates? (And where are you getting that statistic from anyway?)
ATl has the second or third largest population of educated blacks behind the DC and VA areas.. I will pull the site if you would like.
What automotive place gets a lot of business from Palm Beach, Broward AND Dade counties? That's not how Florida works socially. The sprawling urban/suburban area from the Palm Beaches to South Miami is about 120 miles long. Folks do not routinely go that far to get their cars fixed, or buy cars, or whatever your husband does.
My husband owns a MOBILE business which services COMPANIES with trucks and cars, ie the rental car industry, large landscaping companies, moving truck rental companies etc.. which is why i said that his business has him on the road 100% of the time (again the traffic factor). He can travel to many of the towns in either the palm beaches, broward or Miami depending on how he works his routes for that day. My question about ATL was if there is a concentration of that outside of ATL or would he only be able to find that inside the perimeter.
(I haven't been in a normal job market in Florida for awhile, but when I was, there was no problem getting office jobs there--I've worked various office jobs in the past, including being an office manager. I don't think we could know without you actually entering the job market in both Atlanta and South Florida that one has less opportunities for you than the other. )
Again getting this from peoples experiences. I understand that the job marlet is not hot in ATL either (recession) however i have a relative who has an MBA in HR and 8yrs of experience, lost her job after 4mths to moving there and it took about 9mths for her to get another one.
constant heat, unless you define "heat" as "an average temperature greater than the high 60s".
This meant no change of season. I love the fall weather but the thought of beaches year round really appeals to us.
(One of my top pet peeves re complaints. Folks who live in multiple places or move around a lot aren't worse folks for that. )
I'd like to know who my neighbors are and feel secure in that they will be around for a while.
That may be the most ridiculous thing you've said. What the heck have you been looking at in your real estate search?[/quote]
beauty obvisouly is in the eye of the beholder. MOst of the homes that i have seen that have appealed to me have been above 500K. those below that might be decent but doesnt offer the high end finishes that i would like to have, or it may be on a very small lot size or in a community with outrageous fees. This is obviously a case of personal taste.
The assessment of education quality, as exemplified here on City-Data, is another pet peeve of mine--and not just for Florida, but in general. It can turn into a big discussion, and if it is going to, we should probably start another thread about it. But I can just quickly ask you to tell me something about the criteria you're using to assess whether schools are bad or not.
I did ALL of my schooling in South Florida, by the way. I even went to public grade schools that were in the middle of the ghetto. So you're also saying that the schools I went to were bad. I'd like to hear a bit about how you're deciding whether a school is good or bad.
The criteria I am using to evaluate schools is the experiences my children and my neighbor's children have had in the local public schools. In my opinion the curriculum is lacking and the schools have become focused on doing well on the state's standardized tests. There is a huge concern about getting everyone to pass the tests, but very little done to ensure that the kids who are passing easily are challenged and pushed to EXCEL, not just pass.
I am an educator.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
