Relocating from LA to West Palm Beach-family (Miami, Sunrise: foreclosure, rentals)
West Palm Beach - Boca Raton - Boynton BeachPalm Beach County
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Wireyourworld ~ thanks for all of that. I am actually very concerned about hurricanes but as everyone keeps reminding me...at least you get some notice. Unlike our earthquakes here. So that has put me at ease a bit.
How long does it actually take to get to the beach from a nice area like, say...Wellington? And how is parking there once you get there? Traffic/parking are a nightmare in the Santa Monica/Venice area where I used to work/live...but I could walk to the beach so it was fine. But if anyone came to visit it was horrible. And at least $10 to park in a lot.
Ideally, I'd love to live at least biking distance from a beach. But I would sacrifice that for safety and a great community with activity.
MiamiLIFE & Skylinet ~ thanks for the buzz on Jupiter area...will def look there.
to all ~ any advice on what to watch out for when renting a house? i.e., to make sure the windows are hurricane proof or anything? We swore we wouldn't live in a high rise or anything above a ranch level house once we experienced several earthquakes out here. So what would be good to keep in mind when renting a house there to avoid flood damage...etc.
For mid-county (wellington, RPB, to palm beach, you'll be looking at Singer Island area mainly. There is a public lot, I don't remember if there is a fee or not. Honestly I cannot possibly care less about the beach, so I'm probably the wrong person to ask about the beach. There is traffic, its annoying but not comparable to LA traffic. Yeah, I drove there, for five days. To be able to WALK to the beach from home you probably need to be in the Delray area or south, I don't believe their beaches are protected by barrier islands. Or you have to be able to afford to live on one of the islands. Look at a map of south florida. For housing you want to consider how many feet above sea level it is, and how good the drainage looks. As a landlord of a small house, that I like to have, I take personal responsibility for boarding it upi for hurricanes, though I don't know if its the law. If you're in a townhome there is most likely an HOA that handles it, my parents are across state and have a company that comes to put their shutters up if it looks like a storm is coming.
Mostly you'll have to come and explore.
Oh, downtown from wellington at 441/7 is about 15-20 minutes depending on traffic. Maybe another 15 minutes to a beach, depending on where you're going. Not walkable though!
Wireyourworld ~ thanks for all of that. I am actually very concerned about hurricanes but as everyone keeps reminding me...at least you get some notice. Unlike our earthquakes here. So that has put me at ease a bit.
How long does it actually take to get to the beach from a nice area like, say...Wellington? And how is parking there once you get there? Traffic/parking are a nightmare in the Santa Monica/Venice area where I used to work/live...but I could walk to the beach so it was fine. But if anyone came to visit it was horrible. And at least $10 to park in a lot.
Ideally, I'd love to live at least biking distance from a beach. But I would sacrifice that for safety and a great community with activity.
MiamiLIFE & Skylinet ~ thanks for the buzz on Jupiter area...will def look there.
to all ~ any advice on what to watch out for when renting a house? i.e., to make sure the windows are hurricane proof or anything? We swore we wouldn't live in a high rise or anything above a ranch level house once we experienced several earthquakes out here. So what would be good to keep in mind when renting a house there to avoid flood damage...etc.
1) you're over obessing about hurricanes.
2) Wellington is not biking distance from the beach. And quite, Frankly I don't like Wellington. It has no charm to me at all. It is very suburban and extremely boring. My sister lived there for a while and I hated visiting her there. I work in Manhattan but I am in FL often for business.
3) My sister lives in Palm Beach Gardens. Very easy to get around over there. Close to the airport and very close to the beach and the beach areas in Juno and Jupiter are beautiful. Grilling areas, showers, volley ball courts and always manned by a park ranger. Whenever I visit my sister in Palm Beach Gardens, I go to Juno Beach. Lovely.
4) Jupiter has lots of great neighorboods with sidewalks, parks and nice landscaping. My sister use to live in Jupiter as well. I loved her neighborhood. I use to go for a walk everynight after dinner. Wellington isn't pedestrian friendly and not close to beach. I don't get the attractiveness of Wellington at all unless you ride horses. It's a big Polo community for the wealthy. Lots of gated communities. It feels so closed off.
5) Looks like more and more people leaving CA, IL, NY and NJ...the citizens bankrupted all these states. Sad how much financial debt those states have accrued and no end in sight.
Here's a list of historic neighorhoods in WPB. You should have a broker show these communities. Sounds like what you're looking for can be found here....these are the areas that I am targeting. I wanted a pedestrian friendly neighorhood. Short drive to beach and the ability to jog along Flagler and the intracoastal. http://www.wpb.org/neighborhoods/historic_districts.php
Last edited by MiamiLIFE; 01-09-2012 at 12:36 PM..
so true miamilife. It seems to me I hear more and more people leaving those states due to the high cost of living, sky high taxes, congestion and other reasons.
Jupiter/Gardens/Juno... maybe even North Palm Beach is my bet for you as well.
It's a bit suburban... definitely not the eclectic vibe you're looking for, but you are drivable to the more eclectic areas, such as downtown WPB, downtown Lake Worth and Delray Beach. As with most places, the more bohemian you get, the more authentic and real, the less polished and more grit you will find.
In Jupiter or Juno Beach area you can find neighborhoods that will get you bikable to the beach. Most likely you'll have a 5-10 minute drive.
Don't worry about crime in the suburbs. It's much below national average. The high crime areas are well known. You would never live in them by accident. Just by visiting you'd know to stay away.
1) you're over obessing about hurricanes.
2) Wellington is not biking distance from the beach. And quite, Frankly I don't like Wellington. It has no charm to me at all. It is very suburban and extremely boring. My sister lived there for a while and I hated visiting her there. I work in Manhattan but I am in FL often for business.
3) My sister lives in Palm Beach Gardens. Very easy to get around over there. Close to the airport and very close to the beach and the beach areas in Juno and Jupiter are beautiful. Grilling areas, showers, volley ball courts and always manned by a park ranger. Whenever I visit my sister in Palm Beach Gardens, I go to Juno Beach. Lovely.
4) Jupiter has lots of great neighorboods with sidewalks, parks and nice landscaping. My sister use to live in Jupiter as well. I loved her neighborhood. I use to go for a walk everynight after dinner. Wellington isn't pedestrian friendly and not close to beach. I don't get the attractiveness of Wellington at all unless you ride horses. It's a big Polo community for the wealthy. Lots of gated communities. It feels so closed off.
5) Looks like more and more people leaving CA, IL, NY and NJ...the citizens bankrupted all these states. Sad how much financial debt those states have accrued and no end in sight.
Here's a list of historic neighorhoods in WPB. You should have a
broker show these communities. Sounds like what you're looking for can be found here....these are the areas that I am targeting. I wanted a pedestrian friendly neighorhood. Short drive to beach and the ability to jog along Flagler and the intracoastal. Neighborhood Services - West Palm Beach, FL
I don't like jupiter or palm beach gardens for me personally but certainly wouldn't tell anyone not to look at it based on my personal opinion that its filled with wannabes either.
Last edited by wireyourworld; 01-09-2012 at 03:08 PM..
I don't like jupiter or palm beach gardens for me personally but certainly wouldn't tell anyone not to look at it based on my personal opinion that its filled with wannabes either.
Those areas meet many of the requirements that the OP mentioned. Wellington definitely doesn't fit the bill.
1) Jupiter is a nice community where you can know your neighbors;
2) It is close to the beach and near nice play areas for kids;
3) Lacking in culture, but close enough to West Palm to take advantage of the arts and entertainment offered there;
4) It is safe;
5) Schools ok. Probably not outstanding. FL schools aren't so great to begin with.
6) PGA has a Whole Foods.
Overall, Jupiter fits the OP almost perfectly.
Quote:
Ideally, I'd like to find:
1) ~ A great community (it's hard to find this in Los Angeles and I'm a mid-western gal...I like knowing my neighbors and calling the mailman by his first name). Plus community events like festivals, etc.
2)~ A nice walking area with restaurants, shops close to the beach and nice shady parks with play equipment for little ones.
3)~ Culture - as in theatre, art, dance, music...anything really.
4)~ Safe community (as in, I can come home at night by myself with my daughter and not be in fear that someone is going to mug me before I get into my house) - I've read that WPB has a pretty high crime rate.
5)~ Great public schools (nearby). I’m currently driving our daughter to a preschool 15 minutes away (so that’s an hour every day of driving for just 3 hours of school), and would prefer to be able to walk or ride bikes to school. I know preschools are private….well, they are out here, so you can go anywhere. I’m very picky about the school she goes to so I ended up picking the one farthest away. Plus, I’d like a school where parents are very involved.
6)~ Healthy natural food shopping nearby…I love Whole Foods but not their high prices. Is there a Trader Joe’s type store in Southern Florida?
Those areas meet many of the requirements that the OP mentioned. Wellington definitely doesn't fit the bill.
1) Jupiter is a nice community where you can know your neighbors;
2) It is close to the beach and near nice play areas for kids;
3) Lacking in culture, but close enough to West Palm to take advantage of the arts and entertainment offered there;
4) It is safe;
5) Schools ok. Probably not outstanding. FL schools aren't so great to begin with.
6) PGA has a Whole Foods.
Overall, Jupiter fits the OP almost perfectly.
Thanks so much!
I did hear about the schools and we are considering looking into private. We have a few years yet so I'll just be looking for preschools at this point.
Hubby wants to live in West Palm Beach but I'm not sure about that...not with a small child. I haven't been there yet but he's been twice now ~ he says it's like Santa Monica or Newport Beach on steroids (not sure if you're familiar with LA area or not).
Thanks so much!
I did hear about the schools and we are considering looking into private. We have a few years yet so I'll just be looking for preschools at this point.
Hubby wants to live in West Palm Beach but I'm not sure about that...not with a small child. I haven't been there yet but he's been twice now ~ he says it's like Santa Monica or Newport Beach on steroids (not sure if you're familiar with LA area or not).
Again, thank you all so much! This site rocks
Do you mean your husband wants to move to West Palm Beach - the city proper - or the greater West Palm Beach "area" (including the suburban cities)?
If you're doing private, there is absolutely no reason why having a small child should preclude you from looking at living in West Palm Beach proper.
Especially the intracoastal neighborhoods, such as the "South of Southern" area, or the historic neighborhoods. You should humor him and at least allow a knowledgeable realtor drive you around (one that specializes in the area, as many don't know jack about it).
You won't get as much house for the money (it's still quite expensive, price per square foot, compared to communities out west) but the neighborhoods in West Palm Beach are older and organically developed. REAL neighborhood and "small city" feel.
TriMT7 - good advice I think I am a bit of a control freak. (ha!) Yes, we'll look at everything we can when we go. Looking forward to it. Hubby's new business partner lives in downtown WPB with his wife and small child (not even 2) so we'll check it out. I didn't really want to live in a high rise. More interested in a single family or duplex...but we're renting first so I guess I can be flexible.
thanks again ~ can't wait to get there...I'm tired of looking at maps
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I think I am a bit of a control freak. (ha!) Yes, we'll look at everything we can when we go. Looking forward to it. Hubby's new business partner lives in downtown WPB with his wife and small child (not even 2) so we'll check it out. I didn't really want to live in a high rise. More interested in a single family or duplex...but we're renting first so I guess I can be flexible.
