Moving from Texas to area near Boca Raton (Deerfield Beach, Boynton Beach: apartment, lease)

[guymorris]

Hi to everyone from the warm humid Texas gulf coast!! My lease in my pricey one bedroom apartment ends in April 2017 and I'm tentatively planning on moving to one of the cities near Boca Raton. My son normally lives there with his mother but I had him living with me for the last year. I drove out there from Texas last summer just for a visit but ended up getting to bring him back here with me for a year. I loved that whole area of Florida:the weather,climate(like Texas,less humidity),the beaches were awesome,ocean water was pretty clear and seemed clean,restaurants,activities,locals for the most part seemed friendly and relaxed,etc. I work as a corrections officer 4 with TDCJ at a Texas prison. I already checked with Florida DOC about a job and it's a no go. They make you pay for your academy training through a contract college which I can't afford and they pay even less than Texas which is the lowest of all state agencies. My apartment rent is $820 and my car is paid for with insurance at $55 a month. I enjoyed my visit in Florida and wanted to stay. My son is 13 and I missed three years of being with him and want to be there for him. Where are the safest neighborhoods,most affordable housing,better paying jobs,etc? My son and his mother live in Boca Raton but I can't afford that. I'm thinking Boynton Beach,Delray Beach or Deerfield Beach. It's just myself as I'm divorced and not attached. What is the situation with concealed carry permitting around there? I'm a cyclist so what is the road riding,shops and similar community like in the above cities? Any advice is greatly appreciated. Thank you.

[BNBR]

Corrections would still pay better than most of the jobs you would probably find around here. Factor in benefits, also.

You mentioned you pay $820/mo in rent and that is "pricey" - but that won't get you much of anything in the Boca area. You will need to be over $1,000, minimum. For a nice place, $1200 - $1400.

Concealed carry, we are one of the best States, if not the best. You can get your permit and carry, simple. You take a 1 day class and submit your paperwork to the State. Permit shows up shortly after and you can carry almost anywhere (exception of schools, courthouse, police stations, government meetings, stadiums, etc.).

[john-staten island]

Originally Posted by BNBR

Corrections would still pay better than most of the jobs you would probably find around here. Factor in benefits, also.

You mentioned you pay $820/mo in rent and that is "pricey" - but that won't get you much of anything in the Boca area. You will need to be over $1,000, minimum. For a nice place, $1200 - $1400.

Concealed carry, we are one of the best States, if not the best. You can get your permit and carry, simple. You take a 1 day class and submit your paperwork to the State. Permit shows up shortly after and you can carry almost anywhere (exception of schools, courthouse, police stations, government meetings, stadiums, etc.).

Correction Officers easily qualify as Security Officers armed or unarmed in S.Florida.The pay can start low but rise if you show promise. Also the County Corrections pay better than the State system. To be a State Corrections officer in any state you have to have a pretty decent character,background,etc.You could move into other jobs with that background,that might be less difficult. As far as renting here in Boca you compete with college kids, snowbirds,etc that can push the prices up.I would suggest an area close to where you find work, commuting can be a hassle. Craigslist can be helpful for finding a rental,jobs,etc. but you have to be mindful of fraudsters.Moving and looking for work can be overwhelming if money is tight. You can find cheaper rents in areas that I wouldn't recommend due to crime.If you did take the hit and landed a state corrections job in Fl it would be steady work,benefits, and give you a starting point. I think Fl state corrections like Tx has a big turnover rate,probably why they have you pay some upfront costs.Good luck

[BNBR]

A county corrections officer makes over $40k. It's not amazing money, but it's decent enough to live comfortably here. And it's also the starting point - with good benefits and pension. For Broward, I'm almost certain they pay you to go to the academy for detention deputy. And it's plenty enough to live on. $1500 bi-weekly.

[klaucka]

there is a lot of road riding in the boca / delray area. check out the delray beach bike club. also, for a great shop check out the bicycle lab on federal highway.

[ByeByeLW]

So you have to go to the academy? You can't do "comparative compliance" or whatever it is?
Maybe that just applied to out of state police officers, not DOC. I ran across that while researching something for a story; that's all I know.

I had found the info on the pbso and PBCC (now Palm Beach State College) websites.