Which beach town should I live in? I'm a young professional. (Jacksonville: fit in, real estate)

[Hitch22]

Okay, briefly, I found out that I am being relocated to Cocoa Beach for work--to Patrick AFB, in November. I'm coming from the Northeast, having spent much time in the concrete jungle of Manhattan and the woods in upstate New York. I'm about to turn 30-years-old.

From reading the posts here, many snowbirds and families relocate here. I fit into neither category, being that I'm newly single with no dependents. I prefer, really, the beach life and a nice social scene. Could anyone offer suggestions on where I should live? I've never lived on--nor even near--a beach, but I do receive a nice housing stipend that allows for it, at least that's what I've been led to believe. I'd be comfortable spending up to $900/month on a 1 bedroom/1 bath condo. In no way am I interested in a townhouse or house.

My worry is that I will move into a building (Del Boca Vista, anyone?) where I am the youngest resident by several decades. To avoid that catastrophe, and since I don't have much time to go "house hunting", I wanted to ask for advice on which beach towns and/or condo buildings I should live in. I'm disinclined to consider Melbourne or other inland towns. If I am being told to live somewhere for a few years, I want to live near the beach, even if it means straying from my age group. Also, I'd prefer a short commute to work.

Would Cocoa Beach, Satellite Beach, or Indialantic be an ideal place to live? I'm open to any suggestions and biased opinions. I'm even making a trip down later this week just to walk around neighborhoods and talk to people about the towns. I'd appreciate any insight. Thanks.

[chopchop0]

downtown melbourne

[Rabflmom]

You should be able to find a condo for rent in your price range in any of those towns. All are small towns on the beach with a few restaurants and a few bars......not a lot of night life. I would concentrate on just finding a condo with a pool, tennis courts, etc. and just plan social life knowing you might have to drive to various towns in the area and Orlando for it.
My son is single in young 30s too. He bought a house and sort of regrets it because it is not on the beach and he is a surfer. His friend who is a dentist has a condo in Cocoa Beach on the ocean and his friend who is a banker has a house in South Melbourne Beach on the beach. They all spend more time in Cocoa Beach unless the waves are better South. I would look in CB first and see what is available long term and then south of Patrick. I think the condos south might be a little newer than in CB which has a lot of older condos between Ron Jons and the pier on A1A. If you want ocean view though remember that A1A in Cocoa Beach is not always on the beach,sometimes it is about 2 blocks walk to beach.

[miakelly]

Satellite Beach maybe.....or Indialantic. Melbourne Beach is great, I live here and love it, but I am a Mom with two kids. It is a hidden gem for families but NO social scene if you are single. Indialantic is still mostly family oriented, but a bit more north and closer to the causeways (192 & Eau Gallie) so getting over to downtown Melbourne is close, quick & easy. When I say 'downtown Melbourne' I mean about 1/2 mile of restaurants & bars....that is about the social scene here. If you are working at Patrick, Satellite Beach would be a good fit....then you are close to the Pineda causeway which is not a bad drive into Orlando - you will find a much better single, social scene there. Try looking on vacation rentals by owner or vrbo.com or one of those sites, when we first moved here, we found temporary, furnished places using those sites and they worked out great. We started with a 2 month rental in Indialantic at Oceanside, then got a 3 month rental on the beach at the Breakers (talk about Del Boca Vista) but it really gave us time to evaluate the area. We decided on Melbourne Beach for our family. My personal opinion of your choices: Indialantic is nicest, Satellite Beach 2nd, Cocoa Beach 3rd.....but not much social scene beachside really so try to be close to a causeway so you can get off the island when you need to but after a while of being on the island, you find you don't really want to leave......I didn't believe people either when they first told me "we try to never go over the causeway"......I moved from Orlando and was like WHAT....that sounds so lazy??? But after being beachside for 18+ months, I get it. Anyway, we are in the opposite situation of yours. My husband was laid off from a company here and took a job in the Northeast....I dread going back to the cold and can't wait for the economy to improve so we can come back. It is very laid back here......if you love the beach, you'll love living here.

[nkt10]

If you're looking for a real estate agent, I can recommend Sandy Nickless with Coldwell Banker in the Melbourne Beach area. She's great, and she's got a lot of experience in the field. She can show you possible rentals within your price range. Good luck!

Here's a link to her contact information: Vero Beach Real Estate

[BillyG60]

I live in Indialantic, just off Eau Gallie. 2 blocks to the beach. Ride the bike to fish, surf and snorkel when no waves.

I rarely drive, as everything is close enough to ride the bike. I do drive over the causeway to work 5 nights a week at a Restaurant, but other than that rarely do...no need really. Being single myself, I find the night life lacking, and when you do hit downtown Melbourne---the Police will pull you for anything so be careful if drinking. You can find something Beachside for under $900 no problem.

Billy

[LA33301]

Dude, you're 30 coming from NYC? Bro, you're gonna hate life in this area of Florida. From Jupitor to Jacksonville is almost dead, chock full of families and old people. I would chose Jupiter. Orlando has much more going on, and Tampa. if I was 30 again, which i am not, i'd head out to SF ( San Francisco )

[sahara12]

If you REALLY want to learn to use a surfboard then beachside is you best bet.....A good board is long and heavy unless you have a pick up.

[Guyanese]

Originally Posted by LA33301

Dude, you're 30 coming from NYC? Bro, you're gonna hate life in this area of Florida. From Jupitor to Jacksonville is almost dead, chock full of families and old people. I would chose Jupiter. Orlando has much more going on, and Tampa. if I was 30 again, which i am not, i'd head out to SF ( San Francisco )

true story

[Manuel de Vol]

Originally Posted by Hitch22

...
From reading the posts here, many snowbirds and families relocate here. I fit into neither category, being that I'm newly single with no dependents. I prefer, really, the beach life and a nice social scene. Could anyone offer suggestions on where I should live? I've never lived on--nor even near--a beach, but I do receive a nice housing stipend that allows for it, at least that's what I've been led to believe. I'd be comfortable spending up to $900/month on a 1 bedroom/1 bath condo. In no way am I interested in a townhouse or house.

My worry is that I will move into a building (Del Boca Vista, anyone?) where I am the youngest resident by several decades. To avoid that catastrophe, and since I don't have much time to go "house hunting", ...

When we moved here (and we moved into an 'over 55' retirement community) we found that we were 'the youngest by several decades'.

It's hardly a problem. - Our neighbours don't keep us up at night and we don't have to put up with 'teenagers' with mega-boom boxes in cars with windows which won'tr keep the sound in.

One of my neighbours does tend to get a bit boring. He's got a hobby and he tells me about it every weekend. Free Fall parachuting is an 'OK' hobby and he's a brilliant (albeit retired) professional photographer, but you'd think that by the time somebody got to be 82, he would back off a bit and just enjoy his hobby.

That's the problem with living around old farts. They keep doing stuff (but at least they don't keep me awake at night )