[MiaMia411]

I am looking possibly to relocate to Florida but i havent been there enough to really make a full on move yet. I am from NJ and my wife is from CT , we currently reside in Texas but looking to move out as its not for us.

We are both outdoors type of people that love the beaches, hiking, mountain biking, lakes, rivers, kayaking, and just being outdoors. Being from the east coast we were able to do everything, but we can careless about the snow and cold.

My wife is in the customer service/admin assistant field and i have always had my own small business ( pizzeria ) . We sold out on the east coast, packed up and moved down to Texas outside of Austin. We are currently just working normal jobs right now and i didnt invest my money to open up down here due to being unsure of the state and how we felt about it.

We have a baby on the way, so schools and great communities are our priorities now. Would love to be in an area that has a good suburban lifestyle , has close amenities, but dont want to live downtown in the heat of it all. Looking for affordable , up to 250k for a house. Looking for a solid area that has good economy with strong middle class. What towns or areas would you advise us to check out since we are going to take some time to come and look at Florida?

How is the COL there too? As far as car insurance, utilities, and taxes seem VERY low.
We are not conservatives or super liberals, we love diversity, not church goes or religion freaks, we love to check out areas that have nice parks , museums , and doing fun stuff with out future kids.

I know Florida gets many hurricanes but being on the east coast we have gotten bad storms as well, so an area that doesnt get hit with too many storms would be good too . Thank you !

[kyle19125]

As an FYI, we don't get many hurricanes. It's been since 2005 we had the last one...

In the 225K-250K bracket for excellent public schools, more family-friendly neighborhoods in a coastal area, middle of the road politically and with a stronger economy check out Tampa. The Bloomingdale/FishHawk Ranch area has a good number of very desirable housing in your price bracket.

[HarryWho?]

I agree and would add Wesley Chapel.

[macrodome2]

Palm Harbor has good schools and is commutable to Tampa. I have a relative who has a business in Tampa and commutes from Palm Harbor. She researched extensively and select Palm Harbor because of the schools. She has 4 kids that all went to the Palm Harbor schools.

[MAniacTHW]

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCh6...5x2iGa8rLqVuwA

[NALEXAND]

I recommend the Tampa Bay area

[StarfishKey]

Originally Posted by kyle19125

As an FYI, we don't get many hurricanes. It's been since 2005 we had the last one...

To say we don't get many hurricanes based on only 10 years in all of Florida history is ridiculous and utterly unscientific.

We have had some 500 recorded hurricanes and tropical storms here in about as many years. More hurricanes hit Florida than any other state in the US:
List of Florida hurricanes - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

In 2004 and 2005 alone 7 hurricanes made landfall in Florida, which was the worst 2 back-to-back years on record.

This article details some of the extremely expensive damage from storms post-2005 in Florida, as well as associated loss of life: http://www.miamiherald.com/news/weat...le1965294.html
It's been quieter lately, but by no means quiet. And we have every reason to expect major storms to make landfall in the future.

Tropical storms are every bit as much of a concern as hurricanes, given that they don't have the heavier winds but sometimes have the worst flooding. There was a year in the 1960s when the Upper Keys for instance did not have any hurricanes, but got 21 FEET of flooding just in the month of June!! That causes serious damage, and risk to life, just as much as a major hurricane would. Also, people tend to be less careful in tropical storms and more people get washed into storm drains or get electrocuted in water when their car stalls in a puddle, because they don't stay home.

Although the question is asked constantly, there is NO PART of Florida that has not been affected by hurricanes. There is not really a good indicator either that certain areas are far worse than others, except of course that waterfront areas are more vulnerable, and further inland and further North might tend to have less damage. But there's really no clear rule, and none of it matters if you happen to live in the town that gets the direct hit the year there is a major hurricane. The only thing we have is statistical predictors that tell us if a town is overdue or likely based on how often over recorded Florida weather history each area usually gets affected. Many areas, particularly in SFL, are considered long overdue at this time, which makes it more likely every year that a major hit would occur in the region, statistically speaking. No one can 100% predict though.

If moving to any part of Florida, hurricane preparedness will need to be a part of life. It will also affect your home insurances, which can get extremely expensive the closer you are to the coast.
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Based on what you're looking for, I would tend to say SFL does not fit well, except perhaps somewhere in the Ft. Lauderdale area if you really like the bottom half. Maybe more Central FL, near either coast? I don't know Central and Northern Florida as well to say definitively. By the way, SFL car insurance is some of the most expensive in the country, due to the extremely dangerous driving practices in the region.

[kyle19125]

Originally Posted by StarfishKey

To say we don't get many hurricanes based on only 10 years in all of Florida history is ridiculous and utterly unscientific.

We have had some 500 recorded hurricanes and tropical storms here in about as many years. More hurricanes hit Florida than any other state in the US:
List of Florida hurricanes - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

In 2004 and 2005 alone 7 hurricanes made landfall in Florida, which was the worst 2 back-to-back years on record.

Not really, ask residents of the Northeast US if the past 10 years of hurricane/super storm activity is of the norm. Clearly for those who are paying any attention one can see overall climatology is in fact changing. To hear repeatedly that Florida is always in the crosshairs for hurricanes and paying a hefty insurance premium for it is getting old for many of us. In terms of major hurricanes (the ones that actually cause any kind of significant damage) Florida has seen 7 in the past 25 years, with 5 occurring in a 2-year span 10 years ago. That certainly isn't "many".

****Anecdotal story...I had been shopping for a better home insurance policy and was having a phone conversation with an agent with one of the major insurers whose offices are located somewhere out of state and she said something to the affect of "Oh, it must be difficult to find better rates since you're always getting hit by hurricanes" to which I replied actually we're not given it's almost 10 years now since we've had one and prior all of 4 hurricanes had made landfall in the state since I was born (1960). The point is if we keep pouring the Kool-Aid for those that want to perpetuate that Florida is the crossroads for all hurricanes, we're going to keep forking over gobs of insurance premiums paying for natural disasters elsewhere.

[StarfishKey]

There is no need to get into a debate here. But just to clarify for the sake of the OP's decision-making, the idea that no tropical storms cause damage to the state of Florida in modern times is just wildly inaccurate. I myself have no interest in paying for hazard insurance at all, as I feel confident it is on the level of a scam for the purposes for which I need it - if it were not required, I would drop it and self-insure, because I make no claims unless it is a total disaster, and even then my research would suggest I'm unlikely to recoup much of what I've paid into all the insurances combined because it is part of their business model to avoid payouts.

But, the amount of damage storms have caused in Florida since 1960 is enormous. One would think a long-time resident would know that whether a hurricane makes landfall, or whether a storm is even classified as a hurricane, is fairly irrelevant to whether significant property damage or fatalities may occur. There is really no doubt with all of this damage that insurance companies are losing money on the state - especially waterfront locations - if for every bit of damage an owner makes a claim. Which is why only the govt will give us our wind and flood now, because it is simply not profitable for private companies:
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"1950–1974

In the period between 1950 and 1974, 85 tropical or subtropical cyclones impacted the state, which collectively resulted in about $6.2 billion (2008 USD) in damage, primarily from Hurricanes Donna and Dora. Additionally, the storms were directly responsible for 93 fatalities and indirectly for 23 more deaths. Several tropical cyclones produced over 20 inches (500 mm) of rainfall in the state, including Hurricane Easy, which is the highest total during the period. The 1969 season was the year with the most tropical cyclones affecting the state, with a total of 8 systems. The 1954 and 1967 seasons were the only years during the period in which a storm did not affect the state.

The strongest hurricane to hit the state during the period was Hurricane Donna, which was the 8th strongest hurricane on record to strike the United States.[9] Additionally, Hurricanes Easy, King, Cleo, Isbell, and Betsy hit the state as major hurricanes.


1975–1999

In the period between 1975 and 1999, 83 tropical or subtropical cyclones affected the state, which collectively resulted in $45 billion (2008 USD) in damage, primarily from Hurricane Andrew, and 54 direct casualties. The 1985 season was the year with the most tropical cyclones affecting the state, with a total of 8 systems. Every year included at least 1 tropical cyclone affecting the state. The strongest hurricane to hit the state during the period was Hurricane Andrew, which was one of only three Category 5 hurricanes to strike the United States. Andrew, at the time, was the costliest tropical cyclone in United States history and remains the second-costliest. Additionally, Hurricanes Eloise, David, and Opal hit the state as major hurricanes.


2000–2012

The period from 2000 to 2012 was marked by several devastating North Atlantic hurricanes; as of 2013, 63 tropical or subtropical cyclones have affected the U.S. state of Florida. Collectively, cyclones in Florida over that period resulted in over $64 billion in damage (2008 USD). Additionally, tropical cyclones in Florida were responsible for 69 direct fatalities and at least 80 indirect ones during the period. Eight cyclones affected the state in both 2003 and 2005, which were the years with the most tropical cyclones impacting the state. Every year included at least one tropical cyclone affecting the state. The damage costs from Sandy to some structures in Florida are estimated to have been $60 million.

The strongest hurricane to hit the state during the period was Hurricane Charley, which was the strongest hurricane to strike the United States since Hurricane Andrew. Additionally, Hurricanes Jeanne, Dennis, Wilma, and Hurricane Ivan made landfall on the state as major hurricanes, although Katrina was just a Category 1 when it made landfall."


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In the time between 1950 and 2012, tropical storms caused $115.2 BILLION in property damage in Florida, and 319 deaths. The damage and fatalities continued to add up all the way into 2012.

[MiaMia411]

Thank you for the replies and different opinions , i am just trying to keep an open mind and collect any information that i can.