[ilohmeyer]

Hi everyone!

My boyfriend and I are looking to move to Florida with my small corgi, Bella.

We just got back from St. Pete Beach from a vacation and although we were expecting it to be hot, we did not expect on how poor the surrounding area was.

We're trying to decide our next trip and after extensive research we're still stumped as to where to go next.

We're looking for a low crime, dog friendly beach, job availability with a great town attached to all that.

Is that something that is only in our dreams?

We've come up with...

Jupiter
Juno Beach
Vero Beach
West Palm Beach
Cape Coral
Naples
Dunedin

We really need some help here.

Thank you in advance

[Restrain]

Look at the sub-forums on this thread.

[jghorton]

Everyone has to live somewhere ... Why not Florida? -- We made that decision almost 45-years ago, thinking, "Florida looks like a great place to live; Why not make the move now while we are young enough to really enjoy all it has to offer. We've never looked back or regretted the move.

The simple fact is that most young people have to work (even in the 'Disney World' state!). Employment, not beach access and dog-friendly beaches; needs to be your top priority. Once you establish a meaningful employment platform, the rest will take care of itself. For example, I negotiated a deal with the company I was already with, in order to make the move (early 20's) - and my wife was a schoolteacher.

Florida is a widely diverse state with much to offer, but, one needs more of a real-world criteria than is apparent in your OP. Your list of cities seems like a strange mixture (?) - What was your selection criteria?. -- What type of work do you do now and can you establish any Florida links through that? (ie; Companies with Florida locations or high-demand occupations, such as healthcare).

[ilohmeyer]

Thank you so much for responding.

We did research online as far as safest cities in Florida for 2015 and worked from there. Value Penguin gave great advice.

My boyfriend has been doing lightning protection for almost 11 years and I'm in the HVAC business (office not field lol)

Employment is very important and we ultimately want to start our own lighting protection company but starting a family is also very important and that's where the beach access, dog friendly comes in.

His parents and my mother are actually going to move with us as well, not in, but they have chosen to make the move as well.

[runswithscissors]

We're looking for a low crime, dog friendly beach, job availability with a great town attached to all that.

Well at least you didn't say "great schools" like everyone else LOL. But great schools are usually a reflection of a great community and not necessarily a budget community.

What does extensive research actually mean?

You have to drive all over the place up and down each coast if you want to be coastal.

I did "extensive research" for 6 months flying up and down too many times to count and I GREW UP HERE and knew all about Florida.

You gave almost no information - like your budget.

The dog friendly beach is going to be as big an obstacle as jobs, IME. And I'm a professional dog walker.

You're going to have to find jobs first and not be all that picky about the area. There are good areas all up and down the East Coast that you didn't mention but you may fall into the St Lucie County category or Brevard since you have three households you're looking for.

[JayGatsby]

I can't comment on a dog friendly beach, but I think Jupiter and Sarasota might be a couple good candidates for you based on the other criteria.

[kyle19125]

I would recommend the Jupiter/Juno Beach/Tequesta area which has the amenities and other criteria you're looking for and more of a year-round resident vibe versus some of the other options which can fluctuate dramatically from a business standpoint (with seasonal residents coming/then going), which is something you should greatly consider.

[allenk893]

Originally Posted by ilohmeyer

We've come up with...

Jupiter
Juno Beach
Vero Beach
West Palm Beach
Cape Coral
Naples
Dunedin

I would avoid the east coast all together. I lived there half my life and it's just a bunch of nonsense. St. Pete is changing slowly but it's still pretty much an older community. I would very much recommend Clearwater, FL. It's right by the ocean and you have access to Tampa area jobs and a nice quality of living. If not that, then the Tampa suburbs would be great as well. New Tampa, Tampa Palms, Brandon, etc. are some good neighborhoods to look into.

[kyle19125]

Originally Posted by allenk893

I would avoid the east coast all together. I lived there half my life and it's just a bunch of nonsense. St. Pete is changing slowly but it's still pretty much an older community. I would very much recommend Clearwater, FL. It's right by the ocean and you have access to Tampa area jobs and a nice quality of living. If not that, then the Tampa suburbs would be great as well. New Tampa, Tampa Palms, Brandon, etc. are some good neighborhoods to look into.

Care to elaborate how the entire 350+ mile east coast of Florida is "nonsense"?

[ilohmeyer]

Extensive research means that we've been looking online at articles and ratings as far as best places to live. We've been looking at the crime rates as well, graphs and statistics.

We've been asking our friends that live in Florida too.

I guess our budget for now would be $1650 a month for rent. We agreed that it would be smarter to rent for a year and then think about buying if we love the area.

It's a lot to think about when it comes to hurricane season, shark attacks, jobs, crime and so on.

Thank you all again for all your help with this, it's definitely a huge help.