[dmmeier]

Hello my fiance and I are thinking about moving to florida. We currently live in illinois. We have figured up the difference in cost of living...from what we have read. We know people in jacksonville, tampa, and we have family in gainesville. We know we want to stay in the northern part of florida. Our problem is finding nice little rural communities with in a 30min-hour commute of a bigger city. We must have some grass, a garage, and a house that is atleast 1,200 sq foot. Could you guys help me out? What are the names of some of those rual area's that fit what we want. We would like to stay near gainesville since that is where our family is located but within a couple hours of there is okay. We also want someplace that will be a good place to start and raise a family. Just let me know the good and bad all if you would. I will soon have a degree in drafting and design engineering (in may!!) and he just has experience no schooling. He has over 5 years of manager experience, manufacturing experience,sheet metal fabrication, and HVAC (heating ventilationa and air conditioning), he has 2 years experience with phnematics, hydrolics, electrical, and welding. I am getting mixed findings on these jobs. We need to know about how much we would be making both of us so if any of you live in florida and do anything simialar to us if you wouldnt mind telling me an approximate salary that would be fantastic.

Thank you all very very much.

[riveree]

If you want to be in a rural community close to Gainesville, try looking into Keystone Heights.

There are some downsides though. By living in a rural community, you will be driving to get to a lot of things. You might be driving to Jacksonville or Gainesville for work each day. Want to rent a movie at Blockbuster? You'll need to drive to the nearest city (Gainesville). With the cost of gas (and it won't be going down...it's only going to keep going up), I think driving distance is a real consideration .

Also, the rural areas aren't staying so rural. Developers have been building out there too. It's slowed down some, but if the market picks up again, you might be living amongst developments.

Jacksonville is not far from Gainesville, and if you decide to look into it you have some choices there. You can stay inside the Jacksonville city limits on the far Westside of the city and live the rural lifestyle. You can also go outside the Jacksonville city limits into the surrounding counties and look into Callahan, Yulee, Middleburg - I think these can be better choices than Keystone Heights if you end up working in Jacksonville, better commute (though still a long commute). Lake City is another community you might like.

But really, North Florida is so laid back, I hardly think there's anything to gain by getting too far from the cities. Try looking into Gainesville and Jacksonville proper before committing to living too far out - you might find the lifestyle you want without having to be out in the middle of nowhere. Most people today who live out "in the country" still go to the grocery store to buy their food...they just drive longer to get there .

[daytripper]

Maybe pensacola, gulf breeze, navarre, Ft Walton Beach areas. Rural around these areas would be Jay, Milton, Baker,Crestview, Mossy Head. Should find employment for the skills you mentioned and property is still more affordable in comparison to other places.

[smmal]

With out a doubt, LAKE CITY.

[kate26]

we are relocating to north florida in the next month and are having trouble deciding on which subdivion to chose for our family, some have to many fees some have no pool, some are to far from the beach, we wanted to buy but maybe we should rent, how are the house values and the lifestyle for a family with kids....?

[mango23]

Originally Posted by smmal

With out a doubt, LAKE CITY.

I have asked about lake city and live oak in the past and didn't really get any feed back. Can you elaborate a little?

[2goldens]

I would say in-between Gainesville and (2 hours) Tallahassee. Would this distance be a problem? As for the employment market, you can look up EMPLOY FLORIDA website to get a general idea of the job market.