[bgeeke]

Hello -

We are moving back to Florida and are looking at St Johns or Boca. I am looking for very good schools (I have 3 school aged boys), safe and friendly neighborhoods, where I can find a nice house in the $250k - $350k range. I work from home so I don't care about commuting and my husband is a chef so he doesn't commute in typical rush hour times. That being said, there should be a decent food scene within an hour of our location.

Any advice? Any other areas you would consider in South Florida?

Thanks!

[StreetSmarts]

Sjc!

[Swimmom32]

your price range is a bit low for Boca...It is quite expensive to live here....I have only heard really good things about St Johns county I would really do your homework on both....You can check out the schools and compare them and look up the report card/Accountablilty for both schools...Boca I would check Central Boca-33496 and 33433 but some of 33433 do not go to the same schools as they have been Rezoned for this year's school year, my daughters friends have been affected by this and there are some developments in 33433 that extend into a different West Boca High School than opposed to Spanish River HS..

good Luck

[kyle19125]

St John's County hands down. The school system is ranked #1 in the state, it has very safe/family-friendly neighborhoods and little sprawl/congestion. The Ponte Vedra Beach area would probably be the most appealing as it's in a beautiful area on the coast and offers many homes in your price range, plus close proximity to Jacksonville's restaurant scene. St Augustine is also well within the hour drive should your husband wind up working there. Just as an FYI should hurricanes and living on/near the coast come up. The coastal area from St Augustine northward has the lowest hurricane strike probability/history of any coastal area between Wrightsville beach, NC all the way around to Corpus Christi, TX thanks to the strong offshore current called the Gulfstream, which pulls storms out and away from the coast where they typically either go out to sea or landfall in the Carolinas.

[bgeeke]

Thank you! Outside of Ponte Vedra are there any areas that are better than others in SJC? My husband mentioned flooding from rivers?

[kyle19125]

World Golf Village, Palencia and the Johns Creek area are the driest, with zero flood plain.

[jhlcomp]

I would go for st. Johns, too.

[bgeeke]

thanks for the information so far. What about crime? Does this seem accurate to you or why does crime seem so high? Moderator cut: link removed, linking to competitor sites is not allowed

[kyle19125]

Originally Posted by bgeeke

thanks for the information so far. What about crime? Does this seem accurate to you or why does crime seem so high? Moderator cut: link removed, linking to competitor sites is not allowed

Some of those stats are way off, and that would be one. With "10" the highest St John's County ranks an "8"? It's not exactly Detroit or Baltimore. I would say the Florida Department of Law Enforcement's stats are more accurate and show a crime rate of 2700 per 100,000 residents, and is on par with where I live in Seminole County which is deemed pretty safe as well. Factor in further that crime in Florida tends to be segregated into areas where you would be hard pressed to spend much if any time and it further reduces "the odds". Common sense and "street smarts" are needed pretty much anywhere in the US these days but certainly wouldn't call that area dangerous on any level.

http://www.fdle.state.fl.us/Content/..._annual11.aspx

[bgeeke]

Thanks. I was wondering if the majority of it is closest to Jacksonville or St. Augustine, from the high tourist activity?

I've been looking at the houses and was wondering, are there any areas where you don't have HOA fees? It seems like every house has them. Why is this?

Any estimates on house insurance (with hurricane and flood protection) for a house around $350k?