[klh209]

I recently recieved a job offer that would relocate my boyfriend and I to the Fort Walton Beach area. I would be traveling around the panhandle to AL, GA, and of course other portions of FL. My boyfriend would be working at Eglin AFB so we'd want to stay close to there. Any suggestions on good apartment/condo rentals? We currently live in a great town with tons of neat resturaunts, little shops, etc all within walking distance. Is there something similar to that in the area? We both love the outdoors, running, biking, etc, so an area where we could walk around to shops would be great for us. We'd also like an area that's close in our age range (25-30).

Any and all suggestions would be VERY helpful! Thank you!!!

[beachmouse]

You can have a pretty high quality of life in the area. However, there were only about 5K people in Okaloosa County total before the Air Force moved down here during World War II, and it's essentially a suburban-style car town, not a walking town. Closest to what you're looking for would probably be the Eliot Point area close to downtown FWB and east of Eglin Pkwy. If you don't need to walk there, I'd look in the Shalimar area close to Eglin's West Gate and the Bluewater Bay area east of Niceville. They're both smallish suburbs around a commercial core. Shalimar is dozens of different subdivisions while Bluewater is a big master-planned community that's as pedestrian-friendly as you get around here. Some people recommend Crestview because it's significantly cheaper, but it's suburban sprawl hell and you really have to drive to get to what makes the area unique. (ie. south county by the coast)

Despite the large number of transient folks in the area, there really aren't as many apartment complexes in the area as you'd expect, and you can often rent a small house for the price of an apartment. Housing costs will seem expensive if you're coming from Tulsa and cheap if you're coming from Miami/West Palm.

The nice thing is that once you get in the car, the area does have a lot to offer. People here come from all over the world and have brought their food with them, and add in the extra diners the tourist side of the area brings in, the restaurant options really are pretty staggering for an area of about 200K people. My only complaint is the lack of good Chinese food- PF Chang's is probably the best option for that- but the mom and pop Thai that seems to be everywhere makes up for that lack.

There are always a lot of 20somethings and 30somethings around because of the Air Force, and should be easy for your boyfriend to get you connected into the base social networks.

And plenty of outdoor recreation options here. Run before 8:30am in July and August or you will melt into the pavement, and there are a couple weeks in winter where it's cool enough to dig out the running tights, but otherwise it's generally pleasant to be out and about once you acclimate to some degree. Biking is not the greatest because there are roughly two north-south and two east-west roads that are the way to get anywhere south of I-10, but there are some routes that are good for road biking. Talk to the folks at Dragon Sports in Fort Walton Beach, Robin's Bicycles in Destin/Miramar Beach or Emerald Coast Cyclists for good route info. (all of those should be easily googlable) Triathlon is big in these parts, and there's some great canoe and kayak opportunities on Eglin Reservation waterways.

[klh209]

Beachmouse,

Thank you so much for your help!! I keep reading that the traffic in that area gets pretty rough in the summer (I'm from the Jersey Shore, so I'm no stranger to insane traffic haha), but since I will be driving north for my commute in the AM, do you think I'll hit any of that? And I'm so glad you mentioned triathlons, I'm doing my first one soon so that's a BIG plus for the area =)

Thank you again for all of your help!!

[beachmouse]

Although traffic is surprisingly heavy for an area its size, the only places I'd call seriously bad in the greater scheme of things are in the mornings on US 98 near the Hurlburt Field gate year-round, and afternoons going through Destin during the summer tourist months. If you're talking the Ft. Walton Beach-Crestview route for your main work trips, I'd call that traffic heavy but manageable with the biggest concern probably being the deer that come right up to Hwy 85 at twilight, which conicides with evening rush hour during the winter.

[SteveandAshley]

Fort Walton Beach is an EXPENSIVE GHETTO. If you want to be bored in a really nice home go to Crestview South of I-10. North Crestview is a trailer park or worse and the Traffic is the worst in the County next to 98 on the Mary Esther side. I have lived in Crestview. 2600 sqft home for 1050 a month. It was to far from the beach and things to do. Then I moved to Bluewater Bay Niceville. Close to Eglin and the beach. Homes are expensive but worth it. Rent could get you in blue water right now at about 1100 a month. I now live in Miramar Beach and absolutly love it. I make the 40 minute drive to Duke Field all week and do it with a smile on my face because my family and I do so much now that its all down the street. Traffic is not bad if you are East of the MidBay bridge. Destin is a little ghetto near the airport so if you see a good deal over there there is a reason for that. 30A which is about a 40 minute drive from Eglin is the most beautiful place on earth. Literally. Famous people have homes there. You can rent there and buy there for cheap. This is a link to the MLS down here. You should buy here because the market is about rock bottom right now. If you buy a home near the beach it will be easier to rent later if you PCS. Select more option and in the first set of check boxes click REO. These will be the homes that are forclosures that are being sold at that price by the bank and approved unlike short sales. You will find amazing homes for dirt cheap. Dont stray from this list beacause anything else is market price and you want a little equidy when you buy a home. Miramar Beach, Santa Rosea and Destin. No oil on the beaches. Hope this helps. You can also search rentals with this site. Use craigslist as well.

EmeraldCoastHomesOnline.com

[beachmouse]

And there are also some very nice parts of Destin near the airport. Just stick with single family neighborhoods and avoid getting close to older looking townhouse developments because those are often places where seasonal foreign service industry workers are warehoused for the summer.

But in general, the further east you get in Destin, the nicer it gets, and the airport area is decidedly further east than the area due north of the Harbor/Emerald Grande, which has some high poverty pockets that most people wouldn't expect based on Destin's reputation.