Moving to Fort Lauderdale area from MA (Sunrise, Tamarac: high crime, townhouse)

[BNBR]

Originally Posted by ruski

You don't need a permit to have a gun at home. Or in your car's glove comparetment, separate from the magazine.

Please be careful about making up laws on the internet.

(17) “Securely encased” means in a glove compartment, whether or not locked; snapped in a holster; in a gun case, whether or not locked; in a zippered gun case; or in a closed box or container which requires a lid or cover to be opened for access.

The gun can be loaded, one in the chamber, ready to go. No concealed permit is necessary.

[Whereitwent]

Originally Posted by mabell228

I just don't understand some people on here. I am a newbie going to a new location and am looking for reasonable answers. No need to be fresh just looking for direction. For those of you who were nice and answered my questions to help guide me, thank you.

I mean, you asked if living around here requires you to carry a gun to be safe. I honestly couldn't tell if you were joking or not. No, you don't need to carry a firearm around here to be safe. If you find yourself having to carry a concealed weapon to keep yourself secure where you live, move ASAP. Even if you do carry a firearm, the chance of it aiding you in a situation where you are the victim of a crime, unless you are a seriously skilled marksman, is very low, while the chance of injuring yourself and or others is very high. 60 minutes did a segment on this recently and found that most people carrying guns to defend themselves were ineffective at best at deterring or preventing crime against them due to lack of proper gun training.

Your second question asked if, basically, you could get the best of both worlds for a low price — through your research, it should be patently obvious that this area has a very high cost of living. You're not going to get the cream of the crop for a bargain down here.....

[Whereitwent]

Originally Posted by mabell228

Thank you. That is good to hear. We are so tired of the winters here and only being able to use our pool 2 months out of the year. We are looking to live on the outskirts of Fort lauderdale, not in Fort Lauderdale (I know that is too expensive). Also the closer we are to the ocean the more expensive it is. A 15 minute drive to the ocean is not bad at all. The ultimate goal is to buy a house with 2-3 bedrooms, 2 baths keeping it around $225,000. Fingers crossed I can find a job before we move down there, I am thinking it would be too hard to rent with 4 dogs. From looking on Trulia and other sites, we can get a decent house at the price???

If you're moving here solely because of the weather, I'd reevaluate your moving plans. The novelty of sweltering hot weather fades fast once you actually live here.

Also, I would not move down here without a job, or at least a seriously thick financial cushion.

[Papillons2]

Originally Posted by mabell228

I just don't understand some people on here. I am a newbie going to a new location and am looking for reasonable answers. No need to be fresh just looking for direction. For those of you who were nice and answered my questions to help guide me, thank you.

This is one of the reasons I don't post here very often anymore -- it's very difficult to have civil exchanges. It's not enough to simply say, "Avoid this area" or "So-and-so is out of your price range." Instead, a few people have to be snarky about it. Or, you'll get responses that are just plain inaccurate ("every summer afternoon is over 100 degrees"). But I guess that's where we're headed as a society, unfortunately.

At any rate ... going back and reading your original post, you said your husband will have a job here and you have a secretarial background, which makes you highly employable. Two steady incomes will go a long way toward solving the riddle of living in Broward County. When people have bad experiences in this area, it's often because they've moved here without work. Best of luck with your move!

[Whereitwent]

Originally Posted by Papillons2

This is one of the reasons I don't post here very often anymore -- it's very difficult to have civil exchanges. It's not enough to simply say, "Avoid this area" or "So-and-so is out of your price range." Instead, people have to be snarky about it. Or, you'll get responses that are just plain inaccurate ("every summer afternoon is over 100 degrees"). But I guess that's where we're headed as a society, unfortunately.

At any rate ... going back and reading your original post, you said your husband will have a job here and you have a secretarial background, which makes you highly employable. Two steady incomes will go a long way toward solving the riddle of living in Broward County. When people have bad experiences in this area, it's often because they've moved here without work. Best of luck with your move!

It gets annoying answering the same old "Hi! We are from *insert cold weather area here* and are looking for a four bedroom house, on the beach, in a neighborhood with no crime, within walking distance of shopping and retail, for very cheap prices in Broward County!!!"

[mabell228]

Originally Posted by Papillons2

This is one of the reasons I don't post here very often anymore -- it's very difficult to have civil exchanges. It's not enough to simply say, "Avoid this area" or "So-and-so is out of your price range." Instead, people have to be snarky about it. Or, you'll get responses that are just plain inaccurate ("every summer afternoon is over 100 degrees"). But I guess that's where we're headed as a society, unfortunately.

At any rate ... going back and reading your original post, you said your husband will have a job here and you have a secretarial background, which makes you highly employable. Two steady incomes will go a long way toward solving the riddle of living in Broward County. When people have bad experiences in this area, it's often because they've moved here without work. Best of luck with your move!

Thank you.

[mabell228]

Originally Posted by Whereitwent

It gets annoying answering the same old "Hi! We are from *insert cold weather area here* and are looking for a four bedroom house, on the beach, in a neighborhood with no crime, within walking distance of shopping and retail, for very cheap prices in Broward County!!!"

I am not looking for a house on the beach. It is way out of our price range. Also we are only looking for a 2-3 bedroom house. Nothing huge.

[Whereitwent]

Originally Posted by mabell228

I am not looking for a house on the beach. It is way out of our price range. Also we are only looking for a 2-3 bedroom house. Nothing huge.

In a high COL area having a detached single family cottage is a huge expense. But when you add 2-3 bedrooms...

Studio apartments here aren't even cheap. Nothing here is cheap, actually, every single cost of living metric here is at or above the national average. Some are even 116%-125%, that high.

If you want even a mediocre house here, prepare to shell out the big bucks. For a MEDIOCRE area, not a GOOD one.

[mabell228]

Originally Posted by Whereitwent

In a high COL area having a detached single family cottage is a huge expense. But when you add 2-3 bedrooms...

Studio apartments here aren't even cheap. Nothing here is cheap, actually, every single cost of living metric here is at or above the national average. Some are even 116%-125%, that high.

If you want even a mediocre house here, prepare to shell out the big bucks. For a MEDIOCRE area, not a GOOD one.

Then why when looking at real estate sites like Redfin, Trulia and Realtor.com does it look like we can afford houses in Margate, Tamarac, Sunrise and others places in our 225,0000 price range?? Also, when looking on trulia they have neighborhood info that tells us what crime is in the area.

[ruski]

Originally Posted by mabell228

Then why when looking at real estate sites like Redfin, Trulia and Realtor.com does it look like we can afford houses in Margate, Tamarac, Sunrise and others places in our 225,0000 price range?? Also, when looking on trulia they have neighborhood info that tells us what crime is in the area.

You should also add Google Street View to your research, to see if those neighborhoods have good curb appeal.