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Greetings; this post is a serious request for information about the Fort Lauderdale area. I am retired from United States Navy (combat related) put myself through undergrad and graduate school. Been working for the State of Tennessee but have accepted a position with the Department of Veterans Affairs in the Fort Lauderdale, Florida area within the next few months. I am a single dad putting two through college in Tennessee and two will be coming with me to the area. My children are my life so I am seeking information about living in a safe area where I can rent a home which will also allow our dogs and one cat.
I am seeking a place where I could possibly rent to own or just rent. Where would be a good area to reside close to schools for an 8-year-old who is an honor student. My son is a 16-year-old who is also an honor student and an outstanding football player. The school will also need to be close to an excellent after school program or self-contained program. I would like to stay within a price where I could save some funds to purchase a home in the area. But if needed to ensure all the requirements are met can see myself paying at the high $1900 but would love a $900.00 dollars a month payment. If it is rent to own then I would and could pay a $1900.00 dollars a month payment.
Greetings; this post is a serious request for information about the Fort Lauderdale area. I am retired from United States Navy (combat related) put myself through undergrad and graduate school. Been working for the State of Tennessee but have accepted a position with the Department of Veterans Affairs in the Fort Lauderdale, Florida area within the next few months. I am a single dad putting two through college in Tennessee and two will be coming with me to the area. My children are my life so I am seeking information about living in a safe area where I can rent a home which will also allow our dogs and one cat.
I am seeking a place where I could possibly rent to own or just rent. Where would be a good area to reside close to schools for an 8-year-old who is an honor student. My son is a 16-year-old who is also an honor student and an outstanding football player. The school will also need to be close to an excellent after school program or self-contained program. I would like to stay within a price where I could save some funds to purchase a home in the area. But if needed to ensure all the requirements are met can see myself paying at the high $1900 but would love a $900.00 dollars a month payment. If it is rent to own then I would and could pay a $1900.00 dollars a month payment.
Any help would be greatly appreciated.
An area near good schools for $900 per month (I assume you want a 2BR) is a pretty tall order. But if you can go a little higher you can probably find something.
I am not a fan of the FL schools but the best public high schools in Broward are Cypress Bay, Coral Glades, Marjorie Stoneman Douglas. That's Weston, Coral Springs, Parkland. Western HS in Davie is OK and West Broward HS is brand new. It is in a nice area so I think it will be an ok school as schools are driven by demographics. The elementary schools in those areas should be ok but you can do some research online once you target a particular address. Many (most) elementary schools have after school programs. There are also after school programs at many preschools that pick the kids up at their school and take them to the facility.
You can find rentals in Weston, Coral Springs and Davie.
All the public schools here have football teams. Some are very highly ranked. I think Cypress Bay is ranked #2 for 6A football in the state. Florida is a VERY SERIOUS football state. You probably have to take into account how serious a player your son is. If it is his hope to get a football scholarship then Cypress Bay will be his best bet for a combination of great football and reasonably good academics at a public school.
If he is really THAT outstanding there are several private schools with good football programs. St. Thomas Aquinas is ranked as the #1 football program in the country. If your son is NFL bound it is worth checking out that program (I really am a crazy football mother). Financial aid is sometimes available for the truly outstanding athletes.
North Broward Prep and American Heritage also have very good football programs, although they are quite a bit smaller than the programs in the public schools (they are 2A, Cypress is 6A). Those schools are excellent academic schools. They are quite expensive, but financial aid is often available. Hopefully, you have some recordings of your son's play. If not, check with his current coach. Maybe you can get some of the game films so you have something to show the private schools. Contact the coaches.
My son attends American Heritage (in the name of full disclosure). My house is zoned for Cypress Bay. I am most familiar with those schools and the elementary schools in Weston. Please feel free to follow up with more questions.
I live in Cooper City which is in western Broward and your children would stay in the city schools here which are highly rated.You may have to pay more for rent though or maybe pick up a house in forclosure at a good price
We live in a great corner of Plantation that is central to many parks and great opportunities for kids. We feel safe and can walk to many local businesses. It is also a little calmer in our little corner over here. We lived in Coral Springs found it to be really busy, and from a personal stand point, I find Plantation more friendly and down to earth. I have a toddler so she is younger then your kids, but I have her involved in some great programs down here. But I also see that Plantation, which most of the citites that I know of listed on here, offer great programs through the community. Actually there are many to choose from in this area and I had to pick and choose! The only problem is from what I understand, as my little one is not of school age just yet, is the schools are not very great. I hear their elementary is good, but we are looking into private school and we like one in Davie for her future. My husband works near Ft Lauderdale and his drive is about 20-25mins on surface streets. Weston is nice and I hear good things about the schools but it will be a little bit more of a ride, 30-35mins. Also I found the parts of Weston to be busy for me. I am a mid western Michigan girl myself and enjoy a little bit of a smaller town. Suburban but smaller. Davie is nice also, but you have to watch where you choose to live, some areas are nicer then others. Parkland seemed very upscale, pricey and money oriented too. Private schools down here, well most everywhere right, do not come cheap. I think American Heritage is 12,000/yr just for PK3! Others are maybe 1/2 that or lower....so you just have to do the math. If you do go with Weston, we have friends that live in really cute villa/condo sub, its gated, its close to I75, a few shopping centers, called Emerald Cove. It from what I understand is pretty affordable too, more then 900 though, try about 1400 and up, maybe. I do not know anything about the school district lines over there though, but also look into Charter Schools. I have heard some good things about Charter Schools around Broward. I just think its a cute sub, Emerald Cove, and that our friends have a nice place over there. OH and you have to really do your research when renting, double check the landlord is not facing foreclosure, that has been a problem down here. The landlord rents the property as long as they can before its forclosed on, then you have to move again, and start all over! I think each town is unique in its own little way and it really comes down to what makes you happy and makes you feel at home as much as possible. Some find that in CSprings, Cooper City, Davie, Weston and us in Plantation. Its all about doing your homework thats for sure when choosing where you want to live in SoFla!
Be sure to select the rental tab or do rental search, or you ll get homes for sale; Do most of your own research and use a realtor or real estate lawyer for paperwork, Rental Agents aren't that helpful down here, well in our experience any way. Best of Luck!
One thing to note is that Cypress Bay is a VERY large school, over 5000 students. If your 16 year old is used to being the team star, he may find his playing time limited in a school that size. Before we moved to FL my son's high school coaches (and teachers) wrote letters of recommendation to the schools he was interested in. It made the transition much easier, as the coaches called and spoke to him. He chose a smaller private school, not particularly known for it's teams, but he was able to get lots of playing time from the start.
One thing to note is that Cypress Bay is a VERY large school, over 5000 students. If your 16 year old is used to being the team star, he may find his playing time limited in a school that size. Before we moved to FL my son's high school coaches (and teachers) wrote letters of recommendation to the schools he was interested in. It made the transition much easier, as the coaches called and spoke to him. He chose a smaller private school, not particularly known for it's teams, but he was able to get lots of playing time from the start.
Definitely something to keep in mind, but another thing to keep in mind is that the school has about 3900 students now (between redistricting and constructing a new high school) and every single new resident to the Cypress Bay zone actually has to register at Western High School. If your son is good, you might actually have an advantage at getting into Cypress Bay.
I currently serve (Army Reserve)so let me say good luck. Those who have replied, are spot on, Weston, Davie, Cooper City, Coral Springs, I would also throw Western Pembroke Pines in there as well.
1st and foremost I will tell you, protect your 16 year old. If football is his passion, assess him and be realistic. This is a football crazy state, and Broward is easily one of the top 3 recruiting areas in the country. He will find out very quickly how good he is or how good he is not. That being said, right here in the Tri-county area we now have Division 1 FIU and FAU (last years Sun Bowl champion). To be quite honest, although these are D1 programs, most of the players are local kids who probably could have gone anywhere except Top 20 College programs. Most of these kids are really good, but they are still 18-19 year olds and the don't want to be that far away from home. FIU and FAU are basically kids who could not play for Miami, Florida State or Florida and did not want to travel to the South Carolina's, NC States or even the Purdue's of the college football landscape. That being said, get him here early and let him get Spring football reps.
Also, there is more to life than football. Things are more expensive here than in TN. When you go to buy, be cognizant of ridiculously high Windstorm insurance rates, as well as taxes that can be as high as 2% of the value of your home.
1st and foremost I will tell you, protect your 16 year old. If football is his passion, assess him and be realistic. This is a football crazy state, and Broward is easily one of the top 3 recruiting areas in the country. He will find out very quickly how good he is or how good he is not.
I agree with the above post. I have been involved with youth football for the past 7 years and football here is played at a very high level compared with other places. Be very realistic about your son's ability. If it is important that he play football make sure you get him into a high school where he will be able to compete for playing time.
Take a look at the NFL and look at how many players come from Broward, Palm Beach and Dade counties. There are a ton. Anquan Boldin, Michael Irvin, Zack Crockett, Devin Hester, Fred Taylor, Isaac Bruce are just a few that come from this immediate area.
There is more to life than football, I agree. But for kids who are passionate about football it can be miserable to have to live without it (I have a son like that). St. Thomas, Cypress Bay are big time football schools. If your son is not a bigtime player you might want to look elsewhere. However, if he is a bigtime player these schools are ranked among the top in the country and will offer an opportunity to play at the highest level of the game. They are also both good academic schools.
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Some Info for your decision
