Considering Cape Coral Area (Fort Myers, University: real estate, renting, condo)

[JazzmanLI]

Hello everyone, My parents (in there 50s), and myself (I'm in my 20s) are considering to relocate to southwest Florida. We have been all over the state and spent most of our time in the keys. We are interested in a place on the canal so we can have our boat (28 Grady) in our back yard. We originally were looking for this in the keys but is too expensive for what we are looking for in a home. This spring we plan on going down to Cape Coral to look at real estate and to see what the area offers. We are from Long Island, NY, they will be snowbirds and will return to NY during the summer. I plan on staying in FL year round.

What we're looking for:
2 bedroom, 1 1/2 bath canal front home (not a condo or townhouse)
pool, screened porch, boat lift
budget $200,000-$325,000

-What are the nicer areas to look at? Nice communities in the area?

-What kind of shopping is there on Cape Coral? Hows traffic (I assume its busy during the winter)?
I hear there is a $2.00 toll to get over the bridge, is this true? if so, how often do you find yourself needing to go over?

-What beaches and state parks are near by?

-Crime rate? Is this a safe area? We are looking at homes south of Cape Coral Parkway
What parts of Cape Coral would you recommend to stay away from (of there are any)?

-How often does Cape Coral area get hit with a tropical storm/hurricane?

-What is the diversity of the area? Is it mostly young families, or older retires?

-I'm finishing up my degree at Long Island University and plan on doing graduate work at Florida Gulf Coast University. I will be commuting, how long is the commute to Cape Coral to Ft. Myers?

Thank you for any responses, we appreciate it!

[Billythepokerkid]

Originally Posted by JazzmanLI

Hello everyone, My parents (in there 50s), and myself (I'm in my 20s) are considering to relocate to southwest Florida. We have been all over the state and spent most of our time in the keys. We are interested in a place on the canal so we can have our boat (28 Grady) in our back yard. We originally were looking for this in the keys but is too expensive for what we are looking for in a home. This spring we plan on going down to Cape Coral to look at real estate and to see what the area offers. We are from Long Island, NY, they will be snowbirds and will return to NY during the summer. I plan on staying in FL year round.

What we're looking for:
2 bedroom, 1 1/2 bath canal front home (not a condo or townhouse)
pool, screened porch, boat lift
budget $200,000-$325,000

-What are the nicer areas to look at? Nice communities in the area?

-What kind of shopping is there on Cape Coral? Hows traffic (I assume its busy during the winter)?
I hear there is a $2.00 toll to get over the bridge, is this true? if so, how often do you find yourself needing to go over?

-What beaches and state parks are near by?

-Crime rate? Is this a safe area? We are looking at homes south of Cape Coral Parkway
What parts of Cape Coral would you recommend to stay away from (of there are any)?

-How often does Cape Coral area get hit with a tropical storm/hurricane?

-What is the diversity of the area? Is it mostly young families, or older retires?

-I'm finishing up my degree at Long Island University and plan on doing graduate work at Florida Gulf Coast University. I will be commuting, how long is the commute to Cape Coral to Ft. Myers?

Thank you for any responses, we appreciate it!

I will only answer one question for you as all of the other questions have been answered 19,003,642 times. You DO NOT want to drive from Cape Coral to FGCU on a regular basis. If you plan on going to FGCU I would look at homes in Estero and South Fort Myers.

[Samiamnh]

Jazzman,you should find what you're looking for in that price range....also,if you don't mind a 40 minute drive or so,you could commute using Pine Island road and I-75 which would eliminate the tolls.
Not much diversity in CC.I'd say it's 50/50 retiree's and family's.Pretty much that way in my neighborhood.
Pour yourself a big cup of coffee.....or a big cocktail and take some time to look back at the 100's of old threads about all the information you seek......Good luck

[JazzmanLI]

Samiamnh, thank you for that info. I commute to my current University and its about a hour drive. Could be worst depending on traffic. I will sit around on these forms and so some exploring.

[CCRESI]

Originally Posted by JazzmanLI

Hello everyone, My parents (in there 50s), and myself (I'm in my 20s) are considering to relocate to southwest Florida. We have been all over the state and spent most of our time in the keys. We are interested in a place on the canal so we can have our boat (28 Grady) in our back yard. We originally were looking for this in the keys but is too expensive for what we are looking for in a home. This spring we plan on going down to Cape Coral to look at real estate and to see what the area offers. We are from Long Island, NY, they will be snowbirds and will return to NY during the summer. I plan on staying in FL year round.

What we're looking for:
2 bedroom, 1 1/2 bath canal front home (not a condo or townhouse)
pool, screened porch, boat lift
budget $200,000-$325,000
Currently there are 23 properties in Cape Coral that meet your criteria. Inventory changes everyday. Do you have a listingbook account? Or a Homekinect account?
-What are the nicer areas to look at? Nice communities in the area?
If you are interested in Gulf Access, I would concetrate on the best access. There are nice communities all over SW FL, but water enthusiasts love the quicker access locations-to open water.

-What kind of shopping is there on Cape Coral? Hows traffic (I assume its busy during the winter)?
I hear there is a $2.00 toll to get over the bridge, is this true? if so, how often do you find yourself needing to go over?
*We do not have a shopping mall, but we have: Target/Kohls/Walmart/Jcpenney/Belk/Homegoods/Marshalls/tjmaxx/etc.


*Best way to commute is to have a transponder, you receive a 25% discount during off peak hours M-F.
https://www.leewayinfo.com/

* I go over often, because my new office is in Ft.Myers I also find myself going over for outlet mall shopping.

-What beaches and state parks are near by?
We have tons of parks, beaches-ft myers beach/Sanibel/lover's key
My fav is Sanibel and from the South Cape, it is 30min, 45 in winter.

-Crime rate? Is this a safe area? We are looking at homes south of Cape Coral Parkway
What parts of Cape Coral would you recommend to stay away from (of there are any)?
Map Crime:
Lee County Sheriff's Office | Lee County, Florida | CrimeActivity | Index

-How often does Cape Coral area get hit with a tropical storm/hurricane?
I don't want to answer this, for the fear of jinx'n us....lol
visit: National Hurricane Center

-What is the diversity of the area? Is it mostly young families, or older retires?

We have a great mix. Retirees, vacationers, young/old,
I have a young family and have found it easy to find friends, old and new. The night life here is said to be lame, but there is actually tons of things to do. We are always busy with friends

-I'm finishing up my degree at Long Island University and plan on doing graduate work at Florida Gulf Coast University. I will be commuting, how long is the commute to Cape Coral to Ft. Myers?
From South Cape it is roughly 40min. I did the commute for a bit. It isn't too bad.

Thank you for any responses, we appreciate it!

You are very welcome! Ask us many questions! Some of us live here and work here full time(like me), some are retired and some just vacation or have lived here prior. You will get a good mix of reviews, that's for sure!

[LisaMarie1984]

Hey I'm from Long Island, too! I moved to Fort Myers (moving to the Cape soon, though..) and was working at FGCU when I first moved down. I will tell you this- I've dealt with LI traffic and I would take that over the busy season traffic here! It would take me at least half an hour to get to work, so add in a little more if you're coming from the Cape. Keep in mind too what time you'd be leaving. I work in the Cape now and when I have to be in for 8am, the traffic going over the Cape Coral bridge is pretty backed up. When I'm in at 9, there is still some traffic but it's not as bad. Not saying that the commute is horrible, but it definitely gets a little hectic Nov-Apr.

What part of LI are you from? I'm from North Babylon.

[Billythepokerkid]

Originally Posted by LisaMarie1984

Hey I'm from Long Island, too! I moved to Fort Myers (moving to the Cape soon, though..) and was working at FGCU when I first moved down. I will tell you this- I've dealt with LI traffic and I would take that over the busy season traffic here! It would take me at least half an hour to get to work, so add in a little more if you're coming from the Cape. Keep in mind too what time you'd be leaving. I work in the Cape now and when I have to be in for 8am, the traffic going over the Cape Coral bridge is pretty backed up. When I'm in at 9, there is still some traffic but it's not as bad. Not saying that the commute is horrible, but it definitely gets a little hectic Nov-Apr.

What part of LI are you from? I'm from North Babylon.

I never hit traffic coming back into Cape Coral in the morning no matter what time it is, it's always going the other way, late afternoon and evenings can be a little insane though. But I said it earlier, that commute from the Cape to FGCU is going to get old really quick. Perhaps once or twice a week it may be tolerable, but anymore than that and I would probably just drive off the bridge instead!

[hiknapster]

I think no matter the traffic situation, what looks good on paper - or electronically! - can often get old fast once you move. I know when I researched moving to Knoxville, Tenn. I was looking at places that didn't seem like a bad commute but locals discouraged me from moving there and I am glad I did. I think it isn't so much the time involved - although that is part of it - but the fact that there are perfectly good areas close to where you are working or going to school. After you make the move you tend to realize this. As much as I really like Cape Coral, if I were attending FGCU I would prefer to live in Estero, which is a quite lovely area! It also puts you close to Naples and Fort Myers and is a quick hop on the highway for exploring other parts of Florida! Lots of fabulous shopping as well!

[JazzmanLI]

LisaMarie, my family is from Ridge (Middle Island area). I persoanlly dont like it. I would love to move out to the north fork but can't afford it. I commute now 50 miles on the Long Island Expressway to LIU everyday. It takes 50 min if there's no traffic and up to a hour and a half if there is traffic. So I'm really not worried about a long commute or a boring drive. The LI expressway gets old with all the traffic every morning.

Are there any parts of Estero that are on the water? We are interested in waterfront/canal front property.

[Billythepokerkid]

Originally Posted by JazzmanLI

LisaMarie, my family is from Ridge (Middle Island area). I persoanlly dont like it. I would love to move out to the north fork but can't afford it. I commute now 50 miles on the Long Island Expressway to LIU everyday. It takes 50 min if there's no traffic and up to a hour and a half if there is traffic. So I'm really not worried about a long commute or a boring drive. The LI expressway gets old with all the traffic every morning.

Are there any parts of Estero that are on the water? We are interested in waterfront/canal front property.

There are areas that are on canals, but not really much in the price range you have. I am sure there are a few in that range, but mostly get snatched up pretty quickly. I would not buy a house closer to the school simply because you go there, once you are done you will regret it. I meant more renting something, maybe just for the school year or whatever. But again, if you are a grad student, you only have classes once or twice a week and the drive will be a lot more tolerable than driving out there daily.