Moving to Jax area with 3 kids - NEED HELP (Jacksonville: apartment complex, rental)

[newtojax10]

Hi, we are moving to Jax by September. I have been trying to do a lot of research on the area but am kind of torn on where to live. Our oldest will be starting HS. And we have 2 younger children who will need child care. Good schools are very important. I am looking into Mandarin, Nease, or possibly Stanton or Paxon.

We have never been to the area so it is really hard. We are going to have to find somewhere with low rent until we sell our house. I need to find a good area with low crime. We would like to be pretty close to the beach too. We want to rent in the right school district then buy a home after we sell our house up here. My husband will be working west of St. John's river in Jax so don't want too long of a commute...up to 30 minutes.

I've been looking at Ponte Vedra and Mandarin. Are there any other neighborhoods that I should look into? So if anyone has any recommendations on which area is best or even on a rental please let me know. Thank you.

[ugaguy]

are you willing to pay for school? if not, id recommend north st johns county. Bartram Trail, Creekside, Ponte Vedra, and Nease are the high schools you probably want your kids to be at.

20 minutes to the beach. probably one of if not the safest area of jax. and its still not too far from downtown jax if you ever wanted to go for a jaguars game(btw make sure you buy season tix!!!), a concert, the Suns baseball games(doubleA team, great park, ton of fun for kids), etc....

they are building this huge new area called nocatee but its been slowed down by the housing crisis. even still there are some new homes, i think theyve opened up the publix along with a few stores. im pretty sure the waterpark is open. not sure about prices though.

palm valley/nocatee/julington creek... county road 210...

if you need something low rent until you find a house, im not as sure about that. i know there is an apartment complex by Nease on Old Dixie Highway but im not sure how nice it is.

what do you consider low rent? you do have a family with 3 kids so you may need a lot of space.

you might be better off in ponte vedra for the meanwhile. theyve got some apartments and townhomes that I know you can rent. i dont think the prices are outrageous but again you may need a lot of space.

***ps... mandarin has its bad areas so you should definitely look around there before you move. are you coming down to look around first or are you gonna have to pick something online and then go down and hope its nice? if you are just picking without seeing it first, you cant really go wrong in ponte vedra. but you definitely can in mandarin.

[hlauburn]

We just moved to Nocatee in Ponte Vedra. Schools were the top priority for us...our oldest is starting K in the Fall, but since we plan on being here for awhile, a good MS and HS were important too. As far as schools go, these are some of the best in the area. We're 10 minutes from the beach and not too far from shopping/restaurants on Hwy 1 or in Ponte Vedra Beach - you could easily find day care around in either direction.

I'm not sure about finding a rental home out here. As far as that goes, you could look into Julington Creek or maybe Durbin Crossing. Both have good schools at all levels. From what I understand, Paxon and Stanton admissions are done by lottery and I wasn't crazy about the overall ratings of elem. schools in Duval. Just my 2 cents.

Good luck! I know it can be overwhelming! We had to make a decision on what area to move in after just 2 trips down here, but I'm confident we made the right choice for us.

[IndigoLight]

My husband will be working west of St. John's river in Jax

Can you be more specific? As written it may sound as if he is going to be working on the Westside.
Getting there from Mandarin or Ponte Vedra in 30 minutes is not a realistic expectation. Just MHO.

[buddy5]

Originally Posted by IndigoLight

Can you be more specific? As written it may sound as if he is going to be working on the Westside.
Getting there from Mandarin or Ponte Vedra in 30 minutes is not a realistic expectation. Just MHO.

If you have to cross the river add an hour commute for every day.

If you are going for Paxon, live in Murray Hill. Lots of places open, big neighborhoods. Lots of kids, many schools. Not too expensive, and
everything is close.

[poopeebird]

You might want to try Kids By The Hour... until you decide. No contracts! This will help while you are getting familiar with the area. Good luck!!

kidsbythehour.com

[cyrece]

St. Johns is definitely more desirable-school wise. However, if you do decide to stay in Duval County, you can check specific crime rates at JSO | Jacksonville Sheriffs Office Disclamer (http://maps.coj.net/crimestatsdiscl.asp?sJAxGIS=Y - broken link)

You may want to decide on a school prior to narrowing down a home. Best of luck!