Jacksonville locals I need your help please. (Orlando: apartments, to rent)

[CA2JAX]

Hello,

I am new to this thread so I applogize if I am asking questions that have already been asked. I am going to be relocate from California to Jacksonville. I just wanted to know a few things and hope that I can get some info from locals. Thank you in advance, I appreciate you taking the time out to reply.

1) What areas of Jacksonville should I avoid in terms of living?

2) What are the ranges in dollar amounts for Studio Apts and 1 bedroom?

3) What utilities/bills are tenants responsible for when renting apartments

4) What is a range of electric bill in an apt?

5) How bad is traffic? What does a morning commute look like doing from one side of town to the other?

6) What are some cool things about Jacksonville that you like? And what some things to do for fun?

7) How diverse is it in terms of people and of course food

8) What is the weather like year round? Does Jacksonville get hit with hurricanes?

9) What is different about Jacksonville than any other metropolitan city?

10) And last, any advice or information you would give that I haven’t asked.

Thank you again

[Gromicide]

1) What areas of Jacksonville should I avoid in terms of living?
there are bad pockets in different areas of the county. Look up a crime map for the city. You should be able to see these pockets. Your budget will determine your tolerance to crime right?

2) What are the ranges in dollar amounts for Studio Apts and 1 bedroom?
not sure but I'd say avg of around 1K per month? Less in less desirable areas, more in high ly desirable areas.

3) What utilities/bills are tenants responsible for when renting apartments
Typically cable/internet, electric water but some include this as well. maybe trash pick up.

4) What is a range of electric bill in an apt?
i have no idea.

5) How bad is traffic? What does a morning commute look like doing from one side of town to the other?
it's a big city land wise so one side to the other can be 30-40 minutes without any traffic. average commute is probably about the same unless you are literally going across the entire county.

6) What are some cool things about Jacksonville that you like? And what some things to do for fun? water (river and ocean), so surfing, fishing, beaches etc....plenty of golf, historical St Augustine just south of here. short drive to Orlando for theme parks. local state parks have camping, mtn biking, trails. Pletny of good restaurants, shopping, craft beer places and bars. riverside/avondale/san marco are the better cultural/artsy areas. Jaguars if you're into NFL experience. Gameday at the stadium is awesome even if you're not a jags fan. Not much of a downtown type of city but they're trying to improve that.

7) How diverse is it in terms of people and of course food
very. Good mix of people from multiple cultures and good authentic eats.

8) What is the weather like year round? Does Jacksonville get hit with hurricanes? Mostly HOT. Rarely 'hit' with hurricanes but often threatened which means you prepare for hurricanes like you're gonna be hit and occasionally you might even evacuate or decide to ride it out. We have not had a direct hit since the late 60's but scraped a couple times which causes damage etc... peak period for this is late August to early Oct. Did I mention HOT? Winter and Spring are super nice with lots of perfect days. Summer and Fall are not for the weak. High humidity and feel like temps over 100 in July through September with majority of days hovering around 90+ during this time. Lows in the low 80's and still muggy at night. Mosquitoes!

9) What is different about Jacksonville than any other metropolitan city? It's huge and spread out with about a million people. Lots to see in the Jax area and surrounding areas and plan on driving a bit to get there. It's less like 'Florida' and more like 'Georgia' so not tropical with clear blue water but pine trees and brown water. Southern hospitality still lives so nice people that say Hi and hold the door open.

10) And last, any advice or information you would give that I haven’t asked. It's pretty nice to live in jax but not many people know about it. Plenty of former NFL players that used to play for the Jaguars still live here even though they retired as millionaires. So think about that. If you lived in jax but could afford to live anywhere else and stayed in Jax, it must be alright.

[JacksonvilleNative]

Excellent answers for the most part By Gromicide.

Let me ask you a couple questions that might make it easier for us to help you find where you need to be.

What is your budget for housing? Do you think you will buy eventually or plan to rent long term?

Do you have a job lined up and if so, in what area of town is it?

What type of neighborhood do you prefer? Suburban, Urban, Rural? Beach?

We have diversity in People and food. People tend to be somewhat segregated with the exception of the Urban Core. The Downtown area of Jacksonville is pretty much dead center of the county. The oldest neighborhoods literally surround the core and that is what I refer to as the Urban Core. Most of them tend to be more diverse by race and tend to be more progressive. The farther out you go the more conservative it tends to be.

Jacksonville is the largest city in area in the lower 48 states. As stated earlier, it can take you 30-40 min to go from one side to the other in the middle of the night when there is no traffic out. This is not like Los Angeles. People here actually do sleep

Hope this helps a little. Good luck in your search