Hey folks! SF Native hoping to Move to Miami!!!

[HowGoesIt]

Diva, I would definitely rent a car. Driving in downtown Miami is a breeze compared to SF. If you are interested in living downtown, I would recommend finding a hotel around there. There's a handful of hotels (DoubleTree, Mariot, Hilton) near the Venetian Causeway. You might be able to get a decent deal there as well, as the most popular and expensive hotels are on Miami Beach.

I live in Fort Lauderdale, which is about 20 miles north of Miami. Think Los Angeles-Long Beach type of relationship. For work, I split my time between MIA and FLL, so I know both areas fairly well.

Also, when looking for an apartment, contact a broker in advance. Tell them what you are looking for and the dates you will be in town, they will pick out a few places to show you. Don't worry about the brokers fee, in my experience the lessor (not the lessee) pays the fee.

[DivaCoast415]

Awesome advice. I started another thread asking how much I should save total before moving but please feel free to answer here. Thanks!!

[MizzBeeHaven305]

Girl live in Broward instead... its not far from Miami at all and u can find a nice, affordable apartment there. Try searching for apartments in south Broward county such as Hallandale, Miramar, and Hollywood. There are also A LOT of hospitals, clinics, and private offices in South Florida so u should find a job easily(especially bc u know Spanish).

As far as getting in touch with ur roots try eating at a mom &pop shop in Hialeah, Doral, little Havana or even Miami Beach but Hispanics are everywhere and their food is delicious. While ur on ur vacay, u can visit Nikki Beach, Mia Lounge, Wet Willie's, FAT Tuesday, Bayside, the Hard Rock(in fort Lauderdale), the improv, ummm there are a lot of clubs in downtown Miami, South Beach, and Las Olas(again Fort Lauderdale) and if u like to shop go to Aventura, the shops at Bal Harbor, Dolphin mall, or sawgrass mall***.

[DivaCoast415]

Thanks missbeehaven, do u live in broward? My only concern with living alil further away from the action is being dependent on my car its kind of old and in a year idk how it will be behaving. But I guess when the time comes I will be able to judge if I can depend on it or not.

When relocating to a different state, what sorts of legal things must I do? Switch my license over to a florida license and register my car in florida, but what else.

All of your advice is so greatly appreciated and I'm so excited lol

[HowGoesIt]

There is also one more important thing I should note in regards to the difference between Miami and cities like SF and NYC. In a city like SF, it seems like ALL the action is in the City, with boring suburbs surrounding it. For instance, there really isn't too much to do in the deep parts of the East Bay.

Miami (south Florida in general) is not like that at all. Granted, South Beach is the mecca for nightlife in the south Florida, but there is PLENTY of nightlife in most towns in the area. I've met young professionals who live in places like Pembroke Pines, Miramar, Sunrise, etc and there is always bars and clubs nearby to satisfy the need.

Basically, there isn't a real city/suburb (cool/not cool) divide, like there is in SF, NYC, Boston, etc etc. However, that being said, I'd still push to live in either downtown Miami, South Beach, downtown Fort Lauderdale, or Fort Lauderdale beach.