is miami really not a good place to live? (Jacksonville: crime, homes)

[ace587]

Miami isnt worse than any other city in the US. Yeah there are pockets of crime here and there but it doesnt have organized crime like LA plus its not bad as it was like in the 70s and 80s. Its a good place to live imo. Not cheap though

[Carolinaonice]

Originally Posted by Overtown_Miami 17

50k a year?! You're rich!

Not sarcasm.

RICH?! Maybe if I wasn't a single parent of two young children and had no bills....We are able to live comfortable but far from rich.

[Carolinaonice]

Originally Posted by FlyMIA

Every major city in the U.S. has its bad neighborhoods. Is not a miricle that you were not a victim of a crime in Jacksonville because it seems like you lived in a good neighborhood. The same goes for Miami. If you live in a safe area and use common sense the likely hood of being a victim of a crime, at least a violent crime is low. I assume you are a single parent. $50k is a decent salary but nothing great. There are affordable areas to live in Miami but you have things like private school tuition, higher car and health insurance and if you buy a home hurricane and flood insurance which is really an issue anywhere in the state. I suggest you visit Miami again and check out the whole area from Kendall up to Palm Beach. Also check out Orlando and Tampa they are much more affordable than Miami in terms of rent and property prices.

As to the crime thing again like I said it was NOT some crazy miricle that you lived in JAX without any issues. And really I don't think it's easy to get lost in the bad areas because most people don't need to be there and usually it's easy to avoid them by using the highways. Even then I've been through every neighborhood Miami has to offer and I've never had an issue. Crime statisics are overblown sometimes. A lot of crime happens to people doing illegal things themselves. Not saying you won't get your car window smashed in one night when it's parked in a parking lot. But for the most part Miami is just like most major cities in the U.S. it has its bad areas and good areas and common sense usually prevents most crimes.

Thanks for your answer. My thing is, I've never lived in a high crime area and so I am not use to crime. The town that I grew up in in South Carolina, I have NEVER heard of anyone being murdered here. Everyone knows each other, you could walk or ride a bike just about anywhere. Most of the crime here that I've heard about is petty things like shop lifting or someone fighting, maybe a car or home break in every once in awhile around Christmas holidays. The most major crime that has happened here recently was a couple that committed bank fraud. So my definition of bad and someone else's definition of bad are probably going to be two different things. Like I said, I felt perfectly safe in Jacksonville. I would go walking every night after I left work and I had no problems. But once I moved away and started reading more things about Jacksonville I start hearing that it was a bad place to live and that the murder rate was the highest in Florida...which was hard to believe compared to what i heard about Miami..Im not making any quick decisions though, since this move will be pretty permanent. I will definitely visit Miami again and probably Orlando.

[Chelito23]

I think Jacksonville sounds like it was good to you, why not go back there? It is one of the more affordable places in Florida...closer to SC for trips home, minimal hurricane threat...and most importantly, you liked it.

The rest of Florida is more in demand, so prices are higher and wages are lower. That entails more corruption, traffic, shady doings....not to say it's uninhabitable...but the quality of living is going to be higher on your budget in Jacksonville than it would be in MIA or Orlando...especially considering you have a young child.

CA would be much harder on your income.

[tmford1961]

my girl friend her 10 year old son and myself are looking to move to miami area. she wants to be in miami,she is from vegas, im from a small rural town in massachusetts but can adapt to just about anything, but i am looking for information about surrounding towns or cities within the greater miami area near the beachs. looking for feed back on the area looking for good schools which can be public or private, with out the heavy living exspenses of being right in miami, dont know the area so any feed back or suggestions would be helpful

[Chelito23]

Originally Posted by tmford1961

my girl friend her 10 year old son and myself are looking to move to miami area. she wants to be in miami,she is from vegas, im from a small rural town in massachusetts but can adapt to just about anything, but i am looking for information about surrounding towns or cities within the greater miami area near the beachs. looking for feed back on the area looking for good schools which can be public or private, with out the heavy living exspenses of being right in miami, dont know the area so any feed back or suggestions would be helpful

Miami, as in all of SE Florida, is very expensive. There aren't any affordable small towns or bastions of tranquility that are safe AND cheap anywhere in the tri-county area. Good schools are usually in the more expensive areas...and private schools are quite pricey. Safety is relative, but if this still hasn't deterred you, Hollywood is reasonable.

[MiamiRob]

Originally Posted by Carolinaonice

I really need some information about Miami. I am from a very small town in south Carolina where there are only about 4 stop lights and potholes from trucks passing through. I moved to Jacksonville fl for about two years after I graduated high school and I loved it, but I think it was because I had never been outside of south Carolina before. I lived in an apartment right at the intersection of baymeadows and southside blvd. it was nice, I was close to EVERYTHING including the avenue's mall. it wasn't until AFTER I moved back to south carolina, that I found out that Jacksonville was a dangerous place. God (or whoever you believe in) was watching over me during my late night walks down ss blvd. Anyway, I am looking to move again (permanently) to either florida or California. I have two children, one is almost 4 and will be starting school soon, she will be in private school. florida is much cheaper than California but I hear nothing but negative things about it. I visited Miami with my friend for about 2 weeks and I loved it (except the toll roads, which I later found a way to avoid ). I was told that Miami and Orlando are the only places in florida that I will be able to find exceptional schools. Then I spoke to a Miami native (some thuggish guy with a giant dreadlock at the top of his head, that approached me in walmart) he seemed to be warning me away from Miami and talking about how easy it is to get lost in a bad neighborhood...and how bad the crime is there. The area that I was in was called sw kendall. it looked nice to me..i was right across the street from dadeland mall. I would just like some HONEST information about Miami, what areas to avoid, should I move there, is it expensive?....I am a single mother, I make a little over 50k a year

Carolina? You have visited Miami and you got the "sand in your shoes" effect! ...People fall in love with Miami all the time however living here is a different story.
This isn't "South Carolina" or "Jacksonville" ( which we consider to be a "small town" compared to Miami)

It's a metropolis of 5.5 Million people + the millions of tourists. It's not for the faint of heart. That being said you were here for 2 weeks and it seems you have been exposed enough to make a conscious deciscion and seemed to like it.
You have to ask your self if you are willing to trade your slow paced lifestyle that you were accustomed too in South Carolina & Jacksonville to the chaotic though lovely mess that is called "Miami"?

If you want a vibrant & exciting metro? Miami is it....Orlando is just about as boring as Jacksonville except Orlando does have very high crime as well.

The crime rate is irrelevant since the Miami metro has 1 million more residents than the entire state of South Carolina where you come from. There always will be crime.
As for expensive? Most of Florida is anyways.

[hurricaneMan1992]

Originally Posted by miami_zed

I think it's pretty obvious which neighborhoods are bad when you step/drive into them.

Not necessarily, some residential roads of Liberty City (just west of 441, for example) and Miami Gardens look deceptively better on the surface than parts of Miami Beach with run-down, old apartment buildings. As do many of the subsidized housing apartments. Maybe the better thing is to check out the nearby commercial and retail developments, if there's only Checkers and pawn shops, you might want to stay away!

[amonte]

Bottom line is this. It's safe. If you want to live in the city, then there's the city itself and Miami beach because its pretty much part of the city, its urban and only a bridge away to the city. Others say there are some suburbs that are right next to the city that are also urban in the area right next to city I can speak on that though. If you want to live in the suburbs then you have many choices. You then decide whether you want to live close to the city, far or just how far.

Personally, with a family, I would go with coral gables. It's an amazing suburb, one of the best, if not the best, in Miami, and its super close to the city and the Beach (Miami beach).

[hurricaneMan1992]

Originally Posted by Carolinaonice

is it expensive?....I am a single mother, I make a little over 50k a year

IF you get the same salary in Miami and are willing to live in a condo or apartment, it is doable. Some areas to look in to with decent schools and low crime but reasonable (by Miami standards: around $1k/month rent for an "OK" 1br, $1200-1300 for 2br) are Dadeland, South Miami, North Ponce section of Coral Gables, Eastern Shores, and Bay Harbor Islands. The later two are walking distance to the beach, basically zero crime. All of the above are walking distance and/or short drive to shopping and restaurants, Dadeland and South Miami have the Metrorail if you need/want it (the others only have busses). There are also a few apartment complexes down in Pinecrest, Palmetto Bay, and The Falls area of Kendall that can get you into some of the best public schools. You asked about West Kendall, I wouldn't recommend it unless you work around there, since rents are still high and the traffic situation is not any better.