New adventure in Miami.... need advise!!! (South Miami: apartment, to rent, HOA fees)

[Cubanchic]

The health district is not a place I would want for my family, they have a lot of homeless in the area because the VA hospital is there and so is Jackson. If you want public transportation then all along the metro rail area which skirts around coconut grove, south Miami, dadeland, coral gables, brickell, then goverment center which is where downtown condos would be, but at higher rental values. I wouldn't go further north on that route because the neighborhoods are iffy.

Which means that other nicer nieborhoods with that are affordable will require a car.


You may do better in little Havana which is close to that area IF you don't mind a huge culture shock. I think a few regular posters here live in that area and can give you a better idea.

Also look in the Rhodes area about coral way and 13street area right next to brickell but you might find something there.

I would look into the dadeland area which is east Kendall and nicer for families and you can get the metro rail into health district.

We live in cutler bay which is really south hubby works in downtown and his normal commute is about 20 mins from dadeland south metro rail to goverment center, I think health districts is at Culmer metro station which is two short stop north of goverment center.

[susygen]

Originally Posted by MiamiResident

Your quality of life will decrease if you move to Miami.

You are making a mistake.

Quality of life in London is basically non-existent... if you have an average income and are part of the so called "working class" that is.

very tiny flats in very bad areas go for £1300 and nobody from the working class can afford private schools or private daycare... and there is no public system in place for kids younger than 4.

If conditions are the same but the weather is nice and warm, it's already a huge improvement in Miami!!

[valicky]

I think you may need to up your housing budget. And the area you will be working in isn't a nice area to live in at all. South Miami is very convenient to the Metro rail and very family friendly with a nice shopping district as well. Not in that budget though.

[susygen]

Originally Posted by Cubanchic

The health district is not a place I would want for my family, they have a lot of homeless in the area because the VA hospital is there and so is Jackson. If you want public transportation then all along the metro rail area which skirts around coconut grove, south Miami, dadeland, coral gables, brickell, then goverment center which is where downtown condos would be, but at higher rental values. I wouldn't go further north on that route because the neighborhoods are iffy.

Which means that other nicer nieborhoods with that are affordable will require a car.


You may do better in little Havana which is close to that area IF you don't mind a huge culture shock. I think a few regular posters here live in that area and can give you a better idea.

Also look in the Rhodes area about coral way and 13street area right next to brickell but you might find something there.

I would look into the dadeland area which is east Kendall and nicer for families and you can get the metro rail into health district.

We live in cutler bay which is really south hubby works in downtown and his normal commute is about 20 mins from dadeland south metro rail to goverment center, I think health districts is at Culmer metro station which is two short stop north of goverment center.

Thank you!
we looked into little havana and we saw some apartments we could easily afford and liked very much... we are not sure about the culture shock though... maybe it's us just being afraid of the unknown... but rationally thinking, we speak spanish fluently and our best friends here in London are south american... if it is a safe neighborhood, it should do for us... would you rate it as safe? like walking around alone at dusk?

how about the dadeland? safe? good for kids? we read that lots of student live in kendall and it may get a little noisy and crazy at times... what do you think?

Will definitely look into Rhodes... but we are having a hard time trying to understand the street numbering system in Miami will have to work on that LOL

Thank you

[doom1001]

To avoid confusion,its the roads,not rhodes.

[susygen]

Originally Posted by doom1001

To avoid confusion,its the roads,not rhodes.

Thank you

[MiamiResident]

Public transit is non-existent. You must own a vehicle, not having a vehicle is not an option in Miami. Public schools are the best choice among public, charter, and private schools.
Healthcare is more expensive than paying two car letters per month. Your husband will have to watch a TV show called american football instead of football. If you are used to the plaza life, walking to the bakery/coffee shop, that aspect of your life will be gone.

There is a USA you watch in the movies and there is the real one, I highly advice you to take a one-week vacation and see it with your own eyes.
the minimum wage here is ridiculous compared to the minimum wage of the UK. You have no safety net here. You do pay a lot of taxes here, I pay 23 percent in income taxes, the only difference is that the social security system here is not social, only the name is social, to give you a fake feeling that you have a safety need, not even healthcare is included. Most of the money you pay in taxes goes to finance the army.

There are hidden taxes here that you don't have in the UK, such as gas, car insurance, expressway tolls, healthcare, and car maintenance.

If I were you, I would move to Canada or Australia. The US is not at their level. Corruption at the politics level here is rampant. Canada and Australia have a more stable political environment. They do not have Reps and Dems which are a pest.

If I were you, I would move to Ireland, France, The Nederlands, or Germany. I would never relocate from the European Union to the USA. Well, if the offer you a 6 figures salary, yes. But that is not the case.

The USA has a middle class that everyday becomes more lower class and the rich become richer.

Think of your children. Of their future. The UK is by far a better place to live.

Also, "White people" here are mostly not western europeans, they are eastern europeans and israeli jews. The most similar people to you that you will encounter in Miami are the latin americans of spanish/italian ancestry. They do look western european, and have a culture similar to western europeans. There is a guy at my work whose family is from eastern europe and he loves telling people he is an anglo. I laugh inside every time he says that. Labels in the usa are a joke.

Beckhams proposal was rejected by the politicians here, even knowing that Miami residents love real football. And now they made a deal with the NFL where the county has to pay the Dolphins owner 4 million dollars for every big event, and Beckham on the other hand wanted to pay 1 million to the city. Politics here are raping residents and most of them do not know anything because they are ignorant of politics.

[StarfishKey]

Overall Kendall is very safe and very family friendly. You can get a nice condo or townhouse apt., near a park, and plenty of shopping. Not beautiful or glamorous, a good 45 min to a beach. But if you know Spanish and some of your best friends are South American, Kendall would be a great place. You do need a car though. And know that biking is not safe in most of Miami. London is like NYC in terms of land value - in Miami you will get far more space for your money. But consider skimping on the space and little yard for the location you want. Consider that apts. ("flats") are usually larger here. So you may be very comfortable in a 1-bedroom in Coral Gables with no yard, but perhaps a balcony you could baby-proof, or a shared pool with the owner. It might have a separate dining area, or other space you could partition off for your child very comfortably compared to what you are used to in London. Get something that measures in feet (or just convert to meters) and see what is really meant by an 600sqft apt - as in perhaps 15ftx40ft - it is a much larger space than you are used to, which might in London actually be more like 12x20ft = 240sqft.

As some people mention, the Dadeland area might be a good fit.

See if you can find others from the UK who have made the move, maybe on a forum somewhere? There are certainly quite a few who have done it, at least for a year or two, and their experiences would be invaluable to consider.

[susygen]

well.. MiamiResident...
what can I say... thank you for the inside view...

what do you mean by "public schools are the best choice?"
I could tell you lots of bad things about London... truth is that every big city has its ups and downs and obviously, the very wealthy have a better quality of life!
we loved London with its rough neighborhoods and diversity, it's time to change now, we are up for the challenge.....

[susygen]

Originally Posted by StarfishKey

Overall Kendall is very safe and very family friendly. You can get a nice condo or townhouse apt., near a park, and plenty of shopping. Not beautiful or glamorous, a good 45 min to a beach. But if you know Spanish and some of your best friends are South American, Kendall would be a great place. You do need a car though. And know that biking is not safe in most of Miami. London is like NYC in terms of land value - in Miami you will get far more space for your money. But consider skimping on the space and little yard for the location you want. Consider that apts. ("flats") are usually larger here. So you may be very comfortable in a 1-bedroom in Coral Gables with no yard, but perhaps a balcony you could baby-proof, or a shared pool with the owner. It might have a separate dining area, or other space you could partition off for your child very comfortably compared to what you are used to in London. Get something that measures in feet (or just convert to meters) and see what is really meant by an 600sqft apt - as in perhaps 15ftx40ft - it is a much larger space than you are used to, which might in London actually be more like 12x20ft = 240sqft.

As some people mention, the Dadeland area might be a good fit.

See if you can find others from the UK who have made the move, maybe on a forum somewhere? There are certainly quite a few who have done it, at least for a year or two, and their experiences would be invaluable to consider.

thank you!