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I'm in a similar situation, and would be interested in hearing how the housing/neighborhood recommendations differ in the 1500-2100 range. I am considering transferring down to my company's office in Downtown Miami from NYC with my husband. We're in our mid-late 20's and want a similar "live and let live" vibe.
I'm in a similar situation, and would be interested in hearing how the housing/neighborhood recommendations differ in the 1500-2100 range. I am considering transferring down to my company's office in Downtown Miami from NYC with my husband. We're in our mid-late 20's and want a similar "live and let live" vibe.
You can try dadeland area or south Miami basically because you would be right next to the metro rail, which would make an easier commute to downtown that area might be on the lower end of your budget. The higher end of your budget might get you some on the outskirts of gables and maybe brickell area.
Hey! Gay guy from Miami here! (I noticed you asked for LGBTQXYZ people to post and i'm not sure if anybody else on the forum is gay lol). Personally, I feel like Miami, as a whole, is quite accepting of gay people in the exact reason you said, most people here don't seem to care. Even in the less trendy parts, people may look (usually surprised - I always say it's the same look people would give unicorns or shaq lol), but I have never had anybody say anything to me, except for one time. Ironically, that was in Kendall where people seem to be recommending you to go. I hate Kendall, all i have are bad experiences there (literally, I avoid it) and its too traffic congested imo. That being said, maybe it's because Miami has so many immigrants that people mind their own business or have much more open attitudes but i see A LOT of gay and lesbian people everywhere and no one ever seems bothered by it. By far, the safest city i've felt in - from a gay safety issue at least.
Your problem probably won't be fitting in, as much as it will be paying those bills. My fiance and I live together in South Miami, which imo is a GREAT! area, its got a denser feel than the "suburbs" and a lot of businesses/restaurants/apartments and bars which is real neat when friends come by. Also its pretty close to everything east (CG, Downtown, brickell etc.). But since you'll be going to FIU/Dade north, im not sure you're willing to be this far out. I'd recommend it in a heartbeat, but the rents can be tough - you're looking at a minimum of 900 for one bedroom, and probably more around 1000-1100. Also, it was tough finding a place because everything was taken as soon as it became available. If you were to stay around westchester/sweetwater/fontainebleu area, then you'll hear a lot more spanish but it'll be cheaper (probably could even get a 1b in a meh building for 800) and closer. Personally, since i speak spanish, it doesn't bother me to hear it, and most people our age speak english as well so i don't think it's a big deal. But yeah, I grew up there, by FIU, and people seem to not care about being gay either at least from my experience.
Either way, even if things get tough, just try and enjoy exploring with you and your bf. No matter what you guys do, if you have each other you should be good. I have a blast with mine, he's my best everything and when were together, everything becomes fun
I do think, that for school purposes, somewhere a bit more north might be better. Although, we'll have to also factor in where we might end up working by then :L
I guess living near FIU might be a good option in terms of open minded people, and location, though I don't know how expensive apartments around there might be.
One thing my bf mentioned when we were in Hollywood, FL (he's never been to Miami) is how sort of "ghetto" it felt, and how at night he sort of felt like we might get jumped or something, and that's something we wanna avoid. Ironically, the small towns in Texas where he's grown up have been very accepting towards LGBT persons.
That being said, maybe it's because Miami has so many immigrants that people mind their own business or have much more open attitudes but i see A LOT of gay and lesbian people everywhere and no one ever seems bothered by it. By far, the safest city i've felt in - from a gay safety issue at least.
I think you might be confusing your experience in gay-friendly South Miami with the rest of Miami. Miami's got a lot of Hispanics, and Hispanic culture in general is very homophobic. And I'm not just referring to the ones who were born abroad. I don't recall ever hearing of any issues with regard to gay safety in Miami, but nonetheless there's an element of homophobia here.
I do think, that for school purposes, somewhere a bit more north might be better. Although, we'll have to also factor in where we might end up working by then :L
I guess living near FIU might be a good option in terms of open minded people, and location, though I don't know how expensive apartments around there might be.
One thing my bf mentioned when we were in Hollywood, FL (he's never been to Miami) is how sort of "ghetto" it felt, and how at night he sort of felt like we might get "jumped" on you or something, and that's something you want to avoid. Ironically, the small towns in Texas where he's grown up have been very accepting towards LGBT persons.
Firs of all I don't understand why a person with a budget of $500 are worry about ghetto ppl. Secondly, Miami is a dog's breakfast of every type of ppl and they tend to be narrow minded because of the chauvinism heritage background. "Machismo". If you foretell they are going to jump on you chances are you are "obvious" or are planning to walk around "to chase" so they will for sure especially for some overprotective moms out there because of their kids.
I don't see too much difference between the FIU area to other Miami areas in terms of tolerance to be honest. I insist you should fly to Fort L. and find more peaceful places that are more suitable for your needs and worries. If I were you I wouldn't pay $1.000 in a place surrounded by potential haters..
Last edited by angelscorpio; 07-21-2014 at 05:23 PM..
What areas in Miami would you say are affordable, safe (at least for Miami standards) and reasonably gay friendly? Not meaning, some kinda gaybourhood or anything, but somewhere where a same sex couple can live together without feeling like an odd duck , where you're not likely to get judgemental looks and attitudes. People say that Miami as a whole is gay friendly, but in my experience that seems to only stand for anywhere downtown and east, and maybe trendier areas like Coral Gables. Other places won't lynch you or give you the God speech, but there's still an uncomfortable feeling, maybe the macho attitude of so many people?
My SO is coming down here to live (and attend school) in less than a year from Texas, God willing, so we're looking for a place to live together. He might be going to FIU and I'll be going to MDC-North, but to me, a decent area is more important than commute, since as of now, at least one of us has a car. Also, we'd like somewhere where English is spoken more frequently than Spanish, not somewhere where even the store manager doesn't know English. That's annoying to me, and I can't imagine how it'd be to him who is far less fluent in Spanish than I am
Btw, affordable meaning somewhere that college students still going to school can afford. We'll be able to most likely afford somewhere between 500-1000 a month, maybe a little more but nothing too far out. I wanna start getting an idea of a good area to look way ahead of time to make planning much easier.
Thanks for any help, and if any LGBT members can give some kind of personal input from experience, that'd be great!
You should relocate to Pinecrest. There is a lot of Americans of Eastern European ancestry there, and many are gay. I have a male cousin who is gay and was dating a married guy from Pinecrest.
The neighborhood is safe and English is spoken by the majority of residents.
Miami-Dade has a pending case regarding gay marriage, so you may find that openly gay-friendly places will soon become more common in the area. Since meetup.com is really popular in Miami, you might find some good info on this from gay Meetup groups, like asking around. I heard from a gay friend of mine last week that a spot has opened in West Kendall that is lesbian-run and open to all LGBTQA people to hang out, called Natalie's Cafe. When I lived in Kendall, I had gay male neighbors and they seemed to get along fine in the complex, I knew of no issues (although they fought like crazy at the end and the neighbors could all hear it, it was pretty obvious they weren't roommates although neither would have registered too high on the gaydar scale). No one seemed to care, and the older El Salvadoran couple next door waved and smiled to them all the time. I also saw lesbian couples from time to time at the local Publix.
So I realize that's really vague, but it's a start - I wouldn't say Kendall is a gay mecca by any means, but I did see people out and about from time to time, and they didn't seem to be getting harassed. There might be better places, but it is among the cheaper of Miami options. There is a lot of Spanish spoken, maybe 50%. Store managers there though will generally speak English, but some of your neighbors wouldn't. I am under the impression that West Kendall has more English, but I could be wrong about that.
Kendall does seem a bit far, for college commuting purposes, but it does seem like a nicer area. Interesting about Dade county legalising gay marriage. If only the whole state can follow suit! We don't plan on living in Florida after we get schooling done, hopefully gonna be moving to Minnesota (or Colorado) anyway, where gay marriage is legal already, but it's nice for Florida to start going down that path too. I'm mostly worried about homophobic thugs than in-your-face conservative Christians. I feel that's the homophobia more prevelant in Miami, as opposed to the type you'd expect in rural Missouri. I'd rather deal with the 50 year old woman holding a Bible, than some macho "tough guy" bigot.
Firs of all I don't understand why a person with a budget of $500 are worry about ghetto ppl. Secondly, Miami is a dog's breakfast of every type of ppl and they tend to be narrow minded because of the chauvinism heritage background. "Machismo". If you foretell they are going to jump on you chances are you are "obvious" or are planning to walk around "to chase" so they will for sure especially for some overprotective moms out there because of their kids.
I don't see too much difference between the FIU area to other Miami areas in terms of tolerance to be honest. I insist you should fly to Fort L. and find more peaceful places that are more suitable for your needs and worries. If I were you I wouldn't pay $1.000 in a place surrounded by potential haters..
Having a small budget doesn't necessarily make you ghetto. Just means you're not very rich Very true about the machismo attitude. I think a lot of it has to do with the overwhelming Hispanic culture, which still holds true to outdated gender stereotypes and roles. I feel the average non-Hispanic American male is more "feminist" than a lot of Hispanic females in Miami, American raised or otherwise. I think it's just about upbringing. Latin American countries, to my knowledge, have not had the feminist revolution which the US, Canada and much of Europe has had over the past century. I mean, women aren't treated as bad as in most of Asia and the Middle East, but societal roles and expectations haven't been as challenged down there as much, thus you do have a slightly sexist and as a result, bit homophobic, atmosphere.
I'd honestly prefer Ft. Lauderdale over Miami but it does seem a bit out of reach, though not totally far out. I'll look into Ft. Lauderdale too.
Miami-Dade has a pending case regarding gay marriage, so you may find that openly gay-friendly places will soon become more common in the area. Since meetup.com is really popular in Miami, you might find some good info on this from gay Meetup groups, like asking around. I heard from a gay friend of mine last week that a spot has opened in West Kendall that is lesbian-run and open to all LGBTQA people to hang out, called Natalie's Cafe. When I lived in Kendall, I had gay male neighbors and they seemed to get along fine in the complex, I knew of no issues (although they fought like crazy at the end and the neighbors could all hear it, it was pretty obvious they weren't roommates although neither would have registered too high on the gaydar scale). No one seemed to care, and the older El Salvadoran couple next door waved and smiled to them all the time. I also saw lesbian couples from time to time at the local Publix.
So I realize that's really vague, but it's a start - I wouldn't say Kendall is a gay mecca by any means, but I did see people out and about from time to time, and they didn't seem to be getting harassed. There might be better places, but it is among the cheaper of Miami options. There is a lot of Spanish spoken, maybe 50%. Store managers there though will generally speak English, but some of your neighbors wouldn't. I am under the impression that West Kendall has more English, but I could be wrong about that.
West Kendall is the most Hispanic part of Kendall, lol. Kendall itself especially Eastern parts are much better in terms of people that speak fluent English.
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