Looking to move to Miami in the future.. (Pinecrest: renting, houses)

[Emil Torres]

Neighborhoods and vibes in Miami, as in many places, change from block to block. You can get a 1br condo in North Miami under $100k, but many areas in North Miami are very bad places to live. I lknow North Miami very well and if you are east of US1, you will be in a comfortable place to live. I just did a zillow search and 1br places east of US1 from 135 street to 118 street asking prices are $125k and up, with many in the $150k range.

Since real estate prices seem to be stable now, perhaps even dipping, you may want to rent here for the first year to get a feel for the nuance of different neighborhoods. North Miami is very nice East of US1 on 135 Street and mostly very nice in the San Souci area east of US1 between 125th and 118th Street. North Miami can however be extremely unpleasant in certain areas. I'd recommend being careful about buying anything there under $100k, or West of US1 unless you know the area very well.

[aylinap]

Originally Posted by JustKeepMoving

I would rather live in NYC than Miami. What about Atlanta?

NYC is almost 30% more expensive than Miami, and the closest beaches are in the hood. The nicer beaches of Long Island you have to pay to get in which they also increase the price every year. Also I absolutely hated the MTA and LIRR..never on time and always increasing the prices for their crappy service. Before I left I had to pay around $400 for a monthly train pass plus a $180 monthly bus pass. Atlanta has swamps surrounding it. No thanks.

[aylinap]

Originally Posted by Emil Torres

Neighborhoods and vibes in Miami, as in many places, change from block to block. You can get a 1br condo in North Miami under $100k, but many areas in North Miami are very bad places to live. I lknow North Miami very well and if you are east of US1, you will be in a comfortable place to live. I just did a zillow search and 1br places east of US1 from 135 street to 118 street asking prices are $125k and up, with many in the $150k range.

Since real estate prices seem to be stable now, perhaps even dipping, you may want to rent here for the first year to get a feel for the nuance of different neighborhoods. North Miami is very nice East of US1 on 135 Street and mostly very nice in the San Souci area east of US1 between 125th and 118th Street. North Miami can however be extremely unpleasant in certain areas. I'd recommend being careful about buying anything there under $100k, or West of US1 unless you know the area very well.

There's bad areas in North Miami Beach..and Sunny Isles?

[Emil Torres]

Originally Posted by aylinap

There's bad areas in North Miami Beach..and Sunny Isles?

Yes, there are very bad areas in North Miami Beach. Sunny Isles is completely very nice.

[aylinap]

Originally Posted by Emil Torres

Yes, there are very bad areas in North Miami Beach. Sunny Isles is completely very nice.

We're definitely looking into Sunny Isles. There seemed to be a lot of development going on while we were there. I don't get why people on this forum make Miami seem HORRIBLE. I had a friend who lived there with her family until she got married, and she loved it! Also another one of my friend's cousins currently lives near the Brickell area and she loves it as well. Why so much hate on the Internet?

[hurricaneMan1992]

Originally Posted by Emil Torres

Neighborhoods and vibes in Miami, as in many places, change from block to block. You can get a 1br condo in North Miami under $100k, but many areas in North Miami are very bad places to live. I lknow North Miami very well and if you are east of US1, you will be in a comfortable place to live. I just did a zillow search and 1br places east of US1 from 135 street to 118 street asking prices are $125k and up, with many in the $150k range.

You have to be careful because some of those places are 55+ communities, and others have high monthly special assessments left over from the last housing bubble. Also, with South Florida condos you'd better have cash because condo lenders mostly want 30-40% down and most of those cheap ones will have cash investors making offers, though that is becoming less the case and in coming years may be less of a factor.

North Miami has huge potential, and a lot of development is in the works. Look up SoLeMia and North Miami Chinatown. Also a Coastal Link commuter rail station is planned, if politicians can ever get it together.... The main areas to avoid are along NE6th Ave and West Dixie Highway where there are many cheap apartment complexes, there's also some Section 8 complexes near Sans Souci, 16th Ave. below 123rd, but it's pretty contained.

I doubt you'd get anything in Sunny Isles Beach in that price range unless it's at an auction, though North Miami Beach's "Eastern Shores" may be doable and is a bit of a hidden gem.

[AnnRyan]

Originally Posted by aylinap

We're definitely looking into Sunny Isles. There seemed to be a lot of development going on while we were there. I don't get why people on this forum make Miami seem HORRIBLE. I had a friend who lived there with her family until she got married, and she loved it! Also another one of my friend's cousins currently lives near the Brickell area and she loves it as well. Why so much hate on the Internet?

A lot of the people on the forum fled Miami for Broward in the 1980s... they seem to think that the world hasn't changed since. But seriously, not everyone loves it here, there are pros and cons everywhere. However, as long as you're willing to live in a predominantly hispanic community, you'll probably acclimate easily.

[Lusiphur]

Originally Posted by aylinap

NYC is almost 30% more expensive than Miami, and the closest beaches are in the hood. The nicer beaches of Long Island you have to pay to get in which they also increase the price every year. Also I absolutely hated the MTA and LIRR..never on time and always increasing the prices for their crappy service. Before I left I had to pay around $400 for a monthly train pass plus a $180 monthly bus pass. Atlanta has swamps surrounding it. No thanks.

NYC is significantly more than 30% more expensive than Miami. According to Trulia, the median rental price for a 1 bed in Miami is $1,800 a month, and a 2 bed is also $1,800 a month. In NYC, again from Trulia, median rent for a 1 bed is $3,275 and for a 2 bed it's $6,300. That's almost twice as expensive for a one bedroom, and almost four times more for a two. Granted, you can find much cheaper places in NYC than the median, but you're going to be paying 2-4x more per square foot, or else living in a terrible neighborhood far from any transportation, at which point you may as well just move to Jersey City.

Atlanta is surrounded by swamps, but so is Miami, on three sides. We have the advantage of gorgeous beaches, but if you don't live on Miami Beach or right on the water, you're probably not going to take as much advantage of them as you think. Between the hassle of beach traffic and the headache of finding parking near one of the public access areas on the beach, it's a lot less convenient than people realize ahead of time. Most of my friends from the mainland are lucky to get to the beach once a month. That said, Atlanta is dirt cheap, and that's for a reason - it's because Atlanta is a shiathole. It's a sprawling mess of overgrown suburbs and identical but isolated microneighborhoods. It's getting a little better, as people are trying to redevelop and gentrify downtown, but downtown is still dangerous and grimy.

Miami, if you're actually in Miami or Miami Beach, and not one of the extending suburbs, is a nice middle ground. Way cheaper than New York, way more centralized and happening than Atlanta. Plus, did I mention we have some of the most beautiful beaches in the world?

[BNBR]

Originally Posted by aylinap

We're definitely looking into Sunny Isles. There seemed to be a lot of development going on while we were there. I don't get why people on this forum make Miami seem HORRIBLE. I had a friend who lived there with her family until she got married, and she loved it! Also another one of my friend's cousins currently lives near the Brickell area and she loves it as well. Why so much hate on the Internet?

There is a rivalry between Broward and Miami... and WPB and everybody.... Then you have the people who simply only experienced Miami and lump all of South Florida into that.

Regardless of what some people here say, the Broward suburbs are significantly nicer, newer, cleaner, and better to raise a family than just about anywhere in Miami. This is a general statement - so take it as such. If I were looking to live on or near the beach, or if I like an urban environment, Miami is much better than Broward. So your friend near Brickell, sounds about right. I know someone who just moved to Brickell from west Broward and loves it as well. I could see myself living there someday, too.

You are going to get a lot of hate when it comes to Miami because the suburbs are pretty dumpy. They are dirty, poorly maintained, huge multi-million dollar houses next to the salvation army, etc. etc. The buildings look old, it's just an older city and it shows. It's not ALL that way, Miami is big, but unless you are in the high six figure or into the 7 figures and can afford Pinecrest, the suburbs of Miami are terrible. Schools are terrible, poor infrastructure, tons of traffic, it's just a mess. Most people cannot afford a million dollar house, hence they come to Broward.

Of course, there are awful places in Broward, but Broward certainly has far more options for middle income earners to live in excellent neighborhoods with great schools.

I know a couple will get offended and avoid reality all at costs.... but it's just the way it is.

[hurricaneMan1992]

Originally Posted by AnnRyan

A lot of the people on the forum fled Miami for Broward in the 1980s... they seem to think that the world hasn't changed since. But seriously, not everyone loves it here, there are pros and cons everywhere. However, as long as you're willing to live in a predominantly hispanic community, you'll probably acclimate easily.

I wouldn't consider North Miami, North Miami Beach, Aventura, or Sunny Isles to be predominantly hispanic. It's more of a mix--white, hispanic, black with lots of Caribbean people in NM and NMB, and "whiter" with Jewish and Russians in Aventura and SIB.