Move to Naples! Yes or No?? (Miami, Tampa: renting, homes, living)

[NaplesFloridaSun]

That's unfortunate. I don't know about you, but in general I find drivers nowadays to be way way too much in a hurry. So much so, that they are as you say, rude. If those drivers you encountered were rude, they just aren't in Naples believe me, they are well distributed throughout the U.S.
We have a family owned trucking company for the last 27 yrs., and you would not believe the stories I could tell you about rude drivers.
Anyway, I hope things improve for you in Naples.
Look for the good stuff and you'll find it. Try to ignore the bad.

[patricia1625]

Thank you for your replies. Right now I'm looking for a 2BR/2 BA condo in a financially stable community. I want to be a snowbird for a few months each year. I play golf but I don't have to live in a golf communtiy. I want to have a nice quiet comfortable area with a community pool. I want to keep it under $150000 for seasonal use. The community can be older. I am somewhat familiar with Bay Forest, Emerald Bay, Sterling Oaks. How is the area around Pine Ridge in between 41 and Goodlette or Airport? Someone mentioned Lakeside and I will check that out. Thank you for any suggestions!

[RMD3819]

That area is fine except traffic on Pine Ridge can be horrendous.

All those places you named are fine communities.

[patricia1625]

I see very reasonably priced condos in central/south (?) Naples like the Glades. I know they are older so the insurance will be more but what are some other pluses or minuses? The Glades has 2 golf courses which is a plus. Any suggestions for other complexes like this one?

[winterofmydiscontent]

Hi there. I'm considering a move to Naples from Minneapolis, for work. Does anyone know if any of the cheaper, "down to earth" neighborhoods here are in the areas zoned for the top-notch schools Naples boasts? We would be living in Naples for only a few years, but have small kids and want to keep up with their quality education.

Also, we're looking to buy a very inexpensive fixer-upper of a home that could later be used by our parents as a vacation house.

Any information would be very helpful!

Thanks.

[GucciDiva]

It depends on your age, too me Naples is boring but, it is a nice area.

[hodorhodor]

Naples can be a bit snooty, but it's a fairly clean, safe and upscale place to call home. The irony about attitude is generally that it's just the slightly well-to-do who feel like they have something to prove and thus, must turn their noses up in the air. The super rich, on the other hand, are generally a bit more laid back; they're likely visiting their second home (or third, or fourth) in Naples, so they've already gone into that vacation state-of-mind. That's been my perspective, at least. I would not call it an uncomfortable attitude in Collier County; no one is going to make you feel like you don't belong, so I would eliminate that fear from your mind. Miami is a different world, and if you're not wearing the latest styles, I have seen people giving looks of disdain, but that's Miami and really only certain neighborhoods that like to pretend it's Fashion Week every day. Leaving North Carolina will be bittersweet; I guarantee that you will miss the change of season. South Florida is very hot and humid about 10 months out of the year. You will probably appreciate having no state income tax, however. And don't worry about traffic either, the Raleigh-Durham/Triangle region has more traffic-congested arteries than Collier County any day.

[justNancy]

Originally Posted by impulse400

How will "rude rich people" affect my day to day living?

No matter where you live, your reaction to bad behavior is totally up to you.

In general, Naples is a nice place to live. The cost of housing is a little pricey, but there are many shops, restaurants, the Philharmonic, art galleries and nice beaches.

I don't think the wealthy residents are necessarily ruder. I worked in a high end furniture store and my clients who lived in Bay Colony were very patient, more than most. There were a lot of problems with the delivery that were not my fault, and I'll never forget how nice they were. I thought for sure I'd lose the sale and commission. OTOH, I also had customers who were extremely nasty, but I had lots of them in Fort Myers too.

[justNancy]

Originally Posted by patricia1625

Thank you for your replies. Right now I'm looking for a 2BR/2 BA condo in a financially stable community. I want to be a snowbird for a few months each year. I play golf but I don't have to live in a golf communtiy. I want to have a nice quiet comfortable area with a community pool. I want to keep it under $150000 for seasonal use. The community can be older. I am somewhat familiar with Bay Forest, Emerald Bay, Sterling Oaks. How is the area around Pine Ridge in between 41 and Goodlette or Airport? Someone mentioned Lakeside and I will check that out. Thank you for any suggestions!

Keep in mind that communities in FL often have high HOA fees because most communities have pools, tennis, lawn care, etc. Make sure you know what the HOA fee covers. Most cover outside maintenance and building insurance. However, some include basic cable & internet or water/sewer, so you need to compare the monthly fees.

You can look here to see if there are condos in your price range in the areas you desire. The listings usually show the fees too.

[url=http://www.naplesarea.com/]Naples Area Board of Realtors - Naples Real Estate | MLS Listings[/url]

On the far right, there's a link to Communities which is alphabetical.

Edit: Oops! That post is from 2011. But maybe someone else can benefit from the info I posted.

[capenewfs]

I have lived in many locations, New York, Massachusetts, Dallas, Miami, Maryland and I think the people here are the nicest. We have been here about a year full time and we will probably be moving back north to be closer to our family, eventually. That will be a hard move because we will be living neighbors who are wonderful. One thing about Naples that I hate is the long hot humid summer.