What is a liveable wage in Naples area? (Tampa, Orlando: living in, restaurants)

[ChrisA70]

Sarasota HANDS DOWN over Naples. I hate Naples. Of all of FL, I would choose Naples last(close tie with Miami). I lived there and could not wait to go.

[sarasotadreaming]

Originally Posted by ChrisA70

Sarasota HANDS DOWN over Naples. I hate Naples. Of all of FL, I would choose Naples last(close tie with Miami). I lived there and could not wait to go.

Why do you "hate" Naples so much. Can you share some of your reasons with us.

[justNancy]

Originally Posted by sarasotadreaming

Why do you "hate" Naples so much. Can you share some of your reasons with us.

Yes, I would like to hear the reasons too. Your profile indicates you live in Cape Coral which is like comparing McDonald's to the Sanibel Steakhouse.

[sarasotadreaming]

Originally Posted by justNancy

I'm baaaaaack. Sarasota has about 30,000 more people than Naples, so there is more to do. (and more traffic too) I'm not sure I'd call it "lively" however. Still, it would be wrong for me write a post about living in Sarasota, since I've never actually lived there, so you probably should ask someone on that forum. Sarasota is 2 hours closer to Tampa and Orlando, if that matters to you. Since Naples is less than 2 hours south of Sarasota, you can visit both cities when you visit FL.

TANaples is wrong. The median age in Naples is much younger. It's 61, not 62. (hey, at my age, every year counts!) Seriously, I can tell you from experience, there's plenty to do if you're 40-something. Having said that, I'm a very boring person.

Thanks for the info it was very helpful. Being close to Tampa may be convenient for good hospitals and the Int'L airport. Also for jobs when things turn around.

[ChrisA70]

Originally Posted by justNancy

Yes, I would like to hear the reasons too. Your profile indicates you live in Cape Coral which is like comparing McDonald's to the Sanibel Steakhouse.

Naples.... Well let's see. First off most of the state sucks now anyways so I want to get that off my chest. It used to be good.

Naples is boring, full of either snobby, obnoxous, and just plain rude people. It is overpriced, and in case you don't know there are a lot of really crappy areas, and you talk about Cape Coral... The more south you drive the crappier it gets. Traffic from hell, during snowbird season it gets worse. Did I mention it is overpriced? Naples is no better than ANY city in Florida. I once watched the news when I lived down there about a town official who on TV said "Naples is a place for a better society, we are tired of people moving to Naples and parking thier Chevy's and Ford Escorts in thier driveways".... If that is not a stuck up city then??? Of all the places I lived Naples was the worst one hands down. I have to go to work(ya one of the lucky few in FL) I will touch more on this later.

[ChrisA70]

Originally Posted by justNancy

Yes, I would like to hear the reasons too. Your profile indicates you live in Cape Coral which is like comparing McDonald's to the Sanibel Steakhouse.

Actually, I would like to know the reasons why Naples is "better" than anyplace else? Because when I go to the store, sometimes I buy an off brand, because it's just as good or better than paying for a name brand. I ddn't care for paying for a name in a city no better than the rest.

[Newdaawn]

It seems that COL is your main concern in moving to Florida. Have you spent 2 weeks or more there in the summer? After living in Northern New England it could be a huge adjustment. I have a friend that never takes her small kids out before 4 pm as it is just too hot. Also if you love the change of the seasons - you won't have that either. I didn't see North Carolina on your list of possible places to live. My BIL moved there about 3 years ago and is a native of New England. They love it, and the cost of living is not high. I think you need to consider how happy you would be living where most of the year is very hot.

[justNancy]

Originally Posted by ChrisA70

Actually, I would like to know the reasons why Naples is "better" than anyplace else? Because when I go to the store, sometimes I buy an off brand, because it's just as good or better than paying for a name brand. I ddn't care for paying for a name in a city no better than the rest.

I can answer this very easily. You got defensive for nothing. Actually, using McDonald's was a poor choice, since McDonald's has a wide selection from which to choose.

Sarasotadreaming said she was looking for a place to live that was lively. I said that Sarasota might be a better choice because it's larger, has many more people and is approx 110 miles closer to Tampa. If you're hoping to find work, Cape Coral definitely isn't the city I'd suggest unless you already have a job. (neither is Naples or Sarasota in this market)

Although both Cape Coral and Naples aren't swinging hot spots, as I already said, Cape Coral isn't a resort town like Naples that caters to the wealthy tourists. You can't possibly tell me that there is more to do on the Cape. Also, depending in what part of Naples one resides, you are only 2 exits away from the Miromar Outlets, the Germain Arena, a very short drive to Coconut Point Mall and the Coastland Mall is close to downtown Naples. If you are talking about the City of Naples (not including Golden Gate) it's not a very large area. It takes me less than 25 minute to get to the Coastland Mall from Bonita Beach Road which is just a few miles north of the northern tip of Naples. Sterling Oaks is on the Bonita/Naples border.

You can add the beach to the above list. Naples has its own beaches of course, but my favorite in the area is Barefoot Beach at the end of Bonita Beach Road SW. If you live in Naples, you can get a Collier County parking sticker. Wiggins Pass State Park is another beautiful beach in North Naples as well as Vanderbilt Beach where there's a lot of fine restaurants and shops. You are also close to Marco Island which is a nice place to visit, although I like the beaches in Naples more.

[justNancy]

Originally Posted by Newdaawn

It seems that COL is your main concern in moving to Florida. Have you spent 2 weeks or more there in the summer? After living in Northern New England it could be a huge adjustment. I have a friend that never takes her small kids out before 4 pm as it is just too hot. Also if you love the change of the seasons - you won't have that either. I didn't see North Carolina on your list of possible places to live. My BIL moved there about 3 years ago and is a native of New England. They love it, and the cost of living is not high. I think you need to consider how happy you would be living where most of the year is very hot.

I agree. Sometimes I don't want to go outside, but you can say the same thing about the frigid winters. When I lived in NH it was often too cold to take a walk around the block. If you live very close to the beach, there's ususlly a nice breeze. I'm about 5 miles inland now in Vero Beach (across the state from Tampa) and I definitely notice the difference when I drive over the bridge to the barrier island. One nice thing about the far Southwest area is that you can be close to the beach, a hop from route 41 and only 4 miles to the interstate. I-75 curves away from the coast as you travel north.

I do miss the change of seasons, however. That's once reason I've been considering moving to Greenville.

[hiknapster]

Originally Posted by justNancy

I agree. Sometimes I don't want to go outside, but you can say the same thing about the frigid winters. When I lived in NH it was often too cold to take a walk around the block. If you live very close to the beach, there's ususlly a nice breeze. I'm about 5 miles inland now in Vero Beach (across the state from Tampa) and I definitely notice the difference when I drive over the bridge to the barrier island. One nice thing about the far Southwest area is that you can be close to the beach, a hop from route 41 and only 4 miles to the interstate. I-75 curves away from the coast as you travel north.

I do miss the change of seasons, however. That's once reason I've been considering moving to Greenville.

It's all preference, and there is no way for one to tell if they will like or can even deal with the weather until they've lived in southwest Florida. Not vacationed, but lived there.

The weather was the LAST reason that we moved away. It just didn't have anything to do with it.

I think winters are very long in New England and summers are very long in SWFlorida. Neither situation is great, but you deal with it.

It was the schools and the people that really drove us away. And we picked Knoxville because of those reasons, along with the COL.

The place has fabulous weather, where you get four seasons, something that I REALLY appreciate now that we live here, but it was not a factor in our decision, either.

When you have kids, I think schools, neighborhood kids, quality of life, and cultural activities must come to the forefront of your decision making. Living around rude people has to rub off on them, to some extent, too. In Knoxville, they watch people wave to each other, allow others into traffic, say "please" and "thank you." It makes a difference.

I'll worry about my needs, later.