Moving to Tampa! What is the best area to live in? (Clearwater: for sale, rentals)

[Kevin from Tampa]

Check out all the New Tampa area, especially the Pasco/Wesley Chapel part of it. Meadow Pointe and Seven Oaks are both good places with solid schools.

[JBugz]

As someone mentioned before, Fishhawk is an awesome neighborhood. They have their own schools (elem and middle) and the high school is just outside the community. They also have their own little water park and YMCA and cute little shops right in the subdivision. There's a HUGE range of prices/sizes in there... from condo-type homes to million dollar. I wish I could afford to live there..lol

[asbrandon25]

I've seen a lot on Fishhawk but its really not what we are looking for. It certainly has many of the aspects of what we want but its too cookie cutter for what we like.

[mamagirlof2]

Check out the Florida School Accountability Report at [url=http://schoolgrades.fldoe.org]School Accountability Report[/url] and also schoolmatters.com. Using those websites along with greatschools.org is very helpful.

We are also moving to Tampa, and I was just there looking for a rental home. Schools are our top priority, and actually going there really helped narrow it down for us. However, trying to find a rental property was what we had a problem with. They are scarce!

I recommend that you look into the School Choice Plan that Pinellas and Pasco County Schools use. Hillsborough County does not use this plan, which is just one of the reasons I found Hillsborough preferable over the other two. I believe some of New Tampa may be in Pasco County.

Of course, it is your choice, but as a mom, I feel strongly about good schools and just wanted to share what I have found through my extensive research...and my OCD!!! :-)

You may want to look at Westchase, Citrus Park, and Carrollwood. Also, Feathersound is a nice golf community in Clearwater (Pinellas County)

[Hockeyice]

Carrollwood is a pretty nice area, at least in my opinion.

[asbrandon25]

WELL!!!! My husband and I took a trip to Tampa this weekend and I have to tell you all we were VERY VERY impressed. Tampa and all the surrounding areas that we visited were just absolutely beautiful. The landscaping was beautiful the water was in almost every direction that we drove and it was so clear. People were so nice and very excited to answer any questions we had. So the areas we were able to fit in gave us a good idea of what we wanted. Moderator cut: realtor recommendations not allowed

So Friday night we got in town and checked in our hotel. There were some locals there at the bar having a few drinks. We asked them about the area and they suggested South Tampa. They raved on about the housing and how great of a place it was. We got dressed up to go to dinner and on our way to dinner we rode through this area since it was on the way. We were not impressed!! Bars and night clubs line up and down the street like Bourbon Street in New Orleans. It was nothing but a big party zone. Now these guys told us they were married and had small kids so we took their opinion in consideration. So South Tampa was a big fat NO!!!!

Saturday we drove to WestChase which we loved. Very nice area that is not in the city but has restaurants and stores. Houses were all very well kept up and maintained. We didn't spend a lot of time in this area and I wish we would have. But over all we did like it a lot.

Next we headed to Crystal Beach and Palm Harbor. As we drove we went through Oldsmar which is also nice. Palm Harbor is nice but there are some old areas with some old houses. Pinellas County is overall the best place I think. We drove out to Port Richey. Part of the drive there was very cute with little restaurants on the water and little inlets everywhere. Again you can drive in an area and see one house that looks old as hell and then all of a sudden there is a brand new 1M mansion right beside it. You have to keep in mind this is just how it is there.

Sunday we went to Clearwater. It is so beautiful there, the water is clear as can be. I honestly felt like it was the Bahamas. BUT --- the traffic is horrible and it is very touristy. What is nice is knowing that you can drive there for the day and hang out. Lots to do there for families and singles. It would be like going to the Bahamas for the day. We could not get over the beauty of this place but we just didn't think this was the place we wanted to live.

I must say we fell in love with Tampa! There were some areas we wanted to see but we just didn't have the time. So far my favorite area is Pinellas County. You can not go wrong in any area there. The schools are all good and its away from the city but close enough for a short drive to anything around there. We learned that FL schools have a program where you pick the school you want your child to attend. My son will be in 2nd grade this year and from what we were told Ozona Elementary is the best one. We are making another trip in August and taking our son this time to check it out so if anyone has any other suggestions send them my way.

Thanks ALL,
Amber

[maggiekate]

New Tampa, Wesley Chapel area might fit you best also Land O Lakes! Beach homes also do come with
mega insurance rates! Seven Oaks also is real nice and Bruce B Downs they are really working on this traffic problem. Meadow point has
some nice homes and schools also.

[TOPDOG813]

I am also in the same boat as the both of you. I wanted to know ow people feel about the Brandon area

[Keeper]

Originally Posted by asbrandon25

So Friday night we got in town and checked in our hotel. There were some locals there at the bar having a few drinks. We asked them about the area and they suggested South Tampa. They raved on about the housing and how great of a place it was. We got dressed up to go to dinner and on our way to dinner we rode through this area since it was on the way. We were not impressed!! Bars and night clubs line up and down the street like Bourbon Street in New Orleans. It was nothing but a big party zone. Now these guys told us they were married and had small kids so we took their opinion in consideration. So South Tampa was a big fat NO!!!!

Were where you that you saw all these bars and night clubs? . S. Tampa is a huge area and there are a few streets with restaurants and a bar or two but there is so much more to S. Tampa. That is the best area to live in Tampa.

[MortonR]

When I first read this I thought they were describing Ybor City....

RM