Tampa Catholic High School + Job in Riverview = Where to Live???? (Brandon: low income, section 8)

[basiakal]

Moving to Tampa for work in January, with husband and kids joining after this school year. Two kids will be going to Tampa Catholic High School. (Number three will be four and has autism - different post perhaps.) My job will be in Riverview. Is there any place convenient to both locations that's in a good neighborhood? We're looking to rent for a while with a budget of up to $2,500/month. We are suburbanites, used to back yards and Target within driving distance. But mostly I'm concerned about safety.
Any help? Thanks!!

[crazynip]

South Tampa would be the most convenient. The area around Tampa Catholic is ghetto.

[basiakal]

Thanks for your reply!

Ghetto? Seriously? Or is it just not a great part of town? How about Jesuit High?

[crazynip]

Originally Posted by basiakal

Thanks for your reply!

Ghetto? Seriously? Or is it just not a great part of town? How about Jesuit High?

It's pretty much borderline ghetto. Definitely bad part of town. My brother lives off of Ema Dr and his property borders up against TC's campus. He, like me, bought in the area in the early 2000's as it was an "up and coming" area. Well, it never improved, where I lived actually went downhill, where he is at never improved, and when the recession hit, nosedived down.

There is a couple low income apartment complexes nearby full of drug dealers and a section 8 "retirement complex" nearby too, full of broke retirees.

Jesuit is in a little better situation, even though realistically it is just a couple miles down the street. It is surrounded by businesses, not residential like TC.

[GoRays813]

Do they have to go to those schools? I agree with the S. Tampa recommendation and suggest you take a look at Plant High school. There are homes within your budget that are within Plant's boundaries. Your commute to Riverview will be a reverse-commute as well.

[basiakal]

Thanks! The kids are already in Catholic High School, so I'm hoping to continue them on that path. (Although I just checked the tuition for Jesuit .... hooo boy!)

Great point about the reverse-commute. We were considering Brandon because of its proximity to the highways, but the traffic would be going INTO Tampa in the am and OUT of Tampa in the afternoons, right? How bad is it, really?

[TampaKaren]

I'd suggest you also look around the Providence Lakes area in Brandon. This will be closer to your Riverview job and will provide convenient access to Interstate 75.

South Tampa would be the preferred location, though your budget won't go very far. You should look south of Kennedy, east of Dale Mabry and north of Gandy. The area closest to the Selmon Expressway (zip codes 33606 and 33609) will give you a better commute to Riverview.

[GoRays813]

Originally Posted by basiakal

Thanks! The kids are already in Catholic High School, so I'm hoping to continue them on that path. (Although I just checked the tuition for Jesuit .... hooo boy!)

Great point about the reverse-commute. We were considering Brandon because of its proximity to the highways, but the traffic would be going INTO Tampa in the am and OUT of Tampa in the afternoons, right? How bad is it, really?

With the crosstown, it's pretty manageable but the further away from the crosstown that you live, the longer the drive due to the lights and such. Brandon is a good halfway point to both locations though and your budget will open up many options. Make sure that you research the neighborhood that interests you and drive around in the day and night because some neighborhoods are seedy. Also test-drive the drive during a normal working day to make sure that the commute is good for you.

[DUNNDFRNT]

Originally Posted by basiakal

Thanks! The kids are already in Catholic High School, so I'm hoping to continue them on that path. (Although I just checked the tuition for Jesuit .... hooo boy!)

Great point about the reverse-commute. We were considering Brandon because of its proximity to the highways, but the traffic would be going INTO Tampa in the am and OUT of Tampa in the afternoons, right? How bad is it, really?

Brandon does not fit the bill, in terms of Schools, if you want something comparable to Plant High School, in eastern Hillsborough you would need to be in the Newsome HS boundary, which means Lithia/Fishhawk. I think that would work for the OP specially if they are looking for big backyards. I live in South Tampa, I dont think you can go wrong moving there, you would have the choice of Jesuit and Tampa Catholic plus Plant, but depends on the kind of house you want, your budget would go a lot further in the Newsome boundaries.

[Sunnydee]

Since your job is in Riverview, I'd look to rent a home in Riverview or Brandon. Both areas would give you easy access to the Selmon Crosstown and I-75.