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I'm new here though I have read a fair bit of the archives and previous posts on the Tamps forum here. My wife and I, and our four children, are looking very hard at the Tampa area to relocate too from Portland, Or.
We need a little more specific information though if you don't mind.
1. We're looking for a "safe" area known to be a good family location. We have a rental max for our first year of around 1800 a month.
2. What are people's personal opinions on the schooling in the Tampa area? High school and Junior High. Maybe too broad a question!
3. I'm not overly worried about work but I am curious people's thoughts on the micro level economy. Lots of information around regarding Florida as a whole, but I haven't found that much regarding the Tampa area solely. And really I'm interested in people's personal feelings regarding this one. One of the reasons we are looking too move away is because Portland is too small and there is no opportunity here. None at all.
4. What sort of things do people around your way do for fun? Here it's all about camping/hiking/rafting etc. I'm curious what people do down your way. How's the fly fishing?
5. How is the environment for children? I know every city has it's dangerous no go places, but in general I'm just curious of the overall safety level for children..
6. Will I ever get too see a Republican elected to a statewide office in Florida? Because I think I will die before it ever happens in Oregon. (this one is a joke )
7. This last one isn't a make or break thing but purely for myself. How is the coverage of English Soccer there? Do you have Fox Soccer Channel in HD etc?
Thanks much for reading my post and thanks for any helpful replies you may have!
1. We're looking for a "safe" area known to be a good family location. We have a rental max for our first year of around 1800 a month.
You need to narrow down where you want to live, there are plenty of "safe" areas all over the metro area. Westchase, Carrollwood, South Tampa would be my top choices in Tampa in terms of low-to-lower crime rates.
2. What are people's personal opinions on the schooling in the Tampa area? High school and Junior High. Maybe too broad a question!
In general people who REALLY REALLY care about the quality of their kids' schooling do not move to Florida. Florida is known to have subpar schools in general, and even the private schools are not that great. Again, people with extremely high academic standards for their kids stay in parts of the Midwest, the Northeast, DC area, parts of Calif., where you have excellent schools.
3. I'm not overly worried about work but I am curious people's thoughts on the micro level economy. Lots of information around regarding Florida as a whole, but I haven't found that much regarding the Tampa area solely. And really I'm interested in people's personal feelings regarding this one. One of the reasons we are looking too move away is because Portland is too small and there is no opportunity here. None at all.
Portland is a very very different place from Tampa, economically and in every other way. You need to visit Tampa several times for at least 4-6 days before you commit to moving here.
4. What sort of things do people around your way do for fun? Here it's all about camping/hiking/rafting etc. I'm curious what people do down your way. How's the fly fishing?
People here mostly hit the beaches, do a lot of water sports, fishing (NOT fly fishing), and drive to other parts of the state. There is limited camping/hiking here due to the lack of preserved land in general and the climate and the bugs. Rafting is non-existent although there is a lot of river to kayak, canoe, etc. Pristine spring-fed rivers.
5. How is the environment for children? I know every city has it's dangerous no go places, but in general I'm just curious of the overall safety level for children.
If crime is a huge issue for you, please be advised that Florida has a lot of crime in general.
7. This last one isn't a make or break thing but purely for myself. How is the coverage of English Soccer there? Do you have Fox Soccer Channel in HD etc?
There are A LOT of people from the UK who have moved here and so there's lots of access to English sports.
Planedition answered your questions , but I have to ask you a couple .
1. What kind of work do you do , and have you researched the available jobs in this area ?
2. Same question for your wife .
3. Would you change career fields and/or take a cut in pay to live in Tampa ?
Planedition answered your questions , but I have to ask you a couple .
1. What kind of work do you do , and have you researched the available jobs in this area ?
2. Same question for your wife .
3. Would you change career fields and/or take a cut in pay to live in Tampa ?
I have spent 7 years managing computer networks for a multinational corporation. For the last 5 I've been working for a home building company locally.
She's a stay at home mom to our four kids. We have less but that's the tradeoff we gladly make so she can stay at home.
I would change if necessary. I'm not married to my professions in any way. Pay cuts temporarily were assumed on our part. We have enough in savings to cover our living expenses for a couple years, so I assumed a temporary pay cut while searching for something more permanent.
Hope that answers your questions and helps you to answer mine! Thanks much!
I have lived in a few different areas of the country and even though I am here in Tampa now (not really by choice) I don't like it here. It's VERY HOT and there are a lot of bad areas of Tampa. (This is only my opinion). My sister has lived here all her life and would never leave. She loves it.
However, there are nice areas depending on what your version of nice is. I prefer New Tampa and Wesley Chapel. It is far enough away from Central Tampa and the bad parts that you can feel a lot safer. I think the schools out here in Wesley Chapel are a bit nicer than in most of Tampa. You can rent a really nice, newer house out here with upgrades and probably a pool for under $1800. Check out trulia.com and search Wesley Chapel. South Tampa is nice but it's a lot older and there are some run down areas down there. Also, heavy rain and tropical storms tend to flood south Tampa because it is very close to Tampa Bay.
I do agree with the poster above that coming here and seeing it for yourself is probably best. Some people love it and some people hate it!
In my opinion, if I had to choose a place in Florida to live with kids I would live in the Orlando area. There is a lot of traffic but you can't beat the things there to do! I grew up in Orlando and we always had seasonal passes to Disney and believe me, the memories from that are great. I still go and I won't ever get sick of it. They also have Universal and Sea World. Disney is also a great company to work for (I have). Their benefits are second to none. Areas near Disney are nice and safe but can get crowded. There is just so much to do for kids there I can't stress that enough. I personally liked living there because I always felt like I was on vacation! That kind of environment isn't for everyone, though.
One last thing on schools. They aren't the greatest here but if you can afford it you can send your children to private school or to a charter school. There ARE good schools here it's just a matter of researching. It's really sad but the truth is that the nicer place you live the nicer the schools. I wish it wasn't that way but it is here. Also, Florida always seems to have a Republican governor....being a Democrate it boggles my mind. LOL But that should make you happy!
1. We're looking for a "safe" area known to be a good family location. We have a rental max for our first year of around 1800 a month.
I think this would depend on where you found work. The consensus on City-Data is that the safest place to live is either in the burbs or in South Tampa.
2. What are people's personal opinions on the schooling in the Tampa area? High school and Junior High. Maybe too broad a question!
I don't really know but I think the schools in South Tampa are supposed to be good.
3. I'm not overly worried about work but I am curious people's thoughts on the micro level economy. Lots of information around regarding Florida as a whole, but I haven't found that much regarding the Tampa area solely. And really I'm interested in people's personal feelings regarding this one. One of the reasons we are looking too move away is because Portland is too small and there is no opportunity here. None at all.
Overall the Florida economy is not that great. But I have heard that the economy in Portland is really bad, too. Salaries are generally less in Tampa than in many other parts of the country, although the cost of living is not that high. I am guessing the economy in Tampa might be similar to, if not slightly better than, Portland.
4. What sort of things do people around your way do for fun? Here it's all about camping/hiking/rafting etc. I'm curious what people do down your way. How's the fly fishing?
Going to the beach is the thing to do here, although if you live in Tampa it can take an hour of driving or more to get there. From St. Pete it is a short trip. There isn't a lot of hiking. You will find some out along the Hillsborough River northeast of Tampa, going off of Morris Bridge Rd. or Hwy. 301. Since these areas are swampy there can be lots of mosquitoes, and of course it is hot in the summer, so you will be limited in hiking to the winter time. There are springs a bit north of here, and you can canoe/kayak down rivers with lots of springs. I don't remember the names of the rivers... I think the Chassahowitzka is the most pristine. A lot of people have big boats here and boat out in the Gulf. There are a few barrier islands that people go out to, like Egmont Key. I am an outdoorsy person and I've found it difficult to adjust to living in Tampa because it is so different than some place that is mountainous. You will have to drive to Georgia or North Carolina for fly fishing or for real hiking that isn't completely flat.
5. How is the environment for children? I know every city has it's dangerous no go places, but in general I'm just curious of the overall safety level for children..
In my opinion about half of Tampa feels unsafe/rundown, so you will have to choose carefully where you live. Also, Tampa is consistently ranked as one of the most unfriendly cities in the country for bikers and pedestrians. I would imagine it would be pretty different than Portland in that way.
6. Will I ever get too see a Republican elected to a statewide office in Florida? Because I think I will die before it ever happens in Oregon. (this one is a joke )
Yes, Florida currently has a (somewhat unpopular/controversial) Republican governor. Florida is a "swing state" and so party lines are about equally divided here. South Florida will lean more Democratic, and North Florida (Jacksonville/the panhandle) is more Republican. Tampa is in the middle, both geographically and politically.
7. This last one isn't a make or break thing but purely for myself. How is the coverage of English Soccer there? Do you have Fox Soccer Channel in HD etc?
I don't know. I use an antenna and don't get cable.
I have spent 7 years managing computer networks for a multinational corporation. For the last 5 I've been working for a home building company locally.
She's a stay at home mom to our four kids. We have less but that's the tradeoff we gladly make so she can stay at home.
I would change if necessary. I'm not married to my professions in any way. Pay cuts temporarily were assumed on our part. We have enough in savings to cover our living expenses for a couple years, so I assumed a temporary pay cut while searching for something more permanent.
Hope that answers your questions and helps you to answer mine! Thanks much!
I'd say you have a pretty good chance finding employment in your field here .
Lots of computer related jobs available . Other than that it is mostly hospitality and retail jobs . Manufacturing and construction jobs are still dificult to find .
There are several family oriented communities in the N.W. part of the county . Newer homes , nice schools . and convenient shopping . Also , this area has direct travel routes to other parts of Tampa , making commuting much easier .
Tampa is like any place else , half the people love it , half the people hate it . You need to spend a few days in the area you plan on moving to .
The IT field is finally starting to open up after a number of years of being in the tank. Price Waterhouse literally closed their IT department here a few years ago, flooding the market with people and making it near impossible to find a job.
However, do realize that salaries are considerably lower than where you are now, as much as 25%-35% lower in some cases.
Public schools are good here, best in certain areas, so do your due diligence and you should be fine there.
You will get hammered expense-wise on car and homeowner's insurance, which will be significantly higher here than Portland. If you're renting that's going to be moot for the homeowner's, but when you decide to buy it will matter.
1800 for a rental is near the low end of the better suburban communities. With the housing crisis having taken a lot of people out of their homes, rentals are at a premium, and the prices reflect that.
RM
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