Possibly relocating to the Tampa Bay area from MA. (University: foreclosure, to rent)

[LovelyMeg]

Hi everyone,
My husband and I are considering relocating from a Boston suburb to the Tampa Bay area. We are just starting to do our research and reading about suburbs in these areas. My husband is an RN and I am a high school teacher. We are in our late 20s and we have no children (although, they might be in the future!). My husband currently works in a metro Hospital and would like to stay in that type of job. I currently work in a suburban/middle class school and would like to find a job in a similar setting. We are looking for a moderately priced home with at least 3 bedrooms. We want something relatively close to the city of Tampa. Any input is greatly appreciated Thanks!

[algia]

Carrollwood comes to mind as a nice "close to everything type of place"....and there is a Hospital right in the middle of it on Dale Mabry hwy, Tampa Florida Hospital - University Community Hospital - Carrollwood, Tampa FL

Lutz has good schools, on Hillsborough County side....I am biased twoards it tho....but I am sure there are other burbs just as nice....

[manngirl]

I would have to say that Carrollwood is a good place to be. My husband and I live in Original Carrollwood and it is very family friendly, with its own beach access on Lake Carroll.

[Occifer]

Getting a teaching job at a suburban/middle class school right off the bat is going to be difficult if not impossible. When positions open up at the desirable schools, they're filled by teachers transferring from other schools before general applicants get considered. Also, Hillsborough County isn't hiring permanent teachers anymore. All new hires have temporary positions that are good for the school year and may or may not be renewed. It has nothing to do with your performance, but whether or not the district is going to keep the position around. One of my girlfriend's coworkers had one of these temporary positions that got eliminated at the beginning of the year, and she had to leave the school and go find another temporary position at a different school teaching something totally different. If they do keep the position, it can also be kept temporary and not converted to permanent. This is all because of the budget problems down here. It's pretty difficult for new teachers wanting to get jobs in Hillsborough County right now. They aren't even hiring new substitutes.

If you want more of an upper/middle class environment you could always look at teaching at a private school, however the pay and benefits usually aren't as good.

[LovelyMeg]

thank you for all of your responses!

[jcmitchell82]

Carrollwood would definitely be a good place to purchase a home. My wife and I just purchased a home built in 2004/2005 for under 130k. You will battle traffic but it is a nice place.

[brasaboston]

Me and my husband are in the same boat.... we're trying to relocate too and we're really thinking about going to Tampa. We just came back to Boston and we miss Tampa already! 75 in the winter time??? I'd take it! But eventhough we stayed for 4 days it wasn't enough to make a definite decision and we're hoping that you guys can help us out by posting info about the good neighborhood and nice areas that you can find around Tampa. I work as a foreclosure legal assistant in Boston and my husband as a payroll accounting. We'd like to rent at first but in order to do that we must know what are the bad areas that we need to avoid. Boston is pretty safe and this is our main concern. We'd like to find a family oriented neighborhood... Hopefully by helping LovelyMeg you'll be helping us too! Thanks a lot!

[jdvalle]

If you like any aspect of Boston that is the least bit urban, I would check out South Tampa. People that move here from large cities often underestimate how spread out, desolate, and ultra-suburban most of Tampa can be. IMO, South Tampa and the surrounding areas are the only parts of town that remotely resemble a "normal" city (i.e.: safe, walkable, some arts/culture, non-chain restaurants). Unfortunately, this also means that prices are higher.

However, if you live on the outskirts of Boston in a gated development and only go into the city once a year for a special occassion to "see a play" or something, then you may find Tampa, in general, to be perfectly suitable.

[DoctorRain]

Originally Posted by jdvalle

If you like any aspect of Boston that is the least bit urban, I would check out South Tampa. People that move here from large cities often underestimate how spread out, desolate, and ultra-suburban most of Tampa can be. IMO, South Tampa and the surrounding areas are the only parts of town that remotely resemble a "normal" city (i.e.: safe, walkable, some arts/culture, non-chain restaurants). Unfortunately, this also means that prices are higher.

However, if you live on the outskirts of Boston in a gated development and only go into the city once a year for a special occassion to "see a play" or something, then you may find Tampa, in general, to be perfectly suitable.

South Tampa as in Ybor/Channelside? Because that seems to be the south of Tampa from where I stand and thats the city part to it.
I find if you go down N Nebraska Rd and further and then say hang a right that it becomes more suburban like where the new developments are and new plazas.

[jdvalle]

Originally Posted by DoctorRain

South Tampa as in Ybor/Channelside? Because that seems to be the south of Tampa from where I stand and thats the city part to it.
I find if you go down N Nebraska Rd and further and then say hang a right that it becomes more suburban like where the new developments are and new plazas.

South Tampa generally refers to the small peninsula south of Kennedy Ave.

Ybor/Channelside and downtown are obviously more urban that South Tampa, but I was assuming that the OP was looking for at least a somewhat residential area to live in.