How bad is the crime really? (Miami, Pembroke Pines: apartment, rental, crime rate)

[TravelingBluesBrother]

I've heard a lot of stories about how scary certain parts of South Florida are and people listing off neighborhoods to avoid (like anywhere that isn't a suburban gated community for millionaires). But I've lived in some supposedly "rough" neighborhoods up north and know how to handle myself.

I know Florida's crime rate is higher than average, particularly with the gun laws. But, is this is a place where drive-by's with full-auto glocks happen in broad daylight? Or is it just a place where you don't want to walk down the street at night by yourself? Do people get mugged, shot, assaulted randomly, or is it most of the crime between people who know each other and altercations that start at a bar and lead out into the streets?

Burglaries and car break-ins happened in my old city, but if you took some precautions, burglars wouldn't bother.

I don't know, just trying to gauge how dangerous it really is versus the perception. Sometimes I think it's just people who afraid of any minorities and automatically assume any poor neighborhood is like a warzone.

[Fl1150]

I think the media over exaggerates the crime rate in South Florida is actually is very safe and crime only happens in certain pockets. Like any metro area you have to be smart about your surrounding but that is common sense 101. This thread has a map attached to it showing areas of Palm Beach County bad areas as well as good areas.

[8to32characters]

It's not so much that South Florida is more dangerous than other major metro areas in the US, but rather than there are some very, very bad pockets of crime scattered throughout the region that are not all that far removed the nicer, more upscale areas. The way in which the land area in South Florida was developed (i.e., a narrow strip of land stretching from the Atlantic Ocean to the Everglades spanning approximately 100 miles north to south, but no more than 20 miles from east to west) has a lot to do with this. For example, cities in south Broward County like Pembroke Pines and Miramar are often receive very favorable marks in terms of safety, despite being within very close proximity to northern Miami-Dade County, home to the likes of Miami Gardans and Opa-locka and arguably one of the most dangerous areas in the entire US. Ditto Palm Beach Gardens vs. Riviera Beach.

[rusty78]

We moved down from NY - Rockland County - and there were several neighborhoods my wife and I would not go through at night. Bars on the windows, driveways lit up at night, several gangs, numerous serious crimes, drug dens, etc...and the difference....

In NY only the most violent crimes made the news - sometimes!! Down here, it seems that every crime is on the news or printed in the paper that day or the next. From the most serious to the most minor!

And yes, there are bad area's here as well and you only have to ask around to find out where they are.

[TriCounty]

Florida is more dangerous than New York.

[The Villages Guy]

Originally Posted by TriCounty

Florida is more dangerous than New York.

The thread is not about the state as a whole, otherwise it would be in the state forum. You really need to compare locales. I'm not sure if that would change anything, but I guess it would depend on which locales one is comparing.

[TriCounty]

Originally Posted by North_Pinellas_Guy

The thread is not about the state as a whole, otherwise it would be in the state forum. You really need to compare locales. I'm not sure if that would change anything, but I guess it would depend on which locales one is comparing.

The South Florida counties have more crime than Rockland County, NY (which is really not that bad).

[maria315]

This is a tough question to answer. Hence, we can all confirm that we all need to be more attentive in terms of criminal activities in our cities/location. I strongly encourage everyone to invest in learning self defense techniques, even the basic ones. It would come in really handy.


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[TravelingBluesBrother]

Originally Posted by rusty78

Bars on the windows, driveways lit up at night, several gangs, numerous serious crimes, drug dens, etc...and the difference....
.

Even excluding New York City, I've seen the same thing in Buffalo, Rochester, Syracuse and Albany. If you avoid certain places, you should be fine.

[LifeIsGood01]

I've lived in Broward for 6 years. I rent and have managed to find a relatively cheap place in a safe area. I would think Palm Beach county is less dangerous than Broward and Miami Dade is the most dangerous of all 3. I grew up in a large city in north New Jersey and as long as you stay out of trouble you should be fine. I heard bad things about south Florida, but all you have to do is look around or drive around at night to see where the bad areas are. I went to one rental broker who showed me an apartment in a dead end street where I would not live at for free. I have no problem living in a mixed neighborhood as long as there are decent people, but I would not feel safe living in the bad part of the hood.