Anyone live in FL and like it?

[KLD313]

I've done some searches here and it seems everyone who lives there hates it. IDK why I want to move there but I do. I'd like to hear whatever positives there are about living there, I know the negatives. I'm particularly interested in Sarasota or else on the East Coast like Port St. Lucie, W. Palm, Boca, Jupiter, etc.

You can PM me if you don't want to answer here.

[MamaMolly]

We are currently living in Miami on a short-term (which became long term) basis. DH got sick overseas and had to come 'home' for treatment. We've been here since mid-December, and were here last year for several months when I delivered Dolly.

I personally LOVE it. Love, love, love, love it. I adore the weather. There is fun stuff to do with the kids, etc. But Lula isn't in school yet, and that would require searching districts and neighborhoods carefully.

We have relatives near Tampa and Melbourne. Love those too, but that experience is more as a visitor than a resident.

[kbud]

I live in FL and love it! We moved here almost 5 years. We are on the E coast, just E of Orlando, about 45 min S. of Daytona Beach and 35 miles N of Melbourne in Titusville. We love the weather. Even the hot summers we don't find bad as we can always go to the beach or the pool. We lived in Kansas City before here and found the summers there worse, not to mention the winters. I've lived in 9 states and FL is at the top w/CO right up there too. I love that there is so much to do. It's like being on vacation all the time. We go on date nights that include walks on the beach, go to Disney, Sea World, beach days, etc. I love seeing the sun nearly everyday. It puts me in such a good mood. I'm so much more energetic here than other places. The sun and warmth just does that for me.

We've been fortunate to find and get my dd into a wonderful charter school (it's public so free but seems more like a private school). Schools can be an issue which is why we moved to this county over the ones in Orlando where dh works. I also finally found a wonderful family dr. Schools and healthcare have been my biggest concerns in FL but once I found good ones we were set.

DH and I were just talking this weekend (on an overnight w/out the kids at the beach Sat night) how much we just love it here as we were sipping our drinks on the balcony overlooking the ocean.

The bugs aren't even as bad as I expected and you get used to the lizards. I've found people to be very, very friendly too.

I must add though that I find Miami and the S. East coast much different. Still enjoy it down there but not sure I'd want to live in that area. Reminds me a bit of the NE, people very fast paced, lots of traffic, and not as friendly. I'd probably prefer to live on the W coast, Sarasota is lovely but DH works in Orlando so that's out. I'm not sure I'd pick our exact location in FL again but we are stuck now since the housing market is so bad and our home has only depreciated since we bought it:(

Good luck!

[BabyMine]

I have lived here 32 years and my sister and DH were both born here. I wouldn't live any other place. DH is from Miami and I have lived in south east and west central. My SIL lives in Orlando and works at Disney.

[KLD313]

I must add though that I find Miami and the S. East coast much different. Still enjoy it down there but not sure I'd want to live in that area. Reminds me a bit of the NE, people very fast paced, lots of traffic, and not as friendly. I'd probably prefer to live on the W coast, Sarasota is lovely but DH works in Orlando so that's out. I'm not sure I'd pick our exact location in FL again but we are stuck now since the housing market is so bad and our home has only depreciated since we bought it:(

I live in the NE, that's probably why that area appeals to me. :) I have cousins in Sarasota and other family/friends in the Palm Beach area. I feel like I know more people down there than I do here. The depreciation is a concern for me. One of the main reasons I'm a little hesitant with schooling and healthcare a close second.

Thanks for the info.

[BabyMine]

We are currently living in Miami on a short-term (which became long term) basis. DH got sick overseas and had to come 'home' for treatment. We've been here since mid-December, and were here last year for several months when I delivered Dolly.

I personally LOVE it. Love, love, love, love it. I adore the weather. There is fun stuff to do with the kids, etc. But Lula isn't in school yet, and that would require searching districts and neighborhoods carefully.

We have relatives near Tampa and Melbourne. Love those too, but that experience is more as a visitor than a resident.

Come visit next time you are over in Tampa.:D

[BabyMine]

I live in the NE, that's probably why that area appeals to me. :) I have cousins in Sarasota and other family/friends in the Palm Beach area. I feel like I know more people down there than I do here. The depreciation is a concern for me. One of the main reasons I'm a little hesitant with schooling and healthcare a close second.

Thanks for the info.

What are you looking for for healthcare and schooling? I know where I live we have fantastic hospitals. It also helps that we live near a medical school. We have wonderful magnet schools if you don't want to go the public school route. They are free and transportation is provided.

[kbud]

I live in the NE, that's probably why that area appeals to me. :) I have cousins in Sarasota and other family/friends in the Palm Beach area. I feel like I know more people down there than I do here. The depreciation is a concern for me. One of the main reasons I'm a little hesitant with schooling and healthcare a close second.

Thanks for the info.

Hey, now is the time to buy here! Seriously, not sure it can get much lower. My in-laws just bought a decent, good condition 3 BD/2 BA condo on the intercoastal waterway for $36,000. It wasn't a foreclosure either. Houses in our neighborhood that were selling for over $200,000 are now selling in the high $70,000.

[mmama]

DH and I moved to South Florida about seven years ago. FWIW, we like SF ALOT more now that we have kids. I love the weather. There are so many kid's activities - alot of them free or for a minimal fee. We're outside at least 300 days a year. You learn to deal with the summer heat and rain (not to mention that the beach around 7 pm in the summer is absolutely amazing). There are downsides to living in Florida but so far the positives have outweighed them.

Any way you can vacation here for several weeks and live like a native? That may help determine whether you really want to take the plunge and move down here. We did that this past summer when we thought we had to relocate and it was a real eye opener.

GL!

[WatchingThemGrow]

I grew up in the Bradenton/Sarasota/islands (well, from 14 to 31) so PM me if you want more info about the area. The PP was right about the number of days outside. It pains me that mornings and evenings where I am now are too cold to "sit" outside for any amount of time.

[JTsMom]

I spent most of my life in SE FL. Honestly, I'm much happier here, but there are definitely pros to that area. Everything is close by. There is hardly any traffic. You never have to deal with bundling up kids. It's hard to beat walking on the beach at night, and the west coast beaches are especially beautiful. There's a lot to do. It's easy to find places b/c everything is laid out in a very organized fashion. You're close to the keys, which is one of my favorite places, and close to Disney, another of my favorites- and you get FL resident rates to boot! Miami Children's Hospital is amazing- I miss it terribly. You'll likely get an amazing collection of cute sandals. :) There are a ton of airports, so flying out is easy. Very few people are actually from FL, so it's easy to meet people and fit in. It's very diverse.

Everyone has their own style, so just b/c it's not a good fit for everyone, doesn't mean it wouldn't be the perfect fit for you! Every area has pros and cons!

[m448]

Grew up in Miami/s. FL and only moved away 10 years ago.when I got married. We both knew that raising kids in south Florida and me staying home plus us buying a house would not be a good thing in FL. we've been in north Carolina since and my sister just moved up last year.

[DietCokeLover]

I lived in Orange Park (suburb of Jacksonville) for a while and loved living there. I was single at the time and was a little lonely, so I moved back closer to family. But I LOVED Florida! I am trying to talk DH into considering a move to the Orlando area if our business ever sells. I'd go back in a heartbeat!

[scriptkitten]

i lived in florida for 10 yrs

went to college in gainesville

then lived in delray beach, which i still consider my second home.

i love florida and enjoyed living there.

however, despite my in-laws begging i will never ever move there to raise children. public schools are not an option and the private schools are not much better in some cases. the vast transient and "vacation" culture causes kids to move way too fast into adulthood and not in a good way…. i'm sorry if anyone disagrees… my view is simply shaped by my experiences in palm beach county during my 20s

[KLD313]

What are you looking for for healthcare and schooling? I know where I live we have fantastic hospitals. It also helps that we live near a medical school. We have wonderful magnet schools if you don't want to go the public school route. They are free and transportation is provided.

I just want to know that if something were to go wrong there were good hospitals/doctors around. Also, I need a good endocrinologist but they're hard to find anywhere.

[Smillow]

I grew up in south FL & lived for 8 yrs in St. Petersburg (before marriage & DS). I love visiting S FL but I loved living in St. Pete. The weather is milder and more seasonal and the beaches are fabulous, there is more "history" there. I agree with scriptkitten - I would not want to raise children in South FL - too crowded & crazy & fast paced. Being outdoors year round is great & there is so much to do.

[BeachBum]

We live in a small town in FL and I love it.

[Melbel]

I grew up in SE Florida, West Palm Beach, and still have family in Ft. Lauderdale. I have also lived in Gainesville (school), Orlando (work) and now live in NE Florida. Out of state, I have lived in both Atlanta and central NJ for work and travelled to Dayton, Ohio frequently. My stints out of state helped me to appreciate all that Florida has to offer.

I personally love living in Florida. We are outdoors nearly every day. I prefer living on the coast to take advantage of the breeze during the hot humid summers (Orlando and Gainesville are land locked). Atlanta seemed hotter to me than any Florida city. While I love South Florida for its beaches and shopping, I definitely prefer NE Florida for raising a family, lower cost of living, friendlier residents and less traffic. While the schools in Florida are not great overall, we have 2 of the highest ranked magnet high schools in the country here, as well as some excellent private school options. Feel free to PM me if you would like more info.

[k_null81]

I would love to move to FL....I'm happy to read all the positive comments. When I research FL I typically find so much negative info.

My husband actually went down to get FL police training/certified so he could apply for FL police jobs.

Unfortunately he hasn't had any luck finding anything. I hope one of these days we will live in FL...The sun is calling my name!

[WatchingThemGrow]

I just have to note that when I moved away from FL to a "shady" tree-filled place and went back, I realized that everyone's skin was much more aged than their same-aged peers.

Totally agree about the teen thing, and I was one of those. The restaurant I worked in gave me the task of ringing the bell to determine the exact time of the sunset so I could tell the waiter which table guessed the closest time to win the bottle of wine. I was 16.

Hope DH and I get out there for sunset on this month's trip and win the bottle!

[KLD313]

I just have to note that when I moved away from FL to a "shady" tree-filled place and went back, I realized that everyone's skin was much more aged than their same-aged peers.

Totally agree about the teen thing, and I was one of those. The restaurant I worked in gave me the task of ringing the bell to determine the exact time of the sunset so I could tell the waiter which table guessed the closest time to win the bottle of wine. I was 16.

Hope DH and I get out there for sunset on this month's trip and win the bottle!

That's a great point about the skin! I'm really fair skinned too.

I live outside NYC, I think we're in a pretty fast paced area as well so I'm not sure I would notice something like that.

[Babymakes3]

I am between the St. Pete and Tampa area on the beach and I love FL living! I HATE the cold and while the summertime heat is HOT I wouldn't have it any other way! DS isn't in school yet but there are tons of options, the magnet programs are getting really big. I feel like I have a pretty central location, I can get to Tampa in under 30 minutes, Sarasota takes about 45, Orlando is 2 hours away and there are great entertainment options in all of the cities. My area has alot to offer!

[WatchingThemGrow]

I am between the St. Pete and Tampa area on the beach and I love FL living! I HATE the cold and while the summertime heat is HOT I wouldn't have it any other way! DS isn't in school yet but there are tons of options, the magnet programs are getting really big. I feel like I have a pretty central location, I can get to Tampa in under 30 minutes, Sarasota takes about 45, Orlando is 2 hours away and there are great entertainment options in all of the cities. My area has alot to offer!
Yes, I really liked the location of Bradenton. Zipping over the skyway can get you to SO much stuff in under an hour, plus Sarasota and Orlando in just 2 hours and a few minutes. We go for a week and can't fit all our fun in!