Empty Nesters Brickell? Brickell Key? (Miami, Tampa: sales, real estate, renter)

[blueherons]

There is a possibility hubs and I may have to move to Miami and we are looking at Brickell and Brickell Key. Non Spanish speaking white people, kids are grown. Husband will be based out of downtown.

Any advice?

I'm getting very mixed reviews because we are not South Americans in our thirties.

[doggiebus]

You don't have to know spanish to live in Miami. Every so often I run into a sales person at the grocery store that doesn't speak english, but you can always find someone that does speak english. With that said you will hear lots of spanish while at the grocery store or at the mall, it is the predominant language in many parts of Miami. Miami is 65% hispanic, 20% Black, 15% white. I was on a cruise this summer and met a nice woman that moved to Aventura from New Jersey, she said she lasted 5 months, couldn't handle the cultural shock and always being spoken to in spanish first (she wasn't hispanic). She moved to Tampa and loves it she said. Look Miami isn't for everyone, the only way you'll know if Miami is for you, is to live here or spend time down here on the weekends. Go to the grocery store you'd shop at and go to the restaurants in the area.

If your young at heart, Brickell will be fine. Brickell Key too for that matter, its more family oriented but there are plenty of retirees there too. Yes there are lots of spanish speaking people in both Brickell and Brickell Key, that is just part of living in Miami.

If he's based in downtown I would suggest renting for a year, this way you can get to know Miami and visit the different areas.

[blueherons]

Originally Posted by doggiebus

You don't have to know spanish to live in Miami. Every so often I run into a sales person at the grocery store that doesn't speak english, but you can always find someone that does speak english. With that said you will hear lots of spanish while at the grocery store or at the mall, it is the predominant language in many parts of Miami. Miami is 65% hispanic, 20% Black, 15% white. I was on a cruise this summer and met a nice woman that moved to Aventura from New Jersey, she said she lasted 5 months, couldn't handle the cultural shock and always being spoken to in spanish first (she wasn't hispanic). She moved to Tampa and loves it she said. Look Miami isn't for everyone, the only way you'll know if Miami is for you, is to live here or spend time down here on the weekends. Go to the grocery store you'd shop at and go to the restaurants in the area.

If your young at heart, Brickell will be fine. Brickell Key too for that matter, its more family oriented but there are plenty of retirees there too. Yes there are lots of spanish speaking people in both Brickell and Brickell Key, that is just part of living in Miami.

If he's based in downtown I would suggest renting for a year, this way you can get to know Miami and visit the different areas.

Yes, we are definitely going to rent at least the first couple of years.

[hurricaneMan1992]

Brickell Key is a bit more exclusive, but you'd pay for it by having to deal with the Brickell and 7th/8th intersections every time you drive anywhere. There are trolleys but the Brickell Key ones don't go across the River in to downtown plus they get stuck in traffic and don't always run with a consistent frequency. So for the work situation, you probably want to be in Brickell near the Metromover, or in downtown itself. The Brickell metromover can get pretty crowded nowadays in part because people don't want to deal with all the traffic.

Other benefits to living in downtown especially as a renter are: potentially lower rent with the same building amenities, access to I-95 is much more convenient, and there is just too much construction going on in Brickell nowadays. Of course, most of the restaurants and bars that stay open late are in Brickell, but then again...you are still very close to Brickell and also closer to Midtown and South Beach. But if you absolutely cannot stand so see any homeless, definitely don't live in downtown.

If it were me, I'd live in downtown along the bay front for now, and move to Brickell in a couple years after the construction is mostly finished.

[Fl1150]

Yeas Spanish is nice to know but not mandatory like people want you to believe

[elliotts]

I moved here from missouri, and have not had problems not knowing spanish even in real estate. When people speak to you in Spanish first and you look confused they will switch to english. Its a great environment because you really can not tell who speaks english or spanish. This point will be seen when you get here. ***MOD CUT***