Young Cpl Looking to Move to Treasure Coast Area (Miami: rentals, home)

[fleeingmyrtlebeach]

Hi everyone, sorry if this post isn't formatted correctly it's our first post!

As the title says, we're a young couple (mid-20's) looking to relocate from Myrtle Beach, SC to the Treasure Coast Area of Florida. While we're planning on taking a week or two at the end of season to go down and do some recon, we'd like to get a few pointers before we do!

Myrtle Beach has been growing at such absurd rates the past few years that it doesn't even resemble the town I grew up in, so we're hoping to move to somewhere much smaller, vastly less commercialized and less crowded and overrun. We're primarily looking at Stuart and Vero Beach right now, and though we do both like Jupiter it is a bit outside of our price range.

We don't tend to do much in the way of nightlife (not interested in clubs or anything), but we would like a good food scene and bar scene (more dive-y than not preferably). We'd like to live as close to the water as possible, as neither of us have ever lived more than 20 minutes from the ocean, and as he's wrapping up his captain's license at the moment it would be ideal in terms of work for him. Nature preserves, quiet beaches, good fishing and a small town feel are pretty high up the list for us.

We don't want to be near commercialized areas, high rises, chain resorts or overcrowded areas.

Our price range is around $2,000 to $2,500 for rent and we anticipate saving around a year's worth of expenses prior to moving. 1-2 bedrooms is really all we need.

We're leaning a bit more towards Stuart than anything, but if anyone has any other recommendations, we'd love to hear them! Towns we haven't considered, good neighborhoods to look at while we're there and please toss us some restaurant recommendations! We're big seafood people, but we'll eat just about anything lol.

Thanks in advance!

[kyle19125]

I would suggest checking out Jensen Beach. Unlike most of the remainder of SE Florida, Jensen Beach has retained an old-Florida charm you should find appealing. For great restaurants there are dozens but check out Conchy Joe's and Crabby's for seafood!

https://www.zillow.com/jensen-beach-...22%3A%7B%7D%7D

[manny118]

Originally Posted by kyle19125

I would suggest checking out Jensen Beach. Unlike most of the remainder of SE Florida, Jensen Beach has retained an old-Florida charm you should find appealing. For great restaurants there are dozens but check out Conchy Joe's and Crabby's for seafood!

https://www.zillow.com/jensen-beach-...22%3A%7B%7D%7D

Jensen Beach is a good recommendation. Jensen and Stuart are right next to each other, so they are almost a package deal.

The area around Jensen and Stuart is definitely growing and some long time locals are upset about it. However, the area is no where close to being the tourist area that Myrtle Beach is. Places like Jupiter, Stuart, and Jensen are snow bird destinations, so it is a more mature crowd and the towns do not cater to young families looking for a beach vacation with tacky tourist shops or 20 somethings looking to get drunk near the beach.

[fleeingmyrtlebeach]

Originally Posted by manny118

Jensen Beach is a good recommendation. Jensen and Stuart are right next to each other, so they are almost a package deal.

The area around Jensen and Stuart is definitely growing and some long time locals are upset about it. However, the area is no where close to being the tourist area that Myrtle Beach is. Places like Jupiter, Stuart, and Jensen are snow bird destinations, so it is a more mature crowd and the towns do not cater to young families looking for a beach vacation with tacky tourist shops or 20 somethings looking to get drunk near the beach.

We posted in another forum style website and the responses were really disheartening, that Stuart was having the same overdevelopment and commercialization issues as Myrtle Beach lately. A few posters mentioned looking more towards the Vero/Sebastian/Melbourne area. Ideally we just don't want to have to keep picking up and moving every time somewhere starts to get overrun and overdeveloped, do you think Stuart is heading the way of Myrtle Beach or would it still be worth looking at?

[manny118]

Originally Posted by fleeingmyrtlebeach

We posted in another forum style website and the responses were really disheartening, that Stuart was having the same overdevelopment and commercialization issues as Myrtle Beach lately. A few posters mentioned looking more towards the Vero/Sebastian/Melbourne area. Ideally we just don't want to have to keep picking up and moving every time somewhere starts to get overrun and overdeveloped, do you think Stuart is heading the way of Myrtle Beach or would it still be worth looking at?

There is no desirable area in Florida that isn't growing. Melbourne is part of the Space Coast which is growing quickly due to SpaceX and other rocket companies in the area. Vero and Sebastian might work but personally I would find that area very boring. You will need to check it out to see if it works for you. The barrier island portion of Vero is almost entirely for very wealthy snow birds while the mainland portion of Vero seems dead to me.

I would never compare Stuart to Myrtle Beach. These are two very different places. You will need to check these places out to see if they work for you.

[JenaS62]

Hello OP. I live and have lived in Vero Beach since 2000. I can tell you that it is also going through huge growth but without the needed updates to infrastructure. The orange groves and cow pastures are being plowed down and zero lot line home are going up like crazy. I don't like those kinds of neighborhoods so I consider it a negative. They are adding an exit off I95 to Oslo road but still several years until that's completed. People are moving up from Miami/WPB and the town has really changed - not necessarily for the good.

[DanielAvery]

There is no desirable area in Florida that isn't growing.

This is true, and if an area is not growing, it's in decline. The important part is that it is "thoughtful" growth, and I'd say Stuart and Jensen Beach (and Martin County as a whole) has done the most to weigh benefits versus losses when deciding on permits.

[City Guy997S]

Skip Jupiter/ Stuart/ Vero.........its going to exactly what you don't want and they are too expensive.

Jensen/Sebastian/Melbourne is what you are looking for.