Welcome to City-Data.com Forum!
U.S. CitiesCity-Data Forum Index
Go Back   City-Data Forum > U.S. Forums > Florida
 [Register]
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
View detailed profile (Advanced) or search
site with Google Custom Search

Search Forums  (Advanced)
Reply Start New Thread
 
Old 05-06-2017, 08:30 AM
 
Location: Scottsdale
2,074 posts, read 1,642,297 times
Reputation: 4091

Advertisements

Quote:
Originally Posted by ImWalkingHere View Post
...that a family of 3 clearing $2300 a month cannot live decently in Florida. Am I right?!? I need to show him proof, I.e., your responses, that this can't happen. He thinks we can live by the coast on $600-$750 rent. I call bull****. Not to mention that health insurance and car insurance will be phenomenally high. Two weeks ago, I had written down...and made him read...14 advantages of living in Indiana. 14!!!! Only 2 disadvantages. He won't listen. He thinks Hialeah is still a paradise and that FL will be as idyllic as it was in the 1960s. (Maybe some spots still are, but only for the very rich)
I am an alumnus from a well-known Catholic University in Indiana with an overexposed football team. You'd know the name. I also lived in Florida for over 13 years - mostly in Tallahassee. But I also lived one year in South FL at Davie. I commuted to Miami on a contract too.

The cost of living in South FL is high. Hialeah is off the Palmetto Expressway. If driving to MIA from the north side, Hialeah is in that area. I know it very well. It is indeed expensive and hard to get around. I used to get stuck in traffic jams on the Palmetto Expressway many times. So I started getting up early to "beat the traffic". One day I got up at 6 am and drove off only to find that a metro bus broke down in the middle of the Palmetto Expressway and backed up traffic for miles. It was horrible. That was very common.

In addition to the congestion, it is also heavily Latin/South American or Caribbean. The culture shock for a midwest family could be extreme in Hialeah. Spanish is a dominant language. Most everyone there looks Latino or Haitian/Jamaican. The quality of schools vary a lot because there is huge income disparity. Crime is still a problem in Miami. I worked with a Cuban guy who always got paranoid when strangers walked in the parking lot near his car. Miami has sophisticated thieves. There are lots of poor people in the area adjacent with the extremely wealthy just a few miles away at Miami Beach or Key Biscayne. The income disparity is huge, and there is not a lot of room for the middle class to grow. Many young people out-of-college leave for that reason.

The cheapest studio I could find in Fort Lauderdale was about $875 - very small. I would think a family needs at least two bedrooms or more which can easily cost double that amount in South FL. The utility bills are high - they have to deal with hurricanes. And the rolling blackouts are a problem in hurricane weather. Most homes have to get hurricane shutters or some means of rolling up protection during the storms of late summer and fall. It also gets really hot and humid.

So it's expensive and the middle class is usually priced out of good neighborhoods and schools. The income disparity is a problem in South FL. Instead of Hialeah, some place on the outskirts of Orlando would be a better alternative: Mt. Dora, Dade City, Clermont, St. Cloud, etc. The income adjustment would be easier in other areas with better schools. There are many people from the midwest and upper east coast in Central FL who thrive.

But if South FL or Indiana are the only options, then Indiana would be more pragmatic. I lived there for for years under the Dome and remember it very well. I am now in Phoenix, AZ.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QVRBfEtpBuU

Last edited by grad_student200; 05-06-2017 at 08:42 AM..
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message

 
Old 05-06-2017, 09:02 AM
 
12,017 posts, read 14,319,079 times
Reputation: 5981
Sebring.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 05-06-2017, 09:07 AM
 
30,425 posts, read 21,234,977 times
Reputation: 11968
West pasco is the cheapest. Homes for around 30 to 50k on the coast. If he can pay cash and go bare it will be the cheapest living in the country.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 05-06-2017, 09:54 AM
 
15 posts, read 16,581 times
Reputation: 30
Quote:
Originally Posted by kyle19125 View Post
Yikes...what a DUMP. Right now in NE Indiana, we live in a 1000 square foot two bedroom apartment in a very good part of town. This apartment has a totally separate enclosed dining room (like one-story house). We pay $690/month. This is similar to what we have, except it is 500 more square feet: https://www.google.com/search?q=two+...1skLYZpb-6v8M:

So, how much would something like this go for in Florida? This inquiring mind is curious now.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 05-06-2017, 09:55 AM
 
Location: Florida -
10,213 posts, read 14,828,609 times
Reputation: 21847
Quote:
Originally Posted by ImWalkingHere View Post
...that a family of 3 clearing $2300 a month cannot live decently in Florida. Am I right?!? I need to show him proof, I.e., your responses, that this can't happen. He thinks we can live by the coast on $600-$750 rent. I call bull****. Not to mention that health insurance and car insurance will be phenomenally high. Two weeks ago, I had written down...and made him read...14 advantages of living in Indiana. 14!!!! Only 2 disadvantages. He won't listen. He thinks Hialeah is still a paradise and that FL will be as idyllic as it was in the 1960s. (Maybe some spots still are, but only for the very rich)

If you check under the Florida forum of CD, you will find literally hundreds of posts that say:

"We're sick of the cold; We went on vacation to Florida and decided to move there! All we want is a safe place, close to the beach, with good schools, great neighborhoods and a REALLY low cost of living. We don't have much money, jobs or a support structure there ... but, it's always warm and sunny in Florida - so we're sure those things will take care of themselves." (There's a really funny animated UTube video that says exactly that).

The thing is, 75 million people visit Florida each year and 350,000 actually move here ... all looking for exactly the same thing --- So, you better hurry because all of the places "in paradise" like that - are going quickly.

Further, job situations typically determine where one lives. Living near Hialeah or Miami doesn't work, if one's job is in Pensacola or vice-versa (500+ miles! -- kind of like living in Indianapolis and working in Atlanta). The internet will let you test out the 'theory' that decent coastal living is available for three in Florida for $600-$750 per month! (Check out the locations and neighborhoods!) You can also price out Florida insurance costs and comparative cost-of-living between Indiana and Florida, without leaving Indiana.

Some people live in Florida on $2300/clear per mo./$27K per year (after health insurance), but, they must compromise in location, standard of living and amenities. - Good luck.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 05-06-2017, 10:28 AM
 
35,309 posts, read 52,288,448 times
Reputation: 30999
Quote:
Originally Posted by jghorton View Post
If you check under the Florida forum of CD, you will find literally hundreds of posts that say:

"We're sick of the cold; We went on vacation to Florida and decided to move there! All we want is a safe place, close to the beach, with good schools, great neighborhoods and a REALLY low cost of living. We don't have much money, jobs or a support structure there ... but, it's always warm and sunny in Florida - so we're sure those things will take care of themselves." (There's a really funny animated UTube video that says exactly that).

.
Cue the video.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ad5paRXNWVg
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 05-06-2017, 10:33 AM
 
Location: South Florida
5,020 posts, read 7,447,199 times
Reputation: 5466
Quote:
Originally Posted by imwalkinghere View Post
yikes...what a dump. Right now in ne indiana, we live in a 1000 square foot two bedroom apartment in a very good part of town. This apartment has a totally separate enclosed dining room (like one-story house). We pay $690/month. This is similar to what we have, except it is 500 more square feet: https://www.google.com/search?q=two+...1sklyzpb-6v8m:

so, how much would something like this go for in florida? This inquiring mind is curious now.
$1800-1900 in South Florida
OP I sincerely admire you.
Too many people move down here knowing they can't afford it but convince themselves it'll magically work out.

Last edited by cfbs2691; 05-06-2017 at 10:44 AM..
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 05-06-2017, 10:40 AM
 
Location: Tampa
686 posts, read 621,845 times
Reputation: 596
Quote:
Originally Posted by jambo101 View Post
Give the op some pointers on how its done for $2300 a month.
Live in a high crime coastal dump in west Pasco.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 05-06-2017, 11:06 AM
 
Location: PHL-Terminal C, Gate 11
153 posts, read 309,063 times
Reputation: 367
While I would not recommend the properties on the lower price range of the listings I included, there are some decent properties in decent neighborhoods of Pensacola. These properties are in the $750-1200 range and are comprised of houses and condos.

RESIDENTIAL RENTAL
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 05-06-2017, 12:55 PM
 
27,188 posts, read 43,886,661 times
Reputation: 32240
Quote:
Originally Posted by ImWalkingHere View Post
Yikes...what a DUMP. Right now in NE Indiana, we live in a 1000 square foot two bedroom apartment in a very good part of town. This apartment has a totally separate enclosed dining room (like one-story house). We pay $690/month. This is similar to what we have, except it is 500 more square feet: https://www.google.com/search?q=two+...1skLYZpb-6v8M:

So, how much would something like this go for in Florida? This inquiring mind is curious now.
That would be around $1200 in Central Florida.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.

Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.


Reply
Please update this thread with any new information or opinions. This open thread is still read by thousands of people, so we encourage all additional points of view.

Quick Reply
Message:


Settings
X
Data:
Loading data...
Based on 2000-2020 data
Loading data...

123
Hide US histogram


Over $104,000 in prizes was already given out to active posters on our forum and additional giveaways are planned!

Go Back   City-Data Forum > U.S. Forums > Florida

All times are GMT -6.

© 2005-2024, Advameg, Inc. · Please obey Forum Rules · Terms of Use and Privacy Policy · Bug Bounty

City-Data.com - Contact Us - Archive 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37 - Top