Moving to South Florida (Miami, Orlando: rent, homes, private schools)

[floridaBound123]

I posted this in the Boca Raton forum, but received a suggestion to post here as well! Any feedback is greatly appreciated!! Thanks.
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There's a very high probability that my husband will accept a job offer in Boca Raton. I've been immersed in researching the different areas from the Palm Beach area down to Ft. Lauderdale - just trying to familiarize myself with the lay of the land. I need a human's perspective that a computer and web browser cannot provide!!

We've lived in the San Francisco Bay area for the last 15 years so we're ready for a change and are super excited about the prospect of living in such a tropical climate, but have grown accustomed to temperate weather, zero humidity, and very little bugs (we went camping this past weekend on the coast and there was an occasional horse fly, but that was it - seriously). We're actually pretty tolerant and laid back, so we'll get used to anything, but it would be good to understand what's to come Things I won't miss about Cali are the horrible public school systems and the cost of living (we pay $4000/mo rent on a 1500 SQFT home with no yard on a very busy street).

Anyway, enough about all that, here are my questions:

1. Schools - public or private? What's the public school system like? And does anyone know how easy or difficult it is to get accepted into the Catholic school system? We have enrolled our twins in Catholic school here - tuition is $14,000/school year for both children combined. It's super difficult and competitive to get into the private school system where we live. For example, there were 20 open spots in my twin's kindergarten class and 60 families showed up at the kindergarten readiness exam hoping to be one of the chosen few - it's depressing. Please tell me that school options are better in the Sunshine State!!

2. Bugs - how bad is it really? I have no problem with hiring a monthly (or more often?) pest control service, but does that help? Do alligators really show up in people's pools? Are the cockroaches really as big as volkswagens? Is it really that bad? I'm not scared of bugs or spiders, but want to be prepared for it.

3. Ok, what's up with all the screened in porches? I'm guessing it's because of my previous question (mosquitos and other critters?).

4. The canals and waterways - I notice that a lot of homes backup to the waterways, lakes, and canals and this appears to be a desirable feature to have. But to be quite honest this scares the bejeezus out of me with two very active and cunning 5 year old twins (you know the saying 'two heads are better than one'?). Are the waterways a known danger for folks with children? Are there precautions parents take to protect their children from the drowning danger? Swimming lessons definitely makes sense, but still - even the best swimmers can find themselves in trouble, right? What's the 411 on this aspect of Florida?

Ok, I promise no more questions. Just dying to know about the 4 questions listed above!

Thanks everyone!!

[wizrap]

Good luck with your search! As for your questions --
Schools -- generally, if your husband is working in east Boca and you're looking at the northeast section of Broward County, you may want to look at private. The north central part -- elementary is fine for public -- middle and high schools it just depends. Northwestern part -- you can save $$$ with public. I have never heard of long waiting lists for private schools -- I have a neighbor who moved from Orlando to Weston and her child got right in (kindergarten).

Bugs -- bad. I don't think a week as gone by when I haven't been bit by a fire ant or stung while walking my dog. This is the tropics and South Florida is built on/ near a swamp (Everglades) so what else can you do? The roaches are indeed huge. We have someone who coes out every 4 to 6 weeks to spray. Assume that any lake or canal has gators. Nuisance ones are caught and returned to the 'Glades.


Screened porches -- ours died during Wilma and we went screen less and don't mind it -- the screens have to be cleaned -- they get mildew -- we like the look of our yard -- looks more open. Can't see any difference in bugs.

Canals -- some homes on canals have aluminum gates with wide slats so you still have a view. Waterways can be a danger to children -- every year there are a couple of stories of children (and adults) drowning. It is the law that if you have a pool your yard must be fenced, or have a baby gate.

[vrr106]

we are also in the process of moving to the area from Texas. Funny how we had the same concerns around bugs, gators, screened porches etc.
Schools - seems like Parkland has some pretty decent public schools from our research and the area seems like a nice residential area. Private seems either too expensive or not very nice if under $15K/yr. The good ones seem to be close to $20k/yr/student which seems a bit much.
Keep us posted, would be good to hear what you find and we will do the same

[ruski]

Bugs - depends on the city. Some cities are better than others with mosquito spraying.

I haven't seen a Mosquito in Weston for many years. Early 2000's - we used to have a ton of them.

Schools - public schools - your best bet is Weston or Parkland. Parkland is much closer to Boca. But I like Weston better because I live there

Oh yeah, for some reason I had a ton of mosquito stings in Parkland last time I visited a friend there.

[Swimmom32]

Weston to Boca is a horrible commute every day...Parkland to Boca would be a good Comparison except for Boca has alot of more Restaurants, Closer to Delray Beach and Atlantic Ave which we love and used to Frequent on the weekends...

But if you chose not to go to Boca then the next town would be Parkland...

[ruski]

I wouldn't say horrible, I have friends and neighbors that commute from Weston to Boca. But it is a pretty long ride.

[Swimmom32]

it depends on how long someone wants to be in a car for because with traffic its not a fun commute My hubby was commuting to Miami everyday and Weston would be about the same from Boca and he dreaded it when I would to to Weston it took me on a good day without traffic 45 minutes to an hour....But either way I think the poster should check out all 3 areas and figure out exactly what they are looking for

[ruski]

True.

But going to Miami is way worse than going to Boca

[Swimmom32]

Originally Posted by ruski

True.

But going to Miami is way worse than going to Boca

HA your Right

[OptimusPrime69]

OK, first of all.... OMG! How Exciting!!!!

Schools-- There's a really great catholic school in east Boca called "St. Joan of Arc" .... Gorgeous church, active community, great school. A very nice catholic school and church with courtyards, plenty of parking, nice people, like.... just one of those places u'd want your kids to go to. (I dont have kids, but if I did).
I'm not sure what their enrollment situation is, but sometimes during Sunday Mass announcements, they'll make mention of enrollment deadlines and reminders.

bugs-- they're def here. I think having a pest control spray once a month should be sufficient. The general consensus on bugs is-- the further inland one goes--the more bugs one will encounter. So, for example, people that "live out west"...aka "live inland away from the ocean" will experince more bugs that people that live east... Generally the further west one goes the closer to the Everglades u get, so naturally more bugs. Regardless, bugs are here and with pest control u should be fine (keep in mind we have tons of gecko, lizards, and iguanas running around too)

The whole screened in patio thing is definitely something that i've always been like "wtf?".... I dont get it.
I have a pool at my place...with no screen or anything and dont have bugs bothering me as im laying out on swimming or anything. So, while common, it's not across the board.

The canals and waterways can g0 2 ways-- the intercoastal waterways are gorgeous. They provide a nice backdrop with a glass of wine in hand and your boo in the other. Very very nice. Love. Then, there are the canals that are like drianage type things....and can get a bit funky at times. So, when looking at places with cana;s--make sure it's a good one! Oh and gators arent something you'll have to worry too much about. I've lived in FL for 11 years and have yet to encounter a gator in some lake or pond.