what areas are nice in Cape Coral and Ft. Myers (Miami: for sale, real estate)

[nj593]

Im looking to move there as you can tell from my other post regarding streets.
What areas in Cape Coral are nice? I see alot of NW and SW and NE and so on for Cape Coral. Im from NJ and over here everything only works by towns. Either a town is bad or its good.

So I was wondering how is things really down there. I hear so much back and forth about gangs and violence then hear people become mad over these comments. Its land and homes not personal attacks. So I would like to know what your opinions are on certain areas of Cape Coral and Ft. Myers?
thanks
Even Naples if you would be so kind. I use to hear Naples being exclusive and now Im hearing negative comments on this forum.
So any help would be appreciated.

[Suncoast Guy]

I can tell you that SE section in Cape Coral is nice. SW is too. The North sections are more built up now and I hear they are nice as well. Basically any section in Cape Coral you look at you should be OK. I have no opinion on the GOOD sections in Fort Myers, because they are extremely limited.

Good Luck!

[nhkev]

Depending on your budget this is how I classify the sections on Cape Coral. Southeast section - Was the first to be built up therefore older homes. Usually the best real estate gets bought up first and the southeast is considered best because it is the closest to fort myers (for work commuting) closet to the beaches- It was 17 mins from the toll on Cape Coral Parkway to the toll of Sanibel Island (last week off season). This section is all on city utilities. This section has sidewalks, public transportation and just about everything is walking distance. Personally I don't like the southeast section due to more of an Urban feel, lots of traffic, but from someone from another major city it would seem like a country club.

Southwest Section- I find to be the perfect mix. Has sidewalks and bikepaths, has enough commerce , but not too much, has good schools, and much more of a community feel. Traffic is light. Drawbacks- not all areas are on utilities, so you need to know which ones are not. also find out if assessments have already been paid and if not who will pay them. Some of the gulf access is far and this will be said about SE, SW, NW sections- The most valuable properties for upside potential will be this- How far it is from open water (No Wake Zone in all Canals) , how many bridges if any do you have to go under, do you have to access a boat lift or loch system. How wide the Canal is , and is it looking down the canal or at an intersecting Canal. There are certain Streets ( such as Chiquita blvd) that I notice have a disproportionate amount of abandoned properties and for sale signs etc So I would stay off main rds.

Northwest section- Has some good gulf access lots and areas that are built up ( again best properties tend to get developed first) This area has no city utilites, and can be very cookie cutter (there are only about 5 house designs that just change colors, which side garage is on) There is very little landscaping done. There is no commerce, side walks, in this section. The main school (Mariner) is not very good. There is a charter school in the section which is good. The Parks are nice and very nicely kept, there is a boat ramp that takes you out to a completely different section than the rest of the city (Matlacha). There are some very good resturaunts close by in Matlacha and Pine Island. There is a golf course that is pretty good too. I think this area has a lot of upside potential. And quite honestly there is a section that if I was going to live in Cape Coral my choice would be a little section that is the SW but is abouve Pine Island Rd and west of Burnt store rd. It is close to everything on Pine Island , Less than a mile from Publix. but is less than 10 mins to Matlacha Pass by boat. It is in the Trafalgar school district ( which is a very good school) and there is a great park in the area Joe Stonis Park. Homes are not cookie cutter all are landscaped, and it's a little more upscale.

Northeast section- I'm sure has nice parts and nice developments, it can be close for commuting to fort myers and closer to the beaches than northwest. Has no utilities. I have been told it has the highest amount of crime in the city. Based only on talking to Police officers no actual statistics to back up. The houses tend to be cookie cutter, and the killer to me is no gulf access which is the biggest draw of cape coral which tries to sell itself as a boating community.

With every section Nw and NE ,SW especially you must check for chinese drywall approx 50% of the house in these areas were built with it and are worthless. And if you buy an area that does not have utilites do not spend all you money on the house keep some aside to pay cash for them when they come in could be a huge difference in total cost to you.

[justNancy]

You are being much too general. People don't look to buy in Cape Coral and/or Naples.

Now you Cape Coral people - don't get yourselves all in a tizzy. I'm only saying that they are very different.

Everyone here knows I don't like the Cape, but you can definitely get more house for the money there.

Regarding the remark about "exclusive" ... you make your own life wherever you go. There are people in all income brackets living in Naples so, unless you want to, you don't need to hang out with the snobs. Cape Coral also has a lot of very expensive communities. Again, depends on your personal taste.

By the way, you missed Estero and Bonita Springs!

Edit: nhkev forgot to mention that the Northeast Section of Cape Coral has very few trees. It looks as if like someone dropped a bomb on it and then they built some houses on top of the wasteland. In fact, that's what most of the Cape looks like to me, but there are some pretty areas that have mature vegetation, especially in the Southeast.

[nj593]

Originally Posted by nhkev

Depending on your budget this is how I classify the sections on Cape Coral. Southeast section - Was the first to be built up therefore older homes. Usually the best real estate gets bought up first and the southeast is considered best because it is the closest to fort myers (for work commuting) closet to the beaches- It was 17 mins from the toll on Cape Coral Parkway to the toll of Sanibel Island (last week off season). This section is all on city utilities. This section has sidewalks, public transportation and just about everything is walking distance. Personally I don't like the southeast section due to more of an Urban feel, lots of traffic, but from someone from another major city it would seem like a country club.

Southwest Section- I find to be the perfect mix. Has sidewalks and bikepaths, has enough commerce , but not too much, has good schools, and much more of a community feel. Traffic is light. Drawbacks- not all areas are on utilities, so you need to know which ones are not. also find out if assessments have already been paid and if not who will pay them. Some of the gulf access is far and this will be said about SE, SW, NW sections- The most valuable properties for upside potential will be this- How far it is from open water (No Wake Zone in all Canals) , how many bridges if any do you have to go under, do you have to access a boat lift or loch system. How wide the Canal is , and is it looking down the canal or at an intersecting Canal. There are certain Streets ( such as Chiquita blvd) that I notice have a disproportionate amount of abandoned properties and for sale signs etc So I would stay off main rds.

Northwest section- Has some good gulf access lots and areas that are built up ( again best properties tend to get developed first) This area has no city utilites, and can be very cookie cutter (there are only about 5 house designs that just change colors, which side garage is on) There is very little landscaping done. There is no commerce, side walks, in this section. The main school (Mariner) is not very good. There is a charter school in the section which is good. The Parks are nice and very nicely kept, there is a boat ramp that takes you out to a completely different section than the rest of the city (Matlacha). There are some very good resturaunts close by in Matlacha and Pine Island. There is a golf course that is pretty good too. I think this area has a lot of upside potential. And quite honestly there is a section that if I was going to live in Cape Coral my choice would be a little section that is the SW but is abouve Pine Island Rd and west of Burnt store rd. It is close to everything on Pine Island , Less than a mile from Publix. but is less than 10 mins to Matlacha Pass by boat. It is in the Trafalgar school district ( which is a very good school) and there is a great park in the area Joe Stonis Park. Homes are not cookie cutter all are landscaped, and it's a little more upscale.

Northeast section- I'm sure has nice parts and nice developments, it can be close for commuting to fort myers and closer to the beaches than northwest. Has no utilities. I have been told it has the highest amount of crime in the city. Based only on talking to Police officers no actual statistics to back up. The houses tend to be cookie cutter, and the killer to me is no gulf access which is the biggest draw of cape coral which tries to sell itself as a boating community.

With every section Nw and NE ,SW especially you must check for chinese drywall approx 50% of the house in these areas were built with it and are worthless. And if you buy an area that does not have utilites do not spend all you money on the house keep some aside to pay cash for them when they come in could be a huge difference in total cost to you.

Thank you for this lengthy detailed explanation.

[CapeHouses]

This is a very accurate description of Cape Coral. Although I think the estimate of houses with defective drywall issues may be too high.

[kroeran]

For Fort Myers, conventional wisdom is to look south of Page Field airport.

more specifically, check out services at Daniels and Tamiami Trail, and look in that area.

even more specifically, check out my neighbourhood, Paseo, which is a good mix of locals, northern relocators and snowbirds, especially if you want to know your neighbours and prefer tennis and bocci ball to golf, or prefer pools to beaches (you can always drive to the beaches).

Paseo Ft. Myers (http://www.paseo-ftmyers.com/gallery.aspx - broken link)

[hiknapster]

Over the years, I have always suggested Estero. It is in-between Naples and Fort Myers, but just before Bonita Springs, heading south. Clear as mud?

I've lived and worked in Estero. I've also worked with a lot of high school kids there. Very respectful and they had very good things to say about the school.

The people were also the nicest I came across in swFlorida. It's a bit upscale, but without the nouveau-riche snob factor. Lots of snowbirds, too, but nice snowbirds, if you can believe it.

Check it out.

[redfish353]

NJ593- I would HIGHLY recommend staying away from the City of Cape Coral all together. I know that a lot of people live in their little "bubble" and never tend to see the bad.........but if you actually come drive through any neighborhood in any section of Cape Coral their are blighted homes next to million dollar homes and scumbags living next door to good hardworking people. Look at Punta Gorda...........Punta Gorda Isles (part of the city of Punta Gorda) and Burnt Store Isles (also City limits of Punta Gorda). Drive through both areas and compare the class of people you encounter on the roads, shopping centers (publix, walmart, etc.) Cape Coral is nothing more than a miniature Miami right now and only getting worse as they are bussing all of the trash across from Miami to buy up these foreclosures. Good luck in your search please do your homework and compare the crime rates between both cities!

[TannerBoyle]

Regardless of what part of town you're looking to move to, make sure you have a job already set up before you pack up that U-Haul.