Possible move to Bradenton

[zaramcd]

We are a Scottish Family who discovered Bradenton by chance many years ago. We have had years of fantastic holidays there so much so that we bought our own holiday home in Palma Sola Trace. We have never had any bad experience and find everyone so friendly. We love it.

[joy4single]

Hi first time on this sort of thing. forgive me if I screw-up. I'm a single mom with 3 teen boys and we want to move to Florida to get out of the cold Delaware area and start a new live. I could use any help you can give, good realtors for start, best areas close to beach, reasonable housing-buy or rent, schools etc. Joyce

[tyler216]

We moved to Bradenton/Parrish in mid July of last year and have been very happy here. Yes, there is crime, but there is crime everywhere! It is all relative- coming from the Atlanta metro area, it is not bad at all. We live in Rivers Reach off of Rye Road, just north of the Bradenton/Parrish line and love it. It is a new Neal community with a nice mix of people- some with kids, some without. It is in the middle of a cow pasture, so it is very quiet and beautiful, but it is still only 10 minutes away from Wal-Mart and the Publix on the North end of Lakewood Ranch Blvd.

[Suncoast Guy]

Bradenton has a lot of crime issues. There have been 14 murders in Bradenton/Manatee County since the beginning of 2009. I believe that's close to the total of murders we had all of last year, and we are only in the 5th month of the year with 14 murders. I know that there are a lot of crime issues in Bradenton that have been going unreported, like carjackings, robberies and such, because the police department is afraid that it will harm the image of Bradenton.

In plain words, just choose carefully. Know what area you are moving into and watch your surroundings when you are in Bradenton.

[xmetal]

This is something I've been reading on here quite a lot and I've been trying to get a handle on it. My family if going to be making the move to the area, and we've been looking at both Bradenton and Sarasota.

But if you use this site and look up the details for those cities, you'll actually see that the crime rating is higher in Sarasota than Bradenton...which I thought was interesting....

[gypsychic]

Originally Posted by xmetal

This is something I've been reading on here quite a lot and I've been trying to get a handle on it. My family if going to be making the move to the area, and we've been looking at both Bradenton and Sarasota.

But if you use this site and look up the details for those cities, you'll actually see that the crime rating is higher in Sarasota than Bradenton...which I thought was interesting....

I have found that reading "statistics" do not give you the whole picture of an area. Sarasota probably does have as much crime as Sarasota, but maybe not as much violent crime. And also, in both cities, MOST of the crime happens in certain areas (but obviously, it can happen anywhere). Overall, Sarasota seems to have much better and safer areas to live. You can see and feel the difference between the two towns immediately when you cross the line. When you come here, I think you will see what I mean. Sarasota is far more Bohemian and upscale, while Bradenton has natural beauty, but much of it looks faded, tattered and torn and has (and I sort of hate to use this word ) a "redneck element" to a lot of it. I like Bradenton, but was actually shocked when we returned to live in Sarasota (we live between the two towns) and I saw how vastly different the towns are.

Bottom line, there are plenty of great places to live, if I were you, I would strictly look in Sarasota. We live in Whitfield Estates near the bay, and that is about as far north as you can go and still be in Sarasota, once you literally go about a block north of this neighborhood you are in "Bradentucky" as it is sometimes referred to by some of the locals.

Hope this helps!

[joy4single]

Thank you all, please keep me informed. Sarasota is where I feel strongest about. I would like to ask if it would be better to rent or buy financially. I have the finances to buy but I was concerned about the taxes, Ins., HOA fees,etc... joyce

[gypsychic]

Originally Posted by joy4single

Thank you all, please keep me informed. Sarasota is where I feel strongest about. I would like to ask if it would be better to rent or buy financially. I have the finances to buy but I was concerned about the taxes, Ins., HOA fees,etc... joyce

This is just my opinion, and I am NOT a realtor, but if you can afford to buy, this is a great time, there are still great deals out there, and I have noticed that sales activity has picked up a lot. If you go into a development you will have HOA fees, older neighborhoods won't have it. closer to the water you will have flood insurance, and taxes are higher on older homes, so all these costs can vary. Just an example, in our neighborhood of Whitfield Estates, we are west of Trail, two blocks from bay in a concrete/stucco 1400 sq. ft home built in 1954. Citizen's insurance is about $1700 plus a $1000 flood policy, taxes around $2600, no HOA. A much newer home further inland will be a lot less insurance.

Hope this helps!

[TKramar]

OP, some people wouldn't be happy anywhere! I've lived here for three years, and never had a problem. I don't live in the ritziest of neighborhoods, behind gates and walls, and I get out and walk in town.