Young Family moving from NYC/CT to Tampa Area...suggestions? (Brandon: to rent, house) - Tampa Bay - Florida (FL) -Tampa - St. Petersburg - Clearwater - City-Data Forum

orangetreemama · 12-09-2011, 07:00 AM

Hi all,

My family and I are considering a move to the Tampa Bay area in the next few months as my husband is interviewing for a job in Fish Hawk/Lithia. We are Florida natives (Melbourne area) and have been living out of state for the past 10 years or so, but our roots and families are still in Florida so we're excited about the opportunity to be back.

Here are our particulars, as per the questions posted...

Where is your employment and the hours you will be working.
Husband's job Fish Hawk, typical 8/9-5 schedule. I work from home.

What is your budget for housing. Do you want to rent or buy?
around $200,000-300,000 but could go up to $400,000 depending on salary offered for this pending job and would like to buy eventually but open to renting while we get to know the area.

Are schools a concern?
Yes, we have one child entering kindergarten and an infant, both will be attending public school eventually.

What is an acceptable commute time?
up to one hour

What else is important to you?
We aren't interested in gated community lifestyle, I'm more into an "old-florida" style home or something with character where I have the freedom to garden and decorate/design. We would also love to live near water, whether ocean, bay, or river (not manmade retention pond). Good restaurants here would be a nice bonus.

Thanks in advance for helping us find a great area--hope this isn't too tall of an order. We've heard good things about Apollo Beach, Riverview, Brandon, Safety Harbor, New Tampa...all insights welcomed. Obviously we'll go check things out for ourselves if the interview works out, but it's nice to get an idea of where to look ahead of time.

GoRays813 · 12-09-2011, 07:16 AM

You'll be working in Fishhawk? Do yourself a favor and find a house in the Fishhawk-Valrico-Lithia area. You should be able to find one under your upper budget, have good schools to choose from, and have a great commute. If water-access is a concern, Apollo Beach offers the same and the commute will still be manageable.

I like the Fishhawk-Valrico-Lithia area for families because these neighborhoods offer good suburbun options. I don't recommend it for people working in Tampa (due to commute), but in your case with the potential job offer in the area, it seems like a good fit.

Good luck in the job hunt!

gypsychic · 12-09-2011, 07:30 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by GoRays813

You'll be working in Fishhawk? Do yourself a favor and find a house in the Fishhawk-Valrico-Lithia area. You should be able to find one under your upper budget, have good schools to choose from, and have a great commute. If water-access is a concern, Apollo Beach offers the same and the commute will still be manageable.

I like the Fishhawk-Valrico-Lithia area for families because these neighborhoods offer good suburbun options. I don't recommend it for people working in Tampa (due to commute), but in your case with the potential job offer in the area, it seems like a good fit.

Good luck in the job hunt!

Great advice - I second it ^^^.

Good luck, and welcome back to Florida!

orangetreemama · 12-09-2011, 07:42 AM

Thanks, both of you!

So Apollo Beach is decent? The homes we've seen online look nice, but I've read mixed reviews on these forums about it being mostly older/retired residents and not much going on there. We're okay with it being a sleepy/small town (we're from Melbourne after all) but want to make sure there are things to do for our kids and good schools. We love the beach so being close to it would be awesome.

GoRays813 · 12-09-2011, 07:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by orangetreemama

Thanks, both of you!

So Apollo Beach is decent? The homes we've seen online look nice, but I've read mixed reviews on these forums about it being mostly older/retired residents and not much going on there. We're okay with it being a sleepy/small town (we're from Melbourne after all) but want to make sure there are things to do for our kids and good schools. We love the beach so being close to it would be awesome.

Apollo Beach is very nice but it does consist of older residents. The beach itself is nice but you have much better beach options a bit to the south. Since you are a young family, I would recommend the Fishhawk-Valrico-Lithia area instead. You'll have better options for entertainment and dining, geting to know other young families, and still be a decent drive to the beach. You'll be surprised how quickly living on the water loses its appeal and how little you make trips to the beach. Living close to the water remedies this and the FVL area is close enough.

orangetreemama · 02-06-2012, 07:28 PM

Is there anything quality/unique to be found in the FishHawk/Lithia area that ISN'T in a gated/deed-restricted community? It'd be nice to cut down on my husband's commute of course, but we find ourselves drawn to South Tampa for more things to do and homes with character.

hcnum · 02-07-2012, 04:53 PM

There are a few good patches in Valrico that have some charm and character. Especially between lumsden and bloomingdale. (which run east and west) It's only about a 15 minute drive from Fishhawk area. Fishhawk has the number one elementary school in the state, and the middle school and high school rate very well too. So if schools are really important and worth sacrificing the need for a more unique home then staying in fishhawk might be a good option.

Also, S. Tampa is nice, as long as you don't look too far south (south of Gandy blvd.) Good Luck!

gypsychic · 02-08-2012, 06:50 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by orangetreemama

Is there anything quality/unique to be found in the FishHawk/Lithia area that ISN'T in a gated/deed-restricted community? It'd be nice to cut down on my husband's commute of course, but we find ourselves drawn to South Tampa for more things to do and homes with character.

South Tampa is a great place to live. Lots to do, close to everything, holds its property values, best schools in Tampa - I could go on and on. If I were to move back to Tampa, this would be the first area on my list to buy.

Good luck!

SAKIRAV · 02-09-2012, 02:18 PM

Gypsychic. if you could have the kids in any school (public), in south tampa, which would you choose? thank you so much! feel free to pm me.

gypsychic · 02-09-2012, 02:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SAKIRAV

Gypsychic. if you could have the kids in any school (public), in south tampa, which would you choose? thank you so much! feel free to pm me.

It's hard for me to get specific about all the schools, I don't have kids and don't live there, but I think Palma Ceia is an ideal family neighborhood and I know it has some of the best schools anywhere. You can do a google search for schools in south Tampa and pull up some good info.

Hope this helps!