Moving to Miami -need advice

[Ohio]

My husband has been offered a job in Miami and we are looking at moving there later this summer. I am visiting in 2 weeks to scope out some rental properties. Can anyone give some advice where to look? I have a place in Homestead that I am going to see. I want to find a good school system for my 6 yr old and we have 2 dogs. The volume of places on the Internet is overwhelming and with no knowledge of the area, I am unsure of where to start.

Thank you, Jenn

 

[nivram]

What type of area are you looking for? Do you want to be by the water? Easy shopping?

You might be able to check the miami dade county Public Schools website for ratings on the different schools. I went to magnet schools for most of my education, so I cant comment on local schools.

 

[Ohio]

Price and schools are going to be the biggest factors. We need to find somewhere less than $2000 a month( preferably less than $1500 until my house in Ohio is sold).

My biggest concern is schools though. I have researched the local schools online but nothing really compares to firsthand experience. And we don't know anyone from the area.

We were considering Homestead. My son currently attends a very diverse school, so I wasn't concerned about it until someone warned us against the city because of kids getting picked on in school. I still am skeptical about whether this is really an issue(because it was one person's account who is not even from Miami). I plan to speak to some people from the neighborhood when I am visiting.

If it turns out that Homestead is not an option because of the schools, I am not sure where to go next. Finding a rental big enough that will allow 2 large dogs is rather difficult even in a city the size of Miami. If I was looking in Columbus I would know right where to go.

I am super excited to move to Florida; I've always wanted to live there, but it sure is nerve racking.

 

[lostmyz]

I know how you feel Ohio, I just moved to Florida from Az. I was living in Brickell (financial district of downtown) and now moving to Coral Gables to live with a friend. I have been looking for houses or rental properties in Florida cause I plan on moving into one on my own for me and my wife when she gets out here after finishing school this year. And the amount of places is completely over whelming and it just stresses me out to the point where i just give up and don't wanna keep looking. I wish you the best of luck with the move and everything else!

 

[flfireman1]

I would avoid homestead. The rent in homestead is probably the cheapest in the county. But the city is still mostly lower class. Many of the new developments have all been rented out to section 8 housing and if your concerned about schools the district has some of the worse in the county. Although there are a few new magnet schools that are good. Homestead has been trying desperately to improve itself in the last few years by attracting big chain stores adding a movie theater and new shopping centers to kick start its economy. Although it has been a tremendous improvement the decent areas to live in are few and far between.

If I were you I would look into the palmetto bay or cutler bay area. Two neighboring cities that offer better schools, and larger homes with yards. Also rent is cheaper in cutler bay (than palmetto bay but palmetto bay is nicer) and you should have no trouble finding a place that allows dogs.

Good luck HTH

 

[rovster]

Miami is so big, and you really have to specify where in miami, and how far willing to drive to work. Good luck!

 

[WhoDey64]

Live in Broward and commute to Dade is my advice.

 

[CoachOJ]

Is he going to be working downtown? Do you mind a little commute? When my 2nd son was born, schools were a huge factor for us so we chose Pembroke Pines. We are in Broward County about a 30 min commute to downtown Miami (typically). If your looking in Homestead or cutler, I think it would be roughly the same. I am originally from the NE and loved being in Miami for the diversity but for some people it can be quite a shock. Must be open to speaking Spanish or at least trying if you live in Miami. Don't know if pricing would be a factor but Doral is a newer city (basically Miami) with some new rental stuff going up now. Good luck but for what it's worth, I work in Miami but love where I'm at in Pines despite the commute

 

[Joshporksandwic]

lol

 

[SaltyReefs]

Once your settled, you must try a shot of Cuban coffe. It a popular drug down these parts. ��

 

[Anim8me2]

I third or fourth the "Live in Broward and commute" crowd.
Better schools, more room(Pembroke Pines or even Southwest Ranches), and you might find the commute is the same as living in Miami.
When we were looking to relocate we considered a move down to Miami but my wife tried the morning drive and it was faster to drive down from Broward than to do the local commute in Miami.

 

[wetdiver]

Look into Miramar, Pembroke Pines, Miami Lakes for the Lower $1500.00 rent you can get a 1800 to 2400 sqf house and the schools are A and B grade.

 

[gatoralum69]

You can also try Kendall Crossings area...there are plenty of A schools in the area, and becuase most communities have associations, you rarely have issues.

 

[marke]

I understand school and cost are important factors. That can be found in many places. Most importantly!!!! Where is your husband going to work. commutes are a factor if you want him to see the kids before bedtime. Remember Father's Day is next. Mother's Day is history. By the way have you driven in Miami? Much different than Ohio. You might need lessons to understand the hand signals. You bringing an aquarium?

 

[Ohio]

Fireman -thank you, that is just what I needed to hear.

He will be working in Kendall. A 30 to 40 min commute is okay.

Marke -we have driven thru Miami twice on our way to Key West, never during rush hour. You mention hand signals, my interest is peaked. The only hand signals used in Columbus would be the bird, which I prefer not to see on any given day.

The aquarium is going but we are not sure if we are going to sell off everything and start over or attempt to ship it down. My husband will be living in the company house for a while and we have discussed setting up a 75 to ship our current livestock to. I have a 120g here. My guess is that we will sell off the livestock and glass box and start over. So I will be looking for good LFS once we are settled.

Thank you all for the information. I won't waste my time in Homestead when we visit.

 

[Anim8me2]

You will find the hand gestures are pretty universal.

My wife's commute is 45 minutes on a really heavy traffic day (this is from Southwest Ranches to Coral Way in Miami). Her test drive in Miami was half the distance but 20 minutes longer. The drive to Kendall would be about 30 minutes.

We have an abundance of great LFS so don't worry. I am sure we will all be happy to arrange a LFS crawl for you guys. It's like a pub crawl but the beer is at the end of the trip.

 

[Stylo328]

Here is the perspective of someone that grew up in Miami, moved away for several years and came back five years ago. If he is going to work in Kendall, look for a house in the Redlands, or in an area officially called Richmond West (33177 or 33187). Both will offer a house within your price range and pretty good schools and a yard for the dogs.

Life in Miami is tough for a few reasons. One, traffic. Two, scammers are everywhere - very difficult to trust anyone. Three, the pace is very quick so customer service is scarce.

I am Hispanic, my wife is Caucasian, we both have very different perspectives. The weather is great, but if it weren't for the hundred or so relatives we have in the county, we would likely live elsewhere.

 

[ladybug5234]

I would avoid homestead. The rent in homestead is probably the cheapest in the county. But the city is still mostly lower class. Many of the new developments have all been rented out to section 8 housing and if your concerned about schools the district has some of the worse in the county. Although there are a few new magnet schools that are good. Homestead has been trying desperately to improve itself in the last few years by attracting big chain stores adding a movie theater and new shopping centers to kick start its economy. Although it has been a tremendous improvement the decent areas to live in are few and far between.

If I were you I would look into the palmetto bay or cutler bay area. Two neighboring cities that offer better schools, and larger homes with yards. Also rent is cheaper in cutler bay (than palmetto bay but palmetto bay is nicer) and you should have no trouble finding a place that allows dogs.

Good luck HTH

+++++1,000,000,000,000,000... take it from a Homestead teacher who lives in Cutler Bay and whose kids go to school in Kendall.

 

[roblack]

Sunset area, Coral Gables, Coconut Grove, and Miami Beach all have really good public elementary schools. Living in a certain area is not a guarantee to get into many schools. Some have lotteries, some are charters and magnets, all kinds of variables. Helps if your kid is a master of some art form or sport, or is a super genius in biomedical engineering or quantum mechanics.

You may want to look at duplexes and condos rather than a house (cheaper), but is probably a no-go if your dogs are not small.

 

[Showtime1]

Anywhere is good 1 word of advice avoid the palmetto express way (826)