Need Honest Input - Ft. Lauderdale Living

As I may have a tentative job offer in Ft. Lauderdale, I am investigating the lay-of-the-land in and around that area concerning future living accommodations. Specifically, the good, bad and other recommend living areas within a 30-45 minute commuting range that has a low (as possible) crime rate, good public schools, decent home prices (as possible), riding access for my son and other outdoor recreation attributes.

Any comments, recommendations and/or advice is welcomed at face value. :eek1

PM's are acceptable if preferred so as not to ruffle other ADV Rider FF feathers...

Thanks in advance-
DZSO

UPDATE as of 7 Feb 12
Current listing of places to investigate are as follows.
Those with positive comments (+) are:
Weston (3+)
Stuart (2+)
Jupiter (1+)
Sunrise (1+)
Those with negative comments (-) are:
Plantation (1-)
Any area with a HOA the size of a bible (2-)

Next Question? 18 February 2012
If one was to decide on living any where South of Stuart/Jupiter and North of Ft. Lauderdale, how close would you limit your location (town name) near Ft. Lauderdale? An answer written such as, "I would live no closer to Ft. Lauderdale than X town because X has X problem" is preferred. I am just trying to gain your input in case the "Tentative Job Offer" is given as I was contacted and asked for additional information for the "Preferred Selectee" packet going to thier regional HQ's for final approval.
Thanks to all who reply!
DZSO

http://old.news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20120203/od_nm/us_usa_cities_miserable/print
/ducks

Miami.

I was thinking of a bit more North or West (a long drive I know) away from the human masses...

Thanks for the info and truth of the facts.

V/R
DZSO

I had to deal with this 2 years ago and we decided on Stuart. Jupiter, Stuart, anywhere up north is way way better than being down there, too many people, traffic is terrible, and absolutley no feeling of community whatsoever.

According to today's Sun-Sentinel...Miami has captured the dubious distinction of being the most miserable city in the US. hummmm......

I'm really not sure there's a whole lot of offroad riding down there, and what's there will be either swampy or sugar sand. Other outdoor activities...hope you like saltwater sports. Fishing, boating, diving, etc will be very prevalent. There is also a very large horsey community in the Davie area.

Hope that helps,

NewCastleAdam,

Thanks for the outdoors ideas for my son, I am getting into Stand Up Paddle (SUP) boarding and hope my son & wife will as well. I was born in California and had a pool in the backyard, so the water activities are all good with me!

Thanks for the info-
DZSO

Weston will meet all of your requirements. They are enlarging 595
which you would use to commute to FLL. Markam Park is big and
close by. High profile Sheriff Deputies. You do not want to speed
in Weston. Very clean City. Have a nice Town Center. Two large
Shopping Malls within 12 miles. Plenty of schools. I have lived here
since 2000. No regrets. Good chance of picking up a foreclosed home.
Market prices starting to go back up, but still good deals available.

From Utah to SE-FL !?!?!?! :eek1 :eek1 :eek1 :eek1

OK, you asked . . .

I spent 3 years in SE-FL, I am familiar with it from Martin Co to Miami-Dade. I can say with complete sincerity, it was the worst three years of my life.


☑ Mean people, cars and malls. Thats it. Nothing else. Like living in the parking lot of South of the Border.

☑ Crime like you've never seen before. There is a reason SE-FL has the most episodes of COPS.

☑ It is a transient, service based economy. No one stays long. You WILL be smarter than your boss.
Some people dont mind that, but it could get old, fast.

☑ Everything is a scam, from trying to get your toofus fixed, to trying to get the oil changed in your car. EVERYTHING.

☑ A cultural wasteland. NO culture unless your idea of that is going to a mall or watching a Girls Gone Wild shoot.

☑ If you are mildly peacable or thoughtful person, you will get eaten up. People are something that get in YOUR way. Its' all about ME ME ME ME ME.

☑ Have a back-up plan. The employment situation in FL is the second worst in the country. Its an At-Will state. You might not have your job a month after you get there. If you are going to FPL, count on being let go within a year.

☑ If you like to road ride, you will be in the worst place you possibly can be. Homicidal drivers, Almost all roads are totally straight from Miami all the way to Martin County. A stoplight every 50 yards too. You can ride out to Ockeechobee where you can make some left turns around the lake, but thats pretty much it.

I know this is offensive, and sorry to be harsh, but that is my experience in FL.
Friends don't let friends do Florida.

That's pretty good

I lived in Plantation and hated it. Every inch is developed from the glades to the coast. I didn't even want to own a motorcycle while I lived there. Then I moved to Central Florida and found what I considered to be a much better environment. At least there were a few twisties around and you could get to dirt in a shortish amount of time.

My experience, YMMV, not legal tender in Virginia, etc.

Thundercat59 nailed it yet didn't offend me like the post from a few weeks back written by some female blogger from the SW coast. As a former Floridian, that would move back in a second, the Ft. L area is no place I'd want to ride. Stuart and north is much better. I was from Vero Beach.

The best way I can describe south Florida is to compare it to your junior high girlfriend...hot, flat, straight, and stopping you at every move.

It's now pronounced: Me-ah-Me.

But really, it's not all bad and I often have people holding a door open for me as they go through (and I'm a guy) or waving me through a stop sign. Just the other night someone insisted that I check out first at the grocery store as I only had a couple of items.

Traffic does suck though.

+1 I live in Weston as well due to family circumstances, but I am usually in the Fl Keys.
Weston is the ONLY community that has a low crime rate and where housing prices are going up rather than down.
I would rent a house first till you figure out where you really want to live. Just go to a few realtors on-line and see for yourself.
Plenty of parks around and living out West away from the ocean has it's merits as you're away from the crowds..

Some very valid points about the crime rate, scammers, idiot drivers and the selfishness, but that seems to be a nationwide issue in metro area's....That's why Weston is about the only place I would consider living down here apart from the Keys...Like Scribe said, central Florida is preferred over the South but if there is no choice you might as well pick the best you can....YMMV etc etc

I have been really thinking about the Ft. Lauderdale area since you asked about moving here. I am a public school teacher and there are several good schools in the area but only a couple of great elementary schools on the east side of town. Most of the better schools elementary wise are located in the west.
The travel...depends on where you need to go.....To travel east in the a.m. is not about the miles but the time....it can take as much as 1 hour to drive east from the west during rush hour in the a.m. or as little as 20 minutes if no traffic......
Weston is a nice area and just a little east is Sunrise. There are many modest priced homes in Sunrise/Davie/Plantation area as well from acreage to apt. living. These cities are about 20-30 minutes from the Ft. Lauderdale airport and about 45min. to the Miami airport. I75/595 are major access roads leading in all directions.
Like any urban area you will find the good and bad.
We settled in Sunrise due to the freedom it has opposed to the surrounding communities that said No commercial vehicles, No pick up trucks, No motorcycles, Use of Blue trash bags, paint your house 1 of three approved colors.......No boat parking....etc.
You will want to investigate the community restrictions and rules...where-ever you land. Coming from the Mid-West we are used to having freedom of choice.
We will look forward to meeting another ADV Rider on the forum and to join in on the South Florida Rides.

OK, I vented, hope I didnt offend too much , but in all fairness, Florida is HUGE
geographically speaking. Cant really say one thing that would be specific to the
whole state. Martin County has some real nice spots, about an hour from
Lauderdale on a good day, no wrecks, no road crew work . . . "Old" downtown
Martin is very nice, the theatre, etc. My Wife taught in Martin Co School system
and it was one of the higher rated ones in FL. Good for kids, relatively speaking.
One of the very nicest town we've ever visited was a trip to the central region, Mt Dora.
Very, very nice. Almost New Englandish in a way. That whole Lakes / Eustis area would
be a nice place to live for anybody. Even me

Pass the Prozak !!!! :huh:huh Am I missing some stuff in FL ?!?!?!? AGGHHHHGGHH !
Best wishes in whatever you decide !!!

This cannot be stressed enough !
The Realtors will give you one set that are far from the real ones the HOA's provide.
We found this out the hard way. The realtors fake version said MC's Ok, the real,
8" thick tome of the HOA said definitely "NOT". But again, thats the way they do
stuff. Realtors will do anything to move a property. Research an HOA thoroughly !!
They can increase dues at-will, any amount they want and you have to pay or they
take legal action against you. HOA bibles are written to be able to evict anyone,
even a Saint, for any reason. They tell you what color, what kind of car you can
have, pet, etc . . .Even INSIDE your house. Just an FYI.

I have moved to SE Florida (a few miles north of Fort Lauderdale), about 4 month ago. Prior to this I lived for close to 20 years in So. Cal. People are WEIRD around here (and I know "weird" - see my So. Cal. credentials). If anything, heed what "ThunderKat" tells you in this post:

http://advrider.com/forums/showpost.php?p=17924717&postcount=10

Best of luck !

An HOA can dictate whether or not you own a bike? I can see maybe if you keep it outside, but surely not one you keep in your own frackin' garage? You've got to be exaggerating here.