[colorado.e9x]

As the title states, where are you guys? My best friend and I are moving there this fall. Not entirely sure where. We've outgrown our small mountain town, and I promise we're not libs here to infiltrate lol. I know natives aren't fond of everyone moving in; if it makes anyone feel any better, the majority of transplants in my area this year are from FL as well!

I'd love to get some background info, TIA

And here's our little convoy

[RickFLM4]

Welcome to FL.

I moved to FL for school in 1986 and haven’t left. My wife and I are in Wellington, which is west of West Palm Beach (561 area code). Bought our house in 2002.

Best to decide what type of area in which you’d like to live. City, suburbs, country, beaches, inland, etc. Southeast FL very different that panhandle. Northern FL can be pretty similar to Georgia and Alabama. Obviously it gets hot, there is exposure to storms and insurance is probably the most expensive in the country. But can’t beat winters and there are no state income taxes.

[dreamingat30fps]

I'm the opposite. FL has grown to overcrowded for me (at least South FL) and we ended up getting a "vacation" home in a pretty rural area (compared to SFL) of NC. If I had it my way I would love to live in NC full time. That being said I haven't been through a full winter so I might be full of shit. I have lived in FL most of my life so I do like it and all my family is there so I don't see myself moving permanently anytime soon. Would definitely like to switch our FL house to something more rural with an acre or so, but not happening with these prices.

Anyways as other have said, depends on what you are looking for. More people and "action" you can do SFL from Miami up to like West Palm Beach. If you want less people go north past Port St Lucie or west out by 441. If you want old FL with a lot less people and not much "action" you can go to the pan handle or parts of central FL or the west coast north of Tampa. Basically if you avoid the major cities and SFL it's pretty chill.

Again just depends on what you are looking for. As for pissing off the locals... at least in SFL there's only like 12 of us so. Everyone else is from NY, NJ or Canada.

[mcsquared]

North Florida (Jacksonville area) here. Moved from NY back in 2007. Love that it still gets cold here, without the snow!

I visit SoFlo a couple of times a year, working with models, and visiting a couple of friends. Hate the traffic down there, and everyone does 95 on I-95, if not faster!

[CarsAndGuitars]

We moved to West boca nearly 5 years ago from Nys. Shitty driving and entitled people starting to get to us . Otherwise it's paradise. Considering a move north between PSL and Jville area.

PSL used to be called "port Saint lonely" but it is growing immensely, maybe too much

[NickyC]

I hop back and forth between STL and Doral. The biggest shock to the system is the crushing amount of people down there. I live far out in the suburbs in STL, and anything I can do there generally takes 2-3 times longer in Doral. I do most of my shopping down there late at night in the weekends to avoid crowds, and working remotely does insulate me a lot from the traffic etc.

If I had to commute to work everyday in Miami, say more than a few miles, there is no way I’d choose to live there. The overcrowding has to be seen to be believed honestly.

[Tyga11]

We were in Boynton Beach visiting family a couple of weeks ago. I was amazed at how clean it is and no homeless bums. Out here in Phoenix - we have a large druggie population / homeless population.

We are seriously considering moving down and we are not libs either

[RickFLM4]

Originally Posted by Tyga11

We were in Boynton Beach visiting family a couple of weeks ago. I was amazed at how clean it is and no homeless bums. Out here in Phoenix - we have a large druggie population / homeless population.

We are seriously considering moving down and we are not libs either

You must not have made it into downtown West Palm, Ft. Lauderdale or Miami. Plenty of homeless in FL, but rare to ever see in suburbs like Western Boynton or Wellington.

[RickFLM4]

Originally Posted by NickyC

I hop back and forth between STL and Doral. The biggest shock to the system is the crushing amount of people down there. I live far out in the suburbs in STL, and anything I can do there generally takes 2-3 times longer in Doral. I do most of my shopping down there late at night in the weekends to avoid crowds, and working remotely does insulate me a lot from the traffic etc.

If I had to commute to work everyday in Miami, say more than a few miles, there is no way I’d choose to live there. The overcrowding has to be seen to be believed honestly.

I lived in Doral for several years in the 1990s. I want nothing to do with it now. Ridiculously overcrowded with no planning for roads or infrastructure. Also, my in laws were victims of a home invasion there in June. Police shot intruder dead in front of them. Fortunately, they are physically ok. They came to stay with us for a month and we found them a new place in western Hialeah near I-75 and the Broward line. Hard pass on Doral.

[floridaorange]

Knew this State would pop one day, had no idea it was gonna pop like it has thanks to a pandemic / work from home.

Been here 3 gens on Mom & Dads side which isn’t that long, but both sides are very plugged in so to speak. HMU if you have any questions. Having lived in SoCal for 10 yrs I have some reference points from a new persons perspective.

[RobotDoctor]

Originally Posted by colorado.e9x

As the title states, where are you guys? My best friend and I are moving there this fall. Not entirely sure where. We've outgrown our small mountain town, and I promise we're not libs here to infiltrate lol. I know natives aren't fond of everyone moving in; if it makes anyone feel any better, the majority of transplants in my area this year are from FL as well!

I'd love to get some background info, TIA

And here's our little convoy

Where do you live in Colorado? My wife and I moved from Fort Collins last summer to the northeast coast to Palm Coast. She is a native living all but 9 of her years in Colorado. I have lived 37 years of my life in Colorado so it will always hold a special place in our hearts. We absolutely love northeast Florida. No snow, lots of sun (as sunny as Colorado), thunderstorms in the summer and the occasional horizontal rain storms ( ). Florida is different in terms of geography and climate. My wife and I LOVE the Rocky Mountains but we also really LOVE the ocean and being close (2.5 miles as the Crow flies).

We traded one set of beauty for another and do not regret it! We certainly do not miss the snow!!!

[colorado.e9x]

Thank you for the input everyone
My original plan a year ago was Sarasota. I stayed there for a week just before Ian came through. I must have picked the PERFECT week, I was amazed at how nice the traffic was. Not a huge crowd either. People wise it felt just like where I live currently, but with better drivers (I know, shocking). The service industry was subpar, though. A year later and it seems its become very populated. Went from having a handful of housing options to zero. From no one knowing about it, to half the people I know visiting there over the summer.

Anyway.. My current goal is to rent, close to the beach, and away from the big cities. Thats what put Sarasota on the map for me. It was within an hour of Tampa if I wanted to go have fun, still somewhat big but not crazy, the beach was a 15 minute drive away, and there wasn't a huge amount of tourist attractions.

[colorado.e9x]

RobotDoctor I live in Montrose. It's basically the hub for every small mountain town on the west side of Colorado. Anyone living or staying for extended periods of time in the smaller mountain towns (Ouray, Silverton, Telluride, Gunnison, Crested Butte, Lake City, etc) come down to do their bigger errands. 15 minutes from one of the more underrated national parks, the Black Canyon. My daily view is fantastic, but after seeing it every day all my life I've taken it for granted. Some time away will make me appreciate it more

[RobotDoctor]

Originally Posted by colorado.e9x

RobotDoctor I live in Montrose. It's basically the hub for every small mountain town on the west side of Colorado. Anyone living or staying for extended periods of time in the smaller mountain towns (Ouray, Silverton, Telluride, Gunnison, Crested Butte, Lake City, etc) come down to do their bigger errands. 15 minutes from one of the more underrated national parks, the Black Canyon. My daily view is fantastic, but after seeing it every day all my life I've taken it for granted. Some time away will make me appreciate it more

Having moved to Colorado when I was 15 from the midwest, via Okinawa and Hawaii, I never took the mountains for granted. I appreciated them from the first time I saw them. During my 37 years of living in Colorado I spent 6 away, 3 at college and 3 based in the Philadelphia area for work. My final stretch once I came back was 30 years (1992 - 2022). Colorado is not what it once was back in the early 80s or even the early 90s. I can sympathize with Floridians who speak how Florida isn't what it used to be. For all of us we need to find a place that suits us so that we can live our best lives. Good luck to you and your buddy and I hope you find a place you can land on your feet and live your best life! Cheers!

[mcsquared]

Originally Posted by RobotDoctor

My wife and I moved from Fort Collins last summer to the northeast coast to Palm Coast.

Another neighbor...I'm close to St. Auggie.

OP, just don't go too far inland on the East or West coast. No breeze means more heat/humidity. GL in your ventures.

Oh, and I don't subscribe to any 'parties' as they are all crooks.

[dreamingat30fps]

Originally Posted by Tyga11

We were in Boynton Beach visiting family a couple of weeks ago. I was amazed at how clean it is and no homeless bums. Out here in Phoenix - we have a large druggie population / homeless population.

We are seriously considering moving down and we are not libs either

I remember we had a homeless lady in Boynton Beach once. She had a shopping cart full of stuff and would like cover it with umbrellas or something and make it into like a tent. I never saw her, but I did see her cart a few times. I think it lasted maybe a couple of weeks before she was gone.

We do get some of the fake homeless who ask for money at the light. Those motherfuckers don't even try to look homeless. Nice clothes, brand new shoes, cooler and backpack tucked behind the bushes with water and shit, fucking guy looking better than I do.

[Tyga11]

Originally Posted by RickFLM4

You must not have made it into downtown West Palm, Ft. Lauderdale or Miami. Plenty of homeless in FL, but rare to ever see in suburbs like Western Boynton or Wellington.

We were in the old people neighborhoods...west of Jog...the Valencia area...it's absolutely beautiful. Loved it.

[RickFLM4]

Originally Posted by Tyga11

We were in the old people neighborhoods...west of Jog...the Valencia area...it's absolutely beautiful. Loved it.

Yeah won’t see homeless out there. We’re about 1/2 hour northwest of there.

[floridaorange]

"the service industry"

That took a lot of adjusting for my wife and I coming from San Diego.

In Florida, it's less of an attitude of "you serve me, while I sit here" and more of a "we are friends, can I have a refill please." In terms of waiting for service staff to return to your table, the more friendly you are to them, the more they come back. This rule of thumb goes for most restaurants that are American cuisine and not expensive and can even exist in steakhouses that are pricier but usually they take better care of you and don't need you to ingratiate them in return.

If you want the kind of service where you sit and are served and not bothered and aren't expected to ingratiate the server, you'll need to seek out fine dining and read reviews before you go. Because most places that are newer, even if they are upper scale will have staff that are still so-so.

If you travel to the islands in the Caribbean or go to puerto rico, it's really different. Food can take well over an hour to come out because now you are on island time, so what is the rush? If you want faster service - stay at a high end resort. But in the islands they will still expect you to be friendly with them, ingratiating them. Not acting like they are your servant/server person.

So yah, it's a different culture, but once you get used to it, it starts to grow on you, so either relax and have a drink and learn to have fun conversations with the person you are out with, including the wait staff or cook at home. .

[ASAP]

Some points of reference - FL has changed A LOT in the past 10 years...

It is wildly more expensive that it was, real estate is no longer a deal, home insurance is sky high and we don't even have many insurers left.

There are also a ton of people here that weren't here before so it's far more overcrowded... while the state has a major upside as a whole due to no state income tax etc and good weather there is a large downside now... just be sure what you are going to get when you come here. As far as the job market... outside of service industry and tourism, I would argue it is one of the worst in the nation.

[colorado.e9x]

Maybe I went to the right restaurants on the wrong days

The way you describe it is how it is over here, too. I'm always friendly with staff and tip well. This was the first time I didn't want to tip at all. Still did, but only like 15% or so. Maybe it was my haircut

From what I've seen ASAP I completely agree. Another reason why I'm working on being fully remote. Cost of living outside of insurance is only slightly higher than where I'm at now, luckily

[Tommy-G]

colorado.e9x I am in Bradenton/Sarasota and took a leave from this page as I have been managing my second location (Autobody) and its been slightly overwhelming.

I'm blown away that you think the drivers were better here. We have some of the worst drivers anywhere that I think.
Anyway, happy to connect if you need dining advice or anything you want to know about the area.