New England to Florida... As Younger People, Challenges?

[ddbowdoin]

Well, figured I'd just open this up for discussion.

I'm a 27 year old "financial professional"... not really sure what this means, but I've worked for major financial firms and now a smaller one in an operational role. My fiance is 24, wrapping up her education graduate degree... she is full licensed here in MA and it is my understanding that due to our high standards our licensure will transfer to most states (including FL who use the PRAXIS exam).

Has anyone here made the transition from New England to Florida as a younger couple, ie not retirement. Everything looks great in terms of living costs and what not, but I've never moved to another city before and the prospect of needing to find work while I'm still here in Boston seems like a massive challenge.

I'd just like to get a feel for peoples experiences.

 

[Pioneer Hall]

I'm not part of a couple, but I just relocated and am the same age as your fiancé. I guess my reasoning was a bit different though since I am planning on getting into the tourism world and knew that the best way to do that was to get my MBA in FL. In my experience, job searching from far away can be a bit difficult since there are a lot of unemployed people in Florida. To keep hiring costs down it is easier for them to pass over anything far away and look at the potential pool of FL applicants. The things that would make it easier are one of you (probably your fiancé) getting a job first and then you explaining the situation to a recruiter on how you have no choic to relocate. Also, trying to get in touch with someon in HR where you apply will be pretty critical or they will probably see MA on your resume and move past it.

 

[ddbowdoin]

I'm not part of a couple, but I just relocated and am the same age as your fiancé. I guess my reasoning was a bit different though since I am planning on getting into the tourism world and knew that the best way to do that was to get my MBA in FL. In my experience, job searching from far away can be a bit difficult since there are a lot of unemployed people in Florida. To keep hiring costs down it is easier for them to pass over anything far away and look at the potential pool of FL applicants. The things that would make it easier are one of you (probably your fiancé) getting a job first and then you explaining the situation to a recruiter on how you have no choic to relocate. Also, trying to get in touch with someon in HR where you apply will be pretty critical or they will probably see MA on your resume and move past it.

here's the next question... crime. Seems FL is a bit of a shady place, home invasions are WICKED high and seems they have a nice pain medication drug problem.

I'm starting to scare myself away...

 

[Pioneer Hall]

here's the next question... crime. Seems FL is a bit of a shady place, home invasions are WICKED high and seems they have a nice pain medication drug problem.

I'm starting to scare myself away...

I feel like in most big cities there are good and bad places. I finish school in a week so I went to Orlando this past weekend to find a place to live. The neighborhood situation was concerning to me as well, but I actually found something in my price range in Celebration which is really nice. There are plenty of areas that are decent but of course rent prices are going to be a bit higher. I think that a lot of people get distracted by the theme parks in Orlando and forget how big of a city (and surrounding area) it is. With every big city comes its share of crime, so you just need to know where to go to avoid it.

 

[ddbowdoin]

I feel like in most big cities there are good and bad places. I finish school in a week so I went to Orlando this past weekend to find a place to live. The neighborhood situation was concerning to me as well, but I actually found something in my price range in Celebration which is really nice. There are plenty of areas that are decent but of course rent prices are going to be a bit higher. I think that a lot of people get distracted by the theme parks in Orlando and forget how big of a city (and surrounding area) it is. With every big city comes its share of crime, so you just need to know where to go to avoid it.

For what we would pay for a pretty low starter home here... we could get something in Celebration. If we make this happen, we'll likely do something like that. I've been per-approved for 300k on my income alone, fiance doesn't have enough full time income to quality.

I've been keeping my eyes peeled at Disney... I'd like to pull a corporate job. My experience is with fixed income, not sure how that will translate but we shall see.

 

[The Mom]

We moved here as a youngish couple (a bit older than you) with no children.

We initially made the mistake of listening to others about where to live, so we didn't look in the older, more historical areas. Thankfully, one realtor actually visited us in our rental (but with our own furniture) and brought us over to a neighborhood that fit our style - older, more traditional, walkable, etc.

We also made the decision that any children we might have would attend private school, as we were not impressed with the public schools in our neighborhood. But we could get a larger house for less than in the "good schools" neighborhoods. I have never regretted that decision.

Crime. I've lived here for 30 years, and my house and car have never been broken into. BUT, my neighbors have had a couple of incidents over the decades. I keep my doors locked all of the time, along with my car.

If you are thinking about the Orlando area, you might want to look in the Winter Springs area - my in-laws live there, and have been happy.

 

[golden redhead]

I agree. Winter springs is a great area to live. I lived there for almost 3 years before I bought my house last year in neighboring Oviedo. Both areas are nice. My drive to the office is 10 minutes down the road (3 miles) but my commute to DTD twice a week is 30 miles and 90% highway. As someone mentioned on another thread, depending on the time of day, it can take me 35 minutes to get to DTD or it can take at least an hour. Mind you, I am always going over there on the weekends, as that is when I work there.

I interviewed for 2 compaines in June 2004 for a full time position and got an offer right away from one. I moved down about a month later to Metro West, which was not the greatest choice. On top of the fact that many apt complexes went condo during the 2005-2007 period, in 2006 there were 3 fatal shootings in a 3 month period within a mile radius of my apt. Working until 12:30 am Saturday nights did not make me feel safe. I moved to the other side of town, which was smart since our office ended up staying there (when I was first hired, she was thinking of moving the office to downtown orlando). you will want to live closer to your employment, since that is where you will be driving most of the time. good luck.

 

[PatriciaH]

My husband and I moved to Celebration when we were 34. We loved FL and I think it can be great for a young couple-lots to do. We met a lot of amazing people that are still friends. I would not really want to raise a family there-maybe with private school. We have no interest in kids though so it was fine for us. We were there for nearly 6 years. It was really hard finding good, permanent, full-time work with good benefits in FL. We were contract and temp a lot. Right before my husband's last contract was up, he got offered a job back in MA (where we had moved from) with excellent benefits so he took it. We do regret moving and want to get back there ASAP, but we had to follow the good health insurance! Hopefully before another winter!

 

[disneyrcks]

Well, figured I'd just open this up for discussion.

I'm a 27 year old "financial professional"... not really sure what this means, but I've worked for major financial firms and now a smaller one in an operational role. My fiance is 24, wrapping up her education graduate degree... she is full licensed here in MA and it is my understanding that due to our high standards our licensure will transfer to most states (including FL who use the PRAXIS exam).

Has anyone here made the transition from New England to Florida as a younger couple, ie not retirement. Everything looks great in terms of living costs and what not, but I've never moved to another city before and the prospect of needing to find work while I'm still here in Boston seems like a massive challenge.

I'd just like to get a feel for peoples experiences.

here's the next question... crime. Seems FL is a bit of a shady place, home invasions are WICKED high and seems they have a nice pain medication drug problem.

I'm starting to scare myself away...

My husband and I currently live in NY. I just finished my Master's in Sp. Ed. The standards of licensure does not really matter. What you are looking for is interstate reciprocity. NY has it with FL but NY does not have it with NJ (who is the PRAXIS). The FL Dept of ED can let you know what certifications they accept and how to apply Even with reciprocity, you still need to apply to have it transfered. There are also many teaching opportunites in FL at the moment. However the time to find a teaching position is now.

My father, stepmother and sisters live in Orlando. We go down quite often. My dad's friends are all in Business (as is my husband, he has been with his company for 13 years). They have all been employed long term and make good money. We have been looking at jobs for sometime now and see quite a bit of available positions at major companies.

As far as crime, my parents live in Orlando but it is east Orlando, right outside of downtown. They are in a beautiful, gated community that is very safe. As someone else stated, Orlando is a huge area....so the crime statitics can be iffy. There are also smaller suburbs in the Orlando area (ie Dr. Phillips) that are very safe and nice. I will be honest here though. I live in the suburbs of NYC (and commute in for work everyday) and I live in an incredibly safe town. The only way I would feel this safe in the Orlando area, would be in a gated community. This comes from my research of predators in my area, which is two, to the Orlando area, which is many. Again, this is something to expect in a larger population pool. But, I am an anxious person by nature and when we have kids, I would worry constantly if we were not in a gated community.

 

[71jason]

Moved to Florida from NJ (and formerly CT) when I was 27.

Re: crime. As with anyplace, there are "good" areas and "bad" areas. What differentiates Florida from the northeast is that these areas are often right on top of one another. A couple blocks can really make a difference in safety, as opposed to up north where differences are often at more of a city-wide level. Once you know where you will be working, it should be easy to find a safe neighborhood within a reasonable distance.

Re: cost of living. Yes, it's a lot cheaper--and no state income tax--but salaries tend to reflect that.

I will say Orlando is one of the easiest cities to acclimate to. Practically no one is from here, and it's transitional, so it's easy to make friends. There's no "old guard" to have to break into. Once you learn a handful of major roads, it's easy to get around. You'll feel like a "native" within a couple years.

 

[enchanted_belle]

Well, figured I'd just open this up for discussion.

I'm a 27 year old "financial professional"... not really sure what this means, but I've worked for major financial firms and now a smaller one in an operational role. My fiance is 24, wrapping up her education graduate degree... she is full licensed here in MA and it is my understanding that due to our high standards our licensure will transfer to most states (including FL who use the PRAXIS exam).

Has anyone here made the transition from New England to Florida as a younger couple, ie not retirement. Everything looks great in terms of living costs and what not, but I've never moved to another city before and the prospect of needing to find work while I'm still here in Boston seems like a massive challenge.

I'd just like to get a feel for peoples experiences.

Dan,
I'm gonna warn you now... FL does not use PRAXIS If they did, I'd be having a much easier time convincing the BF to move down there. FL has their own testing system.

 

[RadioDave]

FL does have their own testing system, but will accept teaching certificates from most other states. We moved from Maine and my wife had no problem getting certified.
As for living areas, I lived around Orlando for 7 years, there are definitely nice areas out there... especially in the suburbs. The further away you get from downtown the better off you generally are.

 

[Disnee4Me]

I agree. Winter springs is a great area to live. I lived there for almost 3 years before I bought my house last year in neighboring Oviedo. Both areas are nice. My drive to the office is 10 minutes down the road (3 miles) but my commute to DTD twice a week is 30 miles and 90% highway. As someone mentioned on another thread, depending on the time of day, it can take me 35 minutes to get to DTD or it can take at least an hour. Mind you, I am always going over there on the weekends, as that is when I work there.

I interviewed for 2 compaines in June 2004 for a full time position and got an offer right away from one. I moved down about a month later to Metro West, which was not the greatest choice. On top of the fact that many apt complexes went condo during the 2005-2007 period, in 2006 there were 3 fatal shootings in a 3 month period within a mile radius of my apt. Working until 12:30 am Saturday nights did not make me feel safe. I moved to the other side of town, which was smart since our office ended up staying there (when I was first hired, she was thinking of moving the office to downtown orlando). you will want to live closer to your employment, since that is where you will be driving most of the time. good luck.

Hey my nephew lived in Oviedo and now lives in Winter Springs.... just saying!! I think Winter sprngs was rated #2 place to live in Florida, Lake Mary being #1.