SouthWest or SouthEast?

My Girlfriend, My Buddy/business Partner , and Myself are going to be moving this summer to southern Florida. Im Wondering what do you guys here on Fchat think about the areas?

We were looking at areas like Ft. Myers, Cape Coral, Homestead, Ft lauderdale, Miami.

My Gf is attending school at Nova South Eastern, (a slight commute is alright but they have several campuses; Orlando, Ft Lauderdale, Miami, Palm Beach)

My buddy and I are starting a small business, where we are targeting everyone from little kids, Families, Teens, Young Adults, and Adults- (a business geared towards fun and fitness) So demographically we are trying to stay away from the Retirement cities, and get more of the family, young couples, Singles market.

Now i know first remarks are going to be " Visit the areas and see yourself" Well we are. Just not able to YET. (after to wait till after May- when i graduate College) Then we have made room for several trips to different areas. I'm just trying to get a good idea of where to start.

Thanks

 

I would think that Ft. Meyers and Cape Coral are geared a little more to the over 60 crowd. Miami is great, better if you speak Spanish. Homestead is really not heavily populated, yet.

I would pick Ft. Lauderdale, probably a western suburb.

 

I agree with Ron's comments... You'll want to be in Fort Lauderdale/Broward County.

 

You want either Ft Lauderdale or Palm Beach for your biz. Miami only of you speak Spanish. Make sure to update your passport when you drive into Miami. You need a Cuban visa to come to Miami

The good thing is, since we are in a different Country down here we pay no taxes, the bad thing...we don't know how to vote.

 

I would also say the west coast is more for the retirees. The further north you go, the less congestion and traffic (in general), but also a less dense population. Lauderdale has too much traffic for me, Palm Beach is better in that regard, but housing and office rent here is really expensive. The northeastern attitude permeates the whole region (since many are NY/NJ transplants), so if you enjoy lots of confrontation you should do well in business here. Good luck!

BT

 

Good to hear, some of the demographics, fortunately I do speak a fair amount of spanish, and have spanish relatives in Fort Lauderdale already ( as well as Orlando and kissimmee)

Ill be sure to Check out Palm Beach and Ft Lauderdale first since we are trying to target a large market, the comfort setting of not HAVING to speak spanish is a plus. (also Considering my buddy and my gf do not speak it)

You guys have been a lot of help and I will be contacting a real estate agent via another Fchatter, (thanks Dominick)

 

Don't listen to these exaggerators! I've lived here 3.5 years and have really only felt like I needed to speak Spanish at a few gas stations. You certainly will notice the Spanish fluency, but you won't feel too left out if you're a uni-linguist. One interesting note: Miami-Dade county is the only county in the country where more than 50% of its citizens were BORN in another country.

Nova Southeastern has a few campuses, but I'm guessing they don't all offer the same classes/programs. You might want to find the "correct" campus for your girlfriend, and get a place near that.

The West Coast has been ruled out for you.

 

West Broward (west of Ft. Lauderdale) Would be your best bet. It is close to everything including NSE. Are you looking for a house with land or something like a townhouse or condo?

 

we are pretty much open, our only requirements are:

3 or 4 bed rooms (theres 3 of us )

a garage with a driveway or offstreet parking (we have a total of 4 cars coming down, a 964 911 Turbo, a b5 S4, a Blazer and a Subaru Legacy thats being tuned for daily/track use)

and low to mid 200k's (which we've seen and feel comfortable at that range while still giving room to play a bit if we see something we like)

thats it, so either a home or Condo/townhouse works.

 

3-4 bedrooms, you may want to adjust your price up to the upper $200's for the nicer areas.

 

like i said, we left ourselves some room.

I have to say i was on the phone talking to my buddy and going over stuff for a meeting tomorrow, and we are all really excited about moving and getting our project underway. We are both people who need to be busy doing something, and so far things have been going well getting all the details ironed out.

 

I hate to say this but I think even upper $200' for 3-4 bedrooms with a garage is next to impossible. As far as a condo or townhouse goes you will not get the number of deeded (owned) parking for 4 cars. Most of them come with 2 spaces so your are on your own to find guest spaces. Also if you buy in a development that has a HOA READ the documents closely! There are some places that have residents that do nothing but enforce the rules. If you need a hand when you start to look let me know I'll see what I can do.
Disclaimer: I am not a Realtor trying to sell you anything. I am a investor that knows the local market pretty well.
Good luck.

 

Are high crime areas ok?

 

You have two options. You can live in the ghetto or in a trailer park.

 

Wow, is it really that kind of choices, We dont need to be in the heart of Miami or Palm Beach, we were actually looking at a commute to avoid high prices of being RIGHT in the major cities. 4 bedrooms a plus we only need 3 though. the blazer perhaps can go, but the 911, S4 and Legacy have to stay.

This just tells me we need to start searching out places and getting the details alot sooner than expected.

So then what are your opinions on how much we're looking at, for a 3 bedroom, the parking can be worked out, Even if we can park 2 of the cars (the 911 and s4 are our main concerns) and have to look for parking for the other two its fine its not a necessity to have all 4 in a garage.

Some Cities Suggestions? price ranges we can expect? Also Im 21, my buddy is 24, and my girlfriend is 24...we don't need the nicest house or apt on the block but we do need something that is acceptable to live in.

hows Davie, Pompano Beach, Port St Lucie (which is actually 1.5hrs from both areas where my family resides ; Orlando and Ft Lauderdale)?

Something that I just did a quick search on:
http://www.floridamoves.com/property/propertydetails.aspx?pool=0&mls=&thumbs=1&sort1=listprice&lux=0&sort2ord=A&PType=SFAM&vt=0&wf=0&MinBed=3&sqft=0&MaxPrice=240000&CityIDList=&show=1&sort1ord=D&sort2=city&Zip=&sid=906&Street=&CountyIDList=328%2c364%2c365%2c369%2c372%2c378&rpp=10&nc=0&nl=0&mp=0&cc=0&PropSearch=0&MinPrice=0&MinBath=0&page=3&propertyguid=a4c19fc3-f27b-43a5-9668-b9e5a531f78a

or

http://www.floridamoves.com/property/propertydetails.aspx?pool=0&mls=&thumbs=1&sort1=listprice&lux=0&sort2ord=A&PType=SFAM&vt=0&wf=0&MinBed=3&sqft=0&MaxPrice=240000&CityIDList=&show=1&sort1ord=D&sort2=city&Zip=&sid=906&Street=&MinPrice=0&rpp=10&nc=0&nl=0&mp=0&cc=0&PropSearch=0&CountyIDList=328%2c364%2c365%2c369%2c372%2c378&MinBath=0&page=4&propertyguid=7378f139-a8a9-44e8-94da-d3ddbeb48221

or

http://www.floridamoves.com/property/propertydetails.aspx?pool=0&mls=&thumbs=1&sort1=listprice&lux=0&sort2ord=A&PType=SFAM&vt=0&wf=0&MinBed=3&sqft=0&MaxPrice=240000&CityIDList=&show=1&sort1ord=D&sort2=city&Zip=&CountyIDList=328%2c364%2c365%2c369%2c372%2c378&Street=&ncm=0&rpp=10&nc=0&nl=0&mp=0&cc=0&PropSearch=0&MinPrice=0&MinBath=0&page=9&propertyguid=70f1b422-ce87-4989-bbd5-cde30faacc2c

Im not familiar with those areas, but visually they look OK from the one photo they show (haha). Itd be an area i would Look at at least. This house is really to get us there, and allow us to start our things (our project, and my gfs grad school) We'll maybe live there 2-4years. realistically before deciding to either rent or sell and move on. Our Second purpose for the house is to build a little equity (in the time frame i know it really will be a LITTLE equity) to borrow against to help us fund some of our project. (thus we really dont want to rent).

 

Davie has a wide range of housing (but still expensive) and that's where NSE is located. Pompano (20+- miles north) also has nice areas but you are still looking in the mid to high $300's. PSL is a very nice place to live but it is about 75 miles north of Ft. Lauderdale. You can get a brand new 3-4 bed house in the mid to upper $200's but the 1.5 to 3 hour drive gets old quick. A loose rule of thumb figure anywhere from $180 a square foot and up in the Ft. Lauderdale/Miami ( Broward, Miami-Dade county's)

 

Hey Brosef, I admire that you want to do the "equity thing" at a young age. BUT, ain't no way you're getting a place for even $240/sf in a "safe" area of Miami. Broward is closer to her school and cheaper.
Three people, two that will be in the same bedroom... sounds to me like you NEED two bedrooms. That makes your search a lot easier.
Have you looked into HOW you're going to pay for this place? I don't know many 21 year olds with a decent credit history, and fewer with a down payment in their savings account.
You'll be struggling financially to live in a "hip" area, or you might get more space and be able to park your cars in places where they probably won't be broken into. But at your prices... it'll take some work.
And Port St. Lucie??? You'll be single within two weeks.

 

West Pembroke Pines and West Miramar have some good deals for your money close to turnpike and I-75... Lots of new developments..More house for your $$$$ IMO

 

I do have a very good credit score (thanks to my father's ethics of pay your bills ahead of time and dont wait if you have it today to pay it) My parents also allowed me to start establishing credit at a young age, by co-signing loans, and credit cards (of which we had arrangements on, they kept them, and would allow me to use them if i wanted something only if i showed them prior to purchase the ability to pay, and i could never charge anything more than half of what i could pay for in cash) as far as a dp, I have enough to have a good dp not including my buddies portion. Work has been nothing new for me, I always had to work for the things i wanted and wasn't really given anything so, Savings and good money choices i learned quick. but ill agree with you, I can say NONE of my friends are in any position to be on their own, and in fact they are plan on moving back home after graduation. They spent their time partying and waking up hung over... i spent my time in school and making money.

Plus i dont have the option to go home again HAHA. my parents always told my brother and I we are welcome to stay home as long as we want, but when we decide we want to be adults and move out...well we were going to be adults and work hard to make it work, there was not an option to " oh give it a try and if it doesnt work out, you can come back" (although we know they would let us if it really came to that).

I dont need to be in the "hot Spot" in fact i would almost prefer something a bit outside of that, the lack of respect in areas like that just drive me nuts sometimes ( i had a little kid take a Sharper marker to the side of my Honda S2000 to write "cool Car" on it ). a family oriented or residential area with young couples and new families would work perfect.

We could drop our search to 2 room, and if that is what it takes to get the job done we'll do it.

And hey If i end up single i end up single. but (heres the sappy part) my gf and I love each other, and have been through some real tough times already and have always stuck by each other and saw each other through whatever it was we were dealing with. We've lived together for 1.5 years and have been dating for a little over 2 years.

This house budget is also based solely on my buddy and I and what we can afford to mortgage and make payments on; I can tap into other outlets of capital we need to, The excess of automobiles being one, neither one of us have a problem selling for the right price. Also we could bring in a relative of mine who would put a % in to help fund and then would get that % back of the total resale value when we move (which has been discussed and thats the deal- i would just rather not if i dont need to ). the Two of us have also Cleared all debt. Leaving me just with my car payment and him with Zero debt (maybe $200 on a CC if he didnt pay that off this month- and yes we keep tabs on each others debt because this is a big thing for us right now). Now i can transfer/refinance my s4 loan to my mother (as a graduation gift to clear my debt 100%-not to pay I would pay it, the gift would be the name change- to make it so i have nothing out when we do a mortgage). So there are other positives to the money situation.

 

Your best bet is to rent instead. You can rent a brand new beautiful $500K house or townhouse with 2-3 bedrooms and a 2 car garage in a great area in West Palm Beach for $1300-1600/month. There are lots of desperate owners that cant sell, and would rather rent with a loss.

 

I'VE GOT IT!!!

Find one of those houses, and do a lease-to-purchase!

I just patted myself on the back.

And seriously, figure out which campus your girl will be going to. That would help anyone else that tries to give you advice.

 

Girl is behind me right now, and shes saying Lauderdale is the main campus and is where she will be...

And i would give you a pat on the back too if i could, Thats a good idea. Lease with the option to buy.

You guys have been a HUGE help. I just want to say thanks right now to everyone.

Where to find lease to purchase option houses though ? Just through the realtor ?

 

Just because I've never been there, WHERE is the Lauderdale campus? Do you have an address or something?
L2P places are tough to find. Look for houses for sale in the area where you want to live (For Sale By Owner is probably your best bet), and call the owners. Explain that you'd like to do the L2P, explain the benefit to them, and ask if they'd like to have a contract where you'll buy the house in a year or two, for what they're asking for (or almost what they're asking for). Some of your rent gets credited to the down payment and you treat the proprty as though you own it. If the circumstances are right, and the seller is having a difficult time selling... who knows?

 

Lauderdale campus is at,

3301 College Avenue
Ft. Lauderdale, FL 33314-7796


So pretty much im looking for a motivated seller and/or a house that has been listed for a longer period of time.

 

That's actually the main NSU campus in Davie. Forget Port St. Lucie, that drive would be insane every day!

Yes, a good realtor can help you with lease to own... If you really want to buy right away you have a huge advantage in that the real estate market is very BAD down here now. It's definitely a BUYERS market - There are a LOT of houses for sale and some have very desperate sellers. Find a good realtor willing to work with you, you may end up with a lot more house than you think. When you find something you like don't be afraid to make a low ball offer and see what happens - Make sure you can afford the taxes and insurance first though.

Having said that though, personally I'd RENT for a year first. That will give you time to check out the areas more closely and shop around without being in a rush to buy something.