suebo

We are thinking of moving to Tampa. The actual office will be in Tampa, so are looking for a place to live with in 15 minutes. Any advice on where to live what to do/what not to do, would be appreciated.

ladyofthelake

When you say the office will be in Tampa, do you mean Downtown? It all depends on where exactly the office is, but I would generally say the north of Tampa is better (and cheaper) than the south. I lived in Lutz in northwest Tampa until June this year, really nice communities, more space but still all the amenities you could want closeby. Odessa is also well placed in the northwest of Tampa. The downside to this is that commuting to downtown will take about 20 mins from these areas, but then most decent places are about 20-30 mins from downtown too On the north west there is New Tampa, lots of new construction, schools, stores etc, but the rush hour traffic from this area to Downtown is appalling. Going across the bay into Pinellas County will extend your travelling time and increase your housing costs, but you will be closer to the beaches. If you have any more questions I'm willing to help.

reaper27

My father works in Tampa, but lives in St. Petersburg. My family and I enjoy living in St. Petersburg, the commute into Tampa from the South is a lot quicker then coming from the North. You need to go visit and see what area you want to live in. Enjoy the transfer, Tampa Bay is beautiful

Ray

Depending on where your office is, it could be 15 minutes getting out of your carpark... LOTL is about right... just spend a few days travelling in all direction to find what suits you!!

Mike&Ali

we have been in this area for several years now, and live north of Tampa.
Drop us an email direct and we can chat on the subject etc etc.

mike n Alison

[email protected]

suebo

Thanks for the answers so far. The Office is located at W. Swann Avenue Tampa, FL 33606. I am not familiar with the area at all, but hubby has been there for a few days before. I have been on map quest and looked up the surrounding suburbs, but don't know what sort of reputation they have. Eg. Gibsonton, Bloomingdale, Riverview, Safety Harbor,Oldsmar,Egypt Lake, Carrollwood, Temple Terrace, Mango, Orient Park, Brandon, High Point, Pinellas Park, Lealman etc etc.
Nothing definite yet, but I think a move there will probably be the only thing that keeps me in USA - (fed up with Baltimore) so I have my fingers crossed.
What is the expat community like there??

Mike n Alison, I will probably email you direct a bit later on when I know what is happening, thanks.

Cheers

Vicky88

Sue

At least the weather should be a bit nicer in Florida rather than Baltimore. Hope it works out for you.

Vicky

suebo

Thanks Vicky,
The weather has been a bit sh#tty this year, rather hot and always raining, so it will be a change. Bit worried about those Hurricanes though :scared: and the Alligators:scared: :scared:

Vicky88

Sue

Must admit that Baltimore is not a place that I have ever thought I would want to live. Think I would rather have to wrestle the alligators in the driveway than put up with totally miserable weather.

On the other hand, Florida is a place I have always fancied.

BTW what measures did you take to get your husband to agree to the move?? Sounds like you are a bit fed up wtih it all.

For me as long as I can see the sun every day and be within a decent drive of the ocean, life always seems better.

suebo

Didn't take any measures Vicky, he actually suggested it and it was the first time I had a smile for a while. No probs I said, lets go. He was talking to someone in the company Tampa office and they need someone like him down there, so that planted a seed in his mind. He just has to speak to his boss here (who is out of the office until next week) and see what his opinion is. I know he will be very reluctant to let him go, but as I have told hubby, it is probably the only thing that will keep me here and I don't think the company want to let him go. So we will see what happens.

Baltimore is not all that bad, but have never felt at home here, so a change of scenery will do me the world of good I hope

ladyofthelake

You've just described Florida weather to a tee! LOL!

suebo

Darn, it will follow me everywhere. Lived in Asia and it was like that there too - difference is I loved Asia

Vicky88

Sue

Are you working or are you one of those people, like myself, forced to stay at home because of the work permit situation?

I actually think the US is one of the harder places to get a social network going. For me Paris was the best place we ever lived, not because of the standard of living, but because of the existence of an expat community. I know what you are saying about Asia, it makes it so much easier when you are in a place you love.

We are hoping that we may be moving back to Australia end of this year. Hubby is mainly working in Europe, but there is a chance he can do the same job commuting from Oz. I enjoy San Diego but would love to go back to Oz and go back to work.

Vicky

suebo

Yes Vicky I am one of the non existent plebs like you, my working visa is in the process at the moment. It has been 2 months now, so hopefull will have it within a month. You know that if you are on a dependents visa, the rules have changed and you can now get a work permit.

I agree on the expat community part. I am only now just starting to get to know a few Aussies and Brits around here - I organise a monthly dinner and that is the only way I have got to know them. Asia was totally different, the expat life was fantastic. Never short of some other expats to go out with day or night.
Where in OZ are you going to move back to? I have an Aussie "friend" that lives in SD - she calls it Sandibloodyago. She hates it there.

Vicky88

Sue

I am entitled to a work permit. I applied last year, it took the useless immigration department 280 days to process what was supposed to be a 90 day application. By time it was issued it only had 6 weeks to run because that was when my visa expired. So we had to go back to the UK to get our visas renewed and now I have to start the process again. As far as I am concerned they can jam their bloody work permit where the sun doesn't shine, I'm over it totally.

We might move to Canberra. I know most people will turn their noses up at that, but it does offer a good quality of life. I would prefer to be on the coast somewhere, Central NSW or even Bribie Island, but the reality is we will need to work for some time before retirement and the public service in Canberra offers good money for relatively easy work. Also even though my husband is in high demand overseas in Australia jobs for him are non-existent. We are tired of this lifestyle as have been doing it for nearly 10 years, moving every 18 months or so, just want to be normal. It is hard to make friends everytime you move. We don't have children so that makes it harder. I find women my age are either working full time, or home with kids and I really don't want to sit around talking about the whether or not they should vaccinate or spend my time looking thru Baby Gap. SD is not an easy place to make friends, everyone I know works and my husband is away on business 80% of the time, so I spend a lot of time on my own.

In the meantime I am just hoping that we win the lottery or something.