DaisyChain68

We have been expats for many years in different parts of the world. My husband has an opportunity to work in Florida and we are able to choose where. That's my question, where. Our children are college age, so we don't have to consider schools. But my husband will travel a fair bit and I will be left alone so I'd need a community that I could fit in without difficulty. It's harder without children because they keep you busy and connected to various groups and school. I'm starting research now but this move is moving faster than I anticipated and I know absolutely nothing, to be honest. Whenever we've moved previously we've moved to countries with big expat communities and we've had children, this is quite a different move I feel.
Any help, advice or encouragement would be so gladly received.

Rete

There are many good areas of Florida to live in on either side of the state. Hard to answer your question because we don't know you. What activities to you enjoy? What activities would you like to enjoy while living in Florida? How much income will you have? This will limit where you can live in Florida in terms of the cost of apartments or house rentals. Do you want to purchase a condo, house, or just rent? Do you want to live in a gated community which is a little safer than renting or buying a house elsewhere? Do you want to be near other Brits? It appears that you do as that was your choice of residence in other foreign countries. For that, Orlando will fit the bill as it is where most Brits seem to gravitate. Are you willing to live in an area that has a great many senior citizens? Do you require a place with a pool? Tennis court? On premise gym? Will you be eligible for a employment authorization document?

DaisyChain68

Thanks Rete for your response - so much to consider! It's like placing a needle in a haystack.
I'm trying to figure out if I'd prefer to live in a gated community with a 'community' or a smaller town especially as I'll be on my own for a lot of the time, with my husband travelling. We currently live in a house with a pool, I'd not considered a condo, so that's an idea to investigate. Rent to start until we decide what's happening and then possibly buy. My husband loves golf, I love the ocean. But we are pretty easy going as we've moved so many times, it's just this move seems a little bigger as we are left to make a lot of the decisions ourselves and the country is so vast.

Pulaski

As Rete said, it depends a lot on you as Florida has regions that vary quite a lot. Greater Miami/ South Florida is effectively a Latin American community, and indeed is sometimes known as "the capital of Latin America".

The further north you go the more rural and "Southern" the state becomes, more like the states to the north of Florida - Georgia and Alabama. That said, Jacksonville in the NE corner of the state is a modern and bustling city, and Tallahassee in the NW "pan handle" is the state capital, but the area surrounding become rural and Southern very quickly after you leave the city.

Pulaski

Bear in mind that a gated community might not be quite what you think it is - most don't have a 24hr guarded entrance, or indeed any guard presence, and those that do are obviously more expensive. In practice most "gated communities" are public roads, rubbish is collected by the city, and the mail and parcels are delivered, so pretty much anyone can come and go, making the gate nothing more than a token barrier.

Personally I think "gated community" usually just means "rich neighborhood with lots of houses to burgle and stuff to steal". If I wanted to live in a neighborhood/ community with pool, tennis courts, golf course, restaurant/ bar club house, etc ​ there are plenty of choices without it being a community with a gated entrance.

neill

Personally i'd go for the middle or middle-to-north bit of FL if nothing else factored in. Not because of Mickey Mouse - just seems to me a good balance of laid-back North Florida vs cosmopolitan South Florida. Plus, the space centre and 2 international airports with good UK connections. Anywhere in the state can get hit by bad hurricanes, obviously as far inland as you could get helps which means places like Orlando metro area. Which is expensive housing wise, of course.

Rete

The only gated communities I know of in Florida is the one my sister lives in and those in her neighborhood. All of them have 24 hour guards at the gate and patrolling the community. Many of the homes have their own pools but there is the community pool, tennis court, play area for the children, club house for activities, both private and community. Their HOA includes all lawn and shrub service, full premium cable television (Comcast), home security system and hurricane shutters. Quite a few of the homes are rented out by owners and the community itself is diverse in age of residents from seniors to families with children.

The place across the way is a golf gated community with its own golf course and all of the same amenities stated above.

Sis is in Ft. Myers on the Gulf (west side) of the State. Her airport is within a 15 minute drive from her home and it is an international airport. She flew from Germany to Ft. Myers non-stop last year.

Mr. P is correct gated communities will differ from area to area and what you are willing to pay.

tom169

Got talking to a police officer around Christmas and the most targeted neighborhood by thieves was a fully gated and security patrolled neighborhood. Residents got complacent and stopped remembering to lock their cars.

carcajou

When you say your husband will be traveling a lot, I think where to is an important question, and by car or by air?

If your husband is going to be flying a lot, will want to make sure he can do so quickly - so you want to be near an airport that is a major hub with a lot of direct flights, both domestically and internationally, so he doesn't have to spend a lot of time on connecting flights or driving to/from the airport.

But if he's going to be driving, find out where he will be driving mostly too - Florida is a very big state, and same idea, you don't want to be somewhere that's unnecessarily adding a lot of travel time.

Florida is a heavily populated state - I believe it just overtook New York to be #3 in the US, behind California and Texas - so finding a sizable community of expats will not be difficult.

NASOON

Take a look at the Naples area of Florida.
Ave Maria, FL - Community feel
Really has a lot going for it in my opinion.

excpomea

If your husband will be traveling a lot, ie flying then avoid Tallahassee.
We must have some of the most expensive flights $/mile in the states.

We love it here, but whenever it comes time to fly somewhere we drive to Jacksonville 2 1/2 hours East.