Anyone live in or near Tampa?
08-09-2010, 02:38 PM
#1
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Anyone live in or near Tampa?
Just curious as to what the culture is like down there. The girl and I have been discussing things and if we were to move out of state, it would be down to Tampa. I have a couple of clubs that have pretty much offered me residencies down there, and looking at the job market briefly...I'm sure I could easily find a job doing what I do now, either at the same salary or above.
I would just have to sell my house and hope that I could find something similiar down there to buy or a really really nice condo for the time being. But what's it like there:
- Crime?
- Traffic?
- Cost of living?
- Job market?
- The people?
Give you an idea as to what I have here, 6 figure salary (between regular career and DJing), large 350K+ house in a high class gated community, everywhere takes only 20 minutes to get to even in traffic, cost of living is pretty low but its an extremely conservative city, boring night life, not too many authentic places to eat, VERY high taxes, 4 seasons but Fall is short, spring is nice, summer is humid, and winters are pretty harsh. The beach is only 10 minutes away from me (Lake Ontario), and the education system is really bad here as far as high schools go but we have a couple of pretty prestigious universities.
I would just have to sell my house and hope that I could find something similiar down there to buy or a really really nice condo for the time being. But what's it like there:
- Crime?
- Traffic?
- Cost of living?
- Job market?
- The people?
Give you an idea as to what I have here, 6 figure salary (between regular career and DJing), large 350K+ house in a high class gated community, everywhere takes only 20 minutes to get to even in traffic, cost of living is pretty low but its an extremely conservative city, boring night life, not too many authentic places to eat, VERY high taxes, 4 seasons but Fall is short, spring is nice, summer is humid, and winters are pretty harsh. The beach is only 10 minutes away from me (Lake Ontario), and the education system is really bad here as far as high schools go but we have a couple of pretty prestigious universities.
08-09-2010, 08:25 PM
#2
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What parts of Tampa have you looked in? This is important lol.
The biggest thing I noticed after moving up here from Miami is that lower class and middle to upper class areas aren't too far apart. For instance, my school is in I would say mostly lower class area (not the lowest though) but 5 mins on the main road and you are in the Tampa Palms area which is rather nice. Bunch of gated communities, not uncommon to see a maserati or 2 lol. I work in the Lutz area. Nice neighborhoods kind of has a country feel. A bunch of current and former Bucs players live in the area.
Crime- It's not bad. No big stories stick out right now.
Traffic- Again not too bad. Less than Miami for sure. The interstate and main bridges can be trouble but overall I get around a lot easier than when I was in Miami (higher speed limits up here too lol.)
Cost of Living- Cost of living is a whole lot lower than Miami. My groceries and gas are way cheaper. Home prices are lower up here as well.
Job Market- Can't say much in this part. I know it's been a little tough finding work but I'm sure that's the case almost everywhere else.
People- People are pretty nice over here. Usually mind their own business.
Education- I didn't go to k-12 up here so I'm unsure about this. However, we have USF, UT and Eckerd college. UCF is an hour or so away. UF is 2 hours.
Nightlife- There is Ybor that's probably the most popular nightlife area here. It's the historical part of Tampa. Nice but the area around it I'ld be careful in lol.
Weather- It's hot for the most part of the year. Summer it rains often. Fall it starts to cool but still around 80. Winter is really nice though. Considering where you are from I think you would like winters here. Usually around 50-60 for the most part with a couple days in the 40s and nights can drop into the low 30s. Looking forward to going to the track in December/ January tongue.gif lol
Beaches- Beaches on the gulf coast of Florida are way nicer and cleaner than those on the east. Naples (2 hours south) and Sarasota (45min or so) have the nicest beaches IMO. However, we do have Clearwater and St. Pete. no too far away.
All in all it's nice here. Just got to pick the right part (just like in any city). If you have an idea of an area you are looking at let me know and I'll try to describe it as best I can for you.
The biggest thing I noticed after moving up here from Miami is that lower class and middle to upper class areas aren't too far apart. For instance, my school is in I would say mostly lower class area (not the lowest though) but 5 mins on the main road and you are in the Tampa Palms area which is rather nice. Bunch of gated communities, not uncommon to see a maserati or 2 lol. I work in the Lutz area. Nice neighborhoods kind of has a country feel. A bunch of current and former Bucs players live in the area.
Crime- It's not bad. No big stories stick out right now.
Traffic- Again not too bad. Less than Miami for sure. The interstate and main bridges can be trouble but overall I get around a lot easier than when I was in Miami (higher speed limits up here too lol.)
Cost of Living- Cost of living is a whole lot lower than Miami. My groceries and gas are way cheaper. Home prices are lower up here as well.
Job Market- Can't say much in this part. I know it's been a little tough finding work but I'm sure that's the case almost everywhere else.
People- People are pretty nice over here. Usually mind their own business.
Education- I didn't go to k-12 up here so I'm unsure about this. However, we have USF, UT and Eckerd college. UCF is an hour or so away. UF is 2 hours.
Nightlife- There is Ybor that's probably the most popular nightlife area here. It's the historical part of Tampa. Nice but the area around it I'ld be careful in lol.
Weather- It's hot for the most part of the year. Summer it rains often. Fall it starts to cool but still around 80. Winter is really nice though. Considering where you are from I think you would like winters here. Usually around 50-60 for the most part with a couple days in the 40s and nights can drop into the low 30s. Looking forward to going to the track in December/ January tongue.gif lol
Beaches- Beaches on the gulf coast of Florida are way nicer and cleaner than those on the east. Naples (2 hours south) and Sarasota (45min or so) have the nicest beaches IMO. However, we do have Clearwater and St. Pete. no too far away.
All in all it's nice here. Just got to pick the right part (just like in any city). If you have an idea of an area you are looking at let me know and I'll try to describe it as best I can for you.
08-09-2010, 09:27 PM
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i couldn't have said it better than bommello. that's exactly how i see it.
Tampa has somewhat of a potpourri of classes of people. most upper class are closer to the city only in scattered gated communities, while surrounding it not so much
personally, i love the Southern half of Florida. i loved Miami Beach (especially by night) but discovered that it's filled with crime and all sorts of weird wasteful sh*t that a massive city of that proportion produces. i went back there and it's a bit intimidating.
Tampa on the other hand, is usually quiet and empty by night. expect good clubs, nice people. i went to a concert there and most of the people were cool. i think the East coast and West coast are completely different from one another. i MISS the East for it's tropic setting (lovely parakeets), but the crime is bad. not so much on the gulf. it's much less developed and much more privatized. i think the best part area of the gulf side has got to be closer to Naples, but around Sarasota is a pleasant and peaceful city as well. The closer to the coast, the better.
not to mention, most homes on the gulf are affordable right now. you can buy bank-owned for dirt cheap and hire a guy to fix it up for you.
Tampa has somewhat of a potpourri of classes of people. most upper class are closer to the city only in scattered gated communities, while surrounding it not so much
personally, i love the Southern half of Florida. i loved Miami Beach (especially by night) but discovered that it's filled with crime and all sorts of weird wasteful sh*t that a massive city of that proportion produces. i went back there and it's a bit intimidating.
Tampa on the other hand, is usually quiet and empty by night. expect good clubs, nice people. i went to a concert there and most of the people were cool. i think the East coast and West coast are completely different from one another. i MISS the East for it's tropic setting (lovely parakeets), but the crime is bad. not so much on the gulf. it's much less developed and much more privatized. i think the best part area of the gulf side has got to be closer to Naples, but around Sarasota is a pleasant and peaceful city as well. The closer to the coast, the better.
not to mention, most homes on the gulf are affordable right now. you can buy bank-owned for dirt cheap and hire a guy to fix it up for you.
08-09-2010, 09:57 PM
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1.) WHY THE f*ck DO YOU DRIVE A HYUNDAI?
2.) What's life like on that side of the tax bracket?
3.) Thank you for paying your taxes (i.e. me).
I lived and went to school in Tampa Bay for six and a half years. Town N' Country (between Waters and Hillsborough Ave around Hanley Rd) were my old stomping grounds.
Crime and Traffic are what you'd expect of a metropolis the size of Tampa Bay/St. Petersburg. Nothing out of the ordinary. My perspective on the people are all kids and teenagers, as most of my time there was in school. There are a few schools out of the ordinary where metal detectors and a couple police officers are on duty 24/7, shootings, etc. That stuff has probably been cleaned up since I lived there. There are also some good public schools and your mixture of religious schools and private schools to choose from.
I loved living there, still regret moving away. Maybe one day I'll go back. I do remember it lacking in the elevation change department.. And it takes a bit to get used to the spring thru fall humidity and heat, I remember getting pretty sweaty in the summer months from just walkin' around outside. The thunderstorms are freakin' awesome, if you like that sort of thing. Lighting capitol of the world!
From what I've read about and seen you type on these forums, I'm thinking you'll fit right in east of the airport (around Ybor City), ..or Jersey Shore?
2.) What's life like on that side of the tax bracket?
3.) Thank you for paying your taxes (i.e. me).
I lived and went to school in Tampa Bay for six and a half years. Town N' Country (between Waters and Hillsborough Ave around Hanley Rd) were my old stomping grounds.
Crime and Traffic are what you'd expect of a metropolis the size of Tampa Bay/St. Petersburg. Nothing out of the ordinary. My perspective on the people are all kids and teenagers, as most of my time there was in school. There are a few schools out of the ordinary where metal detectors and a couple police officers are on duty 24/7, shootings, etc. That stuff has probably been cleaned up since I lived there. There are also some good public schools and your mixture of religious schools and private schools to choose from.
I loved living there, still regret moving away. Maybe one day I'll go back. I do remember it lacking in the elevation change department.. And it takes a bit to get used to the spring thru fall humidity and heat, I remember getting pretty sweaty in the summer months from just walkin' around outside. The thunderstorms are freakin' awesome, if you like that sort of thing. Lighting capitol of the world!
From what I've read about and seen you type on these forums, I'm thinking you'll fit right in east of the airport (around Ybor City), ..or Jersey Shore?
08-10-2010, 06:23 AM
#5
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Thread Starter
Thanks everyone! Appreciate the feedback. I would definitely want to live in a gated community, just because I love that type housing environment. I'll look into Tampa Palms for sure.
Patreeze....
1. Bought my Hyundai before I got to where I am now in life
2. Life is good....cant ever complain about how things are, but I keep a level head about it because its taken me a long time to become this established in life. Never forget where you came from, the struggles, and what you've had to do in order to succeed in life.
3. Your welcome! laugh.gif
Patreeze....
1. Bought my Hyundai before I got to where I am now in life
2. Life is good....cant ever complain about how things are, but I keep a level head about it because its taken me a long time to become this established in life. Never forget where you came from, the struggles, and what you've had to do in order to succeed in life.
3. Your welcome! laugh.gif
08-10-2010, 09:45 AM
#7
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Personally, I'd rather be on the east coast side than the gulf side. But, I'd never move to Florida. While it's nice on the beaches, it's a swampland everywhere inbetween. No offense to Floridians. I recently drove all the way around Florida for Spring Break.
08-10-2010, 10:08 AM
#8
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Thread Starter
She has some family down that way, so thats why Tampa was chosen. And I LOVE Miami, considering I've spun at a few clubs there and I spun at WMC the last couple of years too. So its a smart choice if we do decide to move. However, it may not be for a couple of years and things could always change by then. But its good info to have now about it down there.