Miami advice

[Keller]

Should we move there? I've never even visited.

Right now we can move wherever my wife gets an offer (professor). I will be able to keep my job and work remotely. She has an interview at FIU, and we're not sure whether we are even open to moving to Miami.

I have always been prejudiced against Miami because of the (i) heat, (ii) hurricanes, and (iii) alligators.

For people who have lived there, what are your thoughts?

Quality of life, cost of housing, public schools, public transportation, etc. Looking for all input.

[BriarFox]

You could ask Drew, but he might be too busy with the cock.

[Archigeek]

The fishing can be fun, as are the canals you troll when fishing. There are a few nice buildings too, but otherwise I can't say I'm much of a fan. The politics there are bat shit crazy.

[Parkbandit]

Should we move there? I've never even visited.

Right now we can move wherever my wife gets an offer (professor). I will be able to keep my job and work remotely. She has an interview at FIU, and we're not sure whether we are even open to moving to Miami.

I have always been prejudiced against Miami because of the (i) heat, (ii) hurricanes, and (iii) alligators.

For people who have lived there, what are your thoughts?

Quality of life, cost of housing, public schools, public transportation, etc. Looking for all input.

You should never move to a place that you haven't visited... at the very least, spend a week there.

As far as your prejudices:

i) In today's information age, you don't have to follow the local NBA team. You will find a bar/tavern/etc.. where you can still be a Pacers fan.

ii) Hurricanes suck.. but it's not like earthquakes where you get no notice. Hurricanes have a 3-5 day notice.. board up the home and get to safety.

iii) I suppose if you like camping in swamps or jet skiing on small lakes, etc.. you would have to worry about alligators. I've been in "danger" of an alligator attack a grand total of three times.. once while I was hunting in a swamp (didn't see one) once while canoeing in a river (I saw a couple) and once while playing golf (I was retrieving a ball and saw one swimming).

As far as your other specifics go:

Quality of life: Depends. You lived in NYC.. and if you loved that type of life, then Miami might be too "small" for you. I personally love to visit NY but I wouldn't want to live there.

Cost of housing: If you are talking about NYC.. it's far cheaper. Night and Day. If it's some other place, then there are plenty of websites that will compare your income from place to place. For example:

If you move from New York (Queens), NY to Miami-Dade County, FL....
Groceries will cost: 14% less
Housing will cost: 53% less
Utilities will cost: 47% less
Transportation will cost: 0% less
Healthcare will cost: 10% less

http://cgi.money.cnn.com/tools/costofliving/costofliving.html

Public schools: There are good and bad public schools all over the country.. your job is to find a good one that you know your child(ren) will be able to go to.

Public transportation: What's that? Get a car, hippie.

[Drew]

How close do you want to live near FIU? 5 minutes? 15 minutes? 30 minute commute? That will basically determine how nice your experience is. Miami is basically a giant vortex of shit with extremely nice suburbs. I live 45 min to an hour north of FIU but I used to go to University of Miami.

Alligators aren't a real concern right? I'm not going to even address that. The heat is really annoying in the summer, but you walk from your car to whatever building you're in, A/C ftw. In the winter it's glorious weather. It's a wee bit warm right now (81 degrees) but a front is coming through tomorrow dropping the temperature to 70, perfect weather for... everything. Hurricanes are mostly fun (unless you get direct hit by a big one), otherwise it's just an experience and lots of people have hurricane parties.

[Keller]

You should never move to a place that you haven't visited... at the very least, spend a week there.

As far as your prejudices:

i) In today's information age, you don't have to follow the local NBA team. You will find a bar/tavern/etc.. where you can still be a Pacers fan.

ii) Hurricanes suck.. but it's not like earthquakes where you get no notice. Hurricanes have a 3-5 day notice.. board up the home and get to safety.

iii) I suppose if you like camping in swamps or jet skiing on small lakes, etc.. you would have to worry about alligators. I've been in "danger" of an alligator attack a grand total of three times.. once while I was hunting in a swamp (didn't see one) once while canoeing in a river (I saw a couple) and once while playing golf (I was retrieving a ball and saw one swimming).

As far as your other specifics go:

Quality of life: Depends. You lived in NYC.. and if you loved that type of life, then Miami might be too "small" for you. I personally love to visit NY but I wouldn't want to live there.

Cost of housing: If you are talking about NYC.. it's far cheaper. Night and Day. If it's some other place, then there are plenty of websites that will compare your income from place to place. For example:

If you move from New York (Queens), NY to Miami-Dade County, FL....
Groceries will cost: 14% less
Housing will cost: 53% less
Utilities will cost: 47% less
Transportation will cost: 0% less
Healthcare will cost: 10% less

http://cgi.money.cnn.com/tools/costofliving/costofliving.html

Public schools: There are good and bad public schools all over the country.. your job is to find a good one that you know your child(ren) will be able to go to.

Public transportation: What's that? Get a car, hippie.

Thanks.

Re i), I was talking about the temperature. I'd actually be pretty excited to see the Heat.

[Keller]

How close do you want to live near FIU? 5 minutes? 15 minutes? 30 minute commute? That will basically determine how nice your experience is. Miami is basically a giant vortex of shit with extremely nice suburbs. I live 45 min to an hour north of FIU but I used to go to University of Miami.

Alligators aren't a real concern right? I'm not going to even address that. The heat is really annoying in the summer, but you walk from your car to whatever building you're in, A/C ftw. In the winter it's glorious weather. It's a wee bit warm right now (81 degrees) but a front is coming through tomorrow dropping the temperature to 70, perfect weather for... everything. Hurricanes are mostly fun (unless you get direct hit by a big one), otherwise it's just an experience and lots of people have hurricane parties.

Thanks.

I'd be working from home, so all we'd need is a place with good schools where my wife could commute to/from FIU. Because I'd be working from home, we'd need more house so I could have a dedicated office. At least 4 bedrooms.

How are are you from a decent airport?

[Drew]

Thanks.

I'd be working from home, so all we'd need is a place with good schools where my wife could commute to/from FIU. Because I'd be working from home, we'd need more house so I could have a dedicated office. At least 4 bedrooms.

How are are you from a decent airport?

Miami airport is a giant mess to be avoided whenever possible. Fort Lauderdale is easy to get in and out of.

[Suppa Hobbit Mage]

Everytime I've been to Miami I always felt like I was going to get mugged. And I saw a lot of what I believe are clearly illegal immigrants (yuck!). The lawns were well manicured though.

[Maadar]

FIU has campuses in Dade (North Miami Beach) and Broward counties (Davie). Finding a place to live will depend on how far you’re willing to drive to get to work. A lot of folks down here live in one county and work in a different county.

If you’re looking for good schools for the kiddies I'd look for a place in Broward County out West (Pembroke Pines, Weston, Davie). All the newer schools and homes are out that way. And the drive to the FIU campuses is not too long. Lots of major highways to get you where you need to go, but traffic is going to be hell until you figure it out (like most places).

1. Heat? Between May’ish and September its holy hell hot. Humidity down here is nasty. Some days by the time you get to the car your soaking wet with sweat. But then you’ll have those lovely afternoon thunderstorms roll in and cool it off in the evening. Fall, winter, spring, the temperature is between warm and damn what a nice day.

2. Hurricanes? See what Drew said, it’s no big deal. To build a home down here contractors have to make sure they can withstand I think its CAT 3 storms. I’ve been here for Andrew and a couple of direct hits from CAT 1, 2’s. Just make sure you have lots of beer, generator, and battery fan.

3. Gators? Haven’t seen any of those, might as well be talking about the football team.

There is always somthing to do down here: Professional Football,Basketball, Hockey, and Soccer. Fishing, Diving, Nightlife, Bars, Beaches, ect.....

[Hulkein]

You get to work remote? That is awesome man.

[Keller]

You get to work remote? That is awesome man.

It is. I'm really pulling for one of the good schools in a cheap area. She's got interviews at Beloit and Northern Illinois. I've done some shopping, and we could get a 3500 sq ft house built within the last 20 years with 5 bedrooms, walk-out basement, on the water for the price of a 1-bedroom condo in our current neighborhood.

That's part of my reservation with Miami.

[Hulkein]

Yeah I would be all over the Northern Ill. type area as another guy with a young family. It would be awesome to have that type of land in a nice safe and spacious neighborhood.

[Ysamine]

I live in Central Florida and the only thing I really dislike about Miami is the traffic, but if you are from NYC you shouldn't notice it.

Miami has a culture all its own. I'm not saying that's good or bad though.

[msconstrew]

It is. I'm really pulling for one of the good schools in a cheap area. She's got interviews at Beloit and Northern Illinois. I've done some shopping, and we could get a 3500 sq ft house built within the last 20 years with 5 bedrooms, walk-out basement, on the water for the price of a 1-bedroom condo in our current neighborhood.

That's part of my reservation with Miami.

Beloit is kind of a crappy area, just south of a town called Janesville that has a very high unemployment rate because the GM plant closed. I've heard varied things about the University in terms of its quality, though I doubt you care about that aspect of it.

If your wife doesn't mind a commute, the closest major city is Madison, which is a very nice place to live. If you wanted to live just south of Madison and cut some time off the commute, Oregon is also very nice and has excellent schools (as does Madison). The problem with Madison is that the cost of living is much higher than (I think) it should be, given the fact that it's not a major metropolitan area.

That said, I moved here after living on the east coast my entire life and I'd never go back. I've been here for about five years. Obviously it's not NYC or Chicago, but we've got lots of local music venues, the University of Wisconsin (so there's usually some sporting event going on), and lots of other local "culture." If you're athletic, then there are bike trails, areas for hiking, and lots of running/triathlon clubs.

[Keller]

Beloit is kind of a crappy area, just south of a town called Janesville that has a very high unemployment rate because the GM plant closed. I've heard varied things about the University in terms of its quality, though I doubt you care about that aspect of it.

If your wife doesn't mind a commute, the closest major city is Madison, which is a very nice place to live. If you wanted to live just south of Madison and cut some time off the commute, Oregon is also very nice and has excellent schools (as does Madison). The problem with Madison is that the cost of living is much higher than (I think) it should be, given the fact that it's not a major metropolitan area.

That said, I moved here after living on the east coast my entire life and I'd never go back. I've been here for about five years. Obviously it's not NYC or Chicago, but we've got lots of local music venues, the University of Wisconsin (so there's usually some sporting event going on), and lots of other local "culture." If you're athletic, then there are bike trails, areas for hiking, and lots of running/triathlon clubs.

Thanks for the info. I'm actually from Indianapolis and have lived in LA and DC, but not NYC.

The towns I was looking at were either in the city of Beloit or south towards Rockford. The Madison area would be nice though. And I will definitely keep Oregon in mind.

[Archigeek]

What does she teach? Beloit is not such a bad town (has a minor league baseball team at least) and while I'm not sure of much about it, I do know that it is well known for its language programs, some of them in relatively obscure languages.

[Keller]

What does she teach? Beloit is not such a bad town (has a minor league baseball team at least) and while I'm not sure of much about it, I do know that it is well known for its language programs, some of them in relatively obscure languages.

History.

[Stanley Burrell]

The rain in Broward falls mainly on the Thunderbird's Swapshop.

I dunno. Shit, when I was in Andrew, you just have to make sure you have B-B+ hurricane rating on yo crib. Few preventative measures. And if you don't like the weather in Florida, usually, just wait like ten minutes.

Public transporation is interesting. You'd think that since you can see through the flatland from Miami all the way up to Jacksonville that driving'd be pretty smooth and everyone else could also pass their driver's licence test while asleep. But, no.

In summation, and most importantly, when I roll in the FL, I fake being a Dominican as an excuse to rock my socks and sandals.

[Drew]

In summation, and most importantly, when I roll in the FL, I fake being a German as an excuse to rock my socks and sandals.

Fixed that for you.

[CrystalTears]

I'm a week late, and I'm not sure if you've cancelled the idea out yet, but anyway...

The heat is what drove me out of Miami. Well that and I needed a change since I was born and raised there. I needed to know what seasons were like since it's warm 24/7 down there. Now that I've spent over 10 years in New England, I won't ever go back. But it IS nice to have the luxury to never worry about putting on a jacket or shoveling snow. I truly enjoy it during my visits, I just can't live there anymore.

FIU is smack dab in the middle of Miami. My cousin is going there, as a matter of fact. He lives in Kendall and drives out there to school everyday and he's not a fan of commuting. In the spring they have the Miami-Dade County Youth Fair which lasts about 2 weeks and is placed right next to the campus. I used to live walking distance from there and it was a nice neighborhood (at the time, anyway).

As PB said, unless you go to the Everglades or swamps, you won't have alligator issues. I had never encountered one in my time there so I wouldn't even make that a concern.

Public transportation is mainly buses. They're not as plentiful or as many routes as NYC. The Metrorail runs along US1 and can take you into downtown and ends at the TriRail station.

[Drew]

Wait, were you planning on taking public transportation? Don't do that, it's not like NYC where everyone does it.

[Keller]

Wait, were you planning on taking public transportation? Don't do that, it's not like NYC where everyone does it.

I don't want to buy two cars.

Unless I'm living in a small town.

[AnticorRifling]

I don't want to buy two cars.

Unless I'm living in a small town.

Live in a small town.

[Keller]

Live in a small town.

That is my goal.

Just depends on where my wife gets a job.

[Drew]

Buy two cars. Seriously don't take public transport in Miami, it's a hep-mobile and a truly awful system.

[Stanley Burrell]

The trick is, you take the bus in Miramar (now anyway very true to Drew's sentiment) and pretend you're going on an adventure in the hep-mobile. Um.

[Maadar]

To the clown that left this negative post: He's asking about Miami and you're sending him everywhere else in FL other than Miami. WTF.

Try looking at a Map, every place I mentioned in my post is next to Miami. Folks that live in SOUTH FLORIDA don't refer to the the whole area as Miami. The places I mentioned would be the suburbs (Nice places to live) outside of Miami.

How about this then, Screw Miami (Dade County) it's fine for work but you want to live in Broward County, which is the County north of Dade county.

:wtf:

[Keller]

My wife now has three interviews in the Chicagoland area.

Praying it works out so I don't have to change being eaten by an alligator, however remote you all say that possibility is.

[Tsa`ah]

unless you go to the Everglades or swamps, you won't have alligator issues. I had never encountered one in my time there so I wouldn't even make that a concern.

Skinks love to jump and get run over by lawn mowers. Mow away from your house or get used to cleaning skink guts off your foundation walls.


Public transportation is mainly buses. They're not as plentiful or as many routes as NYC. The Metrorail runs along US1 and can take you into downtown and ends at the TriRail station.

I'd say get a scooter and a car ... but you've got a child.

[Tsa`ah]

Miami advice 12-19-2011 03:09 PM Skinks are not alligators - ju fail

Why bring my ancestry into it? ... Nazi.

Besides, skinks are vicious little fucks. May as well be a swarm of miniature gators.

[Parkbandit]

Besides, skinks are vicious little fucks. May as well be a swarm of miniature gators.

My wife is scared of the little lizards too.

[Keller]

My wife is scared of the little lizards too.

That may be true. But she's definitely not afraid of big lizards. She played with my anaconda for hours.

/Sir Mix-a-lot reference.

[Parkbandit]

That may be true. But she's definitely not afraid of big lizards. She played with my anaconda for hours.

/Sir Mix-a-lot reference.

What you call big and what normal people call big are two different things.

My wife nicknamed you Sliver...

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/ABPub/2008/08/08/2008090012.jpg

[Tsa`ah]

What you call big and what normal people call big are two different things.

My wife nicknamed you Sliver...

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/ABPub/2008/08/08/2008090012.jpg

So you admit that your wife was willing when it came to Keller ... if he's sliver, you must be speck.

Just sayin.

[Parkbandit]

So you admit that your wife was willing when it came to Keller ... if he's sliver, you must be speck.

Just sayin.

Easy Tsa`ah... sorry I was picking on Keller. I didn't realize it would hurt you so.

Let's get back to you being a gigantic pussy around little lizards...

[Tsa`ah]

I prefer swarm of ravenous miniature gators.

[subzero]

Skinks love to jump and get run over by lawn mowers. Mow away from your house or get used to cleaning skink guts off your foundation walls.


Wat? There are enough cubans down there that such thing should not be an issue.

[Alfster]

Beloit is kind of a crappy area, just south of a town called Janesville that has a very high unemployment rate because the GM plant closed. I've heard varied things about the University in terms of its quality, though I doubt you care about that aspect of it.

If your wife doesn't mind a commute, the closest major city is Madison, which is a very nice place to live. If you wanted to live just south of Madison and cut some time off the commute, Oregon is also very nice and has excellent schools (as does Madison). The problem with Madison is that the cost of living is much higher than (I think) it should be, given the fact that it's not a major metropolitan area.

That said, I moved here after living on the east coast my entire life and I'd never go back. I've been here for about five years. Obviously it's not NYC or Chicago, but we've got lots of local music venues, the University of Wisconsin (so there's usually some sporting event going on), and lots of other local "culture." If you're athletic, then there are bike trails, areas for hiking, and lots of running/triathlon clubs.

Spot on, Madison is a great area to live in. Some of the suburbs around there are fantastic. You won't be getting your 4 bedroom 2500sqft house for under 200k, but damn close to that.

Shit, you can get that where I live for 150k. The cost of living here is amaaaaazing.

[msconstrew]

Spot on, Madison is a great area to live in. Some of the suburbs around there are fantastic. You won't be getting your 4 bedroom 2500sqft house for under 200k, but damn close to that.

Shit, you can get that where I live for 150k. The cost of living here is amaaaaazing.

Yeah, I am in Madison and the previous house was 2000sf for about 250k, the current one is about the same, but a little less expensive. But the suburbs to the east and south - which would be ideal for a commute to Beloit - are even cheaper.

[Keller]

Yeah, I am in Madison and the previous house was 2000sf for about 250k, the current one is about the same, but a little less expensive. But the suburbs to the east and south - which would be ideal for a commute to Beloit - are even cheaper.

I found this after you mentioned Madison.

http://www.trulia.com/property/3020820262-2127-Van-Hise-Ave-Madison-WI-53726

That would be quite a stretch and would mean I couldn't leave my job for a long time.

More likely we go with something like this

http://www.trulia.com/property/1065399443-841-Milwaukee-Rd-Beloit-WI-53511

Right now it's all dreaming though. She needs an offer first.

[msconstrew]

I found this after you mentioned Madison.

http://www.trulia.com/property/3020820262-2127-Van-Hise-Ave-Madison-WI-53726

That would be quite a stretch and would mean I couldn't leave my job for a long time.

More likely we go with something like this

http://www.trulia.com/property/1065399443-841-Milwaukee-Rd-Beloit-WI-53511

Right now it's all dreaming though. She needs an offer first.

Heh, you've got good taste. That first house, on Van Hise, is in one of the best neighborhoods in Madison. I would love to move there one day, too, but since I don't work in biglaw I am not there quite yet. Someday though!

That other house looks pretty awesome. I am a sucker for older houses with a lot of "character".

[CrystalTears]

To the clown that left this negative post: He's asking about Miami and you're sending him everywhere else in FL other than Miami. WTF.

Try looking at a Map, every place I mentioned in my post is next to Miami. Folks that live in SOUTH FLORIDA don't refer to the the whole area as Miami. The places I mentioned would be the suburbs (Nice places to live) outside of Miami.

How about this then, Screw Miami (Dade County) it's fine for work but you want to live in Broward County, which is the County north of Dade county.

:wtf:
North Miami Beach and places in Broward county are outside of Miami. You even just admitted as much. So what exactly is untrue about the negative comment? And yeah, I left it because on top of that you didn't mention that FIU is IN Miami, not outside of it, FFS. If someone has to work in Miami and you send him to live outside of it, he's going to spend the majority of his waking hours in traffic commuting. It's not practical, especially when he is asking about public transportation, which basically sucks.

Oh yeah, Broward is overrated and overpriced anyway.

[Warriorbird]

It is. I'm really pulling for one of the good schools in a cheap area. She's got interviews at Beloit and Northern Illinois. I've done some shopping, and we could get a 3500 sq ft house built within the last 20 years with 5 bedrooms, walk-out basement, on the water for the price of a 1-bedroom condo in our current neighborhood.

That's part of my reservation with Miami.

I went to undergrad in Beloit. If it's college wise I still know some professors well.

[Keller]

I went to undergrad in Beloit. If it's college wise I still know some professors well.

Nice. Did you like Beloit?

[Warriorbird]

Nice. Did you like Beloit?

The town's not what I'd call super thrilling but I enjoyed the school. I'm still in contact with a bunch of my History and Anthro professors. Fantastic Archaeology/anthro school. There's actual Indian mounds in the campus.

There's a whole lot of gaming related stuff in the area. I was part of a coed sci-fit/fantasy/gaming/anime frat... we used to run moderately successful conventions. The SCA is real active too. Gamer's Workshop had a big thing up in Lake Geneva. Crazy cheap homes/rent. Rockford's not too far away either. Beloit's half in IL, half in WI.

[Keller]

The town's not what I'd call super thrilling but I enjoyed the school. I'm still in contact with a bunch of my History and Anthro professors. Fantastic Archaeology/anthro school. There's actual Indian mounds in the campus.

There's a whole lot of gaming related stuff in the area. I was part of a coed sci-fit/fantasy/gaming/anime frat... we used to run moderately successful conventions. The SCA is real active too. Gamer's Workshop had a big thing up in Lake Geneva. Crazy cheap homes/rent. Rockford's not too far away either. Beloit's half in IL, half in WI.

Want to give me the skinny on the history profs?

[Warriorbird]

Want to give me the skinny on the history profs?

Rob Lafleur was my mentor. He went through University of Chicago's Social Thought program. He wrote his thesis on "Hurtin, Cheatin, and Leavin'" comparing Hank Williams Sr. and Basho. He's mainly focused on comparative cultural history, with various parts of Asia as a focus, but he loves drawing in anthropology and philosophy, stuff like Clifford Geertz, Heidegger.. He really likes the French Annales School, Georges Duby et al.

He likes the Beloit students use first name's thing. He's been willing to write me reqs constantly. He's a really good chef. Likes high end beers.

He takes everyone's critical thinking seriously, but he values academic rigor. He would allow me to write myself into crazy places but wouldn't put up with being BSed.

[Keller]

Rob Lafleur was my mentor. He went through University of Chicago's Social Thought program. He wrote his thesis on "Hurtin, Cheatin, and Leavin'" comparing Hank Williams Sr. and Basho. He's mainly focused on comparative cultural history, with various parts of Asia as a focus, but he loves drawing in anthropology and philosophy, stuff like Clifford Geertz, Heidegger.. He really likes the French Annales School, Georges Duby et al.

He likes the Beloit students use first name's thing. He's been willing to write me reqs constantly. He's a really good chef. Likes high end beers.

He takes everyone's critical thinking seriously, but he values academic rigor. He would allow me to write myself into crazy places but wouldn't put up with being BSed.

Sounds like a good guy.

Not sure who is actually on the hiring committee.

[DCSL]

More likely we go with something like this

http://www.trulia.com/property/1065399443-841-Milwaukee-Rd-Beloit-WI-53511

Right now it's all dreaming though. She needs an offer first.

Ooo, I love that. A little paint (can't stand pastel yellow walls) and toss out the carpet and it'd be great. The exterior is gorgeous.

[Warriorbird]

Sounds like a good guy.

Not sure who is actually on the hiring committee.

I like Linda Sturtz, too. She taught some really neat slavery courses. She's the member of the department who's most senior now. Very professional. Very focused, but likes intellectual bravery.

I don't know her as well. Most everybody else, bright spots and NOT are all gone.

[msconstrew]

Keller, you should check out fsbomadison.com to give you a sense of real estate values in the area around Madison. Towns you might consider, if your wife didn't mind a commute, are Oregon and Stoughton. Both have good schools and apparently good property values.