I want to move to Miami and live there for at least 1 year. Can anyone who has lived there tell me the highlights of the city and the bad things about it... also how much is rent for an apartment.... about??? I am a college student and would like to go there after graduation for one year. Thanks!!!
2007-01-27 04:00:08 · 7 answers · asked by Anonymous in Travel ➔ United States ➔ Miami
My fiance and I moved to Miami (Coral Gables) in July of 2005. There are pros and cons, as with anything, and I'll list a few.
!. DEFINTITELY know spanish if you plan to get a job that doesn't require a degree. That has been my biggest problem. While I love it down here, I haven't been able to find a job because I don't know spanish...I'm trying to learn. The only job I got was work study for a semester while in school. Thank God my fiance makes enough money for us to live. Most people are bilingual down here, but still need both languages, especially spanish to get a job. I've actually found people that speak NO English get jobs easier than those who get jobs speaking NO spanish.
2. People down here are VERY friendly (I used to live in Delaware). A cultural difference is that the women kiss on the cheek, and the men kiss women on the cheek when greeting.
3. There's a LOT of cultural diversity...South American, Haitian, Cuban, Puerto Rican, American, etc. etc....it feels like the most diverse blend of cultures I've ever seen in this country.
4. The food is excellent, huge variety from most cultures. I don't see many of the chain restaurants down here besides a McDonald's or Burger King here and there, but most of them seem privately owned restaurants that offer food from a specific culture or country...very delicious, and I prefer it over having a red lobster, olive garden, etc. eeverywhere. The chain restaurants exist, but not so many, and you may have to drive more for them.
5. Be very careful of the area you live in. Coral Gables is expensive, but if you look in the paper, you can find fair prices for apartments (studio and 1 bedrooms). Avoid NE Miami, Carol City, Little Havana, and Little Haiti. Kendall is further from downtown and has a lot of traffic at times from Kendall to downtown which may make it not worthwhile living in Kendall if you plan going downtown or to south beach often. Doral is an up and coming area that I think is nice, safe and affordable...look around though.
5. There's plenty of things to do....there are soooo many malls you won't know what to do with yourself, there's movie theaters, performing arts theatres, football stadium, TONS of places to shop, plenty of beaches (each with its own atmosphere and feeling), aquariums, parrot island, zoo, plenty of nightclubs, etc.
7. The weather is excellent, although it will take you a year to get used to the summer months. Summers (when not used to them, and if you always use air conditioning) are very humid and hot from June-October. The rest of the year is usually around 75-80 degrees, very low humidity...although it can get cooler than 75, but that's the most normal. You should never need to wear a coat...mabye a light sweater or jacket once you're used to it.
8. Hurricanes. When I moved here, my fiance and I were here when we got hit by Hurricane Katrina and Hurricane Wilma. Work, school, and businesses close before the storm hits, and stay closed for at least 24 hours afterwards, depending how bad the damage is, and how important the business is. It's like a snow day, only EVERYONE gets off, not only children. During Katrina, we lost electricity for 6 days, and it was our first year here...so we weren't used to the humidity yet...we had a pretty bad time, lol. During Wilma we lost electricity for 13 days, but the weather was much more tolerable, not overwhelmingly humid afterwards. People really come together and help each other out after hurricanes. My fiance and I stayed with his boss and wife for a week, maybe a little longer, and then his other boss for a couple of days (he got his electric back first and offered us to stay). Like I said before, people are very friendly and social. The hurricanes weren't anywhere near as bad as I thought they would be...there was no damage to our apartment...the most damage was downed trees in the area and city, and some blown out windows in business buildings. The closer you are to the beach, the worse the damage. All of the buildings down here are made of concrete..inland they must withstand winds up to 140mph, and on the coast they're built to withstand winds up to 170mph (my fiance works at an architecture firm, and told me the building code). Some places of course get more damage, some flooding, etc. than others. Some of the locals may laugh and joke about rookies flocking to the grocery stores before a hurricane hits (supposed to have enough non-perishables, etc. to last at least 3 days), but let them laugh, and definitely stock up. It came in handy for my fiance and I.
I hope this helps! I don't regret moving down here at all...we don't get hit by hurricanes all the time, and they aren't as devastating here as what you may hear...at least not since Hurricane Andrew in 1992. This past year we got none. I heard that generally we get a weak hurricane in miami every 3, and a major maybe every 10. The biggest problem that stands out over all, is not knowing how to speak spanish. Take care and good luck!
2007-01-30 13:00:57 · answer #1 · answered by Meghan P 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Miami is nice well all of South Florida is nice.....Miami is expensive go to apartments.com or craigslist and see for yourself...Miami can be a dangerous place watch out for areas like Liberty City, Overtown, some parts of Opa Locka Carol City is soso....The weather is nice it's always summer our winter last 2 weeks the coldest is 45 degrees However hurricanes are always a major threat.....Spanish is helpful if you don't like diffrent cultures or want to live in a small town USA Miami is not that at all...The beaches are the best not just South Beach all the Beaches along the Atlantic get a good job first then come...Good Luck....
2007-01-27 07:38:53 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
There are all kinds of people living in The Greater Miami Area. I live in Sunny Isles Beach, have lived in Surfside Beach, Miami Beach & Aventura for the past 25 years. It's a great place to be! Its a little bit cold now, about 55 degrees. You can see actual rental apartments (condos) at http://www.WaterwayRealty.com
click the link on the bottom center for search property rentals~
Waterway Realty, Realtors
2007-01-28 13:34:31 · answer #3 · answered by ••Mott•• 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I lived there my whole life and i hated it!! it's expensive as hell, the traffic is unbelievable no matter what time of the day it is, people are rude, everything is always dirty and disorganized, it's PACKED with people, even if you own a house you don't have any privacy because the houses are basically piled on top of each other (you barely even have a backyard), there's never any parking spaces anywhere, and it's just crazy 24/7. oh, and if you dont speak fluent spanish and get along well with hispanics, that's not the place for you at all. i honestly suggest you visit there before you decide to move there.
2007-01-28 10:20:51 · answer #4 · answered by qbanita 1 · 1⤊ 0⤋
weather is hot and humid mostly all year.crime is worse in miami than broward county which is south of miami. there is university of miami. south beach. many hispanic people. more costly to live closer to the beach. hurricane season from june to november.
2016-05-24 05:24:13 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Miami is a wonderful place! WARNING! Miami is also in the bermuda triangle so be careful in the ocean!
2007-01-27 04:06:23 · answer #6 · answered by The K.F.C. guy 1 · 0⤊ 2⤋
Its expensive and hot, but so worth it.
2007-01-27 08:55:10 · answer #7 · answered by lovehateleavestay 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋