Avoid University Place development in Bradenton FL - 9/28/2020

Stay away from University Place in Bradenton FL (Cooper Ceek Blvd and Honore Ave.) We made the mistake of buying in this "safe" gated community according to the realtor (please vent all reators as real estate agents are extremely shady in FL) and it was far from safe. We actually had a convicted drug dealer who was openly using the house (renting) as a drug pickup location and after complaints still the HOA was afraid to do anything. And, the gates are very unsafe as anyone could get through them by saying any easy excuse like they are a mail carrier, uber etc and again the HOA was so poorly run no one fixed anything. The HOA finances were very questionable also but again due to the same people running the board and committee for so long you could not get straight answers and we now know why. Sad because kids would be running around and single ederly women living on the street whete all this unsafe activity was going on in broad daylight. Thankfully, we were able to sell but it took awhile as it seems the rumor in the area is out about safety and drug activity in this development. Hopefully it is changing but we moved out of the area down to Naples but love Florida. I am sure there are other very nice places in Bradenton and we know several people in new developments in lakewood ranch and they feel safe and love it.

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How Bad is Manatee County - 1/28/2016

I just bought a home in Oneco area at 11st and 53rd, Naturally my realtor said its not a bad area and not to worry but seems theres a few gangs near by and a lot of crimes ( Homicides ) Have I made a mistake in moving to that area ?

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Crime - 11/12/2015

I placed a review of Bradenton in previous comments on Bradenton, Florida. I cannot find the review. I have lived in Europe, St. Petersburg, New York, Tampa, and Tallahassee. I am a retired Sergeant of twenty eight years from a local agency. I worked in Miami. Bradenton is a very nice town if you have money. If you can afford to live on the beach, Lake Wood Ranch or along Riverview Boulevard;you will love the Bradenton- Sarasota area. If you do not have money and you don't have a job; don't bother. Go to the compare crime category and put the current town that you live in and Bradenton.in Manatee County you will be safer where there is a city police department. This will mean that you pay more taxes and that you will receive more services. The City of Bradenton Police Department will arrive at your home within two or three minutes. Same with most of the other cities. The Sheriff's Office will take twenty minutes. Don't open your door for strangers it may be a home invasion. If you have a CCW carry your firearm. Make sure you stay away from the corridor along 14 Street West, Memphis, Lincoln Heights, and Oneco. Drive down in and around Tropicana and Pride Park to get a "flavor: for the area. We are a bedroom community in the Tampa Bay area. This three county area has over four million people. South St. Petersburg is worse than many areas in Miami and LA. Don't be stupid. Most of the people writing these "reviews" are Chamber of Commerce types and realtors with a vested interest in getting people to move here.Taxes are low and so are services including police, transportation, and education. There are "good" schools on the beach, northwest Bradenton, and Lakewood Ranch. The others not so much. Read their grades. The "private" schools are very good if you have lots of money. The charter schools have dedicated staffs, but some of the kids that go there were rejected by the Public schools. Crime is out of control, murders for a county of less than 250k are out of control, and heroin addiction is out of control. One piece of advice stop moving here and saying you are from New York, when you are from Sayville, or Babylon. Stop moving here from Westin and saying you are from Ft Lauderdale. The same with Chicago and Hyde Park. We know the difference.

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Bradenton Fl - 6/29/2012

Bradenton is a great mid sized town. Cost of living is not real cheap, houses for rent are quite expensive if you are on a budget. Apartments are cheaper then houses. Most houses under $900 a month lately seem to be less then 900 sq ft and are very small. People are nice for the most part, not like real small towns but you if you choose you can remain anonymous easier then a small town.

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Would chose Bradenton a FOURTH time! - 2/6/2012

I lived in Bradenton for 12 yrs & was then transfered (due to work)to Chicago. Although Chicago is a great City, we counted the days before we could return to our beloved Bradenton! After 6 longs yrs we finally were able to return to Bradenton & even returned to the same neighborhood! No, Bradenton is not perfect, but no city is! But as far as we're concerned it's the perfect location between Sarasota & Tampa with the entire Tampa Bay area open to us offering all the Arts & Culture we could want including world class beaches & shopping!!! Taxes & housing prices are less in Bradenton than Sarasota or Tampa so the choice was easy & this was a choice that I have made "3" times, from the 1st time I decided to move to Florida in '96 to the last move in 2009. If you have complaint's about the city, get out there & work to make it better - it's a town worth fighting for!

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If you can drive in Bradenton you can drive ANYWHE - 12/14/2011

I've been driving for 35 years, different types of trucks and cars in all sorts of weather alongside all sorts of drivers! I'm fron New England, but I have to say holy crap! I've recently started driving in south-west Florida. And the drivers here, especially in parts of Bradenton (I noticed) they are frightening! Scary people behind the wheels! You pull onto a main street and God forbid someone behind you has to brake ever ever so slightly because if they do they will blow their horn at you like you had cut them off into a ditch! What is it with drivers in parts of Bradenton?? The drivers there are worse it seems than drivers in Orlando, St. Pete, Anna Maria and Sarasota. And don't forget the tail-gators!!! OMG! I've never seen tailgators worse than those in sections of Bradenton!!! They're nuts! Some of the drivers will jump up on your bumper and honk wildly especially if you're an old fart that's not in a hurry to move over! I've noticed many senior citizens simply ignore the tailgators behind them which totally impresses the hell out of me! Either that or the senior citizens just don't realize when a tailgator is practically on top of their car! Some of the nut-case drivers around here seem to have an absolute hatred for snow birds! As for me I'm not a snow-bird. I live here year-round and I tend to drive an average of 10 m.p.h. over the speed limit. Where has common sense gone with drivers in Florida??? Are people just losing it?? I've found driving in Boston and NYC a piece of cake compared to driving in sections of Bradenton. Many of you Bradenton drivers are absolutely f____ nuts! I hope some of you someday move to New England because there you'll be guaranteed to hit speed traps one after the other. You won't be able to afford or renew your auto insurance policies after a while. New England doesn't mess around! There are more state troopers on the highways up there and local cruisers monitoring traffic in the cities and towns than you can shake a stick at! Some of the cities and towns seem to depend on the money state troopers and local police bring in from handing out speeding tickets! Good luck! I never thought I'd like to see more local and state police on the roads till I moved to south-west Florida!

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New Resident - 8/4/2010

Looking forward to moving to Bradenton soon! Spent many months looking up and down the SW coast and chose Bradenton as my new home. I realize there are many naysayers, but since I'm originally from NJ, I understand all that! It's proximity to Sarasota and Tampa is great, the beaches of AMI are fantastic, and the art scene is nice and hip. Seems to me like Bradenton is a 'poor cousin' to Sarasota. Like any city it has it's problems---no place is perfect. Hope to get active in local politics after settling in. I dislike people who complain but never try to take action to change the things they bitch about! See you soon!

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Beautiful Bradenton - 8/4/2010

Bradenton is a beautiful place. It's proximity to Venice, Sarasota, Tampa and Orlando make it a great location. Like any city it has some problems but it's assets far outweigh it's problems. AMI beaches are fantastic, and the arts scene is hip and current.

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Schools - 7/16/2010

There are two great schools in the Bradenton area. Pinnacle Academy is a private school for children with autism and related disabilities. The other is a public charter school called Manatee School for the Arts. Both provide incredible opportunities for our children to grow emotionally and educationally. I couldn't think of better schools for them!

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Salary - 4/1/2009

I need salary and pay info for this area

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Cost to much - 10/25/2008

Everyone is loosing there house

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Climate - 8/7/2008

Hot Humid Summers Temps usually above 90 Short sometimes cool winters (Dec,Jan, Feb)

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can you afford to live here? - 4/25/2008

It's beautiful down here, but the crime is awful, and it costs an arm and a leg to rent a roach infested apartment! The weathers great though!

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Asking - 1/21/2008

How do retirees from the North find east bradenton

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Great Place To Live - 1/4/2008

We have lived here for 20 years and even with the current growth factor, we still feel comfortable in Bradenton's small town atmosphere.

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non enforced zoning makes Bradenton the junk pile - 12/30/2007

My wife and I moved to Bradenton several years ago to be in the sun-belt. we chose Bradenton to it"s proximity to Sarisota and St.Petersburg ,unfortunately we didn"t check out the surronding areas .only later to find that the area from SR 301 south on 9th street( east) and other areas look just like a Texas border town. Unkept properties front yard filth and junk everywhere. Evidently the city of Bradenton is only able to cope with the high crime rate and can"t spare the time to send inspectors for zoneing violations , that is of corse if the city has any zoneing regulations to begin with,and or inspectors at all ?.

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Beware of first impressions - 5/2/2007

I moved hee 15 years ago based on a great first impression of the area. It is natural to assume that services, (libraries, utilities, etc.) will be the same as the area you are leaving. You might also assume that the people arethe same as well. In Bradenton they are not. The city is filled with selfish, Bible-thumping bigots that are only concerned about what they get. There is no thought given to the common good. Government is underfunded and under staffed making it useless. The infrastructure cannot handle the exploding un-controlled growth. Bottomline: If you are rich, play golf, go to church and beat your wife, you will love it here. Normal folk: Beware...

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Disappointed with the City of Bradenton (January 2 - 1/9/2007

My husband and I relocated here approximately 16 monhts ago and it was the worse mistake in my life! Unfortunately due to job transfers of my husband and I (both at the same time) we took a risk, although had visited Sarasota County a few times for vacationing. Well, there is a major difference in Bradenton and Sarasota, and to live "comfortably" in Sarasota, a family needs to be financially comfortable, since taxes, hurricane insurance, flood insurance and these annual increases are rediculous! Not worth it to us, from moving where we did, where we were in an upper middle class area, gated community, had low taxes and no hurriacanes or tornadoe warnings to worry about! This city needs to be CLEANED UP, the ZONING is MESSED UP (no consistency), you can have a shack on top of a half a million dollar home! Now, what to do, to get out of this MESS!!!! Trying to figure it out, one thing at a time!!!

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Overpriced for what you get - 12/30/2006

Housing in Bradenton is a bit on the high side. We're not close to the beach (about a 1/2 hour away) and we don't live on a golf course. Plus, Bradenton lacks that community feel that we look for. Knowing what I know now, I'm sure my husband and I would live in a different town.

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Prine Elementary - 11/18/2006

Is a good school that I would recommend to anyone in the area.

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