NSB: A CHARMING, FUN, LAID BACK, BEACH TOWN! - 9/1/2021

I am originally from CT. I moved to Estero ( near Naples, FL) in 2002. It was nice but there was barely any cool weather in the Winter. I was 40 when I moved there and people were calling me Sonny and Kid. Yep a lot of retires. 41 is basically the main road other than highway and off season it's a quick ride from Ft Myers to Naples. In season a five minute ride can turn into a 30 minute ride. I left and then moved to Lake Mary / Sanford FL. It was a great place to live. A lot of major companies have their headquarters there so I worked in Insurance, then moved into wealth management. It's located basically 30min between Orlando, Disney and Universal and Daytona Beach. Again traffic and be relative. I have made it to Downtown Disney in under 22 mins on a good day. One a bad day 60 to 90mins. The biggest problem with FL and traffic is while people are looking at billboards, attractions etc. they get into really bad accidents. Keep in mind many foreigners drive when the visit and it's not for the feint of heart. When there is an accident FHP Florida Highway Patrol shut the entire highway down. Sometimes in both directions. One time there was a really bad accident that caused the highway to be closed for 5hrs. The traffic jam effected 95 from Jacksonville almost to Cape Canaveral. Back to Sanford / Lake Mary. It's about 35 min from New Smyrna Beach, Cape Canaveral and 50 min from Cocoa beach. Lake Mary is the more expensive of the towns but Sanford has a beautiful river walk along Lake Monroe and a gentrified city although small which offers a lot. While I lived there I was always visiting New Smyrna Beach on the weekends and one day decided why not move there. NSB is a beach town. Unlike Daytona they don't have a homeless population problem yet. NSB although small has most of what you need. Their is a distinction between beach side and in town. People will ask you if you live beach side, even though Beach side and in town are separated by a bridge which you could walk over in about 12 min. What I like about NSB. For me I am currently a renter and was able to find a rent under 1000 a month. It's small but I am single and it's 4 min from the beach. The people are nicer because the locals don't know who is from out of town. Service people often go out of their way to help you. I have a bit of a NY accent so people automatically assume I am visiting from New England. When I tell them I am a local, they are even nicer. I think just being so close to the beach and so many vacationers people in general are just happy. The weather is beautiful, hot and humid in the summer just as you would think but not quite as hot as inland areas. The beach can actually be cool after sundown, even in the summer. The beaches are clean. You can get a pass to drive on them. They have great restaurants and if you are a drinker, they have many beach bars. Over all It's one of the nicest places I have lived. Ok what I don't like. We have an average size Walmart but the vacationers arrive in town during vacation season and often wipe it out so it might be hard to pick up something you need. Most of the time I drive 10 min north to go to the Walmart in Port Orange. Chiropractors and other doctors. I have insurance and use a chiropractor but I can't find one who takes insurance. They all take cash for adjustments. One place voted 1# on YELP takes 27 dollars per adjustment and will not accept insurance. I was told it's difficult for doctors in NSB to get into insurance networks. Possibly because there are so many people visiting. Other types of doctors have not presented a problem. Driving. 44 is the main road from I-4 to the beaches of NSB. It can get a bit crowded. No where near as crowded as inland cities. People from out of town who are in a hurry. Those people present some of the biggest issues. They are in vacation mode and are in a hurry for some reason. People in NSB are definitely more chill and take their time. I have slowed down a lot since moving to FL but more so now I live in NSB. I can't tell you about the schools I don't have school age kids but I have yet to see any gangs roaming around, other a high rate of delinquency. NSB is a great place to live if you want to slow down, enjoy beautiful beaches and have everything close to where you live. If you are looking for museums, extreme cultural event's over the top night life, this is not the place. It's a charming beach town and a laid back vibe. If you are going to move here I suggest visiting and see if it's a good fit. It's small enough to get a feel for in during a weeks vacation.

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Housing - 1/20/2010

Houses are more here because of the coastline (beechside very expensive). Inlanf Florida offers better deals and lower taxes

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differences of opinion - 11/29/2009

My wife and i are relocating the the east central coast of Florida very soon, most likely somewhere between Port Orange and Vero Beach. I just find it incredible that one person calls New Smyrna Beach a horrible place to live(evidently never experiencing what life is like in a truly horrible place), and other call it a wonderful place to live, commenting within a month of each other. I can understand some difference of opinion, but horrible to wonderful? Very strange.

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a fun place to grow up - 3/21/2009

New Smyrna Beach is a real gem. that is if you don't mind rain every day in the summer for atleast an hour. it is a very humid town so expect to run your AC every season except winter. over all everyone is pretty nice. it is a fairly right winged and religion is a big issue with people and can seem to be rather narrow minded at times. moving from santa cruz ca to nsb fl while in high school i noticed a change. nsb is a good place to raise a family although i would rate the education system as poor, they are safe schools and you can learn good social skills.there is high crime among kids. and a lot of locals feel that the drug use is very high in this town. i think that's a joke coming from santa cruz. And if your not from the south you will be shocked at how old fashion new smyrna trys to stay. but its paradise that doesn't come at as high of a price then California... i mean there are no parking meters in town. all paring is free!

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The Best Small Town in Florida - 10/7/2008

My wife and I moved here in 1999 after looking for a community to relocate to from Miami where I was a long time resident. Our search took 5-years and fortunately paid off. New Smyrna was the perfect match for our interests and desires. Highlights include great opportunities for outdoor recreation including cycling, golf, surfing and fishing; easy access to the local government and its services; cheap good food; and a sizeable liberal artsy-fartsy community to play with. Downsides are high real estate values (we moved down when real estate was relatively cheap), limited opportunities for employment, and the lack of adequate local health care.

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New Smyrna Beach: wonderful place to live - 5/24/2007

The town is extremely supportive of the arts. And anywhere in town is just minutes away from a beautiful beach.

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Horrible place to live! - 4/10/2007

I have lived here for 6 years now, moving from the midwest and east coast. Things have been on a rapid decline even since I have moved here. This city is so expensive that unless you are from the upper east coast (ny, pa, nj) and just come down as a retiree, there is no good paying jobs. This is also one of the LOWEST paying counties in the state. Most are "snowbirds" who come down for a few months and live in their second homes or RV's. The city makes a good show to them that this town is active with holding art shows, a car show, and various lame fests. (if you have been to one...that is plenty). Then the rest of the year, they do NOTHING for the locals, except overcharge us for everything. Not to mention that the grocery stores, gas prices, etc go up conveniently when the tourist season begins, so the locals have to once again suffer for their greed. The police and fire department greatly abuse their power. I see the fire trucks using their fire vehicles 3 TIMES A DAY to run errands and get food. Also, unless you are into partying 24/7 forget about getting any sleep. this town is mostly filled with people who work in the service industry, so most people stay up late and party. When trying to get any help or assistance from the local police department, they just turn their heads and say...."sorry, this isnt a police matter". ????? The utilities are a sham, they charge you for insane fees that I have NEVER heard of a utility company charging for, and since they are as corrupt as the police and fire department, dont expect to get a break anytime soon. The beach is all but gone. After the few hurricanes we had a few years back, all the sand washed away, leaving nothing to do on the beach but just sit if you can during the open window between tides. There is no beachside dining worthwhile (Virgina Beach has the best dining/shopping/boardwalk/beach). Not to mention they spent millions of of taxpayers dollars filling the beach back up with sand after the storms....only to have it all washed away. No, I honestly cannot say one positive thing about New Smyrna Beach. As soon as I can find a nice town that respects the people who live in it that is not going to put me into poverty level just to rent an apartment.....my family plans on moving. This town shows exactly what happens when the greedy bureaucracies take over the city. I cannot stress enough, do not move here.

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