Best Place to Live - 1/8/2008

I grew up in St. Pete and after joining the military and doing so much travel I've come to the conclusion that it is in fact the best place to live. There is a diversity in people and lifestyles with a wide cultural variety. St. Pete holds a lot of traditions and there are always things to do for free such as concerts downtown, going to the beach, nature trails, and wine tastings. There are so many great places to eat; Fresh express (who would have thought to make a fast food health food place), Mazzaros (best desserts and Italian market), Kristina's Cafe, and Westshore Pizza. Hurricane season may put a damper on your day but hey, we do need rain and St. Pete is on high elevation, except Snell Isle, so flooding is minimal. The weather is hot but it's nice when you spend a day at the beach. For the most part people keep to themselves and mind their own buisness. The schools are very good with the exception of a few such as Lakewood high, Dixie Hollands, and Northeast high, however Gibbs, Boca Ciega, and St. Petersburg High are all great schools. I personally graduated from St. Pete High and I loved the history, tradition, and diversity. There were so many after school activities to choose from and the staff always found ways to make learning interesting and did a wonderful job preparing us for college. Right now the housing market isn't so good. Costs of houses are down but property tax is up. It should be slowing down in the next couple of years though. Crime is a problem in certain areas but the good news is that most of the crimes are not violent crimes. St.Pete has a fairly low violent crime rate compared to many other places but you can avoid it mostly by avoiding bad areas. If you have pets you can always take them to one of the numerous dog parks for socialization. Fort Desoto has a great dog park and dog beach. Honestly I can't think of a better place to live.

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Florida Living - 1/2/2008

I moved to Florida ten years ago. I lived in Tampa for the first four years and have been in Saint Petersburg the last six years. For anyone thinking about moving to Florida to escape winters up north I would consider Saint Petersburg. It has a diverse population with so much to do. I prefer St Pete because of the proximity to the gulf beaches. It is so great to take an impromptu trip to watch the sun set over the gulf.

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Fl not as great as I thought. - 10/11/2007

Pros: -If you like to fish and boat there's plenty of opportunity. -It's not cold in the winter. - Right now anyway...there are probably some GREAT deals in real estate, due to the bubble bursting hard. Cons: -Far more redneck than you think. SC can't hold a candle to this place. -Houses are butt-ugly. so many "bugalows", which is realtor code for "old, small house". After that, it's nothing but ugly old ranches with landscaping that looks like weeds. If you have $700,000 plus you can get something. -Humidity. Like being in a steam room all the time. Nasty. -Too spread out. If you live in St. Pete and have friends in Tampa or Clearwater, expect to take forever to get there. Very little highways and TONS of stoplights.

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St Petersburg - 7/17/2007

In my opinion, St Pete (as we often call it) is one of the nicest cities in which I have lived. It has undergone a renissance in the last 10-15 years. Gone are the day this city was a run down, cheap, retirement place. The downtown area has been revitalized and it boasts dozens of high-rise condo buildings (probably more than we need), by the way, as with most of Florida the cost of housing has "gone through the roof" (no pun intended). There are excellent restaurants everywhere, theaters and playhouses to keep you "on the go" for months and when you get through with all of them (if you ever do) you can start on the ones in Clearwater and Tampa, both within a 30 minute drive. The Tampa airport (one of the best in the coutry) is 20 miles away. St Pete also has it's own airport, with a limited number of commercial flights. Of course, given it's location, on the west side of Tampa Bay, boating, fishing and the beach are still the primary recreational activities for most of us. Much to my surprise summers are cooler here than in Raleigh, NC (where I also have a home). The diference is that it stay warm three months longer here than it does in NC (trust me by the end of October you want a cold snap). As it is with all growing cities, traffic has gotten worse (but compare to other cities of the same size it is not bad), the are two real down sides: 1)CRIME, which continues to be high. While there are many very safe neighborhoods if you are not familiar with the city you can get in trouble fairly easily. 2) SCHOOLS, much to my dissapointment the school system is not very good, so if you have school age children plan on sending them to private school. Knowing what I know now (after 10 years) would I move here again? you bet.

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Great place if you don't care about housing costs. - 6/12/2007

St. Petersburg turned into a great place to live until the real estate boom made it too expensive to afford a home for a single person making a fair salary. Combined with the hurricane insurance and taxes, it's become a very expensive place to own. It's still a great place to rent and enjoy all that the area has to offer. As long as you don't care about owning, the Tampa/St. Pete area is wonderful.

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Saint Petersburg, Fl - 1/15/2007

I would like to find a fresh list of Ameica's best "job growth rate" regions. Thanks!

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Increaed costs of ins and tax will force residents - 1/6/2007

Cost of living increasing due to real estate taxes and homeowners insurance will soon casue many long term residents to leave St. Petersburg. I have grwon up here and lived here the majority of my life but am very disatisfied with costs and crime.

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doctors - 11/23/2006

Pleanty of fine doctors if you make the effort to find them.

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Interested in moving to St. Petersburg/Gulf Coast - 9/7/2006

Hello, I live in Indiana and wish to move to St. Pete. I have been there several times in previous years. I went to the Pier, enjoyed myself immensely, and personally lived in Jacksonville for a long time. Jacksonville was okay, I would move back there, but I truly loved and missed the exceeding calm and beauty of St. Petersburg. I want to become a permanent transplant to St. Pete. I am a Southern woman of color, love diverse places and diverse peoples, love the elderly, love outdoors activities, a ridiculous overpowerful love of Palms and Palmettos. Also, I am sort of old-fashioned, a little laid back. I have lived in Baltimore, Md, various parts of gorgeous green Kentucky, and Northern Florida. Can a youngish single woman who is an active Christian do okay in St Pete? I hope to attend Hillsborough Community College, or one in St Pete. I appreciate your comments.

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St. Petersburg is changing a lot - 9/5/2006

From an "old folks" city with green benches, St. Petersburg, FL is becoming more artistic, more sophisticated with good restaurants, several museums (including Salvadore Dali), major league baseball, and close to Tampa. Cost of living is also rising. No state income tax but real estate taxes are increasing and insurance is costly (if you can get it after previous hurricanes). Summers are HOT and MUGGY.

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Priced out of town - 9/1/2006

Cost of living has increased to become unaffordable due to property taxes and property insurance.

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I've lived here for 20+ years - 8/25/2006

Hmm.. When I moved to St. Petersburg in the winter of 1983, I was sick of the winter storms in my native Ohio. I still feel the same, in spite of all of the hurricane headaches. It's like the constant heat and humidity from May through Sept. It's a given. I also liked the relaxed pace and less judgemental state of mind that existed here. It isn't what it was, but everytime I visit up north, I'm reminded of why I moved here. Less stress! I live in a little 1925 cottage in the Uptown district, just north of downtown, and you might find a bargain that the "flippers" haven't if you look now! Otherwise, look to newer townhomes or highrises and a $300k pricetag or more if you want to live in the newly revitilized downtown, with it's clubs,shops,museums,beaches,the Pier and just relaxing. But...the homeless and pandhandling is very rampant here. Be prepared to smile, say a polite "no" and keep moving. Shoplifting, auto theft and breaking and entering also seems to be on the rise, no matter what the crime stats say. Also, if you don't drive, getting around can be expensive and a huge waste of time waiting. The closest airport of import is in Tampa, as are the trains and buses don't run often enough or long enough to make commuting anything but a pain. This said, I'm a recent widow and am looking to relocate for this next stage in my life.That is why I chose Sperling's to begin a search for a better fit.

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To joseph in the north - 6/13/2006

U sound like you have the bitterness of a New Yorker or Philadelphian......loose the east coast mentality man! It seems that you are surrounded by beauty but blinded by cynicalism

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A Beautiful Place to Live - 4/19/2006

I would have to say that St. Petersburg is one the most beautiful cities in the U.S. It has the white sand beaches, the parks, and the forever blue sky that most people look for. Also, it has plenty of outdoor events throughout the year that are excellent.

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florida sucks - 3/4/2006

the cost of living is high, and the people are cruel, the weather is humid, and i am sick of hurricanes. the mentality down here sucks, and there is no beauty. florida is not a pretty place to me as people have said. this is not the type of place for the young to live, plus the women here are backwards and very superficial. there is is no good wages here compared to the north, so northerners, please do not complain about what u get paid there where u are, because here the immigrants get the work, and they work for nothing. the rent is ridiculous from central fl. to the florida keys. and just because u have a degree doesn't mean very much here. with this big boom in co-op living here, the one who is wanting to rent will be looking for a place for sometime, or at least waiting on one! the hiv/aids rate is staggerring here, and the healthcare sucks. this is truly a retirement state. when u are ready to die, choose another place to do it. i'm outta here, no doubt, and never will return, ....ever! and crime, it's here like any other place, but it's all about how u deal with it.

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MOST BEAUTIFUL PLACE TO LIVE - 9/7/2005

I came down to the St. Pete / Tampa area from right outside of Chicago in 1999, and I have traveled all around the state of Florida to make sure that I made the right choice, and I did!!! Beach access is everywhere in Pinellas County (just head west from wherever you are). The beaches are beautiful during the day or at night. Pass-A-Grille Beach and anything between there and Indian Rocks Beach on Gulf Blvd. in absolutely stunning. The St. Pete Pier, North Shore Park, and The Vinoy Park areas are breathtaking as well. It is easy to navigate throughout St. Pete as the streets are arranged as a grid. Housing prices are still within reach for everyone. Tampa is just right over the stunning Howard Frankland Bridge, and while there is no Gulf beach access there, it is a beautiful city with much to offer. The St. Pete/Tampa area is Florida living at its finest!!!!

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