Question Tell Me Where to Live in Florida

[hawaiian.hokie]

I figured this might be a good place to put this question out there. I'm an Army Officer currently stationed in Hawaii, looking to leave the Army in late 2025. I love Hawaii and being able to dive every weekend, but it is way too expensive with not enough job prospects.

Being the planner that I am, I want to start putting out feelers for jobs and places to live early so I have a plan when I leave. I'm looking at Florida because I like the warm weather, it's veteran-friendly, and I like that it has no state income tax.

With all that said, does anyone have any recommendations on where to start looking to live/work in Florida? I've gotten accustomed to diving every weekend in Hawaii, so I'd prefer a location with some good diving spots/active diving community. I definitely fall into the middle-class bracket, so I'm trying to find a good balance between a lower cost of living, diving, and somewhere with decent job prospects (I work in emergency and operations management and have a healthcare background).

Any suggestions?

 

[Pavao]

Savannah is the best city in FL to move to.

The good diving goes from Jupiter on south, the lower cost of living goes from Jupiter on north, figure out how much driving you're willing to do to dive regularly, but it definitely ain't low cost to live here, specially since pandemic, everyone wanted to move here and Texas.

It really sucks that the worst part of Florida is the same as the best diving part of Florida.

 

[Bubblesong]

It seems best jobs are Space Coast, but it gets quite cool there winters, wetsuit diving. Was your Hawaii diving all warm, bathing suit, or some wetsuit diving?

 

[MidOH]

So get a fuel efficient car. You don't have to live where you dive.

NE coast if you are like people from Hawaii. West coast and panhandle if you're like the Army. Orlando if you're an 80's kid/mall rat.

Avoid Miami, Okeechobee, Gainesville, and Ocala.

Cost of living far outweighs the nice tax advantage. Don't move to FL if you're poor, or just getting started.

FL doesn't like paying fairly, for people of my profession. So I left. Doubled my wages and cut costs in half, while enjoying a larger house, and 4x more vacation time.

I go back only to visit friends and vacation. While there, I tip as well as Floridians did to me.

 

[scubadada]

Hi @hawaiian.hokie

It would seem to largely depend on the type of work you are looking for and where that is available. Are you by yourself or with a family, who may have other work/school needs?

To dive every weekend, you would have to be within driving striking distance. My choice is Boynton Beach to Jupiter, there is good diving south of this down to the Keys.

Best of luck

 

[DanBMW]

The best diving in Florida is the east coast, Jupiter south. Tampa is very military friendly with MacDill near by. Jupiter Beach is about 3 hours away by car. We used to go over early Saturday morning make a few dives, spend the night and dive Sunday morning. Drive back to Tampa. My suggestion, look for a job in Central Florida with easy access to Jupiter.

 

[greeniguana]

My suggestion, look for a job in Central Florida with easy access to Jupiter.

That's the thing about FL. While it may look like "easy access" on a map, traffic on the Turnpike, 75, 95, or I-4 will turn it into a brutal trip.

 

[Rilelen]

If you’re at all interested in freshwater diving or caves, north central Florida is fantastic. There’s a big recreational dive community here, and of course it’s cave country. I am usually out diving with buddies 2-3 times a week. I really like living in Gainesville but you can find cheaper housing in nearby more rural areas (High Springs, Williston, etc). UF Health and Shands are major employers in town.

Plus we are an easy two-hour drive/daytrip from most of the big cities (Tampa, Orlando, Jacksonville, Tallahassee) in Florida except for Miami.

The real downside is ocean diving; you CAN dive the gulf but it’s most spearfishing off private boats. The nearest good ocean diving is four hours away in Jupiter (or six hours to hit the Keys). Makes for a nice weekend trip, but not as easy as throwing gear in the back of the truck and hopping into a spring.

 

[Scuba_Jenny]

I live south, near Ft. Lauderdale.
Good: good diving is from a half hour away to nearby beaches and boats, to a few hours to cave country or the keys. If the weather isn't good one place, it will be good for diving in another.
The Bad: Traffic. People. Housing. Did I mention People and Traffic? Oh, and hurricanes.

 

[hawaiian.hokie]

It seems best jobs are Space Coast, but it gets quite cool there winters, wetsuit diving. Was your Hawaii diving all warm, bathing suit, or some wetsuit diving?

A mixture of both. I usually only dive in board shorts/shirt, but I have a higher tolerance to cold. My SO can’t dive without a 5 mil lol. The water is usually 72 - 76 degrees