Space Coast living?

[ElenaofAvalor]

So we are trying to move around Cape Canaveral. Job will be secured before we move. We found the Viera area and it looks nice, although inflated at the moment (like lots of areas). Anyone have any tips, opinions, anything at all about the area, housing, anything? It looks like some neighborhoods that are in Viera are actually so far from the Avenue, etc .. that it may be possible to get a nice neighborhood closer to the amenities that is not technically in Viera... Thanks so much!

 

[fla4fun]

Is the job in Cape Canaveral? I don’t know that I would want to commute from Viera to CC every day. I was just there a couple weeks ago, staying at the Homewood Suites Cape Canaveral and my sister and I drove down to Viera to shop. She knows the area like the back of her hand, but it still took a while to make the trip and we weren’t doing it during rush hour.

Viera is a nice area, and there are a lot of neighborhoods to choose from.

 

[EACarlson]

I do a couple trips a year to Viera for work with USSSA and am amazed at how much that northern section has grown just in the few years I've been going there. I agree that I wouldn't want to commute from Viera to Cape Canaveral every day. In the last year I've probably averaged about a 15 minute daily delay due to traffic on 95 in Viera.

 

[ElenaofAvalor]

Hopefully the job would be at home (His cyber security job is 99% at home now), that is what we are shooting for. We homeschool, so schools are not an issue. We would be shopping every couple of weeks or so on Patrick.

 

[fla4fun]

Hopefully the job would be at home (His cyber security job is 99% at home now), that is what we are shooting for. We homeschool, so schools are not an issue. We would be shopping every couple of weeks or so on Patrick.

The drive to Patrick from Viera is not too bad. That is where we generally cross from the mainland to the barrier island and vice versa when we go to Viera, if we aren’t stopping on Merritt Island.

 

[DaisyDuck001]

Maybe this is a dumb question, but if the job will be totally remote, then why are you moving there?

 

[Ms.Minnie]

My suggestion would be to rent first before you buy a home, that assuming you plan to buy a home. This would allow you to get familiar with the area and surrounding neighborhoods. See what neighborhoods you like, how the traffic is, where you like to shop, dine out, what entertainment options are available. Most importantly you could determine if you even like the area and want to live there. It's much easier to relocate if you don't have to sell a home first.

 

[GreatLakes]

Maybe this is a dumb question, but if the job will be totally remote, then why are you moving there?

I can't speak for the OP but in many instances you still have to be within some proximity to an office for remote work. A friend of mine works 100% of the time from home and wanted to move out of state but can't because company policy is that remote workers have to be within a 2 hour drive of an office.

 

[ElenaofAvalor]

Maybe this is a dumb question, but if the job will be totally remote, then why are you moving there?

We don't like the area we are in now, but the space coast seems to offer a lot of what we are looking for.

 

[ElenaofAvalor]

I can't speak for the OP but in many instances you still have to be within some proximity to an office for remote work. A friend of mine works 100% of the time from home and wanted to move out of state but can't because company policy is that remote workers have to be within a 2 hour drive of an office.

Yeah, it a bummer because he likes his current job and can do most of it from home. However, he has to go in for a few minutes very rarely to do something that can only be done in a classified area. We don't want to live in this area any longer for several reasons, and the space coast looks like it offers a lot of what we want. So, he is now looking for a remote job based in the Space Coast area.

 

[Nayan]

I live just south of Viera, but my advice is to anyone moving here...rent first if possible. It truly is either a love-it or hate-it state. If he doesn't have a job, be very prepared for lower wages, very expensive rents/auto insurance/groceries.

It's nice here if you are already established (job, home), but honestly I would look elsewhere.

 

[ElenaofAvalor]

I live just south of Viera, but my advice is to anyone moving here...rent first if possible. It truly is either a love-it or hate-it state. If he doesn't have a job, be very prepared for lower wages, very expensive rents/auto insurance/groceries.

It's nice here if you are already established (job, home), but honestly I would look elsewhere.

Thanks! Other than possible lower wages and some higher expenses, what other cons do you think there are for the area? Any pros? Any areas around Viera that are not necessarily in Viera, but nice and still close to the amenities? I would love to rent first and get a feel for the area, but we have two cats and two 55ish pound dogs and I know it would be very hard to find a place that would allow that.

 

[Nayan]

It really depends on what your looking for. Shopping is abundant, plenty of medical/dental facilities to choose from, beaches (if you're into that), parks, dining.

Cons are expenses, the heat/humidity is stifling, traffic, bugs (mosquitos are bad!), hurricanes can affect you no matter how far 'inland' you are (and homeowners insurance sadly reflects that with a very high cost).

You may have to look farther south to find what you need (especially with pets), but many folks that lived in Melbourne/Palm Bay worked at the Cape and commuted daily. My husband works in Orlando and commutes daily and the only time he complains is if someone decides to crash on 95 or it's closed due to fires. Otherwise he sees it as not a big deal.

 

[ElenaofAvalor]

It really depends on what your looking for. Shopping is abundant, plenty of medical/dental facilities to choose from, beaches (if you're into that), parks, dining.

Cons are expenses, the heat/humidity is stifling, traffic, bugs (mosquitos are bad!), hurricanes can affect you no matter how far 'inland' you are (and homeowners insurance sadly reflects that with a very high cost).

You may have to look farther south to find what you need (especially with pets), but many folks that lived in Melbourne/Palm Bay worked at the Cape and commuted daily. My husband works in Orlando and commutes daily and the only time he complains is if someone decides to crash on 95 or it's closed due to fires. Otherwise he sees it as not a big deal.

Thank you! It is great to hear the good, the bad, and the ugly to have a better rounded idea of an area. This is exactly what I needed to know!

 

[EACarlson]

It really depends on what your looking for. Shopping is abundant, plenty of medical/dental facilities to choose from, beaches (if you're into that), parks, dining.

Cons are expenses, the heat/humidity is stifling, traffic, bugs (mosquitos are bad!), hurricanes can affect you no matter how far 'inland' you are (and homeowners insurance sadly reflects that with a very high cost).

I think almost all of the cons is going to be relative to where you are coming from. I've never had an issue with the mosquitos, but for three months of the year where I live they are liable to carry you away. The expenses and traffic are all relative to what you are used to now.

 

[TipsyTraveler]

Yeah, it a bummer because he likes his current job and can do most of it from home. However, he has to go in for a few minutes very rarely to do something that can only be done in a classified area. We don't want to live in this area any longer for several reasons, and the space coast looks like it offers a lot of what we want. So, he is now looking for a remote job based in the Space Coast area.

Any chance that one task can be given/traded to a coworker to fully free him up to move while retaining the job he already has? It’s nice to have that stability of income while relocating and not having to juggle interviews, start date, and new job training on top of all the hassles of moving is a plus. I’m not sure where you are now, but keeping the salary from a high-cost-of-living area while moving to a lower-COL area can be advantageous as well. My husband also had a 99% remote job that only required him to show up in-person for a couple hours once a month. In order to get the green light from his company to move out of state, he agreed to fly home once a month so nothing would change regarding his in-person availability. (Once we moved his company never found it necessary to bring him back for that monthly task anyway.) Maybe an arrangement like that could work for your husband.

Thanks! Other than possible lower wages and some higher expenses, what other cons do you think there are for the area? Any pros? Any areas around Viera that are not necessarily in Viera, but nice and still close to the amenities? I would love to rent first and get a feel for the area, but we have two cats and two 55ish pound dogs and I know it would be very hard to find a place that would allow that.

Is it possible to leave the dogs with a friend or family member for the first 3-6 months so you’ll have an easier time finding a rental? Also, you may have better luck renting a house from a private owner over an apartment complex that’s likely to have stricter pet restrictions. FWIW, we relocated 3 years ago to a place we’d never even visited based on it “looking good on paper” and we’ve been extremely happy with that decision. So, I do think it’s possible to be right in thinking a certain area would be a better fit for the lifestyle you want, you just have to be very honest about what you need to be happy and the pros and cons of the new location. But, I *do* think it’s wise to rent for a while first just to be sure before you commit to buying. Plus, I wouldn’t want to be house hunting from a different state and potentially having to buy a house I couldn’t first see in person, and especially not in the current market where everything is so competitive and prices are so inflated.

 

[ElenaofAvalor]

Any chance that one task can be given/traded to a coworker to fully free him up to move while retaining the job he already has? It’s nice to have that stability of income while relocating and not having to juggle interviews, start date, and new job training on top of all the hassles of moving is a plus. I’m not sure where you are now, but keeping the salary from a high-cost-of-living area while moving to a lower-COL area can be advantageous as well. My husband also had a 99% remote job that only required him to show up in-person for a couple hours once a month. In order to get the green light from his company to move out of state, he agreed to fly home once a month so nothing would change regarding his in-person availability. (Once we moved his company never found it necessary to bring him back for that monthly task anyway.) Maybe an arrangement like that could work for your husband.

Is it possible to leave the dogs with a friend or family member for the first 3-6 months so you’ll have an easier time finding a rental? Also, you may have better luck renting a house from a private owner over an apartment complex that’s likely to have stricter pet restrictions. FWIW, we relocated 3 years ago to a place we’d never even visited based on it “looking good on paper” and we’ve been extremely happy with that decision. So, I do think it’s possible to be right in thinking a certain area would be a better fit for the lifestyle you want, you just have to be very honest about what you need to be happy and the pros and cons of the new location. But, I *do* think it’s wise to rent for a while first just to be sure before you commit to buying. Plus, I wouldn’t want to be house hunting from a different state and potentially having to buy a house I couldn’t first see in person, and especially not in the current market where everything is so competitive and prices are so inflated.

You know, we *may* be able to keep the dogs with friends. I didn't consider that, thanks. I did consider boarding but that quickly adds up. It would still be way cheaper to drive the 10 hours back to get them in a few months than board them.
Unfortunately, there are times he needs to know some bit of information so that he can do his job that can only be told to him in a classified room. We did think about flying him up, but it can often be a last minute thing, and I don't think work would be cool with it. I agree the stability of the same job would be ideal, but he should be able to get a good job there ( Space Coast or Orlando based), and we would never move without that secured.