Suggestions from Floridians about moving and living near WDW

Walt's10thOldManZach

Long Time DIS Fan
Joined
Sep 2, 2016
Im on the search for folks who might have some tips about where me, my fiancé Stephanie, and two golden retrievers can live in FL with no "rif-raf" yet close to the parks etc. Currently living we in New England, and this year has been the toughest with the cold and not much to do etc. Disney changed our life when we visited in 2014. Sometimes we think there might be more opportunity in FL as apposed to MA as we are both freelance entrepreneur types. Me being a freelance Children's book illustrator and Stephanie being a Wedding Photographer, it might serve us well to possibly move to somewhere more bright and happy with more oppertinity and things to do and see. We currently live in a dog friendly apartment complex. Any of those that are in a nice area yet close to the parks? Isn't travel up to 30 minutes to be near our favorite spot in what seems to be the world. Thanks to anyone willing to help us decide!

Kindly,
Zach, Stephanie, Handsome & Dashing
 
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You'll probably have to decode "riff-raff" before people can help you. You could mean anything. It's a huge town, it has many suburbs and sub-neighborhoods, it's got tourists from all over, it's got university students, and it's got plenty of crime. If you want to live in a nice homogenous gated development yet close to the parks, it'll cost. :)
 
If rid-raf is a code word for people who don't look like you, Orlando is the last place you should move to. It is very multicultural.

That said, Lake Eola Heights and Thornton Park in downtown Orlando are nice, walkable, and central. Winter Park, 20 minutes north of downtown, is also very nice, walkable, with a village-y main street with stores/restaurants/etc. and very good Lynx and SunRail connections to downtown. We've thought about moving, too, and these are our most likely neighborhoods.
 


Also your budget is going to be a massive consideration. Time and lack of "riff raff" doesn't really give a good glimpse as some neighborhoods have rentals for 400 (not close and not always best neighborhoods) and others statt at a thousand and go up from there. Hard to give suggestions of locations if a monthly rental buget is not known.
 
Riff-Raff meaning staying away from crime, noisy neighborhoods and overall unsafe territory. I've always believed in the idea that any and all town or city has a bad area, I just wanted to stay clear of those as anyone would like to. Thanks for the help so far!
 


Right now we are paying what I think is a pretty normal rent of $1870 for a one bedroom apartment. Nicer apartments around here in Massachusetts range from $1400-$1800. So I'm sure what we are used to paying here will drastically change by moving south even in a good neighborhood like Winter Park or Thornton Park.
 
The closest nice areas to the parks are Windermere and Dr. Phillips. You could easily get a luxury apartment in either of those neighborhoods with your budget. I also second the downtown areas like Thornton Park, Lake Eola Heights, and Winter Park. I'd throw in the Mills50/Colonialtown area and Audubon Park too.
 
Right now we are paying what I think is a pretty normal rent of $1870 for a one bedroom apartment. Nicer apartments around here in Massachusetts range from $1400-$1800. So I'm sure what we are used to paying here will drastically change by moving south even in a good neighborhood like Winter Park or Thornton Park.

I don't have a favorite one, but I would definitely use one of those online cost-of-living calculators that allows you to compare cost of living for cities across the country. That would help you get a better handle on rental costs, grocery costs, utility costs, etc. I would bet that your housing cost would be significantly lower in Orlando than in Massachusetts, especially if you live in or near the Boston area. We live in Chicago, and costs are much cheaper in Central Florida across the board. Like, hit us with a stick for still living in Chicago cheaper.
 
You may also consider apartments in Celebration. Back when I worked for Disney, I had friends that lived in Celebration (in an apartment with a dog). While they loved it, I found it way too "fake".

A quick glance at one of the apartment communities in Celebration lists one-bedrooms starting at $1,200 and two-bedrooms starting at $1,400.
 
There are many areas with un-gated & gated communities along Hwy 27 ( within 10 to 15 miles of A. Kingdom )

who have owners who would be delighted to rent out their 3, 4, or 5 bed villas for that type of money per month.

Try Hampton Lakes , Highlands Reserve , Calaby Park Westridge etc.

Worth calling into the office of IPG ( ipgfloridavacationhomes .com ) on the west end of Hwy 192 opp. Publix

& before you join Hwy 27
 
A big thing too is to be sure you can sustain your budget upon moving. The greater Orlando area is saturate with photographers because it is a known destination for weddings. You can't shoot inside the parks for profit with out breaking Disney's rules (and probably Universal's as well) with out having a contract with Disney. To my understanding while you are free to freelance on top of that contract it isn't easy to get on Disney's wedding list and in park photographer list.

Just trying to be realistic as someone who lived there and knows quite a few people who live there as well.
 
It also depends on exactly how close you want to be to Disney. Some of the suggestions above (Winter Park, Lake Eola, Thornton Park) are all nice areas but will take longer to get to Disney. Plus, you'll have to travel on I-4.

My ideal neighborhoods would be Windermere and Doctor Phillips (I work in Downtown), but there's no way I could afford those areas. I live near Highway 27 and while it's a longer drive to get to work, I really like the area and I love that it's close to Disney.
 
It also depends on exactly how close you want to be to Disney. Some of the suggestions above (Winter Park, Lake Eola, Thornton Park) are all nice areas but will take longer to get to Disney. Plus, you'll have to travel on I-4.

My ideal neighborhoods would be Windermere and Doctor Phillips (I work in Downtown), but there's no way I could afford those areas. I live near Highway 27 and while it's a longer drive to get to work, I really like the area and I love that it's close to Disney.

I think it depends on the place that you're coming to Orlando from, too. I live centrally in the Chicago area, which is much larger, so the distances and travel times that I would consider acceptable for a trip to the suburbs, as well as the level of congestion, are probably higher than what an Orlando resident would take for granted. I know locals often point out how far Walt Disney World is from the city and how bad traffic can be on I-4. But the places we consider to be far and annoying to get to here are pretty much twice as far from the Loop as WDW is from downtown Orlando on expressways some of which carry among the worst traffic in the nation. So from my perspective, Walt Disney World seems a lot more accessible to downtown Orlando compared to some of the trips I might make out to the far suburbs from the Chicago lakefront where I live. I know OP's mileage may (literally!) vary.
 
As a Disney snowbird from New England I totally understand your growing dislike of the New England winter.

With the rental budget you mention I think you will find plenty of possibilities. As Woodview notes you might find detached homes to rent in that price range. If you are willing to be further from the Orlando urban area look southwest from Disney including the area that Woodview mentions along 27.

I can't speak to the business opportunities other then to note that the majority of the jobs around here are tourism based. Plenty of work but the pay is not high.
 
Always verify your sustainable income for an area. Wedding photography is a tough business, especially in an area saturated with them. The "Arts" colleges pump out 20,000 a semester (20,001 of them are horrible). I know a couple who could not afford the $2,000 for a photographer and all the extras. She had her friend take the pictures, rent equipment, and sent the photos overseas to be edited. They actually came out excellent and cost $500 total.

You might have made $5,000 in MA, but Orlando area may only pay half that. Can you survive on that much or be willing to work multiple jobs?
 
Thank you all for such informative answers! Something to truly consider from all sides. I'll let you know of our decisions as soon as we come up with one. Excellent help!
 
We moved to Orlando from Connecticut a couple of years ago. Although we were big disney fans who visited several times a year from Connecticut, we did not move here for Disney. In fact, that was almost a negative in our thought process.
We moved because of job transfer.

It seems to me that you are putting too much emphasis on being close to WDW. The allure of WDW can wane over the years, and there are much prettier areas in Florida than the Orlando area.

MG
 

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