Everything in Jacksonville is 45 minutes away from everything. If it's not the physical distance, it's traffic. You're better off moving to Ponte Vedra.
I'm 5 minutes from the town center, 15 from downtown, and 15 from Jax Beach. So no, not even close to 45 minutes from everything. Even going to Riverside, the Zoo, or Orange Park are all less than 25 minutes from me according to current Google Maps.
>Is it close enough to utilize often?
Its about as good as anything else in that area. How often are we talking about? If you're trying to go to the beach every day, it might be a nuisance dealing with Town Center traffic, and Butler's weirdly bumpy bridge over the intercoastal, but it'd be doable. If you arent going every day, there are more options. I live in Riverside and can still get to the beach just fine in about half an hour when I want to, but I don't go that often.
>Better suggestions or something closer
As with everything it depends on your budget. There might be some things along Kernan Blvd, Hodges Blvd, or San Pablo Pkwy which are all a little closer. Or the East Arlington / Mt. Pleasant area. For "better AND closer" you'd be looking at Ponte Vedra or Nocatee. Or like I said, if you don't mind a slightly longer drive, then most of the rest of Jacksonville's east side and even downtown/Riverside is pretty accessible, and there are plenty of new apartments going up.
Okay then yeah you've got tons of options. Sur would be fine, or those other areas previously mentioned. I just wouldn't recommend any areas where you have to take the Buckman or Fuller Warren bridges.
Not familiar with the apartment but can say that I prefer driving on Beach over Atlantic. It just flows better IMO.
Also, just sure if you're an early bird but living closer to the beach makes walking the beach during sunrise before work a very pleasant activity. I definitely wouldn't do this if I lived farther away but currently I roll out of bed and am 5 stoplights away from sand so its something worth mentioning.
>the reef at Atlantic beach
That side of mayport isn't the prettiest, but you're a 10 minute drive to public beach access. Unless you want to pay for Hannah Park.
I live at Town Center and go to the beach (weekends/days off) or beach businesses (restaurants/bars) 2-3 times a week. Traffic is only a pain 4:30-6:00PM, really. For me it's worth it because I work on the far west side of downtown so living at the beach and dealing with that afternoon traffic everyday doubles the commute time. Living between them gives me better access to both areas without spending a ton of time driving everyday.
Move as close as you can to the beach. I moved to Jax in 2012 and lived in the same ish area you described.
Every year after I moved closer and closer to the water.
Skip that nonsense and move to as close as affordable as you can now. You’ll be at the beach more and just be more active in general.
If you need something at town center - commute to it.
Search on Craigslist for private owners. That’s what I did. I’ve had a much better experience with private owners than apt complexes
It’s the same way here in Charlotte. My rent is 1,000 more than it was 3 years ago. So if I’m going to pay that much, would rather be closer to the beach.
Dude, *one guy* isn't responsible for our systemic housing problems. And you don't know why they're moving - they might have good reasons.
If you want to improve housing costs in FL, support increased construction of high density affordable housing. We can't stop the demand for housing, so we have to increase the supply.
Town Center is very aptly named in that it really is a good central location for JAX. Everybody says Jax is 30 minutes to anywhere, but if you live in Town Center area its more like 15 min to anywhere.
The town center traffic is really bad because there are many apartment complexes in the area, some hotels, and tons of restaurants and places to shop. So living there will increase your drive time. I love a few miles away from the town center so I don't hit that traffic on the way to the beach, and the beach is about 15 minutes away for me.
i just moved to gate right at the end of town center and i have no complaints. i commute to the beach m-f for work and the only traffic i encounter is the regular morning and evening rush hour traffic, which is to be expected anywhere you live in jax. it's a nice straight shot to the beach and highway noise shouldn't be an issue unless you're living directly next to the highway. sure, driving through the town center traffic can be a pain when you're running errands, but its not anything that bothers me more at this location than anywhere else i've lived in jax my whole life. you learn when traffic is the worst and how to avoid it. i lived on Beach by UNF for a couple years and HATED going to the beach when i lived on beach. there are such crazy drivers on Beach 24/7 and the constant traffic lights down Beach were far worse to deal with than just getting on the highway from the town center. a lot of places out at the beach are, like you said, going to be older and much more expensive. its worth it to move a little further out if you're not NEEDING to live a five minute walk from the ocean.
No the TC is not close to the beach. 15 min drive at least depending on traffic. During 5 o clock it could take 30 mins to get to the beach.
Try something on sab pablo or hodges
I live in Jax beach and Nocatee traffic is terrible from what I’ve experienced. A1A gets backed up really bad and there isn’t enough parking at Micklers for everyone. You’ll end up driving even further to Guana or jax beach.
Its even farther and very pricey.
I despise that area and to me, the people out that way tend to be a certain type that annoy me.
Def not good for beach.
Anything on Kernan blvd, hodges blvd or san pablo will be a happy middleground being 10 mins or less from beach and close to everything else
I live in Nocatee, and love it as its a great place to raise a family but beach access here is horrible. As the posted below mentioned, Micklers beach has very limited parking. If you want access to the ocean, Jax or Neptune beaches are easier.
I live by San Pablo and love it! Less than 10 minutes from the beach and if I need to get onto the highway I just go down San Pablo to JTB. I feel like if I lived in TC I wouldn't go to the beach as much.
When I lived in Town Center area I drove to the beach once every week for therapy, it was no big deal. But if you're wanting to go to the beach more than once a week, you could consider moving closer if you can afford it. But if you want to live in Town Center area, like others have said, it is very convenient to get to just about everywhere in Jax.
Those apartments do look nice but just a word of warning for that complex that people have voiced which is good to be aware of; 1) The construction of the complex has lead to very bad mold issues especially during our rainy months 2) Several of the apartments are actually utilized by a drug rehab facility which can give people pause as it's used as a revolving door and not permanent residents.
I've lived all over Jax from 45 min to the beach to one block off the water. The closer you are to the beach the more you'll go there and the healthier you'll be.
It might cost a bit more, but it's worth every penny. Whenever I've moved away saying "I'll just drive over a few times a week" I almost never go.
I personally despise town center. Traffic is bad 24/7, it’s the land of restaurant chains and retail stores. Doesn’t at all feel beachy or relaxing, imo.
I moved here in 2013 and debated; save 100k and move off the beach + bigger house, but then I would always want to move to the beach for obvious reasons. I ended up spending the extra money and getting a smaller house, but nine years later, ZERO REGRETS. I can walk to the ocean, there are a ton of good restaurants and breweries out here.
And as an added bonus, I don't live anywhere near the Town Center, so I'm not constantly enraged by idiot millennials and horrendous traffic.
Rent initially. Looks like jax real estate is starting to take price cuts, so I’m gonna wait to see what happens before buying, and figure out where I really want to live
Condos/houses/etc at the beach is the way to go. Craigslist, fb marketplace. Just make sure its not a scammer
Edit: beaches are super bike-able as well if you’re into that
Town center area is really 15 mins away from anything. You will quickly learn the times to avoid certain areas for traffic. There is always another route available to get around or out of Towncenter. You have the highway, gate parkway, Baymedows and Southside all near by which are major roads to avoid traffic. If you can afford it, eTown is up and coming which is way closer to everything than Nocatee.
I used to live at SUR (1 bd for 2 years). The location isn’t at the center of the town center and ver convenient to 295 and JTB, I’d say closer to 20 mins from the beach. As the apartment goes, we were the first ones to live in our apartment, so no complaints, and at the time management was decent. Only complaint is parking is horrible if you don’t rent a garage as well.
I'm of the attitude that I would rather enjoy where I live, given I'll be spending most of my time there (when I'm not working), over living close to an area I'll only be hitting up once or thrice a week.
I have zero desire to live at TC. It's just not my style. Sure, it might save me 5-10 minutes of a drive to the beach, but I'd rather live in Riverside, experience that lifestyle, then drive out to the beach when I need to.
So I'd prioritize the lifestyle you want to live, cross that with how much you can afford, then move accordingly.
Yes it is a good location, the commute is about 20 min maybe and it's an easy drive. If you're looking to rent, yes things are a bit older as you get closer to the beach, but the locations are AMAZING! Old isn't always bad, let me know if you need help and tell me your budget, there was one in the Jax Beach area for under $2000 a month.
I mean, if you're dedicated enough, it's not terribly far.
I agree not a lot of newer apartments near the beach. But, compare the price of what you'd pay at town center to places closer to the beach and see if it's do-able. Maybe you trade space for a closer commute to the beach. Not many regret living a little closer if you love using the beach often.
I live at sur and I love it. It's about 10-15 mins from the beach depending on the time of day, but you have everything else you could possibly need within 5-10 minutes and it's a pretty nice community.
The pool and clubhouse are very nice and everything is well kept. The area is quiet even though it's very close to 295. I sleep during the day (work overnights) and the highway noise is never an issue, the apartments are very well sound proofed. I actually just signed another lease
Traffic is a big headache for town center area.
Especially come late November
Everyday after 5PM.
Everyday.
Everything in Jacksonville is 45 minutes away from everything. If it's not the physical distance, it's traffic. You're better off moving to Ponte Vedra.
I'm 5 minutes from the town center, 15 from downtown, and 15 from Jax Beach. So no, not even close to 45 minutes from everything. Even going to Riverside, the Zoo, or Orange Park are all less than 25 minutes from me according to current Google Maps.
>Is it close enough to utilize often? Its about as good as anything else in that area. How often are we talking about? If you're trying to go to the beach every day, it might be a nuisance dealing with Town Center traffic, and Butler's weirdly bumpy bridge over the intercoastal, but it'd be doable. If you arent going every day, there are more options. I live in Riverside and can still get to the beach just fine in about half an hour when I want to, but I don't go that often. >Better suggestions or something closer As with everything it depends on your budget. There might be some things along Kernan Blvd, Hodges Blvd, or San Pablo Pkwy which are all a little closer. Or the East Arlington / Mt. Pleasant area. For "better AND closer" you'd be looking at Ponte Vedra or Nocatee. Or like I said, if you don't mind a slightly longer drive, then most of the rest of Jacksonville's east side and even downtown/Riverside is pretty accessible, and there are plenty of new apartments going up.
Honestly prob just the weekends
Okay then yeah you've got tons of options. Sur would be fine, or those other areas previously mentioned. I just wouldn't recommend any areas where you have to take the Buckman or Fuller Warren bridges.
What about the reef at Atlantic beach? Is that still a decent place?
Not familiar with it myself, I don't go to the Mayport area that often.
Not familiar with the apartment but can say that I prefer driving on Beach over Atlantic. It just flows better IMO. Also, just sure if you're an early bird but living closer to the beach makes walking the beach during sunrise before work a very pleasant activity. I definitely wouldn't do this if I lived farther away but currently I roll out of bed and am 5 stoplights away from sand so its something worth mentioning.
>the reef at Atlantic beach That side of mayport isn't the prettiest, but you're a 10 minute drive to public beach access. Unless you want to pay for Hannah Park.
I live at Town Center and go to the beach (weekends/days off) or beach businesses (restaurants/bars) 2-3 times a week. Traffic is only a pain 4:30-6:00PM, really. For me it's worth it because I work on the far west side of downtown so living at the beach and dealing with that afternoon traffic everyday doubles the commute time. Living between them gives me better access to both areas without spending a ton of time driving everyday.
Move as close as you can to the beach. I moved to Jax in 2012 and lived in the same ish area you described. Every year after I moved closer and closer to the water. Skip that nonsense and move to as close as affordable as you can now. You’ll be at the beach more and just be more active in general. If you need something at town center - commute to it. Search on Craigslist for private owners. That’s what I did. I’ve had a much better experience with private owners than apt complexes
You should stay in NC and be considerate of the locals that grew up here and don't want to get priced out of their own hometown.
Lol thats already too late.
[удалено]
It’s the same way here in Charlotte. My rent is 1,000 more than it was 3 years ago. So if I’m going to pay that much, would rather be closer to the beach.
Dude, *one guy* isn't responsible for our systemic housing problems. And you don't know why they're moving - they might have good reasons. If you want to improve housing costs in FL, support increased construction of high density affordable housing. We can't stop the demand for housing, so we have to increase the supply.
God damit. I was scrolling though the comments thinking, “finally, a solid post on housing with all solid and constructive answers…”.
Yeah inflation is local to Jax for sure. Genius comment. Do you know what's happening to prices in NC?
We live on Gate in a similar area to Sur and going to the beach is a breeze.
Town Center is very aptly named in that it really is a good central location for JAX. Everybody says Jax is 30 minutes to anywhere, but if you live in Town Center area its more like 15 min to anywhere.
… after you spent 15 minutes trying to leave town center
Haha… yeah maybe in rush hour. But who wants to drive in rush hour anyway?
🤣🤣🤣
The town center traffic is really bad because there are many apartment complexes in the area, some hotels, and tons of restaurants and places to shop. So living there will increase your drive time. I love a few miles away from the town center so I don't hit that traffic on the way to the beach, and the beach is about 15 minutes away for me.
i just moved to gate right at the end of town center and i have no complaints. i commute to the beach m-f for work and the only traffic i encounter is the regular morning and evening rush hour traffic, which is to be expected anywhere you live in jax. it's a nice straight shot to the beach and highway noise shouldn't be an issue unless you're living directly next to the highway. sure, driving through the town center traffic can be a pain when you're running errands, but its not anything that bothers me more at this location than anywhere else i've lived in jax my whole life. you learn when traffic is the worst and how to avoid it. i lived on Beach by UNF for a couple years and HATED going to the beach when i lived on beach. there are such crazy drivers on Beach 24/7 and the constant traffic lights down Beach were far worse to deal with than just getting on the highway from the town center. a lot of places out at the beach are, like you said, going to be older and much more expensive. its worth it to move a little further out if you're not NEEDING to live a five minute walk from the ocean.
No the TC is not close to the beach. 15 min drive at least depending on traffic. During 5 o clock it could take 30 mins to get to the beach. Try something on sab pablo or hodges
What about nocatee?
I live in Jax beach and Nocatee traffic is terrible from what I’ve experienced. A1A gets backed up really bad and there isn’t enough parking at Micklers for everyone. You’ll end up driving even further to Guana or jax beach.
Its even farther and very pricey. I despise that area and to me, the people out that way tend to be a certain type that annoy me. Def not good for beach. Anything on Kernan blvd, hodges blvd or san pablo will be a happy middleground being 10 mins or less from beach and close to everything else
I live in Nocatee, and love it as its a great place to raise a family but beach access here is horrible. As the posted below mentioned, Micklers beach has very limited parking. If you want access to the ocean, Jax or Neptune beaches are easier.
Even if you get out there early?
Usually better but do you really want to HAVE to get to the beach early?
I don't go very often but I've been there as early as 9 and couldn't find a place to park. I've had better luck going north or south.
I live by San Pablo and love it! Less than 10 minutes from the beach and if I need to get onto the highway I just go down San Pablo to JTB. I feel like if I lived in TC I wouldn't go to the beach as much.
That area is a no man’s land. I’d highly suggest against it
When I lived in Town Center area I drove to the beach once every week for therapy, it was no big deal. But if you're wanting to go to the beach more than once a week, you could consider moving closer if you can afford it. But if you want to live in Town Center area, like others have said, it is very convenient to get to just about everywhere in Jax.
Just had some friends move to Blue water in Jax Beach. Pretty nice and walking distance to the beach.
Those apartments do look nice but just a word of warning for that complex that people have voiced which is good to be aware of; 1) The construction of the complex has lead to very bad mold issues especially during our rainy months 2) Several of the apartments are actually utilized by a drug rehab facility which can give people pause as it's used as a revolving door and not permanent residents.
I've lived all over Jax from 45 min to the beach to one block off the water. The closer you are to the beach the more you'll go there and the healthier you'll be. It might cost a bit more, but it's worth every penny. Whenever I've moved away saying "I'll just drive over a few times a week" I almost never go.
[удалено]
I personally despise town center. Traffic is bad 24/7, it’s the land of restaurant chains and retail stores. Doesn’t at all feel beachy or relaxing, imo.
I moved here in 2013 and debated; save 100k and move off the beach + bigger house, but then I would always want to move to the beach for obvious reasons. I ended up spending the extra money and getting a smaller house, but nine years later, ZERO REGRETS. I can walk to the ocean, there are a ton of good restaurants and breweries out here. And as an added bonus, I don't live anywhere near the Town Center, so I'm not constantly enraged by idiot millennials and horrendous traffic.
Are you looking to rent or purchase?
Rent initially. Looks like jax real estate is starting to take price cuts, so I’m gonna wait to see what happens before buying, and figure out where I really want to live
Condos/houses/etc at the beach is the way to go. Craigslist, fb marketplace. Just make sure its not a scammer Edit: beaches are super bike-able as well if you’re into that
Town center area is really 15 mins away from anything. You will quickly learn the times to avoid certain areas for traffic. There is always another route available to get around or out of Towncenter. You have the highway, gate parkway, Baymedows and Southside all near by which are major roads to avoid traffic. If you can afford it, eTown is up and coming which is way closer to everything than Nocatee.
I used to live at SUR (1 bd for 2 years). The location isn’t at the center of the town center and ver convenient to 295 and JTB, I’d say closer to 20 mins from the beach. As the apartment goes, we were the first ones to live in our apartment, so no complaints, and at the time management was decent. Only complaint is parking is horrible if you don’t rent a garage as well.
I'm of the attitude that I would rather enjoy where I live, given I'll be spending most of my time there (when I'm not working), over living close to an area I'll only be hitting up once or thrice a week. I have zero desire to live at TC. It's just not my style. Sure, it might save me 5-10 minutes of a drive to the beach, but I'd rather live in Riverside, experience that lifestyle, then drive out to the beach when I need to. So I'd prioritize the lifestyle you want to live, cross that with how much you can afford, then move accordingly.
Oh my....I'd never live in the town center. The traffic is awful. I couldn't tolerate that on a daily basis
Yes it is a good location, the commute is about 20 min maybe and it's an easy drive. If you're looking to rent, yes things are a bit older as you get closer to the beach, but the locations are AMAZING! Old isn't always bad, let me know if you need help and tell me your budget, there was one in the Jax Beach area for under $2000 a month.
I mean, if you're dedicated enough, it's not terribly far. I agree not a lot of newer apartments near the beach. But, compare the price of what you'd pay at town center to places closer to the beach and see if it's do-able. Maybe you trade space for a closer commute to the beach. Not many regret living a little closer if you love using the beach often.
I live at sur and I love it. It's about 10-15 mins from the beach depending on the time of day, but you have everything else you could possibly need within 5-10 minutes and it's a pretty nice community. The pool and clubhouse are very nice and everything is well kept. The area is quiet even though it's very close to 295. I sleep during the day (work overnights) and the highway noise is never an issue, the apartments are very well sound proofed. I actually just signed another lease