# Florida: Stuart or Jupiter



## Amazing Grace (Feb 19, 2012)

Hi, I'm considering other places to live, and would like your opinion on Stuart vs. Jupiter in Florida.

We enjoy sailing - it is a major aspect of our lives. Offshore. Spend lots of spare time on the boat; sailing or maintenance of some sort.

I was told Stuart or Jupiter is a good place to sail, affordable, good weather, not overly crowded and chaotic (as I'm told Ft. Lauderdale is) and nice to live. I am not familiar with anywhere in Florida at all. 

What are your thoughts? Is there somewhere else in Florida that can meet the criteria above that you would recommend?

What are the yacht marinas like?

Really appreciate your input. Thank you.


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## night0wl (Mar 20, 2006)

Jupiter isn't really affordable on the water...


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## PBzeer (Nov 11, 2002)

Do you want a place to dock the boat, or live on it?


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## Amazing Grace (Feb 19, 2012)

Hi,

John, looking for somewhere to live on land, and berth the yacht in a marina. Sorry, should have made that clear from the onset.

Many thanks


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## PBzeer (Nov 11, 2002)

That helps, but it brings up a few more questions.

Own or rent a home?

Will you be working? So do you need to be near someplace specific?

You say offshore, for day sails, or with a destination? Or a combination?

Thing with Florida ... it ain't cheap. Plus there's those naughty old hurricanes (and the insurance that goes with them).

If you're not familiar with Active Captain you might want to check it out for navigational info for the areas you're interested in. I should note here that the Inlets by Jupiter and Stuart are marginal, at best (and ones I wouldn't use). ( Jupiter Inlet the most dangerous inlet in Palm Beach County area ) You really should go north to Ft Pierce, or south to Lake Worth. Ft Pierce has less commercial shipping than Lake Worth, it's mostly all recreational/fishing craft.

Basically, it all depends on how you'll be using the boat, and if you need to be near a certain area.


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## Amazing Grace (Feb 19, 2012)

Extremely helpful - thank you. I've always been under the impression that Florida was a more affordable place to live in regards to buying a home (especially compared to Hawaii and Auckland, for example. Both places I've lived / live). I don't know about Florida's cost of living other than there is no state income tax? But the initial appeal is the accessibility to wonderful destinations like Bahamas, BVIs, USVI (we are bluewater cruisers, but land locked for now), cost of living (so I thought), warm(er) weather. Hence, my initial research on Florida as a possible next destination to live. Maybe not??

Thanks again for your input - I really appreciate it. It's really very helpful.


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## CaptainForce (Jan 1, 2006)

St. Lucie Inlet near Stuart is OK, but Jupiter and Hillsborough Inlets are not reliable. Fort Lauderdale, Jupiter, Daytona and St. Augustine have nothing to offer for a quick afternoon of sailing,- everything is offshore. Miami and the Keys give you both casual protected bays and offshore with easy access to the Bahamas. The Indian River area (Cocoa, Melbourne, Titusville) have less cost and a good inlet at Port Canaveral. I like the St. Johns River south of Jacksonville for hurricane protection. There's good sailing there, less expense and a good inlet, but further to offshore and the islands. Take care and joy, Aythya crew


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## PBzeer (Nov 11, 2002)

Florida is definitely cheaper than Hawaii. And housing will generally be cheaper the further you are from the water. 

Ft Pierce, which has an excellent (IMHO) inlet, straight, wide and deep, and about an hour from docks to open water. It's an overnight hop from Miami. 

Miami has two Inlets. The Government cut which is what all the commercial and cruise shipping use, and Cape Florida (the one I use).

Lake Worth (Palm Beach area) is between the two, and a popular jump off point to the Bahamas.

If what you're looking for is more of a base, from which to go on long trips, you might want to look further north.


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## bigdogandy (Jun 21, 2008)

Grace - if you need to work to make a living, be sure to research the local jobs situation before you decide on a place to live. I lived in Key Largo for years, and that is, in my opinion, by far the best place in Florida to keep a sailboat because there is great sailing locally, it's easy to get to and from the Bahamas, and the diving, snorkling, fishing, etc. is awesome. The drawback is that there is virtually no work unless you wait tables, work on a dive boat, or clean rooms in one of the hotels.....

The Miami and Ft. Lauderdale areas are incredibly congested on land and on the water, and they are the most expensive places to keep a boat. Ft. Pierce is great, the Merritt Island / Port Canaveral area is good, and most of the towns on the west coast from Tampa south to Naples are great places to live and sail as well.

Also - check out Craigslist as a source for dockage in the areas you are interested in. You can find some great deals there on slips at small marinas or at private residences.


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## hellosailor (Apr 11, 2006)

Grace, there are pros and cons to Florida and it is a very popular place to die, ergh, live. The "Gold Coast" on the SE, the Tampa area on the NW, there are many different areas with different pros and cons. 

No state tax--but low state services. Lots of highway drownings because there are drainage canals and lakes all over--and few barriers to the traffic, because safety barriers can't be built without tax money. A number of the more respectable newspapers call it "FloriDUH" because some things are just so "unique" to the state.

Near a coast? You may have flooding problems that close to sea level. Some places (Chicago, Seattle) raised their downtowns by ten feet (literally) to solve that over a hundred years ago. Florida? Lots of open drainage canals and accept flooding. As the recently appoint RC Archibishop for Miami said two years ago, it was nice to be appointed to someplace so close to the continental United States.

Also, you'll need a car, there's very little public transportation, and it tends to come and go with budget cycles. A bus stop can also be a nasty place to be in 90F heat and 80% humidity.

So where you want to live, and why, there's a lot more than housing costs to consider--unless you're just planning to retire and die somewhere that's cheap, because there are no state taxes. So far.

This is not to put down Florida, just to say, be careful what you wish for. It really has to be experienced to be appreciated. If you can find any books by Carl Hiassen, he's a long-time serious award winning journalist with the Miami Herald. Read his books, you'll say what a farce, could never be. Ah, nope. That's FloriDUH. Can't make that stuff up.


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## CaptainForce (Jan 1, 2006)

hellosailor said:


> ................This is not to put down Florida, just to say,......... That's FloriDUH. Can't make that stuff up.


'sounds like a contradiction to me, but then if I were in Chicago or Seattle I wouldn't know how to stay in the most pleasant surroundings either.

I left Ft. Pierce off my list and, as PBeezer claims, the inlet is excellent; however, like Daytona, St. Augustine and Lauderdale the only sailing is offshore and the currents can be troublesome. You'll find the same pros and cons of big city and rural choices that are made everywhere. Take care and joy, Aythya crew


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## Boatsmith (May 3, 2009)

It would depend upon your work situation and what you mean by saling. There is very little racing in either location. If you want to race then almost any other location in FL has more than Palm Beach county. Jupiter is the northern edge of Palm beach county. There is a little green space(20miles) and then Stuart to the north. There is dinghy racing in both areas. If you wantto day sail a small cruiser there is moresailing water in Stuart due to the river and the ICW. Shallow draft is relly helpful. The sailingcommunity is healthier in Fort Lauderdale, Miami and the Tampa Bay area. From Palm Beach (Lake Worth) Abacos are a scant 50 miles away.


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## jzk (Feb 25, 2008)

I happen to really enjoy the Jupiter/Palm Beach area. The sailing is offshore. However, there are many really cool places to drop the hook like peanut island, etc. Many many sailors just keep their boats at anchor in these areas. It is also a great place to go about in your dinghy. From Jupiter you can go west a bit and travel up the Loxahatche which is an unbelievable place where you are certain to see gators. 
Fort Lauderdale does have a great sailing community. If you visit there, you can anchor in Lake Sylvia.


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## Amazing Grace (Feb 19, 2012)

Thanks all; I really appreciate all of your feedback. Gives me lots to think about. Carl Hiassen; love his books. I'm sure I've read them all. Such a hoot! 

All this feedback has given me lots of material to do some more research. 

No doubt more questions thereafter. 

Many thanks again.


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## ppiccolo1 (Aug 6, 2011)

Amazing Grace, I've spent the last 3 "summers" in the Bay of Islands and have lived in Florida for a couple of years and travel there extensively. I'm going to speak in regards to cost of living and work situation, since I'm new to sailing (although we won the rum race at Opua last week, wooohooo!) Employment opportunities are going to be best in the major metropolitan areas. Being from Auckland, that shouldn't matter too much.? Cost of living is substantially cheaper in FL than NZ in every regard. You can find high rent areas anywhere, but your options will be far more varied. I would recommend Tampa-Clearwater or Ft. Lauderdale-Miami. That of course depends on what you do? If you are a restaurant manager, there isn't a town in FL that you won't find work (the Keys?). Moorings, however aren't $20 a week, but everything else certainly is cheaper. BTW I just paid $20 for a 12 pack of MGD and it was $10 off guys... Knowing your career will definitely lead to better advice though


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## smurphny (Feb 20, 2009)

Ft. Pierce Inlet is a class A inlet. I would not plan on using any of the other local inlets around the Stuart area except in flat conditions. Even Ft. Pierce can get nasty when wind and tide oppose.


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## wduncan50 (Aug 31, 2007)

Amazing Grace, as stated before the Coccoa Beach, Cape Canaveral area is nice. I keep my boat here at the Port Canaveal Yacht Club a great club and much more affrdable than most yacht clubs. 

For sailing it take me around 10 minutes to get into the Atlantic, but if the weather is bad it can take around a hour or so to get into the ICW due to one lock and two draw bridges. 

Housing in this area is most affordable due to the economy and the shut down of the space program.


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## Amazing Grace (Feb 19, 2012)

Hello! I work in the corporate world now. Sounds like not much of that where I may be looking. I've also worked on luxury yachts and charter yachts as mate and chef. So I imagine Ft. Lauderdale may have some of those opportunities. 

I've not sailed inlets before (long rivers in Australia and NZ do oot count) and it sounds a bit daunting to me. I prefer the ocean and gulf sailing. 

ppiccolo1: Not a great summer this year was it? And autumn came in with a blast with the gale last night. Skydiving - very cool. I enjoy that more than bungy, that's for sure!

smurphny: Thanks again for the info. I need to investigate more on inlet sailing.

Will: I'll surf the net and check out the places you've mentioned.

Thanks again all. Really appreciate the info. I'm thinking I need to do more research on the gulf side too. perhaps more of the type of sailing I'm looking for? Cheers.


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## hellosailor (Apr 11, 2006)

Grace, you may find sailing out of Florida's coasts problematic. If you're not a US citizen, every time you wander offshore, ther you go, may need to formally re-enter again. You might want to make sure about that before you make plans. Sometimes border policies (anywhere) can get messy.


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## smurphny (Feb 20, 2009)

hellosailor said:


> Grace, you may find sailing out of Florida's coasts problematic. If you're not a US citizen, every time you wander offshore, ther you go, may need to formally re-enter again. You might want to make sure about that before you make plans. Sometimes border policies (anywhere) can get messy.


That's something to think about for sure. I don't know whether Grace can get a "local boater" option from Homeland Security. Probably the folks to check with are DTOPS. Florida also has its own set of registration rules. They don't allow documented vessels without state registrations. I don't know how the rules apply to foreign registered boats but you'll need to check with Florida DMV. Florida also has a proficiency requirement now which can be obtained online.


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## hellosailor (Apr 11, 2006)

murph, I'm not thinking about the boat or boat registration, but rather that someone is going to say "Yes, well, you left the country, now you need to reapply to reenter, your visa didn't cover multiple entries."

Ah, yeah....they're especially uptight about that in Florida. I'd expect that as long as you stay inside the 12? mile limit? they might consider that you haven't left the country, but hop offshore to the Bahamas, or out into the Gulf...I have no idea what the visa regs are. The only aliens I know are in Area51 and they only answer to the MIB. (G)


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## Amazing Grace (Feb 19, 2012)

Hellosailor! It's a very good point. I have US citizenship, so this should not be a problem. The challenging part is finding a place that fits my needs.

Cheers


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## ppiccolo1 (Aug 6, 2011)

And with a chef/cooking backround, you can work ANYWHERE in Florida.


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## floridajaxsailor (Aug 4, 2010)

Some hilarious sections above, ah our beloved Florida so filled with duality
and so much wonderful advice

Florida ABSOLUTELY IS one of the cheapest places to buy a house in the US, however, the cost of transportation, lack of public transportation, and as the above Largo poster pointed out, lack of jobs makes it especially odd. There is also the issue of huge crime in many areas, this especially so within this recession. Transient central with almost zero sense of neighbors looking out for neighbors, enough to make some flee after a month. Our area of Miami has many homeless making a pilgrimage to the beach each night to sleep, and this is true with many eastern cities in Florida. I like the comments on Ft Pierce a lot, plus one of the biggest seatrout ever swam there for years before being caught. Check out the FWC records for fish in Florida.
-JD


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## jentine (Sep 4, 2000)

Fort Pierce and West Palm Beach are the best outlets in the area. I would look at a place where I could come and go with the least time in the ICW.

Jim


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## Slippydiq (Jun 11, 2012)

Check out Titusville beats both on all accounts


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## souljour2000 (Jul 8, 2008)

Slippydiq said:


> Check out Titusville beats both on all accounts


North of Titusville and then through haulover canal into Mosquito Lagoon is a cool place to sail smaller boats...not much quick access to the Atlantic ocean from Titusville..fastest way is down and thru barge canal at canaveral then out the Canaveral cut...probably 15-18 miles before your in the Atlantic even from South Titusville. Titusville is a nice area on the whole..and affordable. Stuart or Jupiter? I'd go to Stuart...been there once 15 years ago and liked it alot...same with port St Lucie, Vero beach Titusville...south of Stuart I would not care to live until you hit Key Largo...


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## teejayevans (Jul 10, 2005)

Stuart is a nice town, you can sail on the St. Lucie river if you have a smaller boat, the inlet was just dredged but I still wouldn't use it in the strong onshore winds. Florida gets more expensive as you head south, Jupiter is the boundary line where things start rising quickly. Floriduh came about because of the recount in the election of 2000, it's no worst than any other state and much better than some. 
Tom


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## ParadiseParrot (Oct 6, 2010)

The Working enviroment is "unique" to be sure. The State doesn't really enforce workplace laws. Forced free overtime etc are common.Fraud with trade people is rampant.You have to watch your back every second. It has a feel of a foreign country in many ways especially when dealing with the police(Federallies). The weather is nice and the rest you will develop ways of dealing with it or not.
Many many new residents leave screaming after a year here.


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## LoboPops (Jul 28, 2012)

Not sure how good St. Pete and Tampa are now. Used to live in Tampa.


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## cherev (Sep 6, 2000)

Floridians call the poor employment and pay situation the 'Sunshine tax'. You must have some independent means of support or own a Red Lobster franchise. A geriatric medical qualification might work. Plenty of demented people have settled into Florida to endlessly tell us about how things are done better Up North.

Like paying more taxes, albeit with sorry incomes, buys public amenities... Those who get liquored or drugged up, and then speed down dead-end roads into canals just thin out that herd.

However, the recent property bubble had made waterfront properties quite reasonable in West Florida circa 2010. The prices may be well on their way back up, but I've seen ads for pretty nice houses at circa $55K. There was also a stripping problem, which I doubt has lessened greatly.

I.e., a house looks fine from the sidewalk (if there is any) but on entering you find the wiring was pulled from the walls, the A/C is missing, and the appliances are long gone. Anything that can be sold for scrap got looted while the house was in the hands of those (expletive, deleted) banks.

From Sarasota on down to Naples, there are many properties on canals, and you can live in a house with its own dock. On Pine Island (St. James City) there are fairly deep canals behind all sorts of properties, from cabins to McMansions. At Matlacha and like places, where a road crosses to an island or waterfront community, there are often properties either right on a waterfront or very near docks.

Avoid Manatee County; hostile and greedy folk along those waterways.

Marinas are in an ever-tightening government-imposed bind that discourages them from hosting any live-aboards, and anyway the Northeast infestation resents folk having the Florida life-style without paying high real-estate taxes.


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## ftldiver (Sep 9, 2002)

WELCOME TO FLORIDA

now please leave!

-it had to be said. its in the rules..... 


Ft Pierce city marina. jensen beach/hutchingson island to live.


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## hellosailor (Apr 11, 2006)

Haha.

Ever notice the way Florida is shaped like a stand-alone ATM machine?

Please deposit your money--_and then _leave.


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## sck5 (Aug 20, 2007)

by the way - OP mentioned easy access to the BVI's as one of the good things about Florida. Well, not really. You can get there from FL if you are willing to beat 600 miles to windward against the trades. I dont have the appetite for that, nor the time, nor does my boat carry enough fuel for the parts where wind and current slow you down to near zero progress. People do it but I wouldnt call it fun.


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