Most people who’ve heard about Fort Lauderdale probably know about it for the warm Florida weather, beaches, and its old-school reputation for Spring Break. While it certainly is a coastal paradise and that shouldn’t be downplayed, it’s important to point out that’s not all it has to offer. Like to hit the links? Great, it has plenty of highly rated courses and chances are the weather will hold. Want to go out for a nice dinner? Lauderdale has some of the best restaurants in the state with a wide variety of options. Want to party? There’s still a jumping nightlife scene. It’s also extremely family-friendly, especially when compared to neighboring Miami, with a never-ending list of things you can do with the whole family (i.e. museums, amusement parks, etc.) and solid public schools. Fort Lauderdale is also aptly called “The Venice of America” due to all of the canals threading the city, so you’ll never be too far from the water even if you’re not living near the beach!

On the downside, whether it’s spring break or the middle of January, the beaches, streets, and roads are packed with tourists coming to enjoy the weather here and escape winter up north. This can be overwhelming for those from smaller and more spread-out communities.

More than just a Sunny Beach

LookyLOO Review of Fort Lauderdale?

Ft. Lauderdale is not cheap. The average listing price of a home is over $500k but that money goes a long way relative to bigger cities. The neighborhoods here are a mix of new and old with condos and apartment buildings offering rental options to counter the newer mega-homes and tasteful historical homes for those looking to buy. 

Victoria Park is one of the grooviest places to live around downtown. It’s filled with beautifully restored historic homes, many on the Intracoastal Waterway, with a “diverse and tolerant” (from the community’s website) population. 
Colee Hammock is a walkscore treasure with a mix of condos, apartments, great new homes, and beautiful old residences all a short walk to restaurants, theater, art galleries, museums, and the Atlantic Ocean!  

Finally, consider looking at The Isles if living on water is important to you. Fort Lauderdale is the “Venice Of America” because of inland waterways throughout the city and this neighborhood is lined with waterfront properties whose residents enjoy speedboats, kayaks, sailboats, and easy waterway access to the ocean. 

To see all the happenings in Fort Lauderdale check out the [calendar of events](https://www.fortlauderdale.gov/visitors/event-calendar). 

We highly recommend visiting Fort Lauderdale and staying in the community in a [VRBO](https://vrbo.com/affiliate/p4JS4ZC) rather than a hotel to get a feel for what it's like to live among the locals. You can receive discounted fares on travel via our [partnership with Expedia](expedia.com/affiliate/9NZ8LBQ) as well.


A Palace or a Pantry

Lifestyle 

Whether you’re looking for somewhere nice to work remotely, somewhere nice to raise your growing family, or somewhere nice to retire (Ft. Lauderdale consistently ranks in the top 5 best places to retire for a reason), the warm weather, bigger city amenities, and beaches of Fort Lauderdale have something for you.

Great for All Ages

Why You Should Move Here Now?

**Jag-**
9mo ago
🦉🦉🦉

Moved here from NYC over 25 years ago to start a family and raised 2 kids here. Yes it is much more chill/relaxing than NYC. I always felt rushed and stressed in NYC, that ended when i left. As others said, FL is changing and is already much more expensive than it had ever been, so make sure you can handle those costs with a lower salary than NY. Also this is literally the best time of year. Humidity and temps are low. The summer is brutal and can last into October. I won’t say don’t do it but definitely do your research before anything else.

For more reviews of what living in Fort Lauderdale is like from locals, check out [**The Reviews**](https://lookyloomove.com/locations/fort-lauderdale/reviews).


Reviews of Fort Lauderdale from Locals 

**The Best Thing About Fort Lauderdale?** - More than just a Sunny Beach

Most people who’ve heard about Fort Lauderdale probably know about it for the warm Florida weather, beaches, and its old school reputation for Spring Break. While it certainly is a coastal paradise and that shouldn’t be downplayed, it’s important to point out that’s not all it has to offer. Like to hit the links? Great, it has plenty of highly rated courses and chances are the weather will hold. Want to go out for a nice dinner? Lauderdale has some of the best restaurants in the state with a wide variety of options. Want to party? There’s still a jumping nightlife scene. It’s also extremely family friendly, especially when compared to neighboring Miami, with a never ending list of things you can do with the whole family (i.e. museums, amusement parks, etc.) and solid public schools. Fort Lauderdale is also aptly called “The Venice of America” due to all of the canals threading the city, so you’ll never be too far from the water even if you’re not living near the beach!

**The Worst Thing About Fort Lauderdale?** - Sharing is Despairing

Whether it’s summer break or the middle of February, the beaches, streets, and roads are packed with tourists coming to enjoy the weather here and/or escape the weather up north. This can be overwhelming for those from smaller and more spread out communities and is something to be aware of. 

**How You Living?** - A Palace or a Pantry
	
Ft. Lauderdale is not cheap. Average listing price of a home is over $500k but that money goes a long way relative to bigger cities. The neighborhoods here are a mix of new and old with condos and apartment buildings offering rental options to counter the newer mega-homes and tasteful historical homes for those looking to buy. 

Victoria Park is one of the grooviest places to live around downtown. It’s filled with beautifully restored historic homes, many on the Intracoastal Waterway, with a “diverse and tolerant” (from the community’s website) population. 

Colee Hammock is a walkscore treasure with a mix of condos, apartments, great new homes, and beautiful old residences all a short walk to restaurants, theater, art galleries, museums and the Atlantic Ocean!  

Finally, consider looking at The Isles if living on water is important to you. Fort Lauderdale is the “Venice Of America” because of its inland waterways and this neighborhood is lined with waterfront properties whose residents enjoy speedboats, kayaks, sailboats and easy waterway access to the ocean. 

**Why You Should Move Here Now?** - Great for All Ages

Whether you’re looking for somewhere nice to work remotely, somewhere nice to raise your growing family, or somewhere nice to retire (Ft. Lauderdale consistently ranks in the top 5 best places to retire for a reason), the warm weather, bigger city amenities, and beaches of Fort Lauderdale have something for you. 


Downtown rules for the young and ready to be social in Fort Lauderdale. Plenty of apartments, condos and townhomes for rent or purchase are a plenty. Astride the living options sit a rich bounty of great restaurants, nice and cheap bars and pubs, theaters, museums, and also several great parks for stretching those legs on the weekends. 
- Downtown
- Middle River Terrace


Young Professionals

Downtown

Just north of Downtown is Middle River Terrace. A growing neighborhood with slightly more interesting housing options than Downtown. Bungalows, and Mid-Century Modern homes are available for relatively good prices when you’re ready to step up. It’s also filled with boutique shops, cool restaurants and plenty of bars and clubs for getting out. 
- Middle River Terrace
- Rio Vista


DINKs/SINKs

Middle River Terrace

Sebastian Street Beach is the famous “gay beach” in Fort Lauderdale Beach. It is part of a stretch of LGBTQ+ friendly hotels, shops and restaurants and the center of day and night time social. North Beach is a neighborhood poised to become the hottest LGBTQ+ area in the city. Tons of community owned and supportive shops, bars and restaurants mean you can live and thrive to your heart’s content. https://www.outcoast.com/lgbtq-friendly-places-to-live-in-florida/
- Sebastian Street Beach
- North Beach


LGBTQ+

Sebastian Street Beach

If being near the beach is important to you then check out Coral Ridge. Just a short walk to the beaches on Barrier Island, the community is filled with great single-family homes and some condo/apartments as well if you’re just getting started on the family journey. If you want to crank up the fancy check out Coral Ridge Country Club Estates. One of the most beautiful neighborhoods in the city, it is primarily luxury homes although it has some condos and apartment buildings if you crave being in the golf world but aren’t ready for the posh pad. 
- Coral Ridge
- Coral Ridge Country Club Estates
- Birch Park Finger Streets
- Bal Harbour


Families

Coral Ridge

It wouldn’t be Florida if there weren’t great options for retirees. Victoria Park is a wonderful upscale community, near the beach and popular activities like Holiday Park, Parker Playhouse and Birch State Park (Fort Lauderdale’s Central Park). The neighborhood has great walkability to all of these attractions as well as plenty of restaurants, cafes and shopping. Las Olas Isles is another incredible option for empty nesters and retirees. Estates line the waterfront and you have direct access to white sand beaches, year-round community events and complete privacy for those looking to avoid the tourist crowds. 
- Victoria Park 
- Las Olas Isles 


Retirees

Victoria Park

Fort Lauderdale

**Jag-**
9mo ago
🦉🦉🦉

Moved here from NYC over 25 years ago to start a family and raised 2 kids here. Yes it is much more chill/relaxing than NYC. I always felt rushed and stressed in NYC, that ended when i left. As others said, FL is changing and is already much more expensive than it had ever been, so make sure you can handle those costs with a lower salary than NY. Also this is literally the best time of year. Humidity and temps are low. The summer is brutal and can last into October. I won’t say don’t do it but definitely do your research before anything else.

**Anonymous**
1y ago
🦉🦉🦉

My boyfriend got offered a job in an industry he’s been trying to get into , 60k more than what he was making at home and potential for even more. We’ve also both always wanted to live somewhere warm year round and by the ocean! His job is actually in Miami but we wanted a more toned down city, so we came to FLL. But honestly at least coming from Chicago, prices aren’t that crazy here! Don’t get me wrong, not cheap by any means but from another big city nothing crazy. Chicago was more expensive in a lot of ways. Many things such as groceries and gas is cheaper and rent is pretty much the same maybe slightly higher. Utilities are cheaper here. Also not being taxed on groceries and gas is super nice. No more state income tax as well. There’s been many perks for us

**Him-Dunkcan212121**
1y ago
🦉🦉🦉

So a couple things.. overall, the feel down here is very suburban. There is obviously a downtown area in downtown Fort Lauderdale but in my opinion, the apartments down there are very overpriced (similar to overpriced apartments in Midtown or Buckhead).

My recommendation for cities are many of what you named: Davie, Plantation, Sunrise, Weston, Miramar, and Pembroke Pines. Start there. These will give you that suburban feel (very much like a less-busy Sandy Springs).

Do you have a car? We know Marta is no NYC subway but at least it’s something. Down here, public transportation is very difficult to navigate. Not impossible but just very difficult so my recommendation is to have a car if that’s possible for you.

In terms of budget, I think you’ll be able to find a nice 1br/1ba for 1.7k - 2k. It may take some researching online but they’re out there.

**Critical-Dog-4448**
1y ago
🦉🦉🦉

Fort Lauderdale is significantly better than Miami. You got all the big city amenities in Broward but it’s just “ more chill “ enough to bring your blood pressure down a bit the further north you go on I-95. If you need to go to Miami it’s about an hour to get there and for some reason only 40 minutes to get back.

*Moving to Fort Lauderdale, Florida | 4 things you NEED to know about living in FT. Lauderdale FL*

Fort Lauderdale, Florida

Ft. Laudy Daudy

Looklyloo Score: 88