I have friends down there (Jensen Beach) and it's on my list of places to move to.  They love it down there and say the Sheriff will sign off on anything that is legal under Federal Law.  

I don't care about no stinkin' job except maybe part-time to pay for ammo for an M60.  

TIA

My friend who lives in Jensen Beach along the Indian River made out OK but he lost his dock which was damaged when Francis came through.  The family has three houses down there and one of them is going to need a new roof.  Hope the rest of you guys in the area made out OK too.

When you guys get back online let me know what you think of the area.

Martin County is great, nice police, 1 speed trap, its really a nice place to live. Indoor shooting range in Jensen, police range in palm city, down the road from me( requires membership, but is all NFA friendly!) and then one in okeechobee which is like 8 bucks an hour per station. You'll like it here. The damage from the storms were pretty bad in places, mostly the older wooden homes, mines stucco. Gun stores arent that good, jensen beach store is ok. There is a pawnshop  that i frequent in stuart where the guy builds fals and other cutsom work, applied for manufacture license to build MGs, so waitin for that. He's on this board. And yes, sheriff will sign off on anything. And yes, please bring the M60

Thanks 1BMF.  

Can anyone else who lives or is familiar with Martin County tell me about the area.  I'm mostly interested in real estate/housing costs and desirable areas/neighborhoods or areas to avoid.  TIA

I'm not too familiar with that area of the state, but once your in the west palm beach north area, your pretty good to go. Remember when you look at the houses go during the day, evening and at night to get a true feel of the house.....a shitty neighborhood can seem decent during the daytime and OK evening, but sometimes its the nightly activities that make all the difference.

Quoted: I'm not too familiar with that area of the state, but once your in the west palm beach north area, your pretty good to go. Remember when you look at the houses go during the day, evening and at night to get a true feel of the house.....a shitty neighborhood can seem decent during the daytime and OK evening, but sometimes its the nightly activities that make all the difference.

Thanks that's good advice.

Martin/St Lucie Co is nice but has grown ALLOT in the last 25yrs. As a matter of fact it has gotten so big that I just got back in town from a 2wk house hunting trip to Georgia and hopfully will be bailing out in spring.

The town used to be very conservitive but now is about 50/50. Most of the gunshops are "ok" but I have issuses with most of them after doing business with them for so long so I usualy only buy and sell thru private party and there is lots of stuff around. As far as ranges There is Self Defence which is actual in PSL and they SUCK BIG TIME. You can also join MCSA(Martin County Sportsmans Assn), it use to be a great place to shoot but has become a PITA as of late but is still the best thing going, they also have two IPSC shoots a month and one cowboy shoot a month. MCSO's range is nextdoor and to the best of my knowlage they do not allow nonLE to shoot unless you know someone, as a matter of fact they use our rifle range for SRT training. There is a range in Okeechobee but I have never been there. There is a state run range in Vero Beach that is nice but it is a drive to get to, rumor is that they are putting in a couple 1000yrd lanes but don't quote me. And last the PBSO has a range down on Twenty Mile Bend that they open to the public a couple times a month.

As far as growth, the area used to be real small town but know is over 400k(Martin/St Lucie). When I built the house I now live in 10yrs ago it cost $72k with the land, I am going to list it in Jan and will  have no problem moving it for $225k+. I forget the exact numbers but there are like 80 house closings a week in Martin/St Lucie. All the growth is from people moving up from Dade/Broward tired of the rat race, people from PB County willing to commute and Yankees moving down from the great white north.

I should also mention the area is VERY seasonal, due to the growth explosion traffic is heavy year round and gets twice as bad Jan thru May

It is still a nice place to live but has become way to big for my taste.

HTH

Thanks Swamp_Rat.  

That's the kind of things I need to hear.  That's what I'm trying to flee from!  Houses in my area that were in the 70K range when initially built are going for 500K - 650K or more.  Low interest rates have created a buying frenzy everywhere.  

I live in Jensen Beach, it's a great town to live in. I've been a Martin County resident for 32 years, so I've seen a lot of change here. While the rest of the area has gone nuts with growth, Jensen Beach hasn't kept up the same pace (away from the US 1 area that's called "Jensen Beach" that is). Yes, there's been growth in Jensen Beach, but someone who hadn't been there in 20 years would still have no trouble getting around. Things would still look very familiar to them. Real estate in Martin County is very high compared to St. Lucie County to the north, but isn't nearly as bad as further south in Broward and Dade counties. Some areas of south Stuart and Port Salerno aren't too desirable as places to live, but for the most part there are nice areas all over Martin County. Martin County trades places each year with Palm Beach County for the county with the highest unearned income in the state. In other words, the people who live there are wealthy, living off the earnings from their wealth. That bodes well for future property values, and standards of living.

I know the Sheriff personally and he is a good guy. He's a former Marine and he runs a good Department.

Shooting facilities in the area go from the indoor range in Port St. Lucie about 8 miles north of Jensen, to the Martin County Sportsmen's Association Range in Palm City next to the county landfill. The range I like to shoot at is in Indian River County to the north. Although it's a haul to get there (a little over an hour away) it's a first class range and it is inexpensive to use as well.

I don't know what you're used to as far as housing costs go, but if you can afford to buy in Martin County, your investment will only continue to grow. My current home has gone up approximately 2 1/2 times in value since I bought it 9 years ago...and it wasn't exactly cheap then. I couldn't afford the house I live in if I had to buy it today.

As far as politics go, you can't get elected in Martin County unless you run as a Republican. The county is a conservative, which is just fine with me. The biggest problem we face is with traffic and the lack of area for new road construction to alleviate the congestion. It's too lengthy an explanation for this forum, so I'll leave it at that.

I hope that helps you a little...