Yeshiva Communities in Florida

amother

Maroon

Sun, Feb 19 2017, 3:37 pm

Living in the NY area.

3 young children, yeshivish (send to BBY if that helps?) Dh is still in Kollel.

We are ready to make a change, and looking into different areas.

Aside from North Miami Beach, what other areas in Florida is there a strong yeshiva community?

Any info is greatly appreciated (even current info about NMB)

amother

Red

Sun, Feb 19 2017, 4:11 pm

NMB is probably your best bet.
Also look in MB, 41st street area, you have Rabbi Gross Kolel and Rabbi Zwieg Yeshiva and Kolel.
Housing is more expensive in MB.
Location, location, location.
NMB make sure your on a good block, more crime.

amother

Cyan

Mon, Feb 20 2017, 11:49 am

I currently live in NMB. Safety wise, things definitely have happened. It's not so crazy to have your car broken into, I would never walk alone at night, and it's important to keep your door locked. That being said, the frum Jews live in a very concentrated few block radius. So the area where the Jews are is a lot better. And you adapt, don't leave anything expensive in the car, always walk with others, etc.
I am not afraid to walk during the day or anything like that, but it's the type of place were you just have to be aware of your surroundings.

I did not grow up in a neighborhood like this, but we adapted very quickly and are very happy here! There are so many positive things abt NMB

amother

Maroon

Mon, Feb 20 2017, 12:33 pm

Interesting. I like the way you wrote your post cyan amother, it's exactly what I needed to hear.

I didn't grow up like that either and have no interest in living in such a place either. But you did adapt. And you say it's worth it. Can you tell me why?

Also, what schools do people send to, for girls and boys. My son will be going into first next year and my daughter the year after.

DH wants to look into a kollel there (any suggestions?)- so preferably schools that kollel families send to. How far away are they?

amother

Cyan

Mon, Feb 20 2017, 1:49 pm

amother wrote:

The community is very welcoming and friendly. It's a big mix of types and everyone is welcome. There is a relaxed atmosphere here as opposed to the daily grind and rush of an in town place (I'm from NY). I can think of 7 different shul options off the top of my head. The community in NMB also has two very strong pillars, the kollel and the yeshiva (yeshivas toras Chaim toras emes, it's a chofetz chaim) aside from the wonderful rabbeim in every shul.

There is only one kollel in north Miami Beach, so that's the one I would recommend Smile

Miami Beach has a couple kollelim but I don't know much about them.

There are two main schools that kollel minded families send to, and they are toras emes and yeshiva elementary. They are similar hashkafos, toras emes is in NMB and yeshiva elementary is in MB.

amother

Maroon

Mon, Feb 20 2017, 3:01 pm

You are convincing me Smile

DH has been asking around. He's heard the kollel is hard to get into, which is going to be a problem for us. Any idea if spots are opening?

Can you give me the names of some of the "concentrated streets" I should be looking at? What's the price of a typical house to buy?

I really appreciate all info. Thank you!

amother

Periwinkle

Mon, Feb 20 2017, 4:14 pm

My brother in law told me that most houses are in the threes. They live on 12th Ave and 175th Street, The shuls are on 10th and 171st 172nd. People live between 8th and 13th. It for sure is a very warm and welcoming community. Very simple oot. My sister was also from NY and adjusted right away as did her kids.

amother

Red

Mon, Feb 20 2017, 5:00 pm

amother wrote:

I haven't looked in a while, but house were close to $450-$500. Real Estate did go down though.

amother

Cyan

Mon, Feb 20 2017, 5:16 pm

I think periwinkle is correct about housing location, and pricing to my knowledge is in the 350-450k range. The kollel is located on the corner of NE 10th Ave and ne 175th st

The kollel is hard to get into officially, I can't help much there. I do know there are people who learn in the kollel but are not officially there so they don't receive a stipend (idk if this would work for you, but their wives are part of the kollel ladies, their husbands are involved, just they were never officially invited/accepted. They just joined on their own).

Good luck!!

m in Israel

Tue, Feb 21 2017, 8:02 am

amother wrote:

The summer months are very very hot , but not humid like ny. I think the coldest it gets in the winter is in the fifties at night, maybe rarely forties but it warms up very quickly.

Actually, NMB is extremely humid, with average relative humidity above 70% year-round (which is higher than NY, although NY is also pretty humid). The sun is also very strong which leads to a high "heat index" (I.e. it feels much hotter than it is). So even though the actual summer temperature usually isn't higher than the 90's, it can feel much worse. There is also a lot rain all year, although the summer is technically the "rainy season".

Dec. and January are beautiful, weather wise -- less rain, and cooler, but not freezing. The other 10 months are pretty awful. But the community is lovely, and hey, you don't need to shovel the humidity off your driveway, so that's something!

amother

Periwinkle

Tue, Feb 21 2017, 8:10 am

m in Israel wrote:

I guess its all relative. The people I know that live there (few families) tather the weather there to ny.

m in Israel

Tue, Feb 21 2017, 8:19 am

Many people prefer hot weather to cold weather. And as I said, it certainly is more convenient -- no bundling up with layers or shoveling snow. But the fact that the humidity is higher than in NY can be checked on any weather site -- it's a fact, not a matter of what you prefer Smile

Do the people that you know who live there stay in town for the summer? I admit to not being currently involved in the community now, but it definitely used to be that whomever could get away in the summer did -- and whomever stayed around spent as much time as possible in their air conditioned homes.