Florida - What is St Petersburg REALLY like ?

Going over in a few week's time to check out a few condos around here and I'd be grateful for any honest opinions good or bad.

Thanks.

Going over in a few week's time to check out a few condos around here and I'd be grateful for any honest opinions good or bad.

Thanks.
Like most places it does depend on where you want to be located. The population is older, no denying, but the "God's Waiting Room" tag is a bit overstated.

Saying St Pete is like saying New York. Lot of different places. Do you mean St Pete proper, or are you considering areas around there like Treasure Island, Clearwater, Indian Rocks Beach, etc.?

City itself is not so great. Some of the waterfront areas are pretty nice.

Saying St Pete is like saying New York. Lot of different places. Do you mean St Pete proper, or are you considering areas around there like Treasure Island, Clearwater, Indian Rocks Beach, etc.?

City itself is not so great. Some of the waterfront areas are pretty nice.

Coquina Key ?

Downtown St. Pete is a pretty active city these days, and a nice place to live. Don't wander south of Central too much after dark, though, unless you know where you're going.

Not trying to scare you. South St Pete, addresses where the street is SOUTH instead of NORTH, have a reputation for being not the safest. Every city has this of course. Coquina Key is on the Bay in South St Pete. Getting there from I275 will take you through the 'questionable' neighborhoods, but Coquina Key, as are other locations in South St Pete, is generally fine.

You will find things in St Pete to be older, some of the original housing in the area. Small houses and lots of trailers.

Pinellas County is known for the oldest average aged residents.

But downtown St Pete has gone through some interesting changes over the years. A new Dali museum, the Indy race, lots of downtown waterfront activities.

St Pete, even Tampa and Clearwater, are middle of the road cities. No New York or Chicago. But no snow :)

Not trying to scare you. South St Pete, addresses where the street is SOUTH instead of NORTH, have a reputation for being not the safest. Every city has this of course. Coquina Key is on the Bay in South St Pete. Getting there from I275 will take you through the 'questionable' neighborhoods, but Coquina Key, as are other locations in South St Pete, is generally fine.

You will find things in St Pete to be older, some of the original housing in the area. Small houses and lots of trailers.

Pinellas County is known for the oldest average aged residents.

But downtown St Pete has gone through some interesting changes over the years. A new Dali museum, the Indy race, lots of downtown waterfront activities.

St Pete, even Tampa and Clearwater, are middle of the road cities. No New York or Chicago. But no snow :)




Yup, this is what we discovered.
Downtown St Pete is very pretty with some good restaurants and shops.
Coquina Key is also very attractive with some expensive property on the water.
Residents quickly outlined to us the questionable areas - particularly after dark - but it would appear the problems stayed in that area and not spilled over into the better areas.
As you say every city has this and it certainly wasn't enough to stop us bidding on a very tasty short-sale overlooking the bay.
Any views on Waterside at Coquina Key ?