Moving From New York to Miami? What Apartment Hunters Should Consider

Moving from New York to Miami sounds simple enough.

Trade winter coats for shorts. Give up the subway. Find an apartment near the water.

The reality is a little more complicated.

New York and Miami are both major cities with competitive rental markets, luxury apartment towers and neighborhoods with very different personalities. But the things that matter when choosing an apartment can change considerably when you move south.

If you’re thinking about making the move, here are some things worth considering before choosing a Miami apartment.

Your neighborhood decision may matter even more than you expect.

New Yorkers are accustomed to neighborhoods having distinct identities, and Miami is no different.

But Miami is geographically spread out in a way that can surprise someone coming from New York.

Brickell, Downtown Miami, Edgewater, Wynwood, Miami Beach and Coral Gables can all offer very different living experiences.

Before comparing buildings, figure out where you’ll actually spend your time.

Where will you work? Where are your friends? How often will you go to the beach? Do you expect to drive every day? Do you want restaurants and nightlife outside your door, or would you rather have a quieter residential environment?

The answers can dramatically narrow the search.

Think about transportation before signing a lease.

One of the biggest adjustments for many New Yorkers is transportation.

In New York, proximity to the right subway station can define an apartment search.

Miami requires a different calculation.

Depending on where you live and work, you may use Metrorail, Metromover, Brightline, rideshare services, walking or biking—but a car can become a much bigger part of everyday life.

That means parking is an apartment amenity worth investigating carefully.

Ask whether parking is included, assigned or additional. If you’re a two-car household, find out whether a second space is even available.

The building might look perfect on a map while creating a frustrating daily commute.

The building itself becomes important.

Miami has a significant inventory of high-rise residential buildings, particularly in areas such as Brickell, Downtown and Edgewater.

That makes building-level research useful.

Instead of starting with hundreds of individual apartment listings, start by identifying the buildings that fit your lifestyle.

How old is the building?

What amenities does it have?

Does it have a pool?

What is the parking situation?

Does it allow pets?

How does the location work for your commute?

Are there coworking areas if you work remotely?

Once you’ve narrowed down the buildings, today’s available apartments become much easier to evaluate.

That’s the idea behind MiamiApartmentBuildings.com: research the buildings first, then determine which available apartments deserve your attention.

Florida weather changes what matters in a building.

Yes, you’ll probably pay attention to the pool.

But weather considerations go considerably beyond that.

Miami apartment hunters should understand a property’s storm procedures, backup power arrangements, flood exposure and other hurricane-related considerations. Ask the building directly about its current policies and systems rather than making assumptions based on age or appearance.

Outdoor space is another consideration.

A beautiful balcony overlooking Biscayne Bay can be a completely different part of everyday life than a New York balcony that’s used only during certain parts of the year.

Don’t underestimate the value of shade and air conditioning.

Coming from New York, you might instinctively focus on sunlight.

In Miami, you’ll probably still appreciate a beautiful sunny apartment—but exposure can affect how a unit feels throughout the day.

Which direction does the apartment face?

How much direct afternoon sun does it receive?

How efficient are the windows?

How is the air-conditioning system configured?

These aren’t glamorous apartment-hunting questions.

After a few months in South Florida, they may feel considerably more important.

Understand what you’re renting.

Miami’s rental inventory can include professionally managed apartment communities as well as individually owned condominium units being offered for rent.

Those can be very different rental experiences.

A professionally managed apartment building typically has a centralized leasing and management operation.

Renting an individually owned condo may involve an individual landlord, property manager and potentially a condominium association with its own application process and rules.

Neither is inherently better.

Just understand which one you’re considering.

Building amenities can become part of your lifestyle.

In New York, location can sometimes outweigh almost everything else.

Pools, outdoor lounges, fitness facilities, coworking spaces, grilling areas, dog areas and waterfront spaces aren’t necessarily things you’ll use occasionally. You might use them constantly. That makes comparing buildings—not just apartments—particularly worthwhile.

Research Miami before you research today’s listings.

This may be the biggest lesson for someone moving from New York. Don’t begin by scrolling through hundreds of available apartments.

Start bigger. Choose the part of Miami that fits your life. Understand transportation. Decide whether you’ll have a car. Determine which amenities you’ll actually use. Then identify the apartment buildings that satisfy those requirements.

After that, start looking at availability. A listing tells you what unit is available today.

A building guide tells you something more important: whether you might actually want to live there.

That’s why we’re building MiamiApartmentBuildings.com.

Related reading

• Apartment hunting in New York vs Chicago — Why New York rents the apartment and Chicago rents the building.
• NYC apartment listing terms, decoded — Junior 4, classic six, flex, railroad, prewar, no-fee — term by term.
• Renting in New York with a dog: weight limits, fees and the pet law — Why pet deposits are illegal, why pet rent usually is not, and what the 90-day pet law covers.
• Search the building directory — Find a New York building by name or address, with the whole index on one map.