NY To FL

[Aylerda]

Looking to make the move from local PD in
Buffalo area to South Florida - I’ve been looking into Ft lauderdale PD and Boca Raton - does anyone have any insight on these departments? What are the health benefits like? Has anyone from NY made the jump before and how difficult is it to find decent housing and is it affordable? Any insight at all would help

[ChiAmer]

Yeah, I just made the jump. The agency in South FL I applied to, paid for my EOT training, my State Exam that certifies you, my academy waiver, everything. I was a Police Officer with 4 years LEO in Upstate NY. They did everything in one week for me. Benefits are great, the pay is decent adn the OT is plentiful. A little lower than NY though but the weather and non-liberal BS is worth it.

[Aylerda]

How many trips did you make down there before you started EOT? and how difficult was it to find somewhere to live? I have my dog so I was trying to steer away from jumping into an apartment but it seems like houses are pretty expensive down there, which I’m sure taxes are different so it may offset a bit? Trust me escaping liberal NY and the weather is weighing heavily on this haha, climate for policing up here doesn’t seem to be getting any better

[ChiAmer]

How many trips did you make down there before you started EOT? and how difficult was it to find somewhere to live? I have my dog so I was trying to steer away from jumping into an apartment but it seems like houses are pretty expensive down there, which I’m sure taxes are different so it may offset a bit? Trust me escaping liberal NY and the weather is weighing heavily on this haha, climate for policing up here doesn’t seem to be getting any better

I left because of that exact reason, with bail reform, the laws are changing to restrict us more and more from doing our actual job. Down here, everything is arrestable for the most part and you'll never worry about snow and horrible weather again. It's great. So the reason I moved was because my parents found a condo down here to retire in, and I am living in it before they move down here full time in May so as far as living goes, I have a place until then to stay at and then I am going to find a house to purchase. Cost of living isn't that bad honestly, just know where to look in the county you want to work in. Every place has it expensive and less expensive places. No state income taxes and low taxes across the board are really friendly too.

I came down to the area when helping my parents decide where to live twice then once again for a week to finish my oral board interview, HR interview stuff, Poly, Psych, PT test etc, and I'm with an agency on the west coast of south FL so its a little less expensive too with that.

[Aylerda]

Thanks for the input man! Going to continue digging a little deeper so I can make a proper decision on where to land.

[FL_Leo]

I can tell you that Boca is a very very good department with a good rep. The money and pension are great as it is 20 and out. Boca will also pay for you to take EOT if hired, however with that being said they are very selective and hard to get on with.

[LEOfemaleV22]

Are you with Boca PD ?

[Aylerda]

To those working down in south FL right now - are ride alongs a thing right now during Covid or no? I wouldn’t mind being a fly on the wall for a tour of duty in a couple departments to get a better feel if it’s possible.

[FL_Leo]

I don’t think most departments are currently doing ride alongs

[Aylerda]

I don’t think most departments are currently doing ride alongs

Gotcha, thanks for the response.. with your experience in departments down there, are most of them unionized?

[griffinlocke]

Boca PD is a great agency to work for. Very high starting salary and low crime. Most of the time you are just pulling over some old guy in his Ferrari. But in all seriousness, great agency, just hard to get into if you do not have a lot of years exp under your belt or otherwise have some type of edge because of lot people transfer later on in their career because of the money and laid-back atmosphere (in terms of crime). FtL PD makes a lot too, however, you will have to jump on a long waiting list if you want to get into CID/SID because there are so many officers who are already in front of you (on the waiting list) and if you are new you will not be patrolling the beach or one of the nicer districts/zones (and some of the bad districts/zones can be pretty bad). That being said, there is still a lot more room for growth and/or specialties given the size of the dept. Look into BSO, they have raised their salary like 2 or 3 times over the past year and are apparently mass hiring now. Also check out Coral Springs, very similar to Boca PD. Good luck!

[Aylerda]

Boca PD is a great agency to work for. Very high starting salary and low crime. Most of the time you are just pulling over some old guy in his Ferrari. But in all seriousness, great agency, just hard to get into if you do not have a lot of years exp under your belt or otherwise have some type of edge because of lot people transfer later on in their career because of the money and laid-back atmosphere (in terms of crime). FtL PD makes a lot too, however, you will have to jump on a long waiting list if you want to get into CID/SID because there are so many officers who are already in front of you (on the waiting list) and if you are new you will not be patrolling the beach or one of the nicer districts/zones (and some of the bad districts/zones can be pretty bad). That being said, there is still a lot more room for growth and/or specialties given the size of the dept. Look into BSO, they have raised their salary like 2 or 3 times over the past year and are apparently mass hiring now. Also check out Coral Springs, very similar to Boca PD. Good luck!

Awesome will do, Thankyou!

[SJR1709]

I can answer any questions about Boca PD. Ft. Laud PD is good, but different. If "pulling over some old guy in his Ferrari" while getting paid the highest in the State is bad, well, I don't know what to tell you then lol. In all seriousness, I try not to ever be one of those people who say this or that place is the best. To me, the best is what's best for you. Just because Boca is the highest paid agency in FL (and will continue to be considering the new contract coming soon) and has an excellent pension with good benefits, doesn't mean it's what everyone wants. Property crime is high, while violent crime is much lower, but does happen. Ft. Laud PD is bigger, has pretty good pay and decent benefits. Being a larger, more metropolitan city, the crime rates, including violent crime are high. You'll get more regular "action" there than a place like Boca. Coral Springs PD is similar to Boca and is a good agency. Davie is good too. Sunrise, Plantation, and Delray are decent. BSO wouldn't be one of my personal top picks, but that's just my opinion. If you want a Sheriff's Office, PBSO (Palm Beach County) is a way much better agency. In fact, if it weren't for FRS (the state retirement), I'd probably recommend PBSO first. Unfortunately, FRS, which all State agencies, Sheriff's Offices, and some PD's, use for retirement, is terrible. A State Senator has actually also put forth a bill to try to change it to a 401K. Now, I hope and don't think that will happen, but FRS is still bad as it is. I know that making a huge, life changing, move like that one you are considering can be stressful, so I'm not about sugarcoating info. If you have specific questions and want specific answers, ask and I'll answer....good, bad, or indifferent. Also, agencies are not doing ride alongs due to covid. Yes, most, if not all, have unions. Best of luck.

[1063NYPD]

Would you happen to know anything about Coconut Creek PD ?

[SJR1709]

1063NYPD CCPD is good. It's a bit smaller, but still good. They use FRS for retirement which isn't that good, but overall, it's a good spot.

[Bidstar]

Never considered Florida in located in NY as well, now I might think about it. Boca PD sounds very tempting I may as well put my application in lol

[Aylerda]

I can answer any questions about Boca PD. Ft. Laud PD is good, but different. If "pulling over some old guy in his Ferrari" while getting paid the highest in the State is bad, well, I don't know what to tell you then lol. In all seriousness, I try not to ever be one of those people who say this or that place is the best. To me, the best is what's best for you. Just because Boca is the highest paid agency in FL (and will continue to be considering the new contract coming soon) and has an excellent pension with good benefits, doesn't mean it's what everyone wants. Property crime is high, while violent crime is much lower, but does happen. Ft. Laud PD is bigger, has pretty good pay and decent benefits. Being a larger, more metropolitan city, the crime rates, including violent crime are high. You'll get more regular "action" there than a place like Boca. Coral Springs PD is similar to Boca and is a good agency. Davie is good too. Sunrise, Plantation, and Delray are decent. BSO wouldn't be one of my personal top picks, but that's just my opinion. If you want a Sheriff's Office, PBSO (Palm Beach County) is a way much better agency. In fact, if it weren't for FRS (the state retirement), I'd probably recommend PBSO first. Unfortunately, FRS, which all State agencies, Sheriff's Offices, and some PD's, use for retirement, is terrible. A State Senator has actually also put forth a bill to try to change it to a 401K. Now, I hope and don't think that will happen, but FRS is still bad as it is. I know that making a huge, life changing, move like that one you are considering can be stressful, so I'm not about sugarcoating info. If you have specific questions and want specific answers, ask and I'll answer....good, bad, or indifferent. Also, agencies are not doing ride alongs due to covid. Yes, most, if not all, have unions. Best of luck.

What exactly is the difference between FRS and 401k? And would you happen to know how long the hiring process takes roughly for departments like FLPD Boca etc?

[SJR1709]

FRS you can either elect to be in the pension or the investment plan. The investment plan would be basically a 401k. Can take up to 6 months or as little as two.