I moved to Florida almost 8 years ago, after wanting to live here for years before that. Right between Clearwater and St. Petersburg in Pinellas County. No regrets! I was able to save up cash for years to buy my house in cash. Back after the housing bubble burst and the value of my home has went up by over $130k since then, which is like 70%-75% more than what I bought it for in 2010.
I make MUCH less money, but I don't have a mortgage/rent here. Just property taxes (which are astronomically lower than Jersey) and homeowners insurance, which is astronomically higher than in Jersey. Though my house is worth less than most places in North Jersey where I'm from, so it probably isn't much more per year.
I rode my bike from Manasquan to Asbury Park when I was 14. My grandmother lived down there, so I rode my bike from her house in Manasquan all the way to Asbury Park. I was reading maps at a really young age and I was able to navigate my way around places when I was probably 6-8 years old. I could always direct people in my family like my mom and my grandfather from the back seat on how to get around places if they were lost, from a really young age.
So I rode my bike up there 14. This was a LONG time ago. Like 1990? I was actually visiting around Christmas/New Years. I mostly stayed on ocean ave and the boardwalks. I got up to Asbury Park. It didn't look that scary to me. It was a bit scary for a 14 year old, almost in an exciting way. There was more paranoia than an authentic feeling of danger. I told my dad and my grandmother that I rode my bike there and my my adult cousins (my dad's cousins) all had this look on their face like I had dodged bullets by daring to ride a bicycle up to Asbury Park at 14 years old.
I would regularly go up there to shows when I got a little older. Like later into the 90's and early 00's. It was still a bit scary (not too scary), but it's pretty safe now.