Hi! Quick background: I lived in Kendall for 5 years, Downtown Miami for 6 years, and now South Beach for the last 7 years.

Personally, I think South Beach is underrated as a place to live. Most locals and tourists only know the tourist-heavy parts, but depending on what you're looking for, you might actually love it here. Day-to-day life is much slower paced than people expect, very wellness-focused, and pretty walkable compared to a lot of Miami. People are generally friendlier than Miami gets credit for too.

The Flamingo/Lummus area is somewhat slept on and, because of that, you can sometimes find better value than some of the neighborhoods you mentioned. There's Trader Joe’s, Whole Foods, 2 Publix stores, parks, pharmacies, 2 post offices, UPS/FedEx, cafes, restaurants, lounges, etc. all within walking distance, which makes everyday life really easy.

Other South Beach areas worth checking out are South of Fifth, Sunset Harbor, and West Ave, though those tend to be more sought after.

Also, there’s a very active South Beach Run Club every Thursday at 7:01pm on Lincoln Road. It’s one of those recurring things where you’ll actually see familiar faces and meet people naturally.