Gitta's Orlando Real Estate Blog

You may have heard that Medical City is coming to Southeast Orlando but have you realized the impact it brings to the area? With the influx of medical research and care facilities as well as a college of medicine, the population in that area will be expanding tremendously. This could very well bring about a surge in real estate values, a much needed occurrence after the recent run of short-sales and foreclosures. What does that mean to you? It means time is running out for buying homes at the lowest prices we’ve seen locally in a decade. To give you an idea of what you’ll be seeing in Medical City, here’s a brief run-down of the new facilities going in: The Sanford-Burnham Institute for Medical Research, The University of Central Florida’s college of Medicine,VA Medical Center,The Nemours Children’s Hospital and The M.D. Anderson Orlando Cancer Research Institute.

All of these will be part of the Lake Nona development to include a new town center full of retail, dining, and entertainment venues as well as several new residential subdivisions, parks, an equestrian center, an aquatic center, and more. Medical City will be creating an estimated 30,000 jobs and $7.6 billion a year in economic activity over the next ten years. The 7,000 acre Lake Nona master-planned community is expected to eventually have 25,000 residents.

Currently, getting into the Lake Nona area is within reach of most people’s budgetary restrictions. A two-bedroom townhouse can be purchased for just over $100,000 with three-bedroom single-family homes starting as low as the $170′s with several options available in the $200,000 – $300,000 range. That being said, Lake Nona certainly offers many luxury options as well such as high-end condominiums, villas, and single-family estates priced as high as $6M. As Medical City continues to construct and open new facilities, Lake Nona continues to put up more housing, and people begin flooding the area… prices are only going up. Getting into the area now before the growth explosion and subsequent price increases will be the ONLY way for some people. Lake Nona is also an excellent investment opportunity for residential property owners looking to come in, purchase and hold, renting the properties out to medical students and facility staff.

The economic impact on Orlando is expected to exceed that begun in 1971, when Disney opened its doors. Disney currently employees over 60,000 individuals and continues to impact the Central Florida region with growth and development opportunities. As Medical City continues to grow, expand, and develop, it will result in long-term, stable, high-paying job opportunities and as such will continue to steadily rebuild the region’s real estate values.

Lake Nona is a residential community in Southeast Orlando. Most of the homes located in Lake Nona are of newer construction. Not too long ago, there wasn’t much out in that direction other than Moss Park, the largest of Orange County’s parks. Moss Park features camping, picnic pavilions, tons of shady areas, playgrounds, and a boat launch and swimming area into Lake Mary Jane. There was one subdivision out that way, Isle of Pines- a large community of custom homes on 1/3 acre wooded lots along secluded dirt roads. There was a general store along the way to the neighborhood with a variety of sundry items along with a modest video rental service. There was usually a dog asleep on the front porch of the store.

The Lake Nona Golf & Country Club, a 600-acre community with an 18-hole championship course designed by Tom Fazio, includes a variety of residence styles, including custom-built estate homes. This community fostered the development of the Lake Nona area we know today; a 7,000 acre parcel dedicated to a healthy living environment and includes many different real estate options, businesses, schools, a planned open-air town center, YMCA, and several restaurants.

The new Town Center will feature over one million square feet of upscale open-air shopping featuring department stores, large-scale retail and trendy fashion boutiques, as well as numerous entertainment and dining options.

Aside from the Lake Nona Golf and Country Club, Lake Nona neighborhoods include: Water’s Edge, Northlake Park, and Village Walk. Water’s Edge is a gated community with a lakefront park, boat dock, and boat storage areas. Northlake Park is a 500-acre neo-traditional community featuring an award-winning elementary school and the new YMCA. Village Walk was the recipient of the 2007 parade of homes community category grand award. There’s also an equestrian center, an aquatic center, a variety of parks, including a dog park planned for the community.

Over 40% of Lake Nona has been left as open green space, in fact there will be pocket parks located throughout the community so that there is one placed within a 5 minute walk from every home and the 1000+ acres of lakes and waterways offers plenty of fishing and non-motorized boating. The future additions of the Medical City complex will include the new University of Central Florida’s College of Medicine and Healthcare Campus, the Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute, a University of Florida Academic & Research Center, Orlando VA Medical Center, Nemours Children’s Hospital  and Research Campus, and M.D. Anderson Orlando- Cancer Research Center.

Windermere, Florida has long been known as an area of affluence despite its small-town look and feel. You’ll still find dirt roads, huge shady oaks, and shops with that “general store” appearance. The town was established in 1889 and is located on an isthmus between several lakes in the Lake Butler chain, one of the most sought-after areas of waterfront property in all of Florida. The chain encompasses eleven lakes (Lake Butler, Lake Tibet, Lake Down, Lake Sheen, Lake Louise, Lake Chase, Pocket Lake, Lake Blanche, Wauseon Bay, Lake Isleworth, and Little Fish Lake), which have been recognized for their high water quality and animal habitats as “Outstanding Florida Waters” by Florida’s Department of Environmental Regulation.

Windermere’s small town appeal is in sharp contrast to the stately homes of the nearby Isleworth subdivision, home to Tiger Woods, Shaquille O’Neal, and many other professional athletes. Windermere is also home to former Florida Supreme Court Justice Charles T. Wells and retired General Jay Garner. Justice Wells was Chief Justice of the Florida Supreme Court during the Bush vs. Gore election. General Garner was the first American leader of Iraq after the Iraq War. Current properties listed for sale in the community are priced between $1.2M and $9.75M and several are over 10,000 square feet in size.

There are currently 457 single family homes for sale in Windermere, priced as low as $134,900 and as high as $100M. The most expensive property currently listed for sale in Windermere is known as Versailles. It’s a 13 bedroom, 23 bath estate of nearly 67,000 square feet. It’s located on a 10+ acre peninsula with 1250 feet of shoreline on Lake Butler. It features a 20-car garage, 3 pools, a baseball field, 2 tennis courts, a 2-lane bowling alley, an indoor roller rink, a video arcade, and more. It is currently the largest modern-day estate under construction in America.

Some of the subdivisions in Windermere include: Keene’s Point, the Reserve at Lake Butler Sound, Chaine Du Lac, Windermere Downs, Lake Down Shores, Waterford Pointe, Lake Roper Pointe, Tilden’s Grove, Bellaria, The Lakes, Reserve at Belmere, and Windermere Club.

There are three golf courses in Windermere with four others located close by. The most popular by far would have to be the Isleworth Golf & Country Club, designed by Arnold Palmer and Ed Seay, open since 1986, with a course rating of 77.5. There also several chain restaurants in the vicinity, nearby Mall at Millenia for shopping, as well as several in-town “mom and pop” type of establishments. 

Windermere schools include: Windermere Elementary, Sunset Park Elementary, Keene’s Crossing Elementary, and Gotha Middle, with West Orange High serving as the nearest high school. Windermere Prep and the Crenshaw school are both PK-12 private schools in the area.