Relocating to Orlando

mattw1106 · July 3, 2017

Hey guys, it looks like my wife and I will be relocating to the Orlando area within the next month or so, I was looking to get some advice on best areas to live and courses to join. We have vacationed down there quite a bit but haven't ventured to far off of Disney property most of the time. Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

mattw1106 · July 3, 2017

Also to add, I currently work in real estate, how is the market for a full time Realtor in the area? Thanks in advance.

FLGOLFJUNKIE · July 4, 2017

Congrats on your move to Florida! You won't regret it one bit! Orlando is a growing area (Can you believe it?!?!) and has a TON of new construction available. However, I am sure as a realtor you know how the market is better than I do!! I don't expect you'll struggle one bit getting settled down here as it seems there is a ton of opportunity for realtors down here right now.

mattw1106 · July 4, 2017

Congrats on your move to Florida! You won't regret it one bit! Orlando is a growing area (Can you believe it?!?!) and has a TON of new construction available. However, I am sure as a realtor you know how the market is better than I do!! I don't expect you'll struggle one bit getting settled down here as it seems there is a ton of opportunity for realtors down here right now.

Thanks for the reply! We are very excited about the move, its also good to hear about the potential down there!

third-times-a-charm · July 5, 2017

There are a million realtors in Central Florida...tough market here to be one. Lots of new realtors go with KW in this area; don't know why, though.

Also lots of public courses, no real need to join a private one unless you find a home within one around the Dr Phillips or Winter Park areas.

Then again - if you look at my avatar - I might be biased :)

RichieHunt · July 5, 2017

The real estate market down here is solid. I will say that I would never expect Orlando to grow too big because of all of the wildlife and lakes. Lots of protected areas. IMO, while Florida was hit hard by the crash in '08, in the end more people realized that Florida was a less risky and better place to retire to/move to/flip houses/etc. than other southern states like Alabama, Georgia, Tennessee, etc.

As far as private courses, there are not a lot of private courses in the area as most courses are open to the public. The only private club somewhere near that neck of the woods are Isleworth, Golden Bear Club and Orange Tree. Bay Hill isn't exactly exclusive, but it's a private club nearby. The same with Reunion Resort

Most of the other clubs have some sort of membership plan available. Southern Dunes is nearby and I think they have a membership plan. I think even Grand Cypress has a membership plan available. But again, they are open to the public.

For the most part what golfers do in Orlando is get on GolfNow and play all over since you have tons of options and the greens fees are very good. Then if they want to play in a league, they'll try to find a course nearby that has one.

RH

chippa13 · July 5, 2017

No personal income tax also makes Florida much more attractive than some other states.

RichieHunt · July 6, 2017

No personal income tax also makes Florida much more attractive than some other states.

Yup.

And don't let people fool you into thinking it doesn't make a difference. You will notice it.

I would advise in getting a SunPass and be prepared to take a hit when you get your vehicle registered though.

RH

mattw1106 · July 7, 2017

Thank you guys for all of the reassurance and information! My wife and I are nervous and excited at the same time. We will be about 14 hours away from family but this something that we have takled about doing for a while and have finally decided to take that leap of faith.

I didn't realize that there wasn't a personal income tax, that will be refreshing coming from Louisiana which currently has one of the highest state tax rates put there. It's good to hear that the real estate market seems stable as well. My background is in banking/finance so I have that to fall back on if need be.

I like the idea of not being committed to one particular club but will kind of miss member/member and member guest events. Thanks again for everything!

jjthomp2 · July 16, 2017

Hey guys, it looks like my wife and I will be relocating to the Orlando area within the next month or so, I was looking to get some advice on best areas to live and courses to join. We have vacationed down there quite a bit but haven't ventured to far off of Disney property most of the time. Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

Welcome! No idea how old you and the wife are but college park is where i'm located. It's great, tons of young people, diverse, close proximity to what i want (restaurants that are not chains, WP9, bars, downtown).

As for the golf, i'll second what's already been said. Lots of nice public courses and the privates are good just not sure if they're worth those initiation fees good. If you need to get your private club fix you can play Bay Hill if you stay at the lodge...

pheenomz4774 · August 8, 2017

Haven't cared about real estate in Orlando since I bought a house in 2010 but from what I'm hearing the Southeast Area of Orlando (e.g. Lake Nona) is investing heavily in that area. Medical Centers, University of Central Florida expansion, and the upcoming Amazon building will probably assure the housing communities in that area will grow. I luckily bought after the crash in 08 but housing prices seem to have recovered well in East Orlando where I live.

As for golf, tons of golf courses in East Orlando in Fair - Mediocre shape but none I would consider a "must have" membership. The rates are cheap and competitive enough where you can play somewhere different each week. In the summer time, all the resort courses rates go way down and then you can play some of Orlando's best courses for a song. Good luck!