Orlando Florida real estate listings, home buying, selling and relocation information

People who live in Orlando know that most of its magic has little to do with the Magic Kingdom. It was nicknamed the City Beautiful long before Mickey's arrival, and with good reason--Central Florida is a natural paradise with Orlando at its very heart. The magic is everywhere--in the climate, the lakes and rivers, the birds and animals. It's in the diverse yet friendly people from all over the world who now call Orlando home. People from Cuba and Vietnam, from England and Canada, and from every state in the union have joined forces and futures along with many native Floridians who are still here and not about to move. Yet as the city becomes more cosmopolitan with lots of help from a first-class airport--it retains many small-town characteristics such as picturesque parks and livable downtown neighborhoods.

Although Orlando is a favorite tourist destination, it is perfectly possible to live here and ignore the world-renowned attractions if that is your preference. While some residents shun tourist draws, others regularly purchase yearly passes to their favorite theme parks and enjoy the food and shopping along with the rides.

The housing inventory is as diverse as the tastes of homebuyers. Prices are reasonable, supply is adequate, and choices abound. Right now, the Orlando area (Orange & Seminole Counties) have some of the best housing deals in the nation. Home prices start at about $100,000 and run upward to several million, varying a bit depending on the community. New or newer homes, especially in gated communities or areas with lots of amenities command higher per-square-foot prices.

Newcomers -- especially those from New York, Connecticut, New Jersey and California -- are absolutely astonished by Central Florida housing values. They think they've died and gone to heaven. Single-family homes account for 90 percent of sales. Choices range from modest bungalows to magnificent gated mansions; locations from urban to rural and from lakefront to fairway, from historic neighborhoods with brick streets to new, gated communities -- some with their own golf courses. The best values can be found in southeast Orange County and Northeast Seminole County.

New communities include Waterford Lakes, a golf course community with homes from the low $100's to the upper $200's; Keene's Pointe, a golf course community with homes from $400,000 to several million on the Butler Chain of Lakes; and Rock Springs Ridge, a golf course community with homes from $150,000 to $250,000.

The semitropical climate pleases residents and visitors alike. With the average yearly temperature a perfect 72 degrees Fahrenheit, there's not much cause to complain about. It rains at least a little 116 days of the year, and the annual rainfall averages 51 inches, but it doesn't snow. In July the average high is 90 degrees Fahrenheit; in January the average low is 50 degrees Fahrenheit.

More than 25,000 new jobs are created in the region each year. Many factors cause this including the strong housing market and a diverse job market that crosses many categories but includes tourism, transportation and high-technology. Besides being one of the fastest growing major metropolitan areas in the country, the Economic Development Commission of Mid-Florida projects that Orlando will create many new jobs during the next 10 years. According to the Orlando Business Journal, major employers are Walt Disney World Co. (38,600), Lockheed Martin (15,000), Orange County Public Schools (14,761), the State of Florida (12,300), Winn-Dixie Stores Inc. (12,000), Florida Hospital (8,523), Publix Super Markets Inc. (6,300), Orlando Regional Healthcare System (6,312) and AT&T (6,000)

Extensive information about the schools in this area is online at the state's Department of Education. There you'll discover everything you'll need to know about Florida schools. All you need is the name of your county and the names of the schools students from your neighborhood attend.

Use links from the DOE home page for general information about entrance requirements, immunizations and so forth.

For the nitty-gritty details that really matter, click on the logo for the "Florida School Indicators Report."

Walt Disney located Disney World where Interstate 4 crosses the Florida Turnpike, thinking this would be a good place. He was right. Nowadays the area boasts the 528 or Beeline Expressway (toll), the 408 or East-West Expressway (toll) and the 417 or Central Florida Greeneway (toll), but traffic is heaviest on I-4, which is free and delivers many millions to the numerous attractions southwest of the city.

Since locals also rely heavily on I-4, it can get congested at times. Two state highways, 436 (north and south) and 50 (east and west) also transport locals to and fro. Many commute via the less-crowded toll roads. Lynx, the tri-county bus system, improves and expands yearly and currently offers more than 50 routes. Taxis appear downtown and near the airport.

Getting to Orlando is easy. Amtrak stops in Sanford, Winter Park and Orlando. The famous AutoTrain travels 900 miles from Sanford in suburban Seminole County to a northern Virginia location in suburban Washington, D.C. It accommodates folks who would rather ride than drive but still want to have use of their cars. It's not cheap, but it is convenient, safe and popular. Greyhound buses also come and go with passengers. Frequent flyers love the well-planned, attractive airport that is Orlando International Airport (OIA) recently ranked No. 1 in four of six categories in a survey by Airport Monitor, published by the International Air Transport Association. Its overall ranking was No. 1 in North America and No. 4 in the world for customer convenience. Several smaller airports dot the region, including the Orlando Executive Airport and the Orlando/Sanford Airport.

The real Florida beckons Central Florida's natives and newcomers from every corner. You don't need to travel even the 50 miles north to the Ocala National Forest or the 50 miles east to the Canaveral National Seashore to enjoy nature's glories. Already the West Orange Trail--a rails-to-trails project--attracts runners, inline skaters, joggers, hikers and bikers. Seminole County also has a major recreational-trail system of its own. Countless lakes, rivers and wilderness areas remain.

The city of Orlando itself offers 82 lakes and about 4,000 acres of park, including gemlike Lake Eola and the lovely Harry P. Leu Gardens. You can canoe on the quiet Wekiva River or sail on Lake Monroe, see manatees at nearby Blue Spring State Park during the winter months or view all kinds of critters--alligators, frogs, raccoons, deer, herons, egrets, pelicans, ospreys and eagles--in the St. John's basin.

Golf is played and watched on television with an enthusiasm approaching fanaticism. Arnold Palmer and about 20 pro players make Orlando their off-tour homes. A golf magazine and an all-golf cable channel originate from here and-most importantly--17 courses in the region made a recent ranking of Florida's top 100 golf courses. But even if you're not a scratch golfer, one of Orlando's 80 courses should suit you.

Fishing, boating and water skiing are popular on Central Florida's 1,500 lakes and rivers, many accessible via public ramps. Soccer rules in youth sports categories, and Orlando was a World Cup city in 1994 and an Olympic soccer venue in 1996. Walt Disney World's massive international amateur sports center will soon be the headquarters of the Amateur Athletic Union (AAU), and it's expected to host numerous AAU events. The popular Atlanta Braves hold spring training at the awesome Disney baseball field, part of Disney's Wide World of Sports complex. Hometown pro teams include the popular Orlando Magic of the National Basketball Association, the Orlando Rays, a minor league baseball team, and the Predators of the arena football league.

Talented performers originally drawn by the attractions found the place so pleasant many stayed on after their gigs were over. There's plenty to do, to see and to hear in Tourist World. In fact, if you really love theme parks, this may be the time to move to Central Florida. Downtown Disney features the Wolfgang Puck Cafe, Gloria Estefan's Bongos Cuban Cafe, the Virgin Records Megastore, the House of Blues and Cirque de Soleil. Animal Kingdom, Disney World's fourth park, opened to large crowds on April 22, 1998. A 145-foot carved creation called the Tree of Life as its premier symbol. Universal Studios Florida has added a second theme park, Islands of Adventure; a nighttime entertainment complex, Universal CityWalk; and 13,000 hotel rooms, starting with the 750-room Portofino Bay Resort and a 650-room Hard Rock Hotel.

Long-time residents and recent arrivals, however, find plenty to do without visiting attractions. Complaints about living in a cultural desert have diminished since the '70s. The Orlando Opera Company hosts three or four operas and the Southern Ballet Theatre performs three or four ballets yearly. Museums like the Morse Museum of American Art in Winter Park (home to the Fine Arts Museum at Rollins College in Winter Park and the Orlando Museum of Art's noteworthy collection of stained glass by Louis Comfort Tiffany), and the Cornell offer visual delights and instruction in various combinations. The Orlando-UCF Shakespeare Festival expanded recently, the Civic Theatre of Central Florida provides first-rate community theater, and Theatre Downtown offers the best of alternative drama. The Bach Festival, the Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra and the Orlando Concert Band make beautiful music, but lots of high-quality local sound comes from student/faculty concerts at the universities or live jazz and rock at Orlando's clubs.

Local libraries present story hour for kids, there's the Central Florida Zoo in Sanford, and the younger set favor an occasional trip to visit Mickey, E.T. or Shamu. Rollins College offers a busy summer schedule of cultural and sporting activities for the youngsters, Crealde Art Center hosts art classes throughout the year, and the opera, the ballet and the symphony all sponsor youth instructional programs. Commercial play places planned for kids only like Discovery Zone, local YMCAs and regional park districts offer plenty of places for kids to enjoy themselves.

All ages love Central Florida's best festivals: The Zora Neale Hurston Festival of Arts & Humanities in January (which celebrates African-American culture), the Bach Festival in February, the Winter Park Sidewalk Art Festival in March; Arts in April with lots of events including the Fringe Festival and the Orlando-UCF Shakespeare Festival; Lake Eola Picnic in the Park complete with a spectacular fireworks show on the Fourth of July; and the Lake Mary/Heathrow Festival of the Arts and Winter Park's Autumn Art Festival at Rollins College during the fall.

Besides excellent and abundant malls all over the region (Seminole Towne Center in Sanford, Altamonte Mall in Altamonte Springs, Fashion Square Mall in Orlando and Florida Mall on Orlando's southside), there's the bustling Belz Factory Outlet World, a big discount mall. And another discount-dominated cluster just opened on what was once the site of Orlando's Colonial Plaza Mall.

For upscale specialty stores and plenty of ambience, try Winter Park's famous Park Avenue, across from the city's Central Park. Locals also like Saturday outings to Farmers Markets in downtown Orlando under I-4 and near the railroad tracks in Winter Park. If you're into antiques and collectibles, try the funky and fine shops along North Orange Avenue's Ivanhoe Row and Antique Row. You can acquire an expensive 19th century mahogany breakfront or an old teddy bear, junk jewelry or a classic rock record, vintage patio pieces or elegant love seats. Three or four quaint restaurants are interspersed with the shops, so locals can stay all day.

Area adults prefer eating out at one of the region's 4,000 eateries, but often at old favorites--Coq au Vin, Maison & Jardin, Enzo's on the Lake and Linda's La Cantina--or at Peter Scott's, the suburban super club where they can dine and dance. Manuel's on the 28th in downtown Orlando and Victoria & Albert's at Walt Disney World received coveted Golden Spoon awards from Florida Trend in 1997. On the magazine's list of 1997's best new restaurants are Nicole St. Pierre in Maitland and Flying Fish Cafe at Disney's BoardWalk Resort.

The University of Central Florida (UCF) offers a four-year undergraduate program to more than 22,000 undergraduates; another 6,000 enroll in advance-degree programs. UCF, part of the state's 10-school university system, excels in computer science and engineering and laser-optics, but provides a broad range of educational programs from which its 28,000-plus students may select their majors.

Rollins College, a private, four-year institution in Winter Park, enrolls a total of 3,356 students -- 2,013 full-time and 1,343 part-time students -- in its undergraduate school, its popular and high-quality Hamilton Holt School that serves working adults and other non-traditional students with undergraduate and graduate programs, and the MBA graduate program offered by the Crummer Graduate School of Business.

Served by two community colleges, Valencia Community College (VCC) with several campuses and Seminole Community College (SCC) with the main campus in Sanford and a second campus in Oviedo, Central Florida is blessed with hundreds of class offerings for full-time enrollees doing their first two years of college in the community and for part-time and adult education students as well. SCC serves approximately 6,500 full-timers but enrolls a total approaching 30,000 for at least one class during the average year. VCC's enrollment hovers at nearly 25,000 full-time students, but annual enrollment approaches 60,000 people involved in at least one VCC class.

Most Central Florida seniors live active, productive lives. Community service, volunteer jobs and church or club-sponsored events keep the 60-plus crowd entertained. For those who are isolated or at risk nutritionally, senior centers and congregate meal sites are scattered across Orange and Seminole counties. Anyone of any economic level is eligible for assessment, but interested seniors need to apply or have their families help them apply because their social or nutritional need must be established. In addition, six venues in Orange--including Alzheimer's Respite Care--and three in Seminole provide adult day care, usually for a fee. In Orlando, the Senior Resource Alliance and the city's firefighters established ElderLinks to assist the isolated elderly remain independent and living in their own homes whenever possible.

Agency >Who Pays the Commission

Does it cost the homebuyer more to be represented by a buyer's agent who serves their interests exclusively? No, because the listing agent splits the sales commission, which is customarily paid by the seller of the home, with the buyer's agent. The sales commission split is usually 50-50, but the listing agent and buyer's agent will sometimes make another agreement and split the commission unequally.

There is one very unusual circumstance in which the homebuyer might pay a commission to their buyer's agent. The real estate agent might show the buyer a local "for sale by owner" (FSBO) home which the client decides to purchase. In most cases, the FSBO seller who is presented with a qualified buyer is glad to pay the buyer's agent a reduced fee of about 3 percent, or half of a normal sales commission. But the FSBO seller could stubbornly refuse to pay the buyer's agent any commission whatsoever. In that case, the buyer's agent would legitimately expect the buyer to pay the sales commission, in fair exchange for the agent finding the FSBO home and negotiating a successful transaction.

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Q	Who is "Fannie Mae" and why is she a big name in real estate?
A	"Fannie Mae" is the real estate industry nickname for FNMA, or Federal National Mortgage Association, the stockholder-owned corporation that purchases mortgages from mortgage lenders.
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