Lakes Mary & Nona (Orlando, Winter Springs: mortgage, homes, established neighborhood)

[jazzzebel]

Please assist! Moving to ORL. Spouse will work in Lake Mary forever, and I will work in Lake Nona for at least 4 years... opposite ends of the ORL universe. We have 2 academically advanced elementary kids at school TBD (Lake Highland or Park Maitland/Sweetwater then Trinity... I welcome alternative suggestions.) Where to live? Spouse wants Lake Mary... easy commute for spouse, low cost of living, safe, good public schools, close to 417 to Lake Nona. I say Winter Park or downtown ORL... close to private school(s), geographic middle for work, good resale value for homes, good public schools, not as "cookie cutter", no HOAs, closer to foreseeably used amenities (Mall @ Millenia, outlets, attractions, MCO, Amway, Bob Carr, etc.). Please advise based on criteria and traffic. Since y'all always ask other posters: home up to $1.75M, prefer under $1M. THANKS FOR ALL OF YOUR HELP!! HAVE A GREAT DAY!!
PS. I scrubbed forum for similar post to no avail... sorry if this is a repeat.

[StreetSmarts]

If given the choice, I'd def pick LM or LN. For reasons you already mentioned, not that there is anything wrong with LN. For both driving situations, it would be more convenient to be in the middle, like you mentioned, WP or downtown areas.

[FloridaNative35]

I'd split the difference and move to the middle. With that budget, you can get a nice place in Winter Park, Maitland, Lake Eola Heights or the neighborhoods just south of downtown... Lake Davis, Lake Cherokee, and Delaney Park.

Leaving from the downtown area and heading out at rush hour won't be as bad as one of you headed through the downtown area to get to the other side, and with clever planning, I'm sure you can both find routes that minimize traffic issues.

The public schools for the areas I listed are good (Winter Park and Boone High, although Lake Eola Heights is zoned for Edgewater... but is close to the private schools you mentioned), and depending on where exactly you move, the elementary and middle schools are also good (Blankner K-8, Howard Middle, Hillcrest Elem, and the elementary and middles in Winter Park/Maitland in nicer areas are all excellent).

The neighborhoods south of downtown and Lake Eola Heights are all gorgeous, established neighborhoods, lots of old trees, sidewalks, parks, good sense of community, easy access to downtown and its various festivals, farmers market, etc.

Lake Mary is a nice suburb, and I'd choose that location over Lake Nona (only because Lake Nona is still developing and I prefer more urban environments).

[sean1the1]

I would move to Oviedo, Winter Springs, or Winter park/Maitland. All of these suburbs are right in the middle of both of your commutes. All of them have good public school all are pretty close to Trinity,but not sweet water. Winter Park/ Maitland are close to LHP. With your Budget you could find a gorgeous home in any of them, But I would pick Winter Park/Maitland it fits all of your criteria.

[bmw335xi]

Originally Posted by jazzzebel

Please assist! Moving to ORL. Spouse will work in Lake Mary forever, and I will work in Lake Nona for at least 4 years... opposite ends of the ORL universe. We have 2 academically advanced elementary kids at school TBD (Lake Highland or Park Maitland/Sweetwater then Trinity... I welcome alternative suggestions.) Where to live? Spouse wants Lake Mary... easy commute for spouse, low cost of living, safe, good public schools, close to 417 to Lake Nona. I say Winter Park or downtown ORL... close to private school(s), geographic middle for work, good resale value for homes, good public schools, not as "cookie cutter", no HOAs, closer to foreseeably used amenities (Mall @ Millenia, outlets, attractions, MCO, Amway, Bob Carr, etc.). Please advise based on criteria and traffic. Since y'all always ask other posters: home up to $1.75M, prefer under $1M. THANKS FOR ALL OF YOUR HELP!! HAVE A GREAT DAY!!
PS. I scrubbed forum for similar post to no avail... sorry if this is a repeat.

With your budget, you can afford a nice home in Winter Park. It's not exactly right in the middle, but it will make both commutes not too bad. The public schools are the best there and you are close to Lake Highland Prep, which is the best private school in Orlando. The city is very nice and has a great downtown area. I would highly recommend it!

[brinkofsunshine]

I would recommend any of the nicer downtown neighborhoods, Dr. Phillips and Winter Park.

[4powells]

Not trying to troll here, but I find it at least a little humorous that your housing budget is 1-1.75 MILLION but you're concerned with "low cost of living" in an area.

[bmw335xi]

Originally Posted by 4powells

Not trying to troll here, but I find it at least a little humorous that your housing budget is 1-1.75 MILLION but you're concerned with "low cost of living" in an area.

That's how they are able to afford a one million dollar house, by being frugal lol... That or they are moving from a high cost area such as San Francisco or NYC where one million doesn't buy you much.

[patish]

Col is. Factor in any price range. I got crap because i was concerned about cost for tennis which is double the cost where were from. I honestly dont see how what that has to do with the price of your home. If you have four kids in tennis at double the tuition rate. That can be expensive for anyone. I doubt lowering my mortgage by 100k would help. So i have to find good but cheaper tennis.