Windermere or Winter Park or ??? (Orlando, Lake Butler: neighborhood, private schools, tuition)

[Wilshire81182]

Originally Posted by kdann

Thanks for all the great responses so far!

I think I was getting Winter Springs and Winter Park mixed up as far as the Tuskawilla area. How is Winter Springs? I had heard that the bad areas were too close by so we sort of ruled it out ...

There are not really bad areas by Winter Springs. There are some bad areas somewhat close to Winter Park like Eatonville and Azalea Park, but not REALLY close to Winter Park. I think you may be thinking of Winter Garden. There are bad areas of Orlo Vista, Pine Hills, South Apopka, and downtown Winter Garden that are close to the nice part of Winter Garden. I think this is closer and more significant than bad areas by Winter Springs or Winter Park.

[ohiominnie]

Originally Posted by kdann

Thanks for the great info Gregtraub!

Are there any other specific neighborhoods that anyone loves in Windermere?

I haven't read all of the responses, but I thought I'd chime in on a beautiful neighborhood near Windermere. It's just north of the Magic Kingdom (literally 4 minutes from cast member parking and you can see the fireworks from your house) It's called Thornhill and it's off of Reams Road. Ashton Woods is currently building there and the houses are reasonably priced and environmentally friendly. You can go to Ashton Woods Homes - Builder of New Homes in Atlanta, Tampa, Orlando, Dallas, Houston, Phoenix, Denver and Colorado Springs. and look through the Orlando section and find it.

We currently live in Lakes of Windermere (just north of Thornhill) while we build in Thornhill. The neighborhood is nice, but the houses are built on these "access alleys" and it's difficult to even pull into your driveway and garage. We'll put up with it for now, knowing that we're moving into our dream home next month!

[salmanalk]

for that budget, I would go for a good home in Dr. Phillips! on the lakes, close to restaurant row and for the most part gated!

[jintygirl]

Nothing goes on in Windermere, any little shop that opens in the so called Main St closes after a few months. Police are rampant and will ticket you for the smallest reason or no reason because they have nothing else to do. NOTHING happens in Windermere.

[Wilshire81182]

Originally Posted by jintygirl

Nothing goes on in Windermere, any little shop that opens in the so called Main St closes after a few months. Police are rampant and will ticket you for the smallest reason or no reason because they have nothing else to do. NOTHING happens in Windermere.

That is why some people like it. Some people want peace and quiet. I understand your point though, because I would take Winter Park over SW Orlando any day though both are very nice areas.

[bittbott]

We moved to Florida 14 years ago with a little one in school. We picked Windermere because of the schools (and were not dissapointed) at the time it felt smaller but it has grown with shopping and restraunts now to pick from. We started out in the Willows and moved to the Windermere Club which had a golf course. I love our neighborhood and the neighbors are wonderful. We are close to anything we want and only about 20-25 min from downtown or Winter Park if we want an urban night out.

[applesoranges]

I LOVE Windermere. Check out some of the beautiful subdivisions along 535. We have a vacation place in Windermere and have the BEST neighbors.

[redlove]

How is the current real estate market condition in Windermere?

[Lauriejen]

I am interested also. It seems most of the comments are good.

Originally Posted by redlove

How is the current real estate market condition in Windermere?

[trinitigal]

We have seen some depreciation like everywhere in Orlando. The biggest difference is that many of the more established neighborhoods in the area where already built & sold out by the time the "boom" took effect, so we see less homes in these neighborhoods being foreclosed or vacant due to the crash.

If you look in areas closer to downtown Windermere you obviously wont see the streets full of empty unsold,or foreclosed homes. If you go further out onto 535 then its a hit, or miss. Stick to smaller or older neighborhoods.Thornhill is a beautiful place, relatively new but already has that "established" feel to it since it almost sold out before things went downhill.

For example I live in Providence relatively new as well...about 6yrs & even though we have houses that are empty pending foreclosure it is not as bad & again very little turnover.We have the same neighbors we did when we built & our kids still have the same friends they did since they were toddlers. Then you have neighborhoods that started strong & were planned to be enormous developements..... say Summerport, or Lakes of Windermere but due to still being in the stages of building & selling when the market collapsed were affected probably the worse. A shame since there are so many beautiful houses in there Please note that Im not bashing....just commenting on what we see everyday. My brother lives in Summerport & its not what everybody had in mind when it was first presented.

Keenes Point still a favorite of many...the majority of the homes were also built by Morrisons so it shares the same floor plans as Providence, but was alot more expensive due to the golf club & gated entrance. Association fees are much higher but if you play golf I suppose its nice to have one in your back yard. Prices have gone down dramatically so there ae some great houses in some amazing neighborhoods ANYWHERE you look

Oxford Moore...very nice,established,small was our first pick yrs ago but a bit out of our range....probably doable now lol.

If you can take a drive & observe the neighborhoods, the evenings & weekends are a good indication of what you'll live with. Also do your homework & make sure that you are happy with the school the area has been zoned for...this has changed quite a bit recently.

Good luck in your search