Is Davenport a good place to buy? (Tampa, Orlando: for sale, rental homes) - Florida (FL) - City-Data Forum

pmax57 · 07-22-2010, 10:03 AM

Could anyone tell me if Davenport is a safe and comfortable place to live? I see many bargins. Our son is grown, in college and due to health problems we need to start all over again. Lost nearly everything. Have paid all our bills and need to start over. Want to pay cash for something under 125000 single family home. Which zip codes/towns should we look in. I am an RN and will be looking for a job in the area.

Thank You,

justinmac · 07-22-2010, 11:18 AM

Actually, I have lived and worked in Davenport for several years near Championsgate. It really is a safe area, and close to I 4, Highway 27, and 192. All three roads sorround the Disney area and sorrounding suburbs. I like it because it is not far from anything, and yet it is just enough away from the traffic and congestion of the tourist areas. My office is in Championsgate next to I4, great location for my work as well. There are many great deals on homes that were built between 2004 - currently. Resale homes for sale usually sell the first month or less it's on the market, sometimes in just days. I do recomend looking into Davenport new construction to take advantage of the great buyer incentives these builders are offering. Feel free to contact me, so we can talk more about the kinds of things to take advantage of. I look forward to hearing from you!!!

Aimewitue · 07-22-2010, 12:35 PM

Davenport is way too far

there is only one hospital out there Heart of florida i think

All the jobs are in Orlando with florida hospital or Orlando regional

there are bargins allover orlando no need to go so far out and fight I-4 Traffic

winter springs,fl or Ocoee,fl would be better options!!!! or even Apopka!!

MollyBailey · 07-22-2010, 04:57 PM

My husband and I bought a house about a month ago in Davenport near the Champions Gate area. We love it! It is a nice, quiet and safe area. I'm not sure where you will be working though. I would not want to drive to Winter Park every morning from here. It seems Celebration Hospital is hiring and that drive isn't bad at all. Heart of Florida has job openings posted, but I don't know anything about it.

There are some fantastic deals to be had! If you need a realtor I would recommend the man we had. He was fantastic!

Booya · 07-22-2010, 05:46 PM

I would say a huge NO! Davenport is not a nice area, it is not safe. Yes, you will find HUGE bargains and that is why. Also, you will probably never be able to sell your home if you buy it in Davenport.

I would urge you to keep looking. Also, the hospital in Davenport is a nightmare. I am an RN and know a few RNs who fled there in horror. It is unsafe to work there and your nursing license will be at risk. The nurse to patient ratio is terrible

There are other areas where houses can be purchased for 125,000 or less. Clermont, Minneola, Winter Garden, Orlando, Altamonte. Any of these areas are much better than Davenport.
There is a reason Davenport homes are cheap!
I am an RN and work at Florida Hospital in Orlando. It is 35 minutes to work which is too far. There is a small hospital-South Lake hospital in Clermont 5 minutes from me. I wish I worked there because it is a pain to drive 35 minute each way and work 12 hours shifts. So if you will be working at one of the larger hospitals in Orlando I would say try to buy in Orlando or Altamonte because it is closer.
Good luck in your search.

DisneyDeb67 · 07-22-2010, 05:56 PM

I also wanted to add (not that I have no 1st hand knowledge), but a realtor I was speaking to says that alot of the homes in Davenport are used as rental properties so you never know who you are going to have as a neighbor.

MollyBailey · 07-22-2010, 08:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Booya

I would say a huge NO! Davenport is not a nice area, it is not safe. Yes, you will find HUGE bargains and that is why. Also, you will probably never be able to sell your home if you buy it in Davenport.

I don't know if you have ever been to our area but it is very, safe. We live near Champion's Gate. I'm sure there are bad areas in Davenport (as there are in Orlando, and Clermont and every other city in the world) but I don't live in one of them.

Also the homes in that price range are selling very quickly. Our realtor sent us a list of 12 homes and by the time we got down there the next week 11 of the 12 had accepted offers. We ended up making an offer on ours for 10K over asking on the first or second day it was listed. We were outbid, but had cash so they accepted our offer. So I don't see selling my house being a problem. Making a huge profit...most likely not, but I don't think there are many homes making a huge profit right now.

And you can't aways go with the crime stats websites. According to one Davenport gets a 187 for burglary and Winter Park gets a 338 (national average is 100).

Quote:

Originally Posted by DisneyDeb67

I also wanted to add (not that I have no 1st hand knowledge), but a realtor I was speaking to says that alot of the homes in Davenport are used as rental properties so you never know who you are going to have as a neighbor.

That is where you have to look around and be careful. We only have 1 house on our street that is a short term rental. Everyone else has been here for years.

Jeffwltrs · 07-22-2010, 08:52 PM

Molly I am looking at houses in the Davenport area! Can you direct message me or email me at jeffwltrs@yahoo.com? I would like to ask you about the area. Thanks!

Booya · 07-23-2010, 05:13 AM

I was not wishing to offend anyone who lives n Davenport. And I am sure your area is nice and safe if you say it is. Did you say it was a gated community?

I am aware that there have been drug issues in Davenport and the rental issue as well. If you do a search of crime statistics for this area thru thru Polk county Sherrif dept you can look at the facts as opposed to opinions. Also just google about crime in Davenport.

I guess I just see a post from someone out of state who sees cheap homes and have no idea about the area and I ofer what I know. I know it is hard when you are looking to move a distance and you have to rely on the internet. I am planning on moving to another state and I know I value the opinions of people who live there.

From the information I have on Davenport I know that it would not be an area I would put on my list and just trying to give this info to someone who ask. Then they can make an informed choice.

Peperosso · 07-23-2010, 06:24 AM

I live in Davenport, FL for 3 years, I would not return there to live. Prices are high and so is the crime, most of the gated communities that are there and in Haines City are restricted to older folks if I remember correctly, there are a lot of retirement communities in that area and most of them have visitor restrictions. Also my children went to school there and they had a very high percentage of gangs also.

There is a Heart of Florida hospital in Davenport but the ones in Orlando are better. The drive to and from Orlando was appx 30 mins each way plus you have people from all over the World driving around in that area and highway 192/irlo bronson hwy is very crazy on most days, I enjoyed the drive to Tampa better but Davenport, Baseball City are right off of I4 with Haines City just a few mins away. A lot of rental homes in that area and you never seem to get a break from the rat race, tourists in the Summer and Snow birds in the Winter. That area is a great place for a Week or two visit but as far as living there again NO THANKS.

I would highly recommend you visiting the area first before you buy any property and drive around for several days, there are other areas around Orlando to live that are a lot better than Davenport.