Lakeland Florida Market- Thoughts?

[Mike DeBuccio Jr.]

Hey BP!

I am looking to connect with real estate professionals/investors in Lakeland, Florida. I feel like Lakeland may get lost in the shadow of the Tampa/Orlando markets. I'm located in Tampa, but the margins of the deals I am seeing over in Lakeland makes the area extremely intriguing to me. 

There is a Polk County REIA meeting that I attended last month over in Lakeland that I will definitely attend again.. just looking to get other people's feedback on investing in the Polk County area!

Mike 

[Chris C.]

From an Orlando-area perspective: I know people who commute all the way from Lakeland specifically because they could get a better deal outside of the Orlando market. If the market remains hot in Orlando I expect Lakeland to appreciate, especially considering the new hiring at Disney every year.

That being said, there are some other factors here. There are a lot of small towns between Orlando and Lakeland (And I imagine between Tampa and Lakeland) that would probably be a first pick for commuters over the midway point of Lakeland. You will probably see appreciation at every point between Tampa and Lakeland before Lakeland.

That being said, I think Lakeland is a nice little town with a stronger economy than other places further from I-4. Their downtown area is set up for growth and there is a lot of variety in the market at a low price range (SFH, MFH, etc)