Hi Moms,
My husband, our three small children and I are relocating to Orlando in a few months. We have been looking at homes online in and near Avalon Park. We were at a friend's house in Avalon park last winter and loved the area. However, we want to be open-minded about all areas. We have heard excellent things about Lake Mary, Longwood, and Windermere. I am a bit overwhelmed and confused. I would appreciate any advice you can give me as far as the best place to live with small children. We want to live in an area that is very kid friendly, has young families (we are in our late 30's), has lots of kid activities, and most importantly, is in an excellent school district. Did I miss any suburbs? Winter Springs? Oviedo? Maitland? Anything else?? Please tell me your opinions about all of these places, or others that I may not have mentioned. Thank you so much!!
We actually live pretty much downtown orlando in delaney park which we absolutely love! The area is very kid-friendly with parks all around as well as many neighbors with kids. Also, the blankner school system is one of the best around. Good luck!
M.,
The best school district in the Orlando area are the Winter Park schools. You can look in Winter Park or Baldwin Park. we used to live in Baldwin Park, that is the name of the neighborhood, it's much like Avalon Park. Has a village center, lots of restaurants, Publix, CVS, etc.
THey are zoned for Winter Park schools. We are doing our best to move back there for school when our kids are ready for school.
H.
Seminole County has A rated schools plus an abundance of private schools to choose from. We love the Winter Springs, Casselberry, Oviedo area. There are some great parks and everything we need is very close by. Your little ones will be going to school soon and a great Elementary School is here is called Red Bug Elementary. (I'm not sure if it's considered Winter Springs or Casselberry). Just a minute down the road from the school there is a nice, big park called Red Bug Lake Park. It has a playground, basketball courts, tennis courts, soccer feilds, and a nature walk. I don't know much about Maitland but it's beautiful and so is Winter Park. You can email me at ____@____.com if there's any other information you'd like. Good luck finding a place that suits you and your family!
I agree with what most people have said on here. Seminole county schools are, in general, much better than Orange county. I have lived in Oviedo and now live in Winter Springs. My husband and I love it. We live in the the Tuskawilla neighborhood which has tons of houses (all different price ranges) and two public parks that are both great for kids, one even has a splash park for hot summer months. As a Seminole County teacher I love where we are located for when the baby starts school. We are zoned for Keith Elementary which is one of the best. Red Bug (which has been mentioned) is also a wonderful school. Around here most of the schools are "A" schools. Let me know if you have any other questions about this area. You can email me at ____@____.com.
I would look into Oviedo. We live here and love it. The schools are very good (Seminole County is in general superior to Orange County). There are lots of nice areas here!
I agree that Seminole County schools and parks are great. Sterling Park Elementary is a great neighborhood school in the Deer Run community in Casselberry. It has a new building opening this fall and the old building is being rennovated to reopen later in the school year. Red Bug Elementatry is also undergoing rennovations, I think. Oviedo, Winter Springs and Casselberry are all good residential areas. Avalon Park and Baldwin Park are also lovely communities. You have a lot of good choices.
Good Luck,
S.
M.-- Avalon Park is adorable, and Baldwin Park is similar. I also love Oviedo and Winter Springs-- it's so pretty in that part of town. There are lots of trees and nice neighborhoods. Longwood and Lake Mary are also very nice. If your kids will be going to public school, you'll probably want to be in Seminole County, because the schools are much better. My best friend lives in the Live Oak Reserve neighborhood in Oviedo, and I think it's really nice. The neighborhood association plans fun events for the kids on holidays (like Fourth of July and Halloween), and they have a gorgeous, resort-style community pool, with a big water slide and one of those mushroom-shaped water sprinklers for the kids. We LOVE it when we're invited to go swimming out there-- it's so pretty that I always feel like I'm at the pool of a nice resort! And the schools are excellent. The elementary school is so close that my friend and her son ride their bikes there every morning. And the middle school (which was built recently) is right across the street from the subdivision. The high school is also new, and it's quite close as well. I really love that neighborhood and would love to live there myself, but when we were first looking, it was out of our price range. Now that the market has dropped, it would be a great time to buy there. But honestly, I don't think you could go wrong in any of the areas you mentioned. I would just try to be in Seminole County (if possible) for the better schools (unless you're zoned for the Winter Park schools in Orange County).
Hi M.,
Seminole County has the best schools in Central Fl with most earning and A. You can check out the website for specific schools www.scps.k12.fl.us. We live in Geneva, FL now, it's very country (same with Chuluota) so unless you live in a development you may not have conventional neighbors for your kids to play with.
We've lived in Lake Mary before and I loved it there. Plenty of shopping, great schools and lots of families. And the prices of houses range depending on where you want to live. Most houses are in developments. And last I knew they had active 'mom's clubs' which would be good for you since you are a SAHM.
Good luck.
G.
I don't know how much cash you've got, but Windemere and Lake Mary can be very pricey. Seminole County is known for it's excellent school system. Orange County does not have quite the reputation that Seminole does (although I'm sure there are still plenty of good schools in Orange). Winter Springs and Oviedo are great for raising a family. Lots of police presence in both. Library, parks, lots of residential areas in both (Winter Springs in particular). PS If money isn't an issue I personally like Lake Mary. It's got a good mix of residential and business and the atmosphere is comfortable.
I live in Altamonte Springs and love it. It's about 10 miles North of Orlando and in Seminole County (in between Orlando and Lake Mary). I agree with everyone else that Seminole County schools are generally better rated than Orange County.
