Winter Haven, Florida
Winter Haven, Florida - $12,000
Winter Haven, Florida - $3,000
Davenport, Florida - $29,900
Mulberry, Florida - $185,000
Lake Alfred, Florida - $69,900
Central Florida For Sale By Owner is proud to target Winter Haven, Florida as one
of its primary fsbo markets. Click here to see
homes and properties listed in and around Winter Haven at Central Florida
For Sale By Owner.
Winter Haven is a city located in Polk County, Florida, United States. Winter Haven's
population was 26,487 at the 2000 census. According to the U.S. Census Bureau's
2007 estimates, Winter Haven had a population of 32,577, making it the second most
populated city in Polk County. It is one of the key cities of the Lakeland–Winter
Haven Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Winter Haven is best known as the home of Cypress Gardens, a theme park which recently
went through many renovations to add thrill rides, before finally closing. On January
21, 2010, it was announced that the former site of Cypress Gardens will become LEGOLAND
Florida, the second LEGOLAND park in the United States, and the largest in the world.
It is expected to open by the end of 2011 and is currently being actively developed.
Winter Haven is also home to the first Publix supermarket circa 1930.
It is difficult to discuss the community of Winter Haven, Florida, without going
into depth about the attractions that call this town home. Anyone looking to buy
a home in Winter Haven or Central Florida in general would most likely want to know
about the attractions near the for sale by owner home they purchased. The most notable
is the newest attraction, mentioned earlier, of LEGOLAND, Florida, a theme park
which began operations in October of 2011. In January of 2010 Merlin Entertainments
purchased the land for the LEGOLAND Florida theme park. It sits on 145 acres of
land, which was the former home of the Cypress Gardens amusement park founded by
Dick Pope Sr. While there are many LEGOLAND theme parks around the world, this makes
the Florida venue home to the largest LEGOLAND on earth. Because it is on the former
Cyprus Gardens real estate, it also is placed in the historic spot of Florida’s
first commercial theme park dating back to 1936.
This new LEGOLAND attraction has been great for the town of Winter Haven, Florida.
The very presence of this prized park has already improved the economy and the for
sale by owner homes market. It has attracted about 1000 new jobs, which has in turn
has begun to bring people from all over looking to buy a home in Winter Haven.
The LEGOLAND park boasts of more than 50 attractions, including shows and thrill
rides. It would appear that with the large tract of land and the relocation of certain
rides such as Test Track (formerly called Jungle Coaster) the LEGOLAND Company has
a long term plan to keep these jobs in Winter Haven, Florida and boost the market
for those looking to sell a home.
Aside from LEGOLAND, the property in Winter Haven, Florida also maintains the Splash
Island Waterpark, but admission and entry has been kept separate from the main LEGOLAND
grounds. The park has also kept the famous and sentimental gardens that the former
Cypress Gardens was most famous for. Four rides, from Cypress Gardens called The
Triple Hurricane, Okeechobee Rampage, Swamp Thing and the Island in the Sky ride
have all been restored and updated to fit into the new environment of LEGOLAND.
The setup of this Winter Haven, Florida park has been sectioned off into 11 distinct
areas. The first area is simply the Island in the Sky attraction. This is a massive
150 foot platform that slowly rotates, giving the LEGOLAND guests a complete view
of the entire park and surrounding area. While Central Florida For Sale By Owner
has not yet visited this site, the scenery is said to be amazing. If you live in
Winter Haven, Florida, you may even see your new home from there!
The second section is the LEGOLAND Kingdoms. It is divided into four distinct areas.
One such area is called “The Dragon,” which is a rollercoaster geared towards the
whole family and includes a part where the ride careens through the dark. This was
the original Okeechobee Rampage. A second area is meant for younger children, and
it is called The Royal Joust. It is primarily a simulation where children ride through
scenery depicting medieval times, all of which fits into the LEGO theme. The other
two areas are Merlin’s Challenge, which is a Himalayan flat ride in miniature and
The Forestmen’s Hideout which is a tree and rope climbing adventure set on a number
of levels and platforms.
The next section is named the “Duplo Village.” This area also contains four unique
areas, three of which are set around a truck or automobile theme. They are called
the Big Rig Rally, which is a ride where the individual “rides” on a semi truck,
The Junior Fire Academy, and Granny’s Jalopies where you ride on a fire truck and
in vintage cars respectively. There is also DUPLO Farm, which is a play area primarily
for younger children to spend some restless energy.
Another fun section, appropriately named “Fun Town” has 5 different areas. The first
is the Wells Fargo Fun Town 4D, which provides an entertaining show with actors
as well as 3D images which require 3D glasses to be worn for the full experience.
This section also has a two level carousel and a store that sells popular LEGO products
that all ages can enjoy. You can also experience a factory tour which shows how
the LEGO Company makes the iconic bricks, and you may stop over at Granny’s Apple
Fries for a bite to eat during your stay at LEGOLAND.
Next there is the Imagination Zone. This is one of the more busy areas of LEGOLAND.
It includes the LEGO Heroes play area which is based on the relatively new and extremely
popular LEGO Hero’s line of products. In this zone you will also find a build-and-test
exhibit where budding engineers can create their own LEGO car and test it on a track
that keeps the time digitally. Kids can also enjoy pulling themselves up in a tower
through an elevator-like device and then allow themselves to “fall” back down. Another
intriguing attraction in this zone is the LEGO MINDSTORMS exhibit where guests can
actually build and program computerized robots! Finally, there is the LEGO Clubhouse,
which is a museum of sorts containing seven of the world’s most challenging and
elaborate LEGO models for onlookers to gawk at.
Land of Adventure is the next area for the family to get their laughs and thrills.
There is the Beetle Bounce, which is a bouncing frog type of flat ride, Coastersaurus,
which was originally The Triple Hurricane at Cyprus Gardens, and an interactive
play area called Pharaoh’s Revenge. In addition, there is the Lost Kingdom Adventure,
which is an interactive ride in the dark and the Safari Trek ride where you sit
in a jeep and see life sized models of animals – made completely from LEGOs!
The next section of the LEGOLAND theme park called LEGO City contains an exciting
show featuring acrobats while also teaching fire safety. The other five attractions
in LEGO City are meant for education through fun simulation. They include a FORD
Driving School, where young children up to age 13 can receive their “official” driver’s
license from LEGOLAND and a FORD Junior Driving School for children under 6. LEGO
City also has Flight School, which is an inverted rollercoaster for the family (formerly
Swamp Thing), a boating school where guests can ride their own small ships, and
a Rescue Academy where families can compete against one another in emergency vehicles
with the goal of putting out a simulated fire.
MiniLand USA is the next section of the LEGOLAND theme park. This section includes
miniature replicas of Florida landmarks and cities in the United States all made
entirely from LEGOs. The Florida exhibit includes the Florida Keys, Everglades,
The Florida Panhandle, St. Augustine, Florida’s oldest city, as well as Miami, FL,
Tampa, FL, Daytona Beach, FL, The Kennedy Space Center and also a variety of miniature
replicas from the famous Central Florida and Orlando attractions. The other cities
that have been miniaturized are Las Vegas, New York and Washington D.C., and all
include the iconic landmarks of each city. There is also a pirate area featuring
small LEGO pirate ships in this zone.
An amazing show is held in the Pirate’s Cove section of the LEGOLAND theme park.
It is primarily a stunt show on the water with daredevil water skiers, boats and
jet skis all on Lake Eloise near Winter Haven, Florida. The premise of this show
is to dual for “Brickbeard’s Bounty.”
LEGO Technic is the second to last section in LEGOLAND. It features the AQUAZONE
Wave Racer carousel ride, which guests ride around on wave runners. It also houses
the LEGO TECHNIC Test Track which was the Jungle Coaster imported from another LEGOLAND.
This section is also the home of the technicycle, which is a machine that uses pedals
to launch riders into the air.
Finally, as mentioned before, LEGOLAND has maintained the original Botanical Gardens
from the original Cypress Gardens park. While it is still within the confines of
LEGOLAND, the actual gardens are beautifully maintained and owned by Polk County.
This may be a relaxing and quiet end to your adventure at LEGOLAND, and a connection
spanning the gap of old entertainment and the new forms currently found all over
Central Florida.
It is worth giving a second thought regarding the history of Cypress Gardens, as
it is directly linked with the city of Winter Haven, Florida and why thousands have
purchased property or homes in Winter Haven. If not for Cypress Gardens, mega companies
and businesses such as State Farm would most likely have never chosen to move their
regional operations center to Winter Haven, Florida. The exquisite landscape has
also attracted commercial production companies to use it, as well as the likes of
Elvis Presley, a Johnny Carson special, and a couple of kings from the country of
Jordan, giving Winter Haven, Florida further notoriety.
If you are considering buying a for sale by owner home in Winter Haven, Florida,
you might want to check out Tanner’s Bar. This lively establishment is in the heart
of downtown Winter Haven, and is quite popular among the local home owners. It has
a spacious dining center decorated in dark wood and also has a full bar ready to
greet any guest who has just purchased a home in the Winter Haven area and is looking
to meet new people. The food is delicious, and the majority of patrons in the afternoon
and early evening tend to be more elderly individuals looking for a good bite to
eat at a reasonable price. This crowd dissipates, however, as the night wears on
and the bar tends to morph into more of a nightclub atmosphere with much younger
guests. Tanner’s Bar is also partially outside, with live entertainment such as
musicians and DJ’s with a large area where you will find all types of dancing taking
place. If loud music and dancing isn’t your thing, Tanner’s Bar also has a jukebox,
pool table and dart board to relax and talk to your new friends around.
If the bar and nightlife isn’t what you are looking for after you have moved into
your new for sale by owner home, you would surely enjoy the pleasures of Harry’s
Old Place restaurant. This local favorite is now well into over 15 years of successful
operation. Harry’s Old Place restaurant advertises new dishes to enjoy every night
such as “Monkfish from Maine, Steelhead from the Olympic Peninsula, or Baked Apalachicola
Oysters, clams and mussels.” The menu seems to be as fresh as the food they serve.
Nearly everyone with a home in Winter Haven, Florida can tell you something about
Harry’s Old Place restaurant, as it has become an icon of cuisine in the city of
Winter Haven.
Winter Haven is called "The Chain of Lakes City" because of the high amounts of
fresh water lakes which touch or are contained within the city limits. Twenty-four
of the lakes are connected by a system of canals, better known as the "Chain of
Lakes". It is also the home of Winter Haven Hospital and Winter Haven's Gilbert
Airport. Winter Haven also contains many buildings designed by Gene Leedy, one of
the founders of the Sarasota School of Architecture. Winter Haven used to be the
Spring Training home to the Boston Red Sox and the Cleveland Indians. The Red Sox
moved to Fort Myers in 1992, and the Indians left after the 2008 Spring Training
Season for Arizona. The State Farm Florida Operations Center is currently located
in Winter Haven.
Despite all the positives of Winter Haven, Florida there is still some bad news
for the current housing market. According 24/7 Wall Street, 50.33% of homes are
underwater in Winter Haven, Florida in the 2011 statistical year, making it the
9th worst in the entire country. If you are looking to buy a home in Winter Haven,
Florida, however, this is not all bad news. According to the same research document,
home prices have dropped over 4.5% in 2011 alone. This means there are a lot of
bargains out there for the smart home buyer. Unemployment in Winter Haven, Florida
stands at about 12%, but this is sure to change as the jobs for LEGOLAND become
part of the statistic. The market has also been troubled by the fact that over 21%
of homes for sale are vacant in Winter Haven and over 25% of homes in Winter Haven
have been built since 2000. This has created a large housing bubble that is slowly
working its way out of the market. Despite this bad news, many are seeing a turnaround
in the market for those looking to sell a home in Winter Haven. The building of
new retirement homes and communities has slowed and that has begun to put an ease
on the housing inventory the market has currently built up. As of now, Central Florida
For Sale By Owner sees a brighter future ahead for the community of Winter Haven
and the for sale by owner market in Florida.
Central Florida For Sale By Owner will aggressively market and advertise for sale
by owner houses, condos, mobile homes, and lots in Winter Haven.