A Short Guide to Moving to Sanford, FL

If you’re thinking of moving to Sanford, Florida, but don’t know where to start, we hope this guide will help. Perhaps you don’t even know where Sanford is or what it has to offer. Although this is not a comprehensive guide to this suburb of Orlando, it should give you a good idea of what Sanford is all about.

First, what is Sanford?

Sanford, also known as the Celery City, is the county seat of Seminole County and, according to the 2020 census, which is a couple years old now, has about 61 thousand people. Sanford was originally known as Fort Mellon during the Seminole Wars of the 1830s and because of its location on the shores of the St. Johns River and the advent of the commercial steamboat service, it became a distribution point for the growth of Central Florida. In 1870 Henry Shelton Sanford had plans to make Sanford the transportation hub of all Central Florida and brought investors in chasing that dream. By 1884, the town of Sanford was bustling with wharves, a railroad station and a large hotel. It’s known as the Celery City because, after the freezes of 1894 and 1895 destroyed so much of the areas citrus industry, farmers turned to celery to avoid total disaster, although most of the towns inhabitants left town.

Today, Sanford is the largest city in, and County Seat of, Seminole county and blends into other similar sized towns. Sanford is mostly built out and has a large section of residential housing, a revived downtown district, and plenty of commercial activity. It remains a transportation hub with Amtrack and SunRail stations, and Sanford-Orlando International Airport, which is a great alternative to the chaos of the Orlando International Airport. But, if you need to use the Orlando Airport, it’s only about 30 minutes away.

Where is Sanford?

Sanford is located about 25 miles north of Orlando at the intersection of I-4 and the 417 on the southern shores of Lake Monroe on the St. Johns River. It sits immediately north of Lake Mary and is about a 45-minute ride to Daytona Beach on the east coast and about 2 hours to the west coast.

Why would someone move to Sanford?

As a suburb of Orlando, there are many reasons people live here.

We’ve got good weather here in Central Florida with average lows in the upper 40’s in January and average highs in the low 90’s in July and August. The temperatures here are very moderate. Yes, plenty of people complain in July and August, but it seems like everyone has a pool in their back yard and the beaches are SO close. We don’t even own snow shovels here!

The cost of living is reasonable, like the rest of Central Florida. The cost of real estate tends to be less expensive than Lake Mary and Orlando proper, but more expensive than the neighboring West Volusia towns across the St. Johns River bridge to the north. Currently (March 2022), most of the homes are selling between $325k and $600k and the median sale price of a home was $355k, while it was around $515k in Lake Mary. The sales tax is around 7%, which is typical in the area. Gas prices are usually at or slightly below the national average. Overall, Sanford is touted at being just below the national average when considering the overall cost of living.

There are plenty of jobs in and around Sanford, with several large companies including JP Morgan, Convergys, Verizon and more. Orlando is just a short ride south. Many people in this area ride down I-4 to work at the tourist attractions just south of Orlando.

Orlando is the big draw here. From business, to nightlife, to the tourist traps, most people come to this area for what Orlando has to offer. Orlando is also where the brunt of the traffic is and higher costs of real estate prevails, which are a couple reasons people move to the suburbs like Sanford.

Residential components of Sanford

We spoke a little bit about the overall cost of living here in Sanford, but let’s dig in a bit to the residential components of Sanford. Remember, this is just an overview, and these are generalities about the areas. It won’t cover every neighborhood and may not cover the largest, or even the best. The purpose is to give you an idea of what it’s like to move to Sanford.

The western third or so of Sanford is generally made up of pricier homes. There are several neighborhoods that are mostly on quarter to one-acre parcels that run in the $500’s to the 800’s, although there are some that are selling for over a million. There is some new construction, including the smaller community of Sylvan Trails and several other resale communities in the Sylvan Lake area including Sylvan Lake Reserve, Buckingham Estates, Berrington Club, and others. Lake Forest is a large, gated community that sits right next to the 417 and I-4, and the new section of the 429.

The south-central area of Sanford has many communities with homes in the 300’s for 1400-1800 square feet. Many are in HOA’s that don’t have much in the way of restrictions or amenities such as Country Club Park and Monterey Oaks. Kay’s Landing, one of a couple gated communities in the area, has a pool and a playground. Those homes run in the upper 400’s.

There’s a good bit of new construction throughout Sanford, mostly near the western edge of Sanford, like Riverbend, Rosecrest and Riverside Oaks, although much of that may already be sold out. In general, these homes are selling in the 300’s and 400’s.

There are numerous townhome communities throughout Sanford and the surrounding areas which provide a good alternative to a single family home as their fees often cover exterior maintenance and yard maintenance.

In addition to HOA-stye neighborhoods, there is plenty of housing in Sanford that is nothing like that. Downtown there’s a beautiful historic district with very nice housing that has been greatly improved over the last 20 years. Of course, there is also housing throughout Sanford that is much less expensive in the western/central area which runs, in general, along 17-92, the main, old thoroughfare through Sanford. There are even a few farm type parcels in the area, although much of that has been sold off to build new communities and for commercial development.

There are very few manufactured homes in Sanford and there are a few RV Parks and numerous apartment complexes, but it’s mostly made up of single-family residential homes.

What do the locals do here?

In Sanford, you’re just about 45 minutes to Daytona or New Smyrna Beaches and most people here love the beaches. On weekends or holidays, they can be packed though, so getting there early or late can be a good thing.

The St. Johns River is famous for its fishing. Bass and Crappie/Spec fishing is a big deal and tournament anglers flock here. Many people spend their days on Lake Monroe Spec fishing the warm waters along the old power plant. Sanford is under 45 minutes from Mosquito Lagoon to the east and of course, the beaches just beyond that provide all sorts of fishing options.

Historic Downtown Sanford and its brick-lined streets is rich in history and has an old-town feel. Many years ago the downtown area wasn’t too safe after dark; however, today it has been completely revitalized. There are regular festivals and events and the downtown district has an abundance of eateries, several breweries, and the riverwalk along Lake Monroe. The marina and Veterans Park are great places to get some fresh air. Octoberfest at Hollerbach’s Willow Tree is a favorite event as the German food (and the beer) are GREAT there!

The St. Johns Rivership Company offers a different way to experience Florida with the Barbara-Lee paddle wheel boat that serves dinner while cruising the river.

The Sanford Mall area is another option. While malls everywhere have struggled, the Sanford Mall has some activity centers including Elev8, which has laser tag, bowling, ropes course, and all kinds of cool stuff. There’s also a large gym along with Dick’s Sporting Goods, some department stores and a food court. Surrounding the mall are several restaurants and all this is right on I-4, so it’s convenient if you’re heading to a surrounding area. Sanford has a couple Wal-Marts, a Target and the typical chains that you’d expect to find in a city of this size.

The Sanford Zoo is really nice too. It’s relatively inexpensive and it also has a rope course with ziplining. The zoo regularly holds special events.

Parks

There are several parks in Sanford. One of the biggest is Lake Sylvan Park off of Lake Markham Road near the Seminole Soccer Complex. This massive complex has soccer, baseball and football fields, a playground, tennis and pickleball courts, walking trails, camping, a dock for fishing and pavilions.

Groveview Park is great for pickleball players and is set up very well for all levels of competitors. Paw Park near downtown is a favorite off-leash park for dogs.

Fort Mellon Park is the highlight of the progress the City of Sanford has made in recent years. This park sits right along Lake Monroe on the north side of town and has a playground and splash pad. It’s only a short walk to downtown and some great restaurants.

If you’d like something more remote, Black Bear Wilderness area on the north side is a 1600-acre park along the St. Johns River and has some great hiking through the Florida Scrub. There are some other hiking options just a bit west of there in the Seminole State Forest.

So let’s talk about where the locals eat

Of course, Sanford has all the chains of other mid-sized towns like Bahama Breeze, Carabba’s, Chick Fil A, etc. There’s plenty of other great options.

The Willow Tree has great German Food. The lamb shank is delicious, and they also have a pretzel that goes great with one of their many beers.

The Old Jailhouse is a nice little place downtown. It’s literally an old jailhouse. It’s small and quaint and is a bit pricey, but the food is always good.

The Sanford Brewing company is another great place downtown to grab a drink and something to eat. Henry’s Depot in the old train station has several little places that are fun to go to with a group because they have lots of options and entertainment.

There are so many great places to eat here in the downtown area like The District, The Tennessee Truffle, The Breezeway and many more.

Schools

Sanford has numerous elementary schools, 2 or 3 middle schools and primarily four high schools, Seminole High, Crooms Academy of IT, Lake Mary High and the 9^th grade center. Seminole State College is right off of 17-92 too. Here’s a link for Seminole County Public Schools website as well as another link that you can check to see how any local schools are rated.

Hospitals/ALF

Central Florida Regional Hospital, now HCA Florida Lake Monroe Hospital, is the main hospital in Sanford and there’s two ERs close by in Lake Mary. There are several long-term care facilities in Sanford, but if something like that is needed, the surrounding cities should also be considered. There are several facilities that could meet all sorts of needs within just a 30-minute ride.

Downsides

So, we’ve talked about what Sanford IS and some of what it has to offer, but what ISN’T so great about Sanford?

Sanford has a bad reputation over the years. Yes, there is some crime that still occurs here, but it’s nothing like it used to be and it feels very safe. However, if you’re trying to keep up with the Jones’s you may want to move down to Lake Mary where it’s a bit more glamorous. Do a google search to see what you can find out about the crime in the area as there is quite a bit online on this subject.

I noted earlier that the price of real estate is better than in Lake Mary and in Orlando and that still holds true; however, if you’re looking for even better prices you can head north to Debary, Deland, Deltona or Orange City and visit Sanford from there.

Sanford can be noisy, like most cities. There’s always someone honking their horn, or a train moving through, an ambulance or police siren, or something.

 

This hasn’t covered everything in Sanford, but you can see that Sanford has a good bit to offer in spite of a few, small warts. If you’re considering moving to Sanford or the surrounding area and would like more information, please let us help.

Published on March 14. 2022 / no comments.