Florida is a great place to be, filled with sand, snowbirds and of course real estate speculation. Since the first real estate boom hit Florida in the 1920s, this sunny state has attracted people from around the United States and the world, enamored with the idea of owning a slice of land in sunny Miami or Tampa. Yet with any investment, there’s a major risk of loss, so proper timing is necessary. Florida housing prices, which hit a peak in December 2006, are slowly recovering after the nosedive following the Great Recession. So it’s hardly surprising that real estate developers are looking to invest in Florida once again. I recently came across an article that featured some of the top places in Florida to invest, listed here:

1. TOP 10 CITIES IN FLORIDA TO
INVEST IN REAL ESTATE
BY NORMA MIRSKY

2. DORAL
A COMBINATION OF RELATIVE AFFORDABILITY, LOW UNEMPLOYMENT RATES AND A
STRONG POPULATION GROWTH MAKE DORAL A GREAT PLACE TO INVEST. LOCATED
IN THE GREATER MIAMI AREA, THIS CITY WELCOMED ALMOST 6,000 NEW
RESIDENTS BETWEEN 2010 AND 2013, EQUALING A GAIN OF MORE THAN 14%.

3. BAL HARBOUR
WITH AN AVERAGE SALES PRICE OF $340 PER
SQUARE FOOT, TINY BAL HARBOUR IS
DEFINITELY ON THE MORE EXPENSIVE SIDE OF
THINGS. YET THERE’S A GOOD REASON FOR
THIS, AND THERE ARE STILL PLENTY OF BUYERS.
ON ZILLOW’S 0-10 SCALE FOR SPEED OF SALE,
BAL HARBOUR SCORED AN IMPRESSIVE 8.66.

4. HOMESTEAD
GROWTH IS A MAJOR FACTOR HERE; MORE
THAN HALF (56%) OF ITS HOMES HAVE
INCREASED IN VALUE OVER THE PAST 10 YEARS,
ALTHOUGH HOUSING REMAINS RELATIVELY
AFFORDABLE IN THIS SMALL CITY OF 61,714.
OVER THE PAST TWO YEARS, SALES PRICES HAVE
AVERAGED JUST $79.42 PER SQUARE FOOT,
AMONG THE MOST AFFORDABLE ON THIS LIST.

5. MIAMI LAKES
WHILE IT MAY NOT BOAST OCEANFRONT
PROPERTY, A FULL 57% OF THE HOUSING STOCK
OUT HERE HAS INCREASED IN VALUE OVER THE
PAST 10 YEARS, AND VACANCIES HAVE DROPPED
3.6%. THIS IS A GREAT SIGN FOR INVESTORS
WHO MAY HAVE TO PAY A PREMIUM IN THIS
MIAMI SUBURB, WHERE BUYERS PAY AN AVERAGE
OF $152 PER SQUARE FOOT FOR A HOUSE.

6. MARIANNA
THERE ARE PLENTY OF BARGAINS IN MARIANNA, AS
EVIDENCED BY AN AVERAGE $61 PER SQUARE FOOT. AND
WITH A 28% INCREASE IN THE POPULATION FROM 2010 TO
2013, IT SEEMS TO BE ATTRACTING NEW RESIDENTS AS WELL.

7. HIALEAH GARDENS
BUYERS WHO ARE LOOKING FOR A QUICK TURNAROUND ON THEIR
INVESTMENT WILL FIND PLENTY OF OPTIONS TO FLIP HOUSING IN
HIALEAH GARDENS, WHICH BOASTS AN EXCEPTIONALLY HIGH OVERALL
MARKET HEALTH SCORE.

8. AVENTURA
THIS DIVERSE AND GROWING COMMUNITY
OUTSIDE OF MIAMI IS KNOWN FOR A HIGH
PERCENTAGE OF NORTHEAST TRANSPLANTS, AS
WELL AS MANY HIGH-RISE CONDOS. WHILE IT’S
RELATIVELY EXPENSIVE AT $227 PER SQUARE
FOOT, THERE ARE PLENTY OF OPTIONS FOR
INTRACOASTAL WATERWAY AND ATLANTIC
OCEAN VIEWS.

9. PINECREST
THIS SMALL MIAMI-REGION VILLAGE IS
PRETTY EXPENSIVE AT $269 PER SQUARE
FOOT, BUT IT’S WELL WORTH IT THANKS
TO THE REGION’S HIGH-QUALITY HOMES
AND VIEWS. ITS POPULATION HAS
GROWN A MODEST 1.54% IN RECENT
YEARS, ALTHOUGH VILLAGE LEADERS
HAVE BEEN TALKING ABOUT EXPANSION.

10. CAPE CORAL
LOCATED ON THE GULF COAST NEAR
FORT MYERS, CAPE CORAL IS THE
LARGEST CITY ON THIS LIST (158,415),
AND HAS AN AVERAGE SALES PRICE OF
$96 PER SQUARE FOOT. CAPE CORAL
RESIDENTS ARE THINKING ABOUT
DEVELOPMENT, WHICH CAN HAVE A
MAJOR EFFECT ON REAL ESTATE
VALUES, AND RECENT NEWS REPORTS
HAVE FOCUSED ON PLANS TO
DEVELOP BIMINI BASIN AS A
COMMUNITY GATHERING PLACE, WITH
SOME IDEAS CALLING FOR A MIX OF
COMMERCIAL AND OPEN SPACE.

11. WINTER GARDEN
LOCATED NEAR ORLANDO, WINTER GARDEN HAS
A LOT TO OFFER ANYBODY DIVING INTO THE
REAL ESTATE MARKET; AS ITS VACANCY RATE
DECLINED, ITS POPULATION GREW OVER 13%,
SUGGESTING A STRONG DEMAND FOR HOUSING.
POSSIBLY DUE TO ITS PROXIMITY TO VARIOUS
AMUSEMENT PARKS, IT HAS A PARTICULARLY
STRONG JOB MARKET (ONLY 3.8%
UNEMPLOYMENT, COMPARED TO FLORIDA’S
OVERALL AVERAGE OF 5.6%), WHICH IN TURN
SUPPORTS A GROWING HOUSING MARKET.