Located roughly halfway between Orlando and Tampa, Lakeland, FL is a unique mid-size Central Florida city. The largest in Polk County, the city offers a great balance of urban activity and small-town peace and quiet. If that's a mix you're in the market for, take a closer look at Lakeland as a possible place for your new or second Central Florida home in a 55+ community. 

From Lakeland, you enjoy convenient access to everything the region has to offer for active adults. Proximity to two of the state's best major metropolitan areas—Orlando and the Tampa Bay area—is a huge plus. You're also near St. Pete Beach, Clearwater Beach, and other celebrated beaches. Then there are all the state parks, campgrounds, springs, birding destinations, golf courses, charming small towns and cities, the Orlando-area theme parks and resorts, and much more so close at hand. 

Here's a quick profile of Lakeland, FL to help you determine whether it's a place you'd like to investigate more thoroughly as you look for that perfect home in a beautiful Central Florida 55-plus community: 

  • Lakeland is approximately 75 square miles and has about 101,000 residents
  • Just a little less than half the population is age 45 and older
  • As of mid-2016, the median home value in the city is $126,600, an impressive jump of 10.4% over a year
  • It's only a 40-minute drive from Lakeland to Tampa, an hour's drive to Orlando, and 1.5 hours to The Villages
  • You're close to great day trip and weekend getaway destinations like Clearwater, St. Pete, Sarasota, Winter Haven, Winter Garden, Winter Park, Clermont, Tavares, Mount Dora, Sanford, and others
  • Lakeland is part of Central Florida's main artery, the I4 Corridor
  • Not surprisingly, there are a lot of lakes in Lakeland (38 named and a number unnamed), and they're a big part of recreational life in the city
  • Many of the swans found in downtown Lakeland are of noble lineage; they're descended from a pair gifted to the city by Queen Elizabeth in 1957, and this pair was descended from King Richard I's royal flock from the 1100s
  • The world's largest single-site collection of Frank Lloyd Wright architecture is in Lakeland, on the campus of Florida Southern College
  • Lake Mirror and Hollis Garden make for a beautiful sanctuary in the heart of downtown, as does historic Munn Park
  • Downtown's Polk Museum of Art is a local cultural gem
  • You can get nostalgic at the Silver Moon Drive-In Theater, a real drive-in movie theater that's been operating since 1948
  • The Circle B Bar Reserve and its Polk's Nature Discovery Center are huge draws for area outdoors enthusiasts
  • The City of Lakeland has recently developed a number of paved multi-use bicycle paths