DESPITE COVID-19, OUR UNWELCOME VISITOR, RURAL HOME SALES ARE BOOMING

In the face of the pandemic, Ocala continues to evolve into an exciting metropolitan area. As people reconsider the wisdom of living in large urban areas, our countryside is proving a desirable alternative. Therefore, many are drawn to rural communities where social distancing is a normal part of daily life and always has been. As a result, home sales in the rural outskirts of our city are booming. People are migrating here from nearby Orlando and locations more distant as well.

Our reputation as the “Horse Capital of the World”, draws from well known equestrian communities such as Wellington in Palm Beach County. Additionally, new residents are coming from Georgia, South Florida and the Tampa Bay area. Also, it bears repeating that the World Equestrian Center is schedule to open here in early 2021.

Incredibly, this facility is expected to increase revenue generated by Ocala’s equestrian industry from today’s $3 billion per year to over $10 billion annually. Could there be a better time to invest in Marion County real estate? In answer, let me paraphrase an old Chinese proverb: “The best time to invest in Ocala real estate is twenty years ago. The second best time is now!”

Ocala continues to evolve in amazing ways:

We also note with interest today’s grand opening of Ocala’s Wetlands Recovery Park. The project took twenty seven months to complete. Dozens of species of water fowl have already made this park their home. Since Ocala’s engineers designed these wetlands as an ideal habitat for birds, they are quickly becoming a birdwatchers’ paradise. Additionally, they will surely continue to draw new wildlife into the park. Many local species of fish and snails are expected to invade quickly.

These wetlands feature hiking trails and educational opportunities for the adults and children of all ages. But they ultimately have a more important ecological purpose. By design, the wetlands’ ponds act as the final filtration stage which will feed millions of gallons of clean water into the Florida Aquifer, replenishing the water we draw out every year to serve the needs of residents.

Finally we are excited to note that Ocala’s horse farms are once again well represented in this year’s Triple Crown races. Not surprisingly, our community has a connection to ten of the seventeen horses which participated in the 2020 Kentucky Derby. Each is native to one of our farms, trained here, or both. For example, early in his career, Kentucky Derby winner Authentic trained at Eddie Woods’ Florida Training Center in Ocala. Additionally, he battled against Tiz The Law, the Derby favorite, down the stretch and “Tiz” trained at Tony Everard’s New Episode Training Center in Ocala.

Read more about the news that puts Ocala on the map in the following interesting articles:

Florida’s rural home sales are booming amid COVID-19 pandemic

Florida’s rural home sales are booming. While so many industries are suffering because of COVID-19, rural real estate is in great demand. No surprisingly, according to an Ocala realtor, people are leaving the big city for the countryside in today’s environment. Read the article on floridatrend.com >

Wetlands Recharge Park in Ocala opens Monday

About a year behind schedule, the Ocala Wetlands Recharge Park is finally ready for its debut and will open to the public on Monday. The park originally was to open for a fall 2019, but a series of sinkholes plagued the project and even caused a temporary shutdown order from the state. Read the article on Ocala.com >

Tales from the Crib: Authentic

Authentic at the Kentucky Derby: The 2020 Kentucky Derby is the 146th. The race has a reputation for delivering “The Greatest Two Minutes in Sports” and once again Ocala’s horses represent the city well. – Read the article on kentuckyderby.com >

Its no wonder that rural home sales are booming in our countryside. Of course, we are excited to serve this amazing community.

Andrew Kruglanski, Broker

Ocala Home Guide Realty, LLC

(352)234-3048

andy.k@ocalahomes.online

Website: Ocala Homes Online