Why are so many moving to Podunk little Debary, Florida? Like most cities, Debary has its ups AND its downs, but today I’ll be giving you 5 reasons why so many are moving to Debary, Florida. These 5 reasons people are moving to Debary, Florida are not listed in any particular order, so be sure to stick around until the end because the LAST reason might just be a bigger draw than any of the others.

Location, Location, and Location

Let’s kick things off with what I consider the most obvious reason someone would consider moving to Debary, Florida…the location. Debary is located just north of Sanford and Lake Mary on the north side of Orlando, Florida. Debary is less than 30 minutes to downtown Orlando and about 40 minutes to New Smyrna Beach, my family’s favorite of all the local beaches. There’s plenty of river and lake access Nearby for boating and fishing too.

It’s also just 20 minutes south of downtown Deland and about 25 minutes from Sanford International Airport. But it’s not just about what is right next to, it’s about the highways that get you where you need to go if you AREN’T just going somewhere right next door. I-4 is about a mile and a half down the road, which now connects, almost seamlessly to the Wekiva Parkway, 429, and the 417, which is the beltway that surrounds Orlando. I-4 not only connects you to the beltway around Orlando, but I-4 is also the connector between Daytona Beach at I-95, Lakeland, and Tampa.

City of Trails

I get calls from people moving to Debary from all over, and they want to come to Debary for all sorts of reasons, but Debary is becoming more popular because of its trail system. Now, we’re not talking about these little paths that meander through the woods with your hiking boots, we’re talking about legit cycling trails. In 2020, the Florida Bicycle Association recognized Debary as the Bicycle Friendly Community of the year for their trail system. DeBary is also the state’s 12th official Trail Town.

Debary sits at the junction of the Spring-to-Spring Trail, which runs from Debary’s Gemini Springs, up past Blue Springs to  De leon Springs, and the East Central Regional Rail Trail that takes you eastward and down to Titusville or up to Edgewater.

These are paved 12 feet wide trails, in great condition that are quite private. They’re great for cycling, but people use these trails for all sorts of things. Be careful though as I’ve had deer and racoons run out in front of me and…well let’s just say things got ugly in a hurry.

These trails connect up with this massive loop along roads that takes you all the way up to Palatka, over to St. Augustine, and back down through Ormond and New Smyrna Beach before connecting back up to the smaller, more private trails that bring you back to Debary. Or go south to Sanford Riverwalk and all the way to trails in Seminole and Orange county.

Sunrail

The third reason so many people are moving to Debary, Florida is because of the SunRail. Perhaps you haven’t heard of it, but the SunRail is a commuter rail system for Greater Orlando. I believe they have about 16 stations as I record this today, but it connects Debary to the newest station up north in Deland (OPEN SUMMER 2024), to several stations southward all the way down to the south side of Orlando to Kissimmee.

The main benefit of SunRail is to get its riders into Orlando WITHOUT the need of a vehicle. I often hear of people taking it down to Winter Park for lunch and window shopping. I-4 is great, but sometimes it’s just one giant parking lot during rush hour, but the SunRail just keeps moving along. It’s dependable, easy to get around on, and it’s inexpensive, especially when you consider the cost of vehicle maintenance and insurance these days.

If you hop on the SunRail in Debary, say at 8am, in the heart of Orlando’s rush hour traffic, you can be getting off at Orlando Health before 9am WITHOUT worries of traffic for about $4.00 as of today.

Podunk?

So…I need to apologize to The City of Debary, because Debary is surely NOT Podunk. Debary sits along the banks of the St. Johns River and has over 23,000 residents, a city government that is working hard for its constituents to manage growth, and, as of this recording, is working on a new downtown district. None of this really sounds like Podunk to me.

Debary has some very good restaurants. While there is some small business in Debary, there is not A LOT of business here, this is why the small-town feel is so prevalent here in Debary, Florida. All the shopping and whatever else you could need, is just a few minutes away up in Orange City or down in Sanford.

Debary is growing, to the chagrin of its residents. Traffic is becoming a real issue here as so many people are moving here, although it’s nothing like it is down in Sanford, Lake Mary, and Orlando. Over 5% of Debary’s population has moved here within the last 4 years. In spite of this growth, Debary still hasn’t lost their small-town feel. Debary has a Christmas parade in December, and they literally shut down 17-92, the main thoroughfare for the duration of the parade. I think it’s pretty cool.

Affordability

Perhaps the greatest reason so many are moving to Debary, Florida, is the affordable housing in relation to nearby areas. I’ve been helping those buying or selling homes here in Debary for over a decade, and I’m often noting that Debary offers more affordability than down in Sanford, Lake Mary, or other cities here in the Orlando area. Orlando folks flock here to get across the St. Johns River bridge to get relief from high prices. If you’ve got real estate needs anywhere in Florida, either shoot me a message or just pick up the phone and give me a call!

The median sale price of a home here in Debary last month was $392,000. While it’s important to understand that the gap between Debary’s prices and its neighbors has shrunk considerably in the last few years, there IS still a gap.

Orlando has some really nice, expensive homes, but they’ve also got some areas with many older, lower priced homes in poor condition, and their median sale price last month was $395,000. Sanford and Lake Mary, Debary’s neighbors to the south had median sale prices of $375,000 and $515,000 respectively, so you can see that Debary does make some sense from an affordability perspective.

Debary has an abundance of homes built in the 1960’s scattered throughout Debary that are priced more affordably than the many new construction homes in communities like Rivington, where a new construction single-family home will start in the 400’s.

If you head north of Debary, say into Orange City, Deltona, or Deland, home prices are a bit lower, but then you’re also a bit further from Orlando, which was the first reason I believe so many people are moving to Debary.

Published on July 10. 2024 / no comments.