Selling a House in Lake Nona

We buy houses in Lake Nona and surrounding Central Florida communities. Lake Nona is newer than most of Orlando, so the questions here are less about old wiring and more about which government, district and association your property answers to.

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Quick answer

Lake Nona is a master-planned area in southeast Orlando, and most of it is inside the City of Orlando. A typical house here answers to three bodies at once: the city or county for permits and code enforcement, a homeowners association for the neighborhood rules, and often a special improvement district that charges an assessment on the tax bill. Find out what each one has on your property before you price it, because association balances and district assessments come out at closing.

City of Orlando, or county?

The City of Orlando plans this area under its Southeast Orlando Sector Plan, which the city says covers more than 19,300 acres east of Orlando International Airport and includes Lake Nona, Medical City and East Park. Inside that area, the city handles building permits and code enforcement.

Not every address described as “Lake Nona” is in the city, though. Communities around the edges may be in unincorporated Orange County, and the Osceola County line is a short drive south. To check, search the address on the Orange County Property Appraiser site and read the Municipality heading on the parcel record. It will show Orlando or Unincorporated, and that tells you which permit and code office to use.

What to look up before you sell

Improvement district assessments

Much of Lake Nona’s roads, drainage and landscaping were built by special districts created under Chapter 190 of the Florida Statutes, the law behind community development districts. The Boggy Creek Improvement District is one example in this area. These districts pay for infrastructure with bonds and recover the cost through assessments on the properties inside them.

For a seller, the practical points are:

  • The assessment appears on the annual property tax bill as a non-ad valorem charge, separate from the association dues.
  • It stays with the property, so the buyer takes it over. Buyers and their lenders count it in the monthly cost of the house, which affects what they will pay.
  • Your tax bill, available from the Orange County Tax Collector, shows whether your parcel is in a district and what it is charged.

Homeowners association

Nearly every Lake Nona neighborhood has a mandatory association, and some have more than one layer. Before closing, the title agent requests an estoppel certificate under section 720.30851 of the Florida Statutes, which states what is owed. Two things are worth asking the manager early: whether there are open violations on the lot, and what the association’s rules say about leasing, because rental limits narrow the pool of investor buyers.

Permits and code cases

Newer houses have shorter permit histories, but additions such as screen enclosures, pools, pavers and solar panels still need permits, and often association approval as well. For addresses inside the city, check City of Orlando Permits and Inspections and Code Enforcement. For unincorporated addresses, use Orange County Fast Track and Orange County Code Compliance.

Planned Development zoning

Large planned communities are commonly zoned Planned Development, and the city notes that lots with that zoning have site-specific requirements instead of the standard citywide ones. If a buyer plans to add on or build an accessory unit, the answer depends on the rules for your particular community. The city’s zoning lookup shows what applies to your parcel.

Official property resources for Lake Nona

Selling costs and considerations

Because most Lake Nona homes are recent, sales here are less often held up by condition and more often by cost. Association dues, district assessments, taxes and insurance continue every month until closing, and on a house bought in the last few years the mortgage balance may be close to the price. Work out your payoff and your monthly carrying cost before choosing a route. The usual costs of a listed sale apply as well: agent commission, which is negotiable, plus title and closing costs.

If the house is a rental, see our guide to selling a rental property with tenants in Florida. If you are behind on payments, read selling a house before foreclosure in Florida first, because your loan servicer may have options that a sale does not.

As-is versus a traditional sale

We will be direct about this: a newer house in good condition in Lake Nona usually nets more on the open market than from a cash buyer. An as-is sale is worth comparing when timing matters more than the last few percent, for example a job move with a fixed date, a rental with a tenant in place, or a house with damage you do not want to repair. Put your numbers into the cash sale vs traditional sale calculator, including the monthly association and district costs, and see which comes out ahead.

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Matthew Buys Houses is a private home buyer and is not affiliated with the City of Orlando, Orange County, any improvement district, association or government office. Assessments, fees and procedures change, so confirm details with the office itself. This page is general information, not legal advice.