Located in central Florida and the capital of Orange County, Orlando has always been talked about because of the many attractions it offers to its visitors and because it is one of the most popular destinations for investing in America.
Originally named Jernigan, after Aaron Jeringan, one of the first settlers in the area, the city was renamed Orlando in 1857 in honor of Orlando Reeves, a sentry killed during the war with the Seminole natives. Thanks to an economy based initially on the trade of raw materials, especially citrus fruits, and then focused on the presence of the Kennedy Space Center and other neighboring military bases and space stations, in late 1965 it became the destination of the new projects of Walt Disney, which announced to want to make Orlando the capital of all Disney World Resorts. From that moment, Orlando became the focal point of the entertainment industry and related services.
The Disney complex alone today covers an area of 110 km² and has been the pivot around which the tourist economy of the city has developed over time. Today the city of Orlando offers numerous opportunities to tourists from all over the world: in addition to Disney World, also Sea World, Wet'n Wild, and many museums related to Loch Haven Park, as well as golf courses, resorts, and shopping centers of all kind. Investors interested in investing in America can rely on Orlando as an excellent destination to allocate their capital
Famous for the technology industry, the city is also home to some of the major hi-tech giants. The technology sector in Orlando alone is worth over $ 13 billion and employs more than 53,000 people today.
Let's find out together 5 curiosities about Orlando and why this city is chosen by numerous investors from all over the world as a destination for their investments in Florida.
1) Disney World is the largest single-based employer in the entire United States
Not only entertainment but also a high level of employment. Disney World employs over 75,000 people, making it the single-seat employer with the most employees in the entire US. The Resort also earned a fourth-place among the 2,000 companies listed by Forbes as the best employers in the world.
This statistic was obtained starting from the employees and collecting over 430,000 reviews from those who work or have worked at the famous amusement park.
Note that the before mentioned 75,000 employees belong only to Disney World; considering the number of other theme parks, shopping malls, military bases, and attractions of all kinds, the number of employees in Orlando exceeds 1.3 million individuals. This data is particularly relevant when planning to invest in residential real estate with rental income in America, as these individuals tend to occupy rental properties.
With a slight decline caused by the pandemic, the employment rate promptly saw a rise as early as June 2020, exceeding the average of the last 10 years by 3.22%. Accomplice to this trend was probably the promotion of vaccinations operated by the tourist realities of the area: Disney was the first to open a vaccination hub inside the Resort for all its employees, facilitating the reopening of the park for all visitors and the restart of the tourism sector. The interest in the rebound in tourism is leading many investors to invest in America and to consider investments in Florida in particular.
The demand for employees, linked to the entertainment industry, is certainly supported by the huge amount of tourists, about 70 million a year, who regularly reach Orlando to enjoy the great attractions offered by the city. It should be noted that in 2017 alone in the Magic Kingdom theme park there were over 20.45 million visitors, a number corresponding to the inhabitants of Florida.
By investing today in residential properties in Orlando already rented, such as those proposed by OPISAS, net revenues of over 6% can be obtained and generated by American tenants employed in the tourism and hospitality sector. This is an excellent strategy for investing in America at a profit.
The continuous demand for rental housingcconstantly attracts investors from all over the world, allowing also to accrue considerable capital gains on resale already in the short to medium term.
2) Orlando is home to the second-largest convention center in the United States
Spanning over 650,000 m², the Orlando Convention Center is the second-largest convention center in the United States, second only to McCormick Place in Chicago. The property is located at the southern end of International Drive, Orlando's largest tourist destination located within walking distance of the city's major theme parks.
The Center hosts approximately 230 events a year and over 1.4M attendees, contributing $1.9 billion to the Central Florida economy a year.
With 74 meeting rooms and 3 business centers, the Orlando Convention Center generates a large turnout of professionals from all over the world, thus integrating leisure and business tourism. Precisely because of its versatility and the ability to generate a heterogeneous turnout, Orlando is therefore chosen by many investors as a destination for their investments in Florida, to invest in America by leveraging various sectors.
3) Pristine natural environment and golf course record
Not everyone knows that the city of Orlando is surrounded by a pristine natural environment: in the Orlando area, there are in fact over 300 lakes, rivers, springs, nature parks with hiking trails, and nature reserves that protect resident animals. Worthy of note is the commitment by the theme parks themselves and the main tourist centers to preserve this natural balance: Disney World is the first to even have an underground waste disposal system. The city has also always invested in leisure and outdoor sports, allowing everyone to enjoy the natural environment in which it is located. The city of Orlando alone has 24 golf courses and within 20 miles of the center, there are another 34, for a total of 58 vast spaces dedicated to one of the most popular and practiced sports in the world.
All these elements make the city of Orlando a pleasant place for both tourists and residents. Reconciling the large influx of visitors with sustainable tourism has the effect of contributing to the local quality of life. Investing in America by choosing a destination like Orlando, thus allows you to leverage the stability of rents.
4) Many of NASA's space missions depart from Orlando
Orlando is located just 40 minutes from the John F. Kennedy Space Center, NASA's spacecraft launch facility, and one of its 10 operational centers. NASA arrived in Florida in 1962 and only in 1968 inaugurated human spaceflight missions with Apollo 11, which led to the first moon landing in history.
Today the Kennedy Space Center employs over 10,000 professionals and since 1995 has given rise to its Visitor Complex, a cultural center dedicated to space that houses a variety of exhibitions and attractions on the history and future of human presence off planet Earth.
From a 2020 report on NASA's influence on the US economy, it emerged that the government agency has an economic impact of $ 5.9 billion on Florida alone, a factor that certainly influences the already typically high local GDP.
The economic prosperity of Florida and the continuous demand for professionals linked to these great institutions make Orlando a noteworthy destination for those considering investing in America.
5) Rental market and residents' quality of life
Florida is one of nine US states that do not impose a personal income tax. It was also one of the few states that did not have minimum wage laws until in 2004 voters passed a constitutional amendment that established a minimum wage. The same is adjusted according to inflation every 6 months.
These factors contribute to optimizing the quality of life of the residents. Orlando was ranked 17th among the 100 best cities in the USA to live in, also thanks to the affordable prices of the residential market and services to the individual citizen.
The job market in Orlando is in full recovery and the presence of occupations related to tourism and hospitality keeps the demand for housing constant. As for the rental market, the increase in the last 12 months was even + 13.1%, one of the highest increases in all the States.
To understand whether to invest in America by acting on residential real estate, it should be considered that as many as 45% of residential properties in Orlando are occupied by tenants. A recent survey conducted by the niche.com portal also revealed that of 1,400 residents interviewed, 86% defined life in Orlando as excellent in terms of quality, the possibility of working and doing business.
To conclude, Orlando is also a family-friendly city for both visitors and residents. The presence of several schools and entertainment venues for young and old favors the influx of families with children, so much so that the slogan associated with the city is "you never outgrow it" (you are never too grown up to live it).
If you are interested in investing in America and especially in investments in Florida, book your consultation with OPISAS now and choose to invest in the rebound of the Orlando tourism sector.
