Florida Demographics Information

Everyone is moving to Florida - or so it seems in recent years, as the state's population has boomed along with its economy. The second fastest-growing state in the U.S., Florida is now its 4th most populous - after California, Texas and New York - though it ranks only 22nd in land area. The Sunshine State's gross domestic product is also growing rapidly, thanks largely to the tourism industry, its nation-leading citrus fruit production, and the (until recently) booming real estate market.

Florida Real Estate Information

Florida's subtropical climate created strong a demand for housing among migrants from other states, but the skyrocketing Florida home prices of the 1990s through 2004-5 tumbled after a nationwide real estate slowdown in 2005 and 2006. Four of Florida's real estate markets are currently listed among the most overpriced in the country, yet a correction in prices will likely draw many more buyers from out-of-state seeking affordable vacation and retirement homes. Florida has earned its reputation as a Mecca for retired "snowbirds" from the North. Nearly 17 percent of Florida's residents are 65 or older, compared to a national average of 12 percent, making it the nation's oldest state.

Florida Tourism and Ecology

People flock to Florida by the millions, drawn by Walt Disney World Resort near Orlando, the world's largest theme park. Florida is also home to Universal Studios, Sea World, Busch Gardens, and Cypress Gardens, among others, Florida attracts 60 million tourists annually to its family-oriented theme parks, zoos and aquariums, sandy beaches on both coasts, and national and state parks. Florida boasts the country's only undersea state park, John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park, near Key Largo.

Certainly, the most unique and ecologically significant natural attraction in Florida is the Everglades, the world's largest sawgrass swamp covering 5,000 square miles in South Florida. The "River of Grass" described by journalist Marjorie Stoneman Douglas in her landmark 1947 book won federal protection as a national park that same year, although the area's survival continued to face major threats from development. In 2000, the state and federal governments began the largest wetlands recovery program ever attempted in an effort to preserve the Everglades. Habitat of threatened and endangered species such as the Florida panther, American crocodile, West Indian manatee, and bald eagle, the Everglades was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site because of its outstanding natural and cultural value.

One species native to the Everglades that has come to symbolize Florida in many respects is the American alligator, mascot of the University of Florida. The state's Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission estimates the Florida alligator population at one million, and it receives approximately 18,000 "nuisance alligator" complaints every year. The large toothy reptiles, which normally live in ponds, rivers and swamps, sometimes turn up in swimming pools and on golf courses, probably because rapid real estate development continues to encroach on their natural habitats and hunting territories.