Florida: News

New Yorkers have long retired to the warmth and ease of the Florida coast, but eyebrow-raising numbers show that in recent years, most of those moving from the Empire State to the Sunshine State have been going there to find work. (Read More)

Orlando was ranked as the fourth fastest growing city in the nation by Forbes. The publication looked at Census population figures for 2000 to 2012 for the 52 metropolitan statistical areas in the U.S. that exceed 1 million residents to determine the top 10 fastest growing cities. (Read More)

The Miami area ranked eighth among the top 10 luxury real estate markets in the world in a report from Christie’s International Real Estate, putting it in a league with London, New York, Paris and Hong Kong. Fueled by strong interest from South American buyers, Miami had a high percentage of both international and secondary and additional home buyers according to the Christie’s report. (Read More)

Sarasota (#2); Venice (#3); Naples (#7) and Fort Myers (#8) captured four of the top ten spots in Topretirements.com’s list of 10 best U.S. cities to retire in. The web site recently released its 7th annual list of the most popular places to retire. (Read More)

Florida had its second consecutive year of record-breaking tourism, according to preliminary data released Monday. There were 89.3 million visitors to Florida in 2012, an increase of 2.3 percent from 2011, which also was a record year. The number of jobs tied directly to tourism also hit a record 1,030,600, Visit Florida reported. (Read More)

Value Advisory chief research analyst Howard Rosencrans explains why it's more affordable to live in Florida. (Read More)

Ultimate Software, JM Family Enterprises, Darden, Baptist Health South Florida and Publix Super Markets have been named among Fortune magazine’s “Best Companies to Work For” list for 2013. Pay, perks and policies factor into the annual list, which is compiled by the Great Place to Work Institute from anonymous surveys of employees. (Read More)

The Marquesa Hotel in Key West (#4), Island Bay Resort in Tavernier (#7), and Orchid Key Inn in Key West (#9) have been named among the nation’s top 25 small hotels for 2013 by TripAdvisor. Selections were based on millions of reviews and opinions covering more than 650,000 hotels and collected in a single year from travelers around the world. (Read More)

The nation’s mover rate is up 12 percent this year, with about 36.5 million people moving into a new home, new Census data shows. New York lost 59,228 residents to Florida this year, the most any one state saw move to another. Georgia-to-Florida also was among the top 10 largest interstate moves, with 38,658 residents heading to the Sunshine State. (Read More)

Florida ranks as the ninth fastest-growing, with a 1.23 percent population increase between July 1, 2011 and July 1, 2012, according to the U.S. Census Bureau state population estimates. The state also had a gain of 235,000 people, making it third for largest population increase. (Read More)

Lakeland captured the No. 4 spot on CNN Money’s rankings of the most affordable city for home buying. According to the National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Opportunity Index, housing markets making the list offer the best combination of low prices and competitive wages. (Read More)

Since October 2011, 436 Guardsmen have acquired employment through the efforts of the Florida Guard Family Career Connection, a program established to address high unemployment rates and find meaningful employment for returning Florida National Guardsmen and their families. (Read More)

Brevard and Santa Fe Colleges were announced as finalists for The Aspen Institute’s Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence. The prize recognizes institutions four areas: student learning outcomes, degree and college completion, labor market success in students securing jobs after college, and minority and low-income student success. (Read More)

Fort Lauderdale has grabbed first place among the top 50 destinations in the U.S. for the lowest combined travel-related taxes. Tied with Fort Lauderdale for the No. 1 spot were West Palm Beach and Fort Myers, while Orlando ranked No. 10 and Miami No. 16. (Read More)

According to Forbes, Orlando (15th) and Miami (19th) rank among the 20 happiest cities for young professionals, based on over 38,000 employee reviews. (Read More)

Affordable housing and a low unemployment rate have helped rate Tallahassee among America's most millennial-friendly cities. (Read more)

An analysis of fifty indicators has placed two Florida beaches among the nation's best: St. George Island State Park (#2) and Cape Florida State Park (#6). (Read more)

Florida dominated the small cities category of American Style Magazine's Top 10 Arts Cities. Congratulations to Sarasota (#1), Bradenton (#2), Key West (#4) and Naples (#9)! (Read more)

Two Florida cities are ranked among America's Best Small Towns: Naples (#9) and Key West (#16). (Read more)

Florida is home to two of the top cities in the nation for retirement, including #1 ranked Sarasota. (Read more)

Florida home to two of the top 10 moving locations, according "Move Ahead" and Penske Truck Rental. (Read more)

According to preliminary estimates, an estimated 85.9 million visitors came to Florida in 2011, an increase of 4.4 percent over 2010. (Read more)

Florida grabs national attention as new Census data show it is the #2 state for attracting new U.S. residents, #3 state for attracting residents from other countries, and has experienced the 3rd largest population growth since Census 2010. (Read more)

Florida is home to 7 of America's Best Communities for Young People presented by ING -- more than any other state except California which also has 7 communities on the list. (Read more)

Florida is home to 4 of the 10 Best Amusement Parks in the United States. (Read more)

Florida cities dominated the top spots on Forbes' list of Cities with the Happiest Young Professionals with Fort Lauderdale ranking 2nd and Orlando 3rd. (Read more)

Three Florida cities, St. Petersburg (#1), Tampa (#7), and Miami (#10) were named to AmericanStyle Magazine's list of Top 25 Arts Destinations in the United States. (Read more)

Metro Orlando took a bite out of the Big Apple on Tuesday when the City Beautiful announced it had become the first U.S. travel destination to draw more than 50 million visitors in a single year. (Read more)

Broward County's Port Everglades has been selected for the third consecutive year as the #1 U.S. Homeport by Porthole Cruise Magazine, a world-class leading cruise travel magazine. (Read more)

Gainesville ranks among America's 10 Happiest Cities, and earned the title of the nation's #1 city for Work Environment on Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index. The index was based on six sub-indexes: life evaluation, emotional health, work environment, physical health, healthy behaviors, and access to basic necessities. (Read more)

Men's Health has identified Orlando as the 7th most socially networked city in America. (Read more)

Naples ranked #11 on the Gallup Healthways Well-Being Index of America's cities where people are overall the happiest and healthiest. (Read more)

Florida ranks among the Top 3 States Where People Would Like To Live. Florida ranked third in a Harris Poll that asked "If you could live in any state in the country, except the state you live in now, what state would you choose to live in?" (Read more)

Florida, California, and Texas are tied for top honors as America's strongest population magnets. Each is the top destination for movers from six other states, according to a new report from the U.S. Census Bureau. (Read more)

Florida is home to two of America's Coolest Cities, Orlando (6th) and Miami (9th). To compile the list, market research company Harris Interactive conducted an exclusive poll for Forbes. (Read more)

Florida counties dominated recent Forbes rankings, accounting for nearly half of the top spots on Where America's Money is Moving. Collier County ranked No. 1 in the nation followed by Nassau (3rd), Walton (5th), Sumter (10), Lee (11), Monroe (14), Palm Beach (17), and Sarasota (18). (Read more)

Florida cities earned top marks on AmericanStyle Magazine's recent list of Top Cities for Art. Among mid-sized cities, St. Petersburg ranked #1 in the nation, followed by Tampa (11th) and Miami (12th). Among small cities, Key West ranked 4th, Sarasota was 5th, Naples was 14th, and Bradenton ranked 22nd. (Read more)

Florida is once again the nation's most popular summer destination, accounting for 24.5 percent of all responses with cities such as Orlando, Miami, Ft. Lauderdale and Tampa named to the ASTA's 2010 Hot Spots for Summer survey. Orlando was the No. 1 ranked city in 2010. (Read more)

Orlando is the nation's No. 1 Domestic Travel Destination, according to Travel Leaders' 2010 authoritative annual Travel Trends Survey. (Read more)