January 29, 2026
Lake and Sumter Counties Continue to Grow as New Communities Take Shape
By Akers Editorial
Lake and Sumter Counties Continue to Grow as New Communities Take Shape
Love it or hate it, Lake and Sumter counties are growing, and you can’t blame people for wanting to move to our beautiful community.
Our scenic waterfronts, open space and proximity to Central Florida’s job markets continue to entice families and retirees to make this area home.
Population continues to increase and housing demand rise.
Lake County’s population has seen significant growth over the last decade, reaching 460,000 (estimated) in 2025, up nearly 4 percent in the past year.
That surge isn’t slowing down, and neither is homebuilding. According to data from builder’s websites, Lake County alone is home to more than 160 new-home communities that offer everything from mid-priced single-family dwellings to active-adult and custom “build-on-your-lot” options.
Growth is just as evident in Sumter. While Sumter’s overall population remains smaller, it has been one of the state’s rapid-growth counties in recent years, and developers are responding with a growing number of new subdivisions, including communities with homes starting in price ranges below $250,000 and large-scale mixed-use projects in areas like Lake Panasoffkee.
The housing landscape here is changing fast. In this roundup, we highlight a few standout developments that show how Lake and Sumter counties are evolving and what they offer residents who are choosing to put down roots here.
One of the largest and most diverse developments is taking shape in Lady Lake. Hammock Oaks is a mixed-use community designed to offer something for nearly every stage of life. The development spans roughly 732 acres and sits between County Road 466 and Lake Ella Road, and Cherry Lake Road and Rolling Acres Road, and will ultimately include about 2,500 residential units, retail space, trails and shared amenities.
Hammock Oaks brings together builders Meritage Homes, Dream Finders Homes, Maronda Homes, Ryan Homes and Kolter Homes to offer a blend of housing styles that range from villas to age-restricted neighborhoods and traditional single-family homes.
Ryan Homes’ Hammock Oaks Villas offers single-story, paired villas in an all-ages setting, with low-maintenance living built into the design. The open-concept homes measuring about 1,509 square feet feature three bedrooms, two bathrooms, two-car garages and private backyard.
Cress wind at Hammock Oaks — a 55+ community by Kolter Homes designed for active adults who want close proximity to The Villages while maintaining a more intimate neighborhood feel — opens this spring.
Planned amenities include a SmartFIT Training Center, fitness and yoga studios, a resort-style pool, pickleball, tennis and bocce courts, walking trails, art and event spaces, and full-time lifestyle programming. Much of the marketing emphasizes convenience to entertainment, dining and shopping in The Villages, while still offering a quieter residential environment.
Another component of the development by Maronda Homes, The Reserve at Hammock Oaks, focuses on larger single-family homes with an emphasis on space and convenience. Homes range from about 2,044 to more than 3,000 square feet, with three to six bedrooms and three-car garages.
Now open in Mount Dora, Lochside brings lakeside living to a growing residential corridor just minutes from the city’s historic downtown. The gated community developed by Taylor Morrison features about 150 single-family homes on a variety of lot sizes, with select homesites offering direct access to Loch Leven and the option to build private boat docks.
Homes at Lochside are available in 15 floor plans, ranging to 4,181 square feet, with as many as six bedrooms, five-and-a-half bathrooms, and three-car garages.
Lochside’s planned amenities are tied to its waterfront setting. Residents will have access to a community boat ramp, viewing deck, resort-style pool, cabana, playground space, and a National Wildlife Federation Monarch Butterfly Garden.
Just across the street from Lochside, Southloch is selling from an interim sales office within the Lochside community. Southloch, which was also developed by Taylor Morrison, is a gated neighborhood featuring 180 condominium residences, with homes starting in the high $200s.
Southloch includes 16-foot and 20-foot-wide condo designs in a mix of layouts with modern finishes, solid surface countertops, and select plans with one-car garages. Planned amenities mirror the wellness and outdoor focus seen throughout the area, including a pool and cabana, hammocks, cornhole areas, a Nature Play Space™, and another Monarch Butterfly Garden.
A planned golf cart trail and sidewalk network will connect Southloch to the Country Club of Mount Dora and a nearby Publix-anchored shopping center, making it possible to run errands or head to recreation without relying on a car.
South Lake County, once defined by rolling hills and orange groves, is rapidly transforming, and no area reflects that change more than Wellness Way, a master-planned growth corridor southeast of Clermont. Spanning more than 15,000 acres, Wellness Way represents one of Lake County’s most ambitious long-term development plans, blending residential neighborhoods, employment centers and wellness-focused amenities into a single, carefully guided vision.
Wellness Way has been in planning for more than a decade. Rather than developing piecemeal subdivisions, the county designed the corridor to attract high-tech and high-wage industries, including healthcare, biotech and sports science, while reserving about 30 percent of the land for open space and green buffers.
County leaders see Wellness Way as a major driver of future population growth. Lake County expects to add about 75,000 new residents by 2030, with much of that growth tied to this corridor. Under the master plan, the area will include 15,000 to 16,000 homes and more than 11 million square feet of commercial space, creating a live-work-play environment designed to balance jobs, housing and recreation.
That vision has sparked an unprecedented land rush. In 2024 alone, several major land transactions set new records for Lake County.
Among them was a $166.5 million purchase of more than 2,400 acres by GT USA, a development partnership backed by Canadian homebuilders. The acquisition, one of the largest land sales in county history, is slated to become a massive mixed-use community with thousands of homes and significant commercial space.
In Sumter County, Twisted Oaks is a new residential community taking shape in Wildwood, about two miles west of The Villages. The neighborhood designed with families in mind offers a range of single-family homes paired with onsite amenities and convenient access to shopping, dining and community events.
Homes at Twisted Oaks are currently priced from the upper $200,000s to the mid-$300,000s, with eight buildable floor plans available, as well as quick move-in options. Floor plans range from about 1,433 to 2,386 square feet, with two to four bedrooms, two to four bathrooms, and two-car garages, providing flexibility for a variety of household sizes and lifestyles.
The community’s layout emphasizes gathering and everyday livability, with floor plans designed to bring families together while still offering private spaces. Its location places residents close to Wildwood’s growing commercial areas, restaurants and events and natural surroundings that draw new residents to Sumter County.
Pine Meadows in Eustis offers new homebuyers a blend of community living and outdoor recreation in Lake County. The neighborhood features a mix of single-family homes and townhomes with multiple floor plans and sizes that give buyers options that fit a range of lifestyles. Home prices in nearby listings start in the mid-$200,000s, with plans up to over 3,000 square feet.
Pine Meadows stands out for its connection to nature and family-friendly spaces. Residents will soon have access to a community swimming pool and pool house, perfect for cooling off on warm Florida afternoons. An onsite dog park gives four-legged family members a dedicated place to socialize and play, and the community’s walking trails make it easy to exercise outdoors or enjoy a leisurely stroll close to home.
The development is surrounded by larger natural preserves, including the expansive Pine Meadows Conservation Area to the west, with more than six miles of hiking trails, canoe and kayak access, picnic areas and scenic views, and the Trout Lake Nature Center to the south, which also offers walking trails and community activities.
Rainwood is a new residential community by Mattamy Homes in the hills of Groveland that blends nature-inspired living with modern design and convenient access to Central Florida’s roadways and nearby attractions. The neighborhood offers a mix of thoughtfully designed single-family homes with a range of sizes and layouts that cater to families.
Homes in Rainwood include three- to four-bedroom plans, with options that range from about 1,476 to 3,668 square feet of living space. Floor plans are designed for everyday comfort and provide opportunities for personalized finishes and open-concept living. Pricing for new homes in the community generally starts in the upper $200,000s.
In addition to spacious floor plans and flexible layouts, Rainwood’s homes are designed with energy-efficient features that contribute to sustainable living. These energy-saving elements are part of the community’s overall appeal for buyers seeking lower utility costs and modern construction standards — an increasingly important factor for today’s homebuyers.
Residents will enjoy a community swimming pool with shaded cabana, open green spaces, a playground for children and scenic walking trails that thread through the neighborhood’s tree-lined paths.
One of the most significant mixed-use projects taking shape in South Lake County is Hills City Center, a large-scale development planned in Minneola, adjacent to the new AdventHealth Minneola hospital and near the Florida Turnpike interchange.
Spanning roughly 126 acres, Hills City Center is designed to become a new hub for living, working and gathering in Minneola. Plans call for a blend of retail, residential and medical space, with room for restaurants, shops, multifamily housing and health-related services. At buildout, the project is expected to include hundreds of thousands of square feet of retail and medical space, along with more than 1,000 multifamily residential units.
City leaders have described the project as a catalyst for future growth that will help bring new services, jobs and housing options closer to where people live. With the hospital now open and infrastructure continuing to develop around the interchange, Hills City Center is expected to play a key role in shaping Minneola’s next phase of expansion.
Photos: Cindy Peterson, Shayna Grunewald, Nicole Hamel & Provided
