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Monroe County Real Estate
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Monroe County |
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-- Monroe County --
If unique is what you seek, Monroe County is the place to be. Made up of hundreds of islands, Monroe County is connected by an overseas highway that was built by the state utilizing 42 defunct railroad bridges between Key Largo and Key West. The original bridges have been replaced; in many cases the old bridges still run parallel to the new and some are utilized as fishing bridges. This highway contains 19.3 miles of bridge spans.
Unlike most counties, there is no single county seat easily accessible to all; every service, every county function, must be accomplished in triplicate. Even with three hospital sites, there is a 45-mile ambulance run between them. While the three major Islands in the county are Key West, Islamorada, and Key Largo, the keys are made up of dozens of small communities that line Highway One including Marathon, Walhalla, Conch Key, Big Pine Key, Summerland Key, Cudjoe, Pirates Cove, Bay Point, Perky, Big Coppitt Key, Stock Island, Layton, Matecumbe, Plantation Key and Sunset Point.
Despite the limited availability of development land, the Keys offer a surprisingly wide assortment of homes and prices. Vacation homes, condominiums and timeshares, single-family properties and luxurious estates and mansions are all available ranging from the mid-$100,000s to $4 million.
Discovered by Ponce De Leon on May 12, 1513, the Florida Keys proper are an elongated chain of low-lying islands more than 220 miles in length. They extend from the southeastern tip of the Florida peninsula to the Dry Tortugas and lie between the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic Ocean. The Keys are separated from the mainland by Biscayne Bay, Barnes Sound, Blackwater Sound and Florida Bay. Monroe County is made up of 822 islands, although only about 30 of them are actually inhabited. The western half or Everglades National Park and the southern tip of Big Cypress National Preserve are largely uninhabited.
Geographically, the Florida Keys are built on top of the submerged foothills of the very old Appalachian Mountains. A two-mile thick layer of limestone lies on top of these foothills, covered in the upper keys by the skeleton of an ancient coral reef, and in the lower keys by a naturally cemented limestone rock called Miami Oolite. No point in the Keys is more than four miles from water.
These islands are defined by the environmental benefits of diving, fishing, boating, unique wildlife, flora and fauna, and the only living coral reef in the continental United States. Monroe County has colorful politics, a varied cultural life, and unexcelled beauty. The millions of tourists that visit the county each year provide the major source of employment for local residents. Retail services, commercial fishing and government employment are the other industries.
The Florida Keys' unique geographic location has imparted the region with moderate temperatures year-round, providing the perfect climate for favorite visitor activities -- outdoor recreation and late-night partying.
The island chain that makes up the Florida Keys is isolated between the waters of the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico. Cooling breezes sweeping off the ocean waves keep the Key's climate surprisingly temperate. Key West, the Keys' most far-flung island, boasts an average daytime high temperature of 81.9 degrees Fahrenheit. With similar readings for the entire island chain, the Keys are the perfect place to enjoy water recreation -- scuba diving or snorkeling on the region's rare living reefs, water skiing, sailing and offshore swimming -- any time of the year.
Unlike most counties, there is no single county seat easily accessible to all; every service, every county function, must be accomplished in triplicate. Even with three hospital sites, there is a 45-mile ambulance run between them. While the three major Islands in the county are Key West, Islamorada, and Key Largo, the keys are made up of dozens of small communities that line Highway One including Marathon, Walhalla, Conch Key, Big Pine Key, Summerland Key, Cudjoe, Pirates Cove, Bay Point, Perky, Big Coppitt Key, Stock Island, Layton, Matecumbe, Plantation Key and Sunset Point.
Despite the limited availability of development land, the Keys offer a surprisingly wide assortment of homes and prices. Vacation homes, condominiums and timeshares, single-family properties and luxurious estates and mansions are all available ranging from the mid-$100,000s to $4 million.
Discovered by Ponce De Leon on May 12, 1513, the Florida Keys proper are an elongated chain of low-lying islands more than 220 miles in length. They extend from the southeastern tip of the Florida peninsula to the Dry Tortugas and lie between the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic Ocean. The Keys are separated from the mainland by Biscayne Bay, Barnes Sound, Blackwater Sound and Florida Bay. Monroe County is made up of 822 islands, although only about 30 of them are actually inhabited. The western half or Everglades National Park and the southern tip of Big Cypress National Preserve are largely uninhabited.
Geographically, the Florida Keys are built on top of the submerged foothills of the very old Appalachian Mountains. A two-mile thick layer of limestone lies on top of these foothills, covered in the upper keys by the skeleton of an ancient coral reef, and in the lower keys by a naturally cemented limestone rock called Miami Oolite. No point in the Keys is more than four miles from water.
These islands are defined by the environmental benefits of diving, fishing, boating, unique wildlife, flora and fauna, and the only living coral reef in the continental United States. Monroe County has colorful politics, a varied cultural life, and unexcelled beauty. The millions of tourists that visit the county each year provide the major source of employment for local residents. Retail services, commercial fishing and government employment are the other industries.
The Florida Keys' unique geographic location has imparted the region with moderate temperatures year-round, providing the perfect climate for favorite visitor activities -- outdoor recreation and late-night partying.
The island chain that makes up the Florida Keys is isolated between the waters of the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico. Cooling breezes sweeping off the ocean waves keep the Key's climate surprisingly temperate. Key West, the Keys' most far-flung island, boasts an average daytime high temperature of 81.9 degrees Fahrenheit. With similar readings for the entire island chain, the Keys are the perfect place to enjoy water recreation -- scuba diving or snorkeling on the region's rare living reefs, water skiing, sailing and offshore swimming -- any time of the year.
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