Best Places for Business and Careers 2019

Lakeland, FL

Lakeland-Winter Haven, FL
the place image

Lakeland, FL

Lakeland-Winter Haven, FL
gross metro product
$25.5B
population
708.0K
median household income
$50,958
median home price
$209,000
cost of living
4% below nat'l avg
college attainment
19%
net migration
3,840 (year: 2018)
unemployment
4%
major industries
Agriculture, Mining, Transportation
job growth
3% (year: 2018)
As of October 2019
The dominant feature in Lakeland is the city's many lakes. There are 38 named lakes in Lakeland which, along with a number of other unnamed bodies of water, have a tremendous impact on the community's culture. Some of the more prominent lakes in the area are Lake Hollingsworth, Lake Morton, Lake Mirror, Lake Gibson and Lake Parker, which is the largest. Points of interest include Munn Park Historic District, Polk Museum of Art and Theatre, Silvermoon Drive-in, Lake Mirror Promenade and U.S.A. International Speedway. There
are a number of private and public colleges and universities in the area, the most well-known of them being Florida Southern College.
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On forbes lists
#158
In Cost of Doing Business
#35
In Job Growth
#188
In Education
By The Numbers
EmploymentHousingEducationQuality of Life
Job Growth
3% (year: 2018)
Projected Annual Job Growth
0.9%
Unemployment
4%
Median Household Income
$50,958
Household Income Growth
3.4%
High-Tech Employment
0.6%
  • Data is for the metro area
  • Sources: Moody's Analytics; Sperling's BestPlaces; U.S. Census.
  • Numbers as of October 2019


  • a - Value of 100 means that a family with the median income has exactly enough income to qualify for a typical mortgage on a median-priced single-family home. An index above 100 signifies that the family has surplus income.
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Apr 11, 2024

Update: LAKE, April 11

Lakeland Industries’s (LAKE) stock was under pressure today, falling 5% following the reporting of its results for the final quarter of fiscal 2024 (which ended [...]
Apr 4, 2024

Update: LAKE, April 4

Shares of Lakeland Industries (LAKE) are bucking the current market weakness and are up nearly 4% over the past two days even as the S&P 500 has given back more [...]
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Take Profits On STNG, GLW, CTRA, FLNG, OEC, FLS, WEN

Following the expiration of options on Friday, we still own several stocks on which we have unrealized gains. With earnings reports coming up for seven of them, we will take the opportunity to realize our profits by selling the stocks.