Groveland is a city of 25,526 people (Census Bureau estimate, July 1, 2025) in south Lake County, Florida, up from 18,505 in the 2020 Census. It sits where SR-50, SR-19 and SR-33 meet. City Hall is at 156 S. Lake Avenue, on the same street as Lake David Park, and Clermont City Hall is 5.8 miles east.
The town began as Taylorville, around a turpentine still built north of Lake David in the 1890s, and was renamed Groveland in 1922. A portion of the city lies inside the Green Swamp Area of Critical State Concern. In June 2023 the city was certified as an International Dark Sky Community after adopting an outdoor lighting ordinance.
Homes and neighborhoods
Groveland has 8,497 housing units (ACS 2020-2024). About 89 percent are single-family detached homes, and about 87 percent of occupied homes are owner-occupied. The median home was built in 2010, and 83 percent of homes date from 2000 or later.
Lake County’s plat records show how the city grew:
- 1920s. The North Side and Little Acres plats date from 1927 and 1926.
- Around 2000. Green Valley West (1999), Crane’s Landing (1999 and 2000) and Hidden Lakes Estates (2000 to 2002).
- Mid-2000s. Cascades of Groveland, known as Trilogy Orlando (platted 2006 to 2019), the first Estates at Cherry Lake villages (Cherryridge and Southern Ridge, 2006 and 2007), Osprey Cove and Eagle Pointe.
- Since 2009. Waterside Pointe (2009 to 2016), Cypress Oaks (2017 to 2021), Stewart Lake Preserve (2018), Trinity Lakes (2021 to 2025), Phillips Landing (2023), newer Estates at Cherry Lake villages (Crestridge, Waterside, Bellevue, Parkside, Meadow Pointe and Hidden Ridge, 2016 to 2025) and Cypress Bluff (2025).
Trilogy Orlando’s HOA sheet (2019) says the community is intended for occupancy by at least one person 55 or older, with exceptions set by law and its covenants, and lists a controlled-access gate.
The census median value of owner-occupied homes was $365,800 for 2020-2024. That is a survey figure, not a sale price. To see what is listed now, search homes for sale in Groveland or look at new construction.
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Property taxes in Groveland
Florida taxes a home on its assessed value less exemptions, times the millage (dollars per $1,000). The homestead exemption for a permanent residence has two parts: the first $25,000 of assessed value is exempt from every levy, and a second exemption, on value above $50,000, applies to non-school levies only. The second part began at $25,000 and is adjusted for inflation: $25,722 for 2025 and $26,411 for 2026. Apply to the county property appraiser by March 1.
The 2025 rates for an address in the City of Groveland:
| Taxing authority | 2025 millage |
|---|---|
| Lake County general fund | 5.0254 |
| Lake County voted debt service | 0.0400 |
| Lake County ambulance district (MSTU) | 0.4629 |
| Lake County School Board (state 3.0870, local 2.9980) | 6.0850 |
| Lake County Water Authority | 0.2940 |
| St. Johns River Water Management District | 0.1793 |
| City of Groveland | 5.7000 |
| Total | 17.7866 |
The city’s rate was 5.5000 mills in 2024.
As a worked example, a homesteaded home assessed at $350,000 owed about $1,978 in school taxes and $3,502 in other taxes for 2025: about $5,480. Without a homestead exemption the same assessment owed about $6,225. Non-ad valorem assessments, such as a CDD’s, are added to the bill.
Two caps matter to a buyer. A homesteaded home’s assessed value can rise by no more than 3 percent a year or the change in the Consumer Price Index, whichever is lower (2.7 percent for 2026); other property is capped at 10 percent a year. A sale ends the seller’s cap, and the home is reassessed at market value the next January 1, so a buyer’s bill can be much higher than the seller’s last one.
The property appraiser mails the TRIM notice of proposed taxes in August. Bills go out about November 1, with a 4 percent discount for payment in November, 3 percent in December, 2 percent in January and 1 percent in February. Taxes are delinquent April 1.
CDD and HOA fees
A Community Development District (CDD) is a special district that builds and maintains community improvements and charges owners a yearly assessment on the tax bill. Four created by City of Groveland ordinance publish their own sites:
- Cascades at Groveland CDD (2005, about 723 acres) covers Trilogy Orlando; its boundaries match the Cascades of Groveland HOA’s. Its adopted budget for fiscal year 2025-2026 sets $165.31 a unit for operations and $496.37 for debt service: $661.68 on the November 2025 tax bill. Lots whose bond share has been paid off owe only the operations part.
- Estates at Cherry Lake CDD (2005, about 616 acres).
- Lake Emma CDD (2019).
- Cypress Bluff CDD (February 2023).
County plat records carry separate tax district codes for the Cascades of Groveland, Estates at Cherry Lake, Trinity Lakes and Cypress Bluff plats. To check a parcel, read the non-ad valorem lines on its tax bill and the Lake County Property Appraiser’s record.
Homeowners association dues are separate and are set by each association. Florida’s estoppel certificate (section 720.30851, Florida Statutes) is how a buyer gets the association’s own figures before closing; the association must issue it within 10 business days of a request. We can help you get the HOA documents for a home you are considering.
Short-term rental rules
Groveland’s Community Development Code (version 4, adopted October 2, 2023) defines Short Term Rental as a facility or dwelling where the stay is typically under 180 days. Its use tables list that as a permitted use in the Town, Village, Hamlet and Green Swamp Town zones and in the Single Family, Low Density, Moderate Density and Green Swamp Low Density residential districts. It is not listed for Green Swamp Rural. In a planned unit development the table says to see the PUD ordinance, and the city posts those by community.
The city’s Code of Ordinances also requires a license for every rental dwelling unit, valid April 1 through March 31, and a certificate of inspection before a new tenant moves in. A unit the owner also occupies is exempt.
A whole home rented more than three times a year for under 30 days needs a vacation rental license from Florida’s DBPR. Stays of six months or less owe Lake County’s 4 percent tourist development tax, plus 6 percent state sales tax and the 1 percent local option tax.
A home’s zoning and its association’s documents both have to allow short stays, so read both and confirm the zone with the city’s Planning and Zoning Division. See also property management and rentals.
Schools
Groveland is in Lake County Schools. Assignment goes by home address, and the district’s School Locator shows the attendance boundaries the School Board approved for the 2026-2027 school year. The district lists charter schools on its charter schools page.
Utilities
The City of Groveland provides water and sewer; its Utility Billing office is at 352-429-2141. Waste Connections of Florida collects residential garbage under the city’s contract: one 95-gallon can for $26.47 a month (October 2026), with recycling bins provided.
For electricity, the county lists Duke Energy’s Clermont district office as serving Groveland, and SECO Energy, a member-owned cooperative, has an office at 850 Howey Road; the address decides. The county also lists Lake Apopka Natural Gas District’s Clermont office for natural gas.
Getting around
SR-50 runs east to Clermont and on toward Orlando. The OpenStreetMap route to downtown Orlando follows SR-50, Florida’s Turnpike (the Clermont/SR 50 interchange) and SR-408; the Turnpike and SR-408 are toll roads. SR-19 heads north toward US-27 and Leesburg, and SR-33 runs south toward Polk City.
LakeXpress Route 50 West stops at Groveland City Hall hourly on weekdays, running between Mascotte and the Clermont Park and Ride, where riders transfer to the route for Winter Garden.
The drive table gives times from City Hall without traffic. SR-50 through Clermont and the roads into Orlando vary, so allow for it.
Flood zones and insurance
Flood zones go by parcel: search an address on FEMA’s Flood Map Service Center. Lake County’s floodplain office (352-253-9081) keeps flood zone information and any elevation certificates on file, and reminds owners that most standard homeowner’s policies do not cover floods.
In the Green Swamp part of the city, Groveland says it has reduced allowable lot coverage and requires a 50-foot upland buffer around wetlands. Ask the city what applies to a parcel.
For wind, Citizens Property Insurance Corporation gives discounts on the wind part of a premium for features documented on the state’s wind mitigation inspection form (OIR-B1-1802).
Parks and things to do
- Lake David Park, 450 S. Lake Avenue, has two boat ramps, two shaded pavilions, a playground, a splash pad, a skate park, basketball and volleyball courts and a walking path.
- The Florida Department of Transportation is building Phase III-B of the South Lake Trail, 1.9 miles from Second Avenue to Silver Eagle Road, with completion estimated for summer 2027.
- Groveland has an outdoor lighting ordinance and was certified in June 2023 as an International Dark Sky Community, the first in Florida according to the city.
Nearby guides: Clermont and Polk City.