Key Largo Real Estate

The city of Key Largo is at the southern end of the island of the same name. The name in Spanish means "long." It is the northernmost island of the Keys Archipelago and the largest. Biscayne National Park exists on a separate island just to the north of Key Largo.

This narrow piece of land boasts waterfront property on both the Atlantic shore and along Biscayne Bay, extending south from Miami. Numerous residential neighborhoods have been developed along canals dug through the interior of the island.

More than 90 separate communities are situated on Key Largo, with homes and condos that range in price from the mid-200s to upwards of $2.5 million. The population, at the time of the 2010 census, was 10,433. 

Close to the mainland with all the associated conveniences of metropolitan South Florida, Key Largo real estate is ideal for anyone who wants easy access to major business and transportation hubs. It's only about an hour's drive south of Miami. Naples, on the Gulf Coast, can be reached by car in only about three hours.

There is also a military presence near Key Largo, with Homestead Air Force Base close by on the mainland, served by a bridge that connects directly with North Key Largo. A U.S. Coast Guard Station is situated just to the south of the city of Key Largo in Islamorada. Key Largo boasts 33 miles of prime real estate, including condos with associated yacht clubs, gated residential compounds, and private estates.

Key Largo has earned a reputation as one of the key eco-tourism destinations in the county. John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park, the first underwater park established in the United States, occupies about 70 nautical square miles and extends approximately three miles offshore on the Atlantic side of Key Largo. It is a prime destination for snorkelers and divers.

The Dagny Johnson Key Largo Hammock Botanical State Park, popular with campers, kayakers, and canoers. Six miles offshore, divers can witness the formation of an artificial reef at the site of the Spiegel Grove, a former U.S. Navy ship sunk deliberately in 2002.     

The Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary, a protected ocean reserve established in 1990, encompasses 2,900 nautical square miles stretching from South Florida along with the 1,700 islands of the archipelago all the way to the Dry Tortugas. The sanctuary protects the marine environment of the Atlantic Ocean, Florida Bay, and the Gulf of Mexico, including sea life, reef formations, mangrove forests, and seagrass fields. Strict regulations govern boating, fishing, diving, and land-based development in the area.