Is DeLand a good place to retire?
DeLand had an estimated 46,346 city residents in 2025, with 21.6% age 65 or older. Census QuickFacts reports 64.4% owner occupancy, a $330,900 median home value, $1,355 median gross rent, $71,863 median household income, and 92.4% broadband access. The site's existing $994 typical one-bedroom rent and 38.6% age-50-plus figures answer different questions and should remain separate.
The city may suit a retiree who wants a walkable-feeling historic core, arts, parks, university life, and local emergency care. Insurance, heat, hurricanes, wetland and flood review, car needs, and the exact home route need close attention.
What it may cost
Start with the local estimate. Traveler and couple budgets show how the monthly total can change.
Local monthly estimate
$2,954
- Traveler estimate
- $4,140
- Couple estimate
- $4,615
- Typical 1BR rent
- $994
- Cost pressure
- Good
Everyday life
Nearby air service can make family visits simpler. There is an established 50+ community.
38.6%
Residents age 50+
- Walkability
- Good2.7 / 5Some errands may work on foot; a car may still be useful.
- Median broadband
- 491 MbpsPlenty for video calls and streaming.
- Family visits
- Airport connected visit
DeLand, Florida, in focus
Choose a DeLand home around AdventHealth, cooling and storm costs, downtown arts, parks, and the Votran week you can use
Arts, university life, and parks give DeLand a varied local calendar
DeLand's cultural resources include the downtown Mural Walk, Athens Theatre, museums, Stetson University, and local events. The city maintains parks and facilities, including Earl Brown Park and a one-mile trail, while the county library system offers multiple branches.
Compare the proposed home with AdventHealth DeLand, primary care, pharmacy, groceries, downtown, parks, library services, Stetson, and Votran routes or VoRide service.
Different housing measures answer different DeLand questions
Census reports a $330,900 median home value, $1,355 median gross rent, $1,837 median monthly owner costs with a mortgage, and $693 without one. Median household income was $71,863. Keep the existing $994 typical one-bedroom rent and 38.6% age-50-plus measure separate because they describe a different housing and age lens.
Add taxes, insurance, hurricane and flood coverage, utilities, cooling, roof, trees, repairs, transportation, prescriptions, care, and the cost of a home near services.
Getting the care you need
The care picture looks very good as a starting point. Country-level life expectancy is about 78.9 years.
2
Hospitals nearby
- Healthcare access
- Very Good
- Country life expectancy
- About 78.9 years
- Primary care
- Moderate
- Pharmacy access
- Very Good
AdventHealth DeLand provides local emergency and stroke and chest-pain starting points
AdventHealth DeLand reports 24-hour emergency care, an accredited Chest Pain Center, and Primary Stroke Center services. These provide identifiable local emergency resources.
Confirm doctors, networks, specialist availability, diagnostics, prescriptions, trauma status, transfer destinations, transport, and aftercare. The hospital source does not establish every tertiary specialty.
Floodplain, wetlands, hurricanes, and the exact home need one review
DeLand's comprehensive plan links floodplain and wetland review with hurricane routes and city planning. These city documents support property questions rather than a citywide flood or crime conclusion.
No comparable city crime rate was established. Review elevation, drainage, flood maps, wetlands, wind, roof, trees, evacuation routes, lighting, roads, power, insurance, and emergency access for the exact home.
Living through the seasons
Winters are the easier season. Summer heat deserves a closer look.
Overall climate comfort
Very Good3.4 / 5
Summer
90°F
Average high
80 days/year above 90°F
2.4 / 5 · Moderate
Winter
53°F
Average low
1 day/year below freezing
4.7 / 5 · Excellent
Air quality
Excellent
4.7 / 5
Long hot seasons and heavy summer rain shape the DeLand home plan
The DeLand 1 SSE NOAA station's 1991 to 2020 normals show a 70.3 degree Fahrenheit annual mean, 81.0 degree average high, 59.6 degree average low, and 55.49 inches of precipitation. The station averages 83.6 days at or above 90 degrees and 7.4 nights at or below freezing. July averages 90.9 and 72.2.
Inspect air conditioning, shade, roof, gutters, drainage, flood and wind coverage, shutters, trees, power, mosquito protection, and routes to care during heat, heavy rain, or a hurricane warning.
Retirement fit
DeLand, strengths and tradeoffs
Care, costs, seasons, and local character can suit some retirees better than others.
Pros
- DeLand combines local emergency and stroke and chest-pain services, arts, Stetson University, parks, library branches, and regional transit.
- The city offers several ways to spend a week without relying on one attraction.
- The existing one-bedroom and age-50-plus measures can help compare retirement-oriented choices when kept separate from Census benchmarks.
Tradeoffs
- Insurance, hurricane, flood, roof, cooling, and drainage costs can materially change housing affordability.
- Heat, heavy rain, and mosquitoes affect outdoor comfort.
- Transit coverage, specialist care, and car needs vary by neighborhood.
A few days in DeLand
Spend time with ordinary parts of the city as well as its better known places.
Day 1
Map local care
Drive from the proposed home to AdventHealth DeLand, primary care, pharmacy, groceries, diagnostics, and any regional referral destination.
Day 2
Price the Gulf-side weather costs
Record taxes, insurance, wind and flood coverage, utilities, cooling, roof, shutters, drainage, repairs, transport, and care.
Day 3
Use the arts and park week
Visit the Mural Walk, Athens Theatre, a museum, Stetson surroundings, Earl Brown Park, a library branch, and a local meal.
Day 4
Try Votran
Check fixed-route coverage, paratransit eligibility, VoRide DeLand, hours, booking, final walks, heat, and the return trip.
Questions worth asking before you retire in DeLand
Is DeLand, Florida a good place to retire?
It may suit someone who values arts, Stetson University, parks, library services, warm weather, and local emergency care. Confirm insurance, cooling, flood, specialty access, transit, and the exact home.
Does DeLand have a hospital?
AdventHealth DeLand reports 24-hour emergency care, an accredited Chest Pain Center, and Primary Stroke Center services. Confirm networks, specialists, transfers, and aftercare.
Is DeLand safe?
The available sources do not establish a comparable city crime rate. Review current local information and the exact home, including flood, hurricanes, wind, lighting, roads, power, and emergency access.
Can I live in DeLand without a car?
Votran fixed routes, paratransit, and VoRide DeLand may help, but coverage, eligibility, hours, waits, final walks, groceries, healthcare, heat, and the complete week need checking.
Could this place work for you?
DeLand may suit a retiree who wants central Florida arts, university life, parks, and local emergency care. Choose the home around cooling, storm and flood coverage, specialist routes, transit limits, and the ordinary week beyond the downtown core.
Sources
These sources list the public figures used for DeLand. Local context links describe its parks, food, culture, history, and other place specific details.
- U.S. Census Bureau; U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Used for Estimated Monthly Budget (Traveler), Estimated Monthly Budget (Local Resident), Estimated Monthly Budget (Couple), Cost Pressure
- U.S. Census Bureau
Used for Typical 1BR Rent
- OpenStreetMap healthcare amenities static probe
Used for Healthcare Access, Primary Care Access
- FEMA RAPT / HIFLD Hospitals
Used for Hospitals Within 12 km
- Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services NPPES NPI Registry
Used for Pharmacy Convenience
Checked 2026-07-19
- NOAA/NASA source-backed climate component formula
Used for Climate Comfort, Summer Heat, Winter Comfort
- Open-Meteo / Copernicus CAMS, checked against U.S. EPA AirData
Used for Air Quality
Checked 2026-05-18
- U.S. Environmental Protection Agency National Walkability Index
Used for Walkability Estimate
Checked 2026-07-10
- U.S. Census Bureau
Used for Age 50+
- Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS)
Used for Medicare-Listed Geriatric Medicine Clinicians in City, Medicare-Listed Cardiology Clinicians in City, Medicare-Listed Medical Oncology Clinicians in City, Medicare-Listed Neurology Clinicians in City, Medicare-Listed Ophthalmology Clinicians in City, Medicare-Listed Endocrinology Clinicians in City, Medicare-Listed Pulmonary Disease Clinicians in City, Medicare-Listed Nephrology Clinicians in City, Medicare-Listed Rheumatology Clinicians in City
Checked 2026-07-13
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Partner with Retirement ListsResearch and writing byGrant Gibson
How this city research is made
Retirement Lists uses documented public sources and methods to research, review, and correct city information. Read our Editorial Policy.