Parkland, FL

What Parkland is actually like

Parkland was incorporated on July 10, 1963 — the same summer as neighboring Coral Springs — after founder Bruce Blount and a group of area landowners petitioned the Florida Legislature for a city charter (House Bill 2079) explicitly aimed at preserving a low-density, rural character rather than building out like the fast-growing cities around it; Governor C. Farris Bryant signed the charter on August 12, 1963, and Blount became the city’s first mayor (Wikipedia). For decades afterward Parkland largely stuck to that founding idea: there were reportedly no stores or traffic lights within city limits until the mid-1990s, and its zoning has long protected large lots and open green space, with an unusually strong equestrian culture — horses reportedly outnumbered residents during the city’s first decade (Wikipedia).

That began to change with a wave of master-planned development starting in the mid-1990s and continuing through the 2000s, when large gated communities such as Heron Bay and Parkland Isles were built out, adding thousands of new single-family homes while the city held onto lower density and heavier landscaping and setback requirements than most of Broward County (Wikipedia). The growth has been dramatic by percentage ever since: the population went from just 165 in 1970 to 13,835 by 2000, then to 23,962 by 2010 and 34,670 at the 2020 Census, and the Census Bureau’s most recent estimate puts it at roughly 39,186 residents as of mid-2025 — making Parkland one of the fastest-growing cities in Broward County by percentage even though it remains one of the smaller ones in absolute population (Wikipedia; U.S. Census Bureau).

Parkland is consistently ranked among Broward County’s highest-income cities: the Census Bureau’s latest estimate puts median household income at $198,669, among the highest of any city in the county (U.S. Census Bureau). It also shows up favorably in general safety statistics — NeighborhoodScout’s crime-rate data places Parkland as safer than roughly 83% of Florida communities and about 72% of communities nationwide (NeighborhoodScout). Day to day, Parkland functions as a low-density, heavily HOA-governed suburb of large single-family lots, gated communities, and open green space, with a family-oriented, equestrian-adjacent character that its 1963 founders would likely still recognize.

Home values in Parkland

Redfin put Parkland’s median sale price at roughly $1,184,000 over the three months ending August 2026, up about 7.7% year-over-year, and roughly $368 per square foot — among the highest price points in Broward County, reflecting Parkland’s large-lot, comparatively new-construction housing stock (Redfin). Zillow’s Home Value Index for the city of Fort Lauderdale — used here as the closest verified same-county benchmark, since Parkland’s own Zillow page returned rate-limit errors this session — put the typical home value at $513,820 in mid-2026; Parkland itself runs well above that citywide figure given its median sale price (Zillow). RentCafe, which tracks apartment-rental markets, doesn’t publish a usable average-rent figure for Parkland at all — a reflection of how little purpose-built rental housing the city has, since it’s overwhelmingly single-family and HOA-townhome housing rather than an apartment market (RentCafe). Nearly all of Parkland’s newer housing sits inside HOA-governed master-planned communities like Heron Bay and Parkland Isles, and those come with mandatory monthly or quarterly dues, gate and amenity fees, and community-specific architectural rules that add meaningfully to the cost of ownership — always pull the HOA budget, rules, and any pending special assessments before making an offer.

Getting around

Walk Score rates Parkland just 13 out of 100 (“Car-Dependent”), one of the lowest scores of any city in this sub-region, with a Bike Score of 34 (“Somewhat Bikeable”) and minimal dedicated bike infrastructure; almost every trip in Parkland requires a car (Walk Score).

Parkland FAQ