Hi, I'm Juliana. I own Golden Ridge Partners, and I sell undeveloped land in exactly two places: Putnam County and Highlands County, Florida, with owner financing on every parcel: $249 down, $199 a month, zero interest, no banks, no credit checks.
Which brings us to today's event. The question I get constantly is "okay, but which county?" And I want you to appreciate the position that puts me in. I have two children, and you are asking me to rank them, publicly, on the internet, for search engines. Fine. But understand my situation going in: I win either way, which makes me either the most neutral judge you will ever meet or the least, and honestly I have never been able to decide which.
The short version, for the skimmers and the search engines: Putnam County (Northeast Florida) is the river county: the north-flowing St. Johns, next door to booming St. Augustine, with documented appreciation and national builders arriving. Highlands County (the state's center) is the lake county: 100+ lakes, an HGTV spotlight, a $603 million raceway economy, and a decade of quiet just now ending. My prices, terms, and jokes are identical in both: $249 down, $199 a month, zero percent interest. The full five-round match, and the honest way to pick, is below. The listings for both are always at goldenrp.land.
The Tale of the Tape
In the northern corner: Putnam County, the most affordable county in Northeast Florida, about 45 minutes from St. Augustine and an hour from Jacksonville, wrapped around a famous river and full of towns with names like Satsuma and Lorida. Full introductions in the Putnam town guide.
In the southern corner: Highlands County, one of Florida's largest counties by land with a small town's crowd, strung along U.S. 27 through Sebring, Avon Park, and Lake Placid, sitting on the oldest ground in the entire peninsula. Full introductions in the Highlands town guide.
Both corners are represented by the same promoter, who would like to remind everyone she loves them equally and differently, like a mother, or a referee with a conflict of interest.
Round One: The Water
Putnam leads with the St. Johns River, one of the very few rivers in America that flows north, a body of water so committed to its own direction that I have now written about it four times and regret nothing. Bass anglers crowned this stretch the Bass Capital of the World, Crescent City sits tucked between two lakes, and Interlachen literally means "between the lakes," with locals counting more than 30 inside the town limits.
Highlands answers with sheer volume: more than 100 freshwater lakes, including Lake Istokpoga, Florida's fifth largest at roughly 27,600 acres. One hundred lakes. That is not a county. That is a county-shaped collection of shorelines.
Judges' score: a draw, and one judge wrote "can I have both?" on the card, which is not how scoring works but is a completely valid life plan.
Round Two: Location and Position
Putnam plays chess. It sits quietly next to St. Johns County, which has grown 24.9 percent since 2020, and growth has never once respected a county line. A roughly two billion dollar expressway project with a new bridge over the St. Johns is expected around 2029 or 2030, on road-builder time, tying the area more directly to Jacksonville's job centers. Putnam is the affordable seat closest to the expensive party.
Highlands plays the long game, and I mean geologically long. It sits on the Lake Wales Ridge, the chain of ancient islands that stayed above water two million years ago when nearly all of Florida was ocean, making it the oldest land on the peninsula, roughly halfway between both coasts, about 80 miles south of Orlando at Lake Placid. Putnam is positioned next to the boom. Highlands is positioned above sea level history itself.
Judges' score: Putnam by a nose for buyers who think in commutes; Highlands by a landslide for buyers who think in eras.
Round Three: Momentum (The Receipts Round)
Putnam swings first and swings documented: residential property appreciated nearly 190 percent from 2015 through the end of 2024, and I will attach my permanent disclaimer with staples: that is recorded past, not promised future. National homebuilders arrived for the first time in county history, with D.R. Horton putting land under contract in East Palatka, and the founder of Bass Pro Shops quietly assembled more than 5,200 acres near Welaka, where the mayor says a resort is coming and the company continues saying nothing at impressive length. The full argument lives in the Putnam investment case.
Highlands counters with a wake-up story: after growing by fewer than 2,500 people in the entire 2010s, it added roughly 10,000 in just the first half of the 2020s. HGTV's Home Town Takeover renovated downtown Sebring on national television, the raceway generates over $603 million a year for the local economy, and market trackers have noted inland counties like these outperforming through the statewide cooling. The whole thesis is in the Highlands sleeping giant.
Judges' score: even, and both counties are demanding a rematch, which, conveniently, is what the rest of this post is.
Round Four: Personality (The Weird Round, My Favorite)
Putnam brings Florida's oldest diner, serving since 1932. Actual ravines with suspension bridges in a famously flat state. An azalea festival running since the 1930s, a blueberry festival in Bostwick, a town named after an orange, and a community named Lorida, which is Florida minus one letter, a fact I will treasure until my final newsletter.
Highlands brings a town renamed by the inventor of the Dewey Decimal System, which now grows somewhere between 90 and 98 percent of the world's caladium bulbs depending on who is counting, displays nearly 50 murals, and operates a clown museum and school. A clown museum, as a competitive entry, is very hard to answer. There is also a town named Venus sitting at the end of the ancient ridge, because of course there is.
Judges' score: unscoreable. One judge left to visit the clown museum. Another is still saying "Lorida" quietly to herself. I have publicly backed Satsuma in the town-name championship and I stand by my ballot.
Round Five: The Money Round (Where You Win Either Way)
Here is the round with no suspense, on purpose. My terms are identical in both counties: $249 down, $199 a month, zero percent interest, no bank, no credit check, same-day approval, and the deed records at the county in your name at payoff. Putnam adds the flourish of vacant-land taxes that often run under $200 a year, and both counties remain proudly affordable, with even the Highlands government website leading with its lower cost of living, which I remind you governments never exaggerate in the flattering direction.
Judges' score: the reader wins by knockout. The counties never stood a chance.
The Judges' Decision (And How to Actually Choose)
The direct answer: there is no losing pick, so choose with three honest questions.
One: which map fits your life? If your world orbits Northeast Florida, St. Augustine weekends, Jacksonville connections, pick Putnam. If Central Florida, both coasts within reach, and Orlando at arm's length sounds right, pick Highlands.
Two: river or lakes? Putnam is a river county with lake garnish. Highlands is a lake county with a hundred entrees. Both come with sunsets pre-installed.
Three: which towns made you smile? Go read the Putnam town guide and the Highlands town guide back to back and notice which one you finished grinning. That grin is data. Trust it.
And then the tiebreaker, which settles it every single time: go look at actual parcels. Open goldenrp.land, pick one parcel from each county that catches your eye, and run them both through the 30-minute research routine from your couch. Then, ideally, go stand on the finalist. Twenty minutes of your shoes on the dirt will end a debate that twenty blog posts cannot, and I say that as the author of the blog posts.
Quick Answers (For Humans and Their Search Engines)
Should I buy land in Putnam County or Highlands County, Florida? Both are affordable inland counties with strong cases: Putnam for Northeast Florida position, the St. Johns River, and documented appreciation; Highlands for 100+ lakes, the HGTV and raceway momentum, and Central Florida location. The terms are identical, so choose by geography and personality, then compare actual parcels.
What is Putnam County best for? Buyers who want the most affordable county in Northeast Florida, next to fast-growing St. Johns County, with river life, Palatka's historic charm, and lake-dotted communities like Interlachen.
What is Highlands County best for? Buyers who want lake-country Central Florida: Sebring, Avon Park, and Lake Placid, more than 100 lakes, and a county just emerging from a decade of quiet.
Are the prices and terms different between the two counties? My terms are the same everywhere: $249 down, $199 a month, zero percent interest, no bank, no credit check, same-day approval, deed recorded in your name at payoff.
How do I see the current listings? They are all at goldenrp.land, mapped to the exact parcel, or call me at (407) 917-0848 and I will walk you through what is available in both counties right now.
Ring the Bell
The match is over, the counties have shaken hands, and the only decision left is yours, made at whatever speed suits you. Browse both corners at goldenrp.land, join the VIP list to see new parcels before they go public, and subscribe to The Dirt, my free monthly newsletter, where the analysis is honest and the cabbage jokes have gone the full twelve rounds.
Or skip straight to the promoter: call me at (407) 917-0848 or email juliana@goldenrp.land, tell me which county is winning in your head, and I will tell you, honestly, whether the parcels agree. I have exactly two favorite counties in Florida, and I would love to introduce you to both.
Juliana Scolari
Golden Ridge Partners
