Avondale Estates was founded in 1924 by George Francis Willis, who purchased the entire village of Ingleside to create a planned community. The city was named after Stratford-upon-Avon, England, birthplace of Shakespeare. Downtown buildings were designed in a Tudor style to reinforce this image, as were many of the houses in the city. Community amenities such as a lake, tennis courts, clubhouse, and a swimming pool were built for residents.
The city is also known for the first Waffle House, which opened its doors Labor Day weekend of 1955.
As of the census of 2007, there were 2,648 people residing in the city. The population density was 2,327.7 people per square mile (899.4/km²). There were 1,263 housing units at an average density of 1,126.8/sq mi (435.4/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 88.77% White, 8.62% African American, 0.15% Native American, 1.03% Asian, 0.27% from other races, and 1.15% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.53% of the population.
There were 1,226 households out of which 20.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 48.5% were married couples living together, 7.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 42.0% were non-families. 32.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.11 and the average family size was 2.68.
In the city the population was spread out with 17.0% under the age of 18, 3.4% from 18 to 24, 33.4% from 25 to 44, 26.4% from 45 to 64, and 19.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 43 years. For every 100 females there were 81.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 78.0 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $70,625, and the median income for a family was $92,341. Males had a median income of $60,388 versus $45,500 for females. The per capita income for the city was $42,605. About 1.6% of families and 2.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 2.5% of those under age 18 and 4.8% of those age 65 or over.