Top places for families in Florida

Choosing a new place to raise a family is a difficult choice. The state of sunshine, or rather Florida, is a place no stranger to beautiful coastlines, comfortable weather, and people of all ages. Therefore, it’s not surprising that you chose to potentially move your family there. Florida’s tax prices are pretty close to the national average, as is the same with housing prices. You would be joining about 22 million other people in being a citizen of the State of Florida. The unemployment rate in Florida is 2.6% which I really low. As you can see, there are plenty of reasons to call some cross-country movers and just hit it off with Florida, the challenge lies in choosing among the top places for families in Florida. That’s exactly why we put together this article that will help you decide which city suits you best.

Orlando, one of the places for families in Florida

Orlando, a city with a population of about 284,000, has a place in our list of cities for families in Florida because of its astonishing number of local attractions and its diversity. This city will just always keep you and the kids entertained. Not to mention Disney World is right at reach if you choose life in Orlando. Also worth mentioning is that Orlando is one of our choices for the best cities to retire in Florida. On the other hand, let’s talk about expenses and employment. The median home value in Orlando is $425,882, which is a lot higher than the national average of $291,700. The average rent price is $1,301, a tad higher than the national average($1,200). Sadly, most people chose rent over ownership here, with more than 60% renting their homes. The average combined tax rate in Orlando is 6.5% which is higher than the state’s average.

When we’re talking about tax rates, we’re talking about a violent crime rate of 8.28 and a property crime rate of 36.8 per 1,000 residents. The median household income is $55,183. Moving on from the basic statistics, the nightlife in Orlando is a blast. There are so many places you can have a grand time in this city. As we’ve mentioned before, there are a lot of great local attractions that you can visit during the day. The top neighborhoods in Orlando, according to Niche, are Park Lake/Highland, Downtown, Uptown, and Thornton Park. If you decide to relocate to one of these neighborhoods, be sure to pick the right Florida cross-country movers. Overall, Orlando is one of the top places for families in Florida for its many activities, good job opportunities, and diversity.

Palm Valley

If you are looking for something more suburban and comfortable, check out Palm Valley. This is one of our top picks for Family-friendly places in Florida for its low crime rate, accessible seaside, and well-graded schools. There are about 20,000 residents in Palm Valley, which isn’t a big number of people. This little place boasts many different good-rated schools for your kids like the Ponte Vedra High School and the Ocean Palms Elementary School. Most residents of Palm Valley chose to live in their own homes, with about 75% of citizens being owners. Sadly, the median home value here is $540,000, and the median rent is $1,825. Both are substantially higher than the national average, which might be the biggest turnoff from Palm Valley.

On the other hand, the nightlife in Palm Valley doesn’t make it one of the best places for families in Florida. That’s just something that goes along with the fact that it’s a rather small place with not so many residents. Niche has ranked Palm Valley’s schools #1 in Florida, and the #2 best suburbs to live in Florida. This city is also rather close to Jacksonville, so if you are in the mood for something a bit more urban, you could always take a short trip. All in all, if we turn a blind eye to the close-to-extreme prices Palm Valley is really a great place for a family to live in.

Jacksonville

Since we mentioned Jacksonville not so long ago, why not check it out? Obviously, we’re not doing this without reason, Jacksonville is really one of our picks for Florida’s top cities for families. The median home price is $366,522, with the rent price being $1,492. An interesting fact is that Jacksonville was on our 2021 list of cities with the Best Public Schools in Florida. Also, Jacksonville’s grocery prices are 1% lower than the national average, while healthcare prices are 17% cheaper. For the sake of better understanding, a doctor’s visit is on average $98. You should keep in mind that the utility prices are 4% higher than the national average though, but the gas prices are 18% cheaper.

A bit more than 55% of the 902,448 residents of Jacksonville own houses instead of renting apartments. According to NeighborhoodScout, Jacksonville is safer than just 11% of US cities. The violent crime rate in Jacksonville is 6.79 and the property crime rate is about 28. The violent crime rate here is higher than the national average of 4. Alternatively, the property crime rate is also higher than the national and state average. The national average property crime rate is 19 and Jacksonville’s average, as we mentioned, is 28. The median household income here is $55,531. Jacksonville is also a pretty diverse city with a lot of nightlife going on, those being one of the reasons behind it being a family-friendly town in Florida. Interestingly enough, Jacksonville’s long-distance movers are pretty reliable. The top neighborhoods in Jacksonville are Secret Cove, Deerwood, Bayard, and Deercreek.

Tallahassee

Tallahassee is a city that combines the suburban and urban styles of life. With a population of about 192,800, great schools, diversity, and exciting nightlife, Tallahassee is one of the best places for families in Florida. The top schools in this city are Florida State University, Leon High School, Lawton Chiles High School, and Hawks Rise Elementary School. The median home value is $250,000, which is lower than the national average. The median rental price is $1,022, which is also a bit lower than the national average. If we look at the grocery costs, they are 8% more expensive than the US average. Moving on, the utilities are about 13% cheaper than the country’s average. Word is though that the Tallahassee cross-country movers aren’t too expensive either. Although healthcare is 9% higher, a doctor’s visit is about $128.

Since we covered the expenses, let’s look at the income. The average household income in Tallahassee is $46,400, which is not ideal, especially considering the $64,990 national household income. The violent crime rate here is 7.82, according to neighborhoodscout.com, which ranks pretty badly with some other places. Otherwise, the property crime rate is about 30 per 1000. Keep in mind this means that there is a 1 in 30 chance of you being a part of a property crime, which is still pretty low. Even next to these negative details, Tallahassee is still on the list of our picks for family-friendly cities in Florida.

Tampa, a great addition to the list of Florida towns for families

Let’s get back to smaller places for families in Florida. Tampa is a place with 395,912 residents offering something in between a suburban and an urban lifestyle. The schools in Tampa are above average. The top schools are Plant High School, Robinson High School, Brooks DeBartolo Collegiate High School, and Terrace Community Middle School. The University of Tampa is also one of the best Florida colleges to consider attending. Tampa’s median home value is somewhere near $352,976. That’s higher than the national average but still worth considering. The median rent price is $1,078. The number of people renting vs. owning a home is rather nicely split to almost 50% to 50%. The grocery costs in Tampa are 3% more expensive than the US average. On the other hand, utilities and gas prices are 2% cheaper. Healthcare prices are also 4% lower than the country’s average prices.

The median household income in Tampa is equal to $55,634 to counter the expensive home and grocery prices. Alternatively, something important to consider is the rather low property crime rate. The exact number we’re talking about is 16.34, lower than the national average of 19. We’ve got to disappoint you a bit though since the violent crime average is 5.57. These numbers are considerably lower than the Tallahassee crime rates, yes, but it’s just something to think about before moving to one of our top Florida cities for families. Something else you should consider is that this city is on our list of the best places to live in Florida in 2022. Tampa is also a good city for nightlife and has a lot of potential for a good time in its many attractions like theme parks, aquariums, and museums.

Miami

It’s really hard to talk about Florida and not mention Miami, isn’t it? You’ve most likely seen this city on most of the lists of places for families in Florida. There are plenty of reasons behind that decision. You are probably already well aware of this but, Miami is a pretty expensive place to live in. We’re talking about a median home value of $589,000 and a median renting price of $1,939. Most people in Miami chose to rent a place instead of owning it, most likely because of the extensive housing prices that are about 40% over the national average. Moving on, groceries are 20% more expensive than the country’s average. The utilities and transportation aren’t too overpriced, being about 2% of higher expense than the national average. Healthcare is also not too much over the average, being 4% more expensive with a doctor’s visit averaging out to $122.77.

According to all of the information from above on Miami, you should definitely start thinking about ways to save up on a Miami move. Keep in mind though that there are huge price differences when we are looking at some different Miami neighborhoods. In this well-known city, the weather is great all year and there are too many things to do. It’s hard to imagine getting bored in an extensive city like this. Miami is the cruise capital of the world, which makes sense considering its ocean access. There is a dozen of beaches that you can choose from that vary in different vibes in one of Florida’s top towns for families. Finally, let’s look at the crime rates. The violent crime rate in Miami is 6.0 and the property crime rate is 29.7.

Gainesville as one of the towns for families in Florida

The last one on our main list is Gainesville, a small town with 133,600 residents and an educational, cultural, and commercial center for the north-central Florida region. Let’s look at the characteristics of one of Florida’s top places for families:

• It’s one of the best places in Alachua County in The State Of Florida.
• The crime averages tell us that the city is over the state’s average when it comes to both violent and property crime. The violent crime rate is 7.49 and the property crime rate is 32.19 per 1000 people. Most property crimes are theft.
• Gainesville has really great schools, which is one of the things that makes it one of the places for families in Florida. Schools like P.K. Yonge Developmental Research School, F.W. Buchholz High School, and Gainesville High School are really well-graded.
• The median housing price is about $250,000, with a rental price reaching $1,560.
• The utilities in Gainesville are 4% cheaper than the national average, and the groceries round up to 2% less than the US average. These prices always end up being one of the more important Florida stats you should know before your move there. Healthcare is also 6$ lower with a doctor’s visit costing around $111.
• Residents in Gainesville have a nice diversity with most of them being 18-24-year-olds. Meaning there are a lot of students, and also a lot of student activities around town.
• The median household income in Gainesville is $38,028, which is pretty good combined with the lower grocery and utility prices.

Conclusion

Florida is full of nice places you get to choose from. Generally speaking, the housing prices seem to be a bit high, with a few proud exceptions. We believe you can still pull it off though, after all, all the exciting activities near you, and good schools for your kids raise the grade. Being close to the ocean and a short trip from Miami is something that definitely makes this place a better choice. We tried our best to be precise and as direct as possible when it comes to every mentioned place. Hopefully, it proved useful as a good resource before you decide to make your first big move towards relocating to Florida. Well, that was our list of top places for families in Florida, make sure to give it some thought before you decide to run off from home. We wish you the best of luck!