4 Of 5 Top Neighborhoods In Florida Located In Tampa: Niche

TAMPA, FL ? Those looking for a place to live can't go wrong choosing Tampa. Four out of the five best places to live in Florida are in the city, according to Niche's 2022 Best Places To Live survey.

Although rarely referred to by this name, the neighborhood of Spanishtown Creek in Hyde Park was rated No. 1 in the state. It's located between West Bay Street and Bayshore Boulevard, across from Davis Islands and west of the Hillsborough River. It earned an overall rating of A+ with an A+ in the categories of good for families and nightlife, an A for schools, an A- for housing and a B+ for diversity.

Niche described the neighborhood of 3,637 people as one that provides young professionals an urban feel with lots of bars, restaurants, coffee shops and parks. Most (54 percent) of the residents in the neighborhood rent their homes.

The average cost of rent is $1,868 a month and the average price of a home is $499,784, according to Niche, although Tampa Realtors say they'd be hard-pressed to find a home in that price range.

Redfin has homes listed at $989,000 for a three-bedroom, two-bath 1925 bungalow on South Georgia Avenue, $850,000 for a 1,600-square-foot bungalow on North Oakdale Avenue and $799,000 for a three-bedroom, 2 1/2-bath condominium on SoHo Bay Court. From there, home prices shoot up to $5 million for a five-bedroom, six-bath mansion on West Parkland Boulevard.

Coming in second in Niche's 2022 Best Places to Live in Florida was Harbour Island, located directly across from downtown Tampa, east of Davis Islands. Like Spanishtown Creek, Niche described it as offering an urban feel with lots of bars, restaurants, coffee shops and parks.

Harbour Island received the same ratings as Spanishtown Creek in all areas, giving it an overall A+

But in the case of Harbour Island, most residents (59 percent) own their own homes. According to Niche, the average home price is $368,347 and rent is $1,794 a month, once again well below the actual prices homebuyers can expect to find on Harbour Island.

Dominated mostly by condominiums, Harbour Island has only one single-family home currently listed with a sale pending. It's located on Hemingway Circle for $1.2 million. Condos range from $300,000 for a one-bedroom, one-bath condo on Knights Run Avenue and $400,000 for a 3-bedroom, two-bath "fixer upper" on Normandy Trace Road to a $1.1 million 2-bedroom, two-bath condo on Knights Run Avenue.

Historic Hyde Park is No. 4 on Niche's list. Downtown Tampa came in at No. 5 on the 2022 Best Places to Live in Florida. The only neighborhood making the top five list that was not in Tampa is Park Lake/Highland in Orlando.

As for the 2022 Best Places to Buy a House in Florida, Tampa once again topped the list with Grand Hampton in New Tampa coming in at No. 1.

Rated an A+, Niche described the neighborhood in the Cypress Creek area as one that offers residents "a sparse urban feel." About 80 percent of the residents own their own homes, which, according to Niche, cost an average $293,310. Redfin actually lists homes in the neighborhood from $350,000 to $1.1 million.

No. 2 is Easton Park, also located in New Tampa. Harbour Island is listed as No. 3. Both received A+ ratings.

Fourth on the list is Crawfordville in Tallahasee and No. 5 is Chulota in Orlando.

Overall, Tampa came in No. 39 on Niche's 2022 Best Cities to Live in America, up from No. 40 on Niche's 2021 Best Cities to Live in America list. Tampa received an overall grade of A.

Niche based its rankings on data from the U.S. Census, FBI, Bureau of Labor Statistics and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention along with millions of resident reviews. The company considers factors such as affordability, the local housing market, neighborhood diversity, area public schools and walkability.

"In the past year, many people have become more mobile than ever before. Especially if they're able to work remotely, people are asking themselves where they really want to live," said Luke Skurman, CEO and founder of Niche. "Our rankings are designed to help our users find the next place they want to call home based on their unique priorities. For families, we know schools are an important factor."

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