Jacksonville vs Tampa: Where to Buy

The price gap by bedroom count

Zillow's bedroom figures show where the gap really sits:

• Two bedrooms: about $176,988 in Jacksonville vs $266,265 in Tampa, a difference of $89,277
• Three bedrooms: $269,826 vs $382,026, a difference of $112,200
• Four bedrooms: $380,757 vs $561,556, a difference of $180,799
• Five or more: $555,051 vs $901,564

For a family that needs four bedrooms, Tampa costs almost half again as much. A Jacksonville four-bedroom is priced close to a Tampa three-bedroom. That is the single most useful comparison for most movers deciding between the two.

Condos are closer. The typical condo is about $171,895 in Jacksonville and $194,297 in Tampa, and both fell over the past year, by 6.4% and 6.7%. Condo buyers in either city should read the association's reserve study and milestone inspection status carefully, because those are what have been pushing condo prices down statewide.

How prices have moved

Over five years Tampa's typical home rose 20.4% and Jacksonville's 15.6%. Over the past year both were close to flat: Tampa up 0.4%, Jacksonville down 0.4%. Single-family homes followed the same pattern, Tampa up 0.4% and Jacksonville down 0.2%.

Tampa's faster five-year run is part of why the gap is so wide now. It also means Tampa buyers are paying for appreciation that already happened. Neither market shows a sharp move in the latest year, so buyers in both have some room to negotiate on homes that have sat.

The spread inside each city is large. Zillow's upper third of homes starts around $443,938 in Jacksonville and around $688,736 in Tampa. The lower third ends around $175,465 and $239,812.

Size, density and what the housing stock looks like

Jacksonville is the largest city in Florida by population and by land area, a result of the 1968 consolidation of the city with Duval County. Census data puts it at about 977,670 people. Tampa proper is about 401,618, inside a much larger Tampa Bay metro.

• Single-family detached: 59.2% of homes in Jacksonville, 50.3% in Tampa
• Units in buildings of ten or more: 19.7% vs 28.0%
• Mobile homes: 3.7% vs 1.2%
• Median year built: 1987 vs 1985

Jacksonville is more spread out, with more detached houses and more land per home. Tampa is denser, with more apartments and condo buildings. Housing age is similar, so buyers in both cities should expect plenty of 1970s and 1980s homes that need 4-point inspections and roof checks for insurance.

Who lives in each city

Both cities skew younger than Florida's retirement areas. Median age is 36.5 in Jacksonville and 35.9 in Tampa, and residents 65 and older are 14.9% and 13.7%. Seasonal homes are a small share in both: 0.7% in Jacksonville and 1.9% in Tampa. These are year-round working cities, and most buyers are people who live and work there.

Each has a major military presence: Naval Air Station Jacksonville and Naval Station Mayport in Jacksonville, MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa. Each has a large public university, the University of North Florida in Jacksonville and the University of South Florida in Tampa, and a major international airport.

Coast, storms and insurance

Jacksonville is on the Atlantic side, built around the St. Johns River, with its beaches in separate small cities to the east. Tampa sits on Tampa Bay, on the Gulf side. Both have large areas of low-lying land near water, and both have neighborhoods where flood zones change from block to block.

The buying advice is the same in each. Look up the FEMA zone for the exact address, get a homeowners and flood quote during the inspection period, and ask about roof age and a wind mitigation report. In both cities the hurricane deductible is a set percentage of the dwelling limit, so a 2% deductible on a $350,000 dwelling limit means $7,000 out of pocket before the policy pays storm damage. Insurance is a bigger line in the monthly budget than most movers expect, in either place. I wouldn't pick one city over the other on storm risk in general. I would let the specific house's elevation and zone decide.

Getting around

Jacksonville sits at the junction of I-95 and the eastern end of I-10, which makes it an easy drive to Georgia and along the Atlantic coast. Tampa is served by I-275 and I-4 toward Orlando, with I-75 running along its eastern side. Commuting in Jacksonville tends to mean distance because the city is so large. Commuting in Tampa tends to mean traffic across the bay and into downtown.

Neither city has much rail transit, so plan for a car in both. Before choosing a neighborhood in either, drive the commute at rush hour on a weekday. In a city as large as Jacksonville, two homes at the same price can be 15 minutes or 45 minutes from the same office.

Who each city fits

Jacksonville fits buyers who want the most house and land for the money, families who need four bedrooms on a budget under $400,000, and buyers who like the Atlantic side and the northeast Florida climate, which has cooler winters than Tampa.

Tampa fits buyers who want a denser city with more condos and walkable older neighborhoods, who are tied to the Tampa Bay job market, or who prefer the Gulf side and a warmer winter, and who can pay a 30% to 50% premium for the same bedroom count.

The template's side-by-side table shows the full numbers from Zillow and Census.