Is Sarasota a good place to live? This question is often asked by people who are planning to move to Florida but can’t decide which specific city to live in. If you heard about Sarasota but need more details, this article will help you decide when choosing the best location in the Sunshine State to call home.
Royal Palms Mobile Home Park, Sarasota Florida
First and foremost, Sarasota has been reaffirmed as one of the top 10 Best Places to Live in the U.S. for 2022-23 and moved up to No. 1 in Florida, according to U.S. News & World Report.
The Sarasota area is No. 9 overall on the annual Best Places to Live list, which ranks metro areas based on quality of life, job market, value, and desirability.
“People who choose Sarasota as their home are generally called by its unique charm,” the report observes. “One of the city’s up-and-coming neighborhoods is the Rosemary District, where eclectic murals decorate storefronts and modern condominiums and hotels sit near casual breakfast cafes.”
To help you decide which part of Florida is the best place for you, here are the 10 reasons why you should choose Sarasota Florida.
1. Sarasota is Home to Some of the Most Amazing Beaches in the Country!
The beaches are amazing!
Sarasota’s beaches are clean, safe, and family-friendly. Most of Sarasota’s beaches are dog-friendly as well (if you’re not keen on taking your pooch to the beach, don’t worry, there are plenty of non-dog-friendly beaches nearby). If you’re looking for a more secluded atmosphere with fewer tourists, try Siesta Key Beach or Venice Beach. Although there are many beautiful beaches in Sarasota, these two are the most popular.
Siesta Key Beach
Siesta Key Beach is located on Siesta Key Island, about 50 miles south of Tampa, Florida. The beach is situated on an 8-mile stretch of “the world’s finest, whitest sand” along the Gulf of Mexico.
Why visit Siesta Key Beach? The beach sand of Siesta Key is second to none when it comes to quality. It’s super soft and has a silky feeling when you touch it. It is perfect for the kids to play. What’s unique about the sand is its 99% quartz which makes it cool and gentle to your feet.
Another reason to visit Siesta Key Beach is the free parking. Yes, you heard it right, the parking is free! This is a big deal because most of the popular beaches in Florida offer paid parking. Siesta Key Beach also has smaller crowds compared to other popular Florida beaches.
What to do in Siesta Key Beach
- Rent a jetski
- Rent a kayak
- Go parasailing
- Go snorkeling
- Take a boat tour
- Rent a scooter or a bike and explore the island
- Watch the sunset
The Siesta Key Beach also offers beach amenities like public restroom facilities, outdoor showers, on-duty lifeguards, a snack bar, a gift shop, picnic areas, tennis courts, volleyball courts, playgrounds, fitness trails, and many more!
Siesta Key Beach
Venice Beach
Venice Beach is a “Blue Wave Certification” located in the City of Venice, Sarasota County, Florida. It is a gorgeous beach with sparkling clean water.
Venice Beach has been named one of the five best re-nourished beaches by the American Shore and Beach Preservation Association. The Venice Beach re-nourishment was completed for $16 million over three years. The project extended Venice Beach about 130 feet along more than 3 miles of the Gulf Coast shoreline. This gives you much more sand on which to beach comb or just soak up the rays on your special piece of sand.
With a backdrop of Condos rising over the beach, there’s lots of room for you to relax and wriggle your toes in the sand. The condos don’t get in the way of or detract from the beautiful scenery or blue hue of the water.”
2. TONS of Outdoor Activities
Sarasota is a great place for outdoor activities. There are beaches, parks, hiking trails, golf courses, and much more. You can enjoy the outdoors year-round in Sarasota Florida!
The Sarasota area has a lot of great parks. You can go hiking, biking, and even horseback riding in the many parks around Sarasota. The Myakka River State Park has many different trails for you to enjoy nature at its best! There are also some great golf courses if you are looking for some time on the green.
Popular golf courses include but are not limited to Tatum Ridge Golf Links, University Park Country Club, TPC Prestancia, Sara Bay Country Club, and Founders Golf Club among others.
If you love hiking or walking, there are hiking trails for you too including Myakka River State Park, Nathan Benderson Park, Oscar Scherer State Park, Rothenbach Park, and Heron Nest Nature Park Loop among others.
When you think of the Florida Keys, you probably imagine the beaches and sunshine. Sarasota is no different. You’ll find miles of gorgeous white sand beaches with warm water that invites swimming, snorkeling, surfing, and more. The city also has a great park system with bike trails that wind through local forests and along waterways to beautiful nature preserves like Lake Manatee State Park.
Bird watchers will appreciate the abundant variety of birds here—from colorful songbirds to huge eagles soaring overhead! Fishing enthusiasts will love everything from flats fishing on calm waters to deep sea fishing charters out on open waters.
3. Sarasota’s Food and Dining are Famously Good!
Sarasota is a known luxury retirement town, so there are a lot of wealthy retirees. To cater to said residents, the city has a lot of restaurants (at every price point), luxury hotels, high-end condos, and also cheap foods for working people.
- Sarasota has a lot of great restaurants.
- There are many places to eat in Sarasota, and they offer a wide selection of food that you can choose from. This includes healthy choices as well as more indulgent options.
- The food is good quality, which means that it’s fresh and made with good ingredients, so you can feel good about what you’re eating!
- The foods are cheap too! You’ll be pleasantly surprised at how affordable everything is here compared to other cities around the country. Even if you’re on a budget or don’t have much money to spend on yourself (or others), there will always be something affordable for everyone no matter how much money they have in their pocket at any given moment during their stay here!
Downtown Sarasota and its surrounding keys offer a full array of casual sidewalk cafes to elegant, five-star restaurants. They’re also lots of cool, hip craft breweries and beer gardens to check out. Many establishments are pet-friendly and offer daily live entertainment. St Armands Circle and Siesta Key Village are some of the top destinations you’ll definitely want to check out!
4. Sarasota is a Cultural Home for the Arts
Sarasota boasts unique arts, theatre, and cultural spots to enjoy. Tourists and locals alike spend time perusing famous art galleries, local museums, operas, and sculpture gardens.
Sarasota has long been known as Florida’s “Cultural City” with its active performing arts and theatrical scene. The city enjoys a connection to the famous Ringling family as the Circus Magnate, John Ringling, and his wife, Mable, built their famous Estate Home (Ca’ d’Zan) and Ringling Museum of Art when they settled here in the 1920s. Both their home and art museum are now open as attractions to tour year-round.
The Ringling Museum
5. Sarasota Memorial Healthcare System is One of the Best in America
When moving to a new city, it’s important to have quality healthcare choices for both preventative and emergency care. Sarasota’s top hospitals include Sarasota Memorial (just south of downtown) and Doctor’s Hospital which is located near the interstate I-75. Both are top-rated hospitals and have received numerous awards in recent years.
Sarasota Memorial is one of the 100 Top Hospitals and among the 40 Top Teaching Hospitals, in the U.S., named by Merative/Fortune (previously IBM Watson Health) in 2022. The Top 100 Hospitals outperformed peer-group hospitals on all evaluated clinical and operational performance benchmarks.
Sarasota Memorial is among the largest public health systems in the state of Florida, offering specialties in heart, vascular, neuroscience, and cancer services, in addition to a far-reaching network of outpatient, long-term care, and rehabilitation centers and programs. That said, it is also one of Sarasota County’s largest employers, with over 5,000 employees, 900 physicians, and 600 volunteers.
Sarasota’s great healthcare system is one of the top reasons why people move to Sarasota.
6. Sarasota Has a Strong School System
For parents, is there anything more important than a highly-ranked school system? Sarasota offers two standout school systems—Sarasota and Lakewood Ranch. Several of our new home communities near Siesta Key are a part of the highly desirable Sarasota County School District, rated one of the top ten in the state of Florida.
Lakewood Ranch features one of the most highly desirable learning communities in Florida as an A-rated local school district, cultivating high-performing students and well-rounded learners. Parents in Sarasota and Lakewood Ranch feel confident sending their children to these prominent, safe schools.
7. No State Income Tax
Moving to Sarasota means some good news for your paycheck as the State of Florida collects no income tax from its residents. Florida is one of only nine states with no income tax. Along with income, Florida doesn’t place a tax on inheritances, gifts, or intangible personal property, like shares.
Along with income, Florida does not place a tax on inheritances, gifts, or personal property such as shares of stock. Make sure you check with your accountant for all the specifics when it comes to tax savings while living in the Sunshine State.
To make things easier, moving to Florida also means only having to file a federal tax return when tax season rolls around.
So how does the Florida government make money? Florida relies on sales taxes and has the 24th most affordable combined state and average local sales tax rate in the nation, while its property taxes are above the national average, according to the Tax Foundation.
Living in a place like Sarasota that does not tax income can be a huge benefit, especially for high-income families. While many states impose substantial taxes on wealthy incomes, states that do not have a personal income tax do not tax them at all. This enables high-income individuals to save a larger portion of their earnings. As a result, many wealthy people prefer to spend the majority of their time in jurisdictions without a state income tax.
8. Affordable Living and Offers Reasonably Priced Real Estate
The Sarasota housing market offers reasonably priced housing for young families and retirees alike. At the start of December 2022, the median Sarasota home price is $492,424 and the median Sarasota monthly rent is just under $2,900 per month. Living downtown Sarasota or one of the keys will cost you more.
Sarasota homes appreciate quicker than the national average;, 7.6% faster, according to Fortune Builders. The city’s job market is incredibly healthy with expansions seen in healthcare, technology, and manufacturing.
The cost-of-living index is a common way to find out how cheap or expensive it is to live in a certain area. The cost of living in Sarasota is 102.7, meaning it’s extremely affordable. Surrounded by the best outdoor living Florida has to offer, there’s no better place to call home.
9. Sarasota Has Great Year-round Weather
The weather in Sarasota is great, year-round. The winters are mild, the summers are hot and humid but not too bad, and the springs and falls are lovely. There’s rarely a day when there will be frost or snow (though if you want to see that then you can go skiing) but even on those rare occasions, it won’t last long.
With an average year-round temperature of 73’ and 251 sunny days per year, Sarasota is the perfect city for outdoor enthusiasts! If you like a good workout, try kayaking or stand-up paddle boarding through the natural mangroves to see native wild birds and sea life. If you’re seeking a more relaxed activity, rent or charter a boat for the day and explore remote sand bars and local islands. There are also lots of recreational parks and area trails to explore where you’ll see an alligator or two.
10. The Sarasota Lifestyle
People who are living in Sarasota love boating. Boating and ocean activities are the way of life here so if you are visiting Sarasota for a short period, or planning to stay longer, The Freedom Boat Club is the answer to all of your boating needs.
You don’t have to be a boat owner to join the Freedom Boat Club. members can rent boats at the local marina with unlimited usage. You can make four reservations in advance using the club’s proprietary online reservation system. Those reservations “roll”: as soon as you use one, you can book another.
If you are from another state and plan to go directly to Sarasota, try using Sarasota Airport. It is a smaller airport but is located just right in downtown Florida and offers free parking. Short-term parking is available directly across the terminal building
Final Words
If you are thinking of moving to Sarasota Florida, I would highly recommend it! It’s a beautiful place with lots of things to do and see. The people are friendly and welcoming. If you’re looking for a great place to buy your next home or business then this city is perfect!
And if you are still not convinced after reading this article, you should go down here to check the city yourself.
If you and your family are looking for a place to stay during your holiday vacations in beautiful sunny Sarasota Florida, we, at The Mobile Home Dealer can help you find the perfect mobile home so you won’t need to spend an extra hundred dollars on an expensive apartment and hotel rentals.