Jacksonville, Florida is a popular place to be. It’s a growing area thanks to a variety of new housing communities at all price points. Plus, it boasts a healthy job market compared to many metropolitan areas in other states.
Forbes recently ranked Jacksonville as the second city on this awesome-places-to-move-to list, and we don’t need infographics to prove it. Allow us to tell you why.
Image by Jonathan Zander, via Wikimedia Commons
Great Location
Jacksonville sits at the intersection of two U.S. interstates — I-95, which runs north and south along the East Coast, and I-10, which runs east and west. It’s also where the St. Johns River, one of Florida’s biggest, empties into the Atlantic Ocean.
Add a convenient airport and plenty of boat traffic along the St. Johns and the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway, and you can travel around Jacksonville in any manner you choose.
A major upgrade to the interstate system — a new State Road 9B connector linking the south end of the city’s perimeter highway, I-295, with I-95 and the adjacent, booming areas of southern Duval and northern St. Johns Counties — opened in June 2016.
Booming Economy
Jacksonville is home to a major deep-water port, Florida’s third largest. It also is the site of a U.S. Naval Air Station, along with several sister installations nearby and one in southern Georgia. Banking, healthcare and transportation employers have significant footprints here. Two other factors should boost your consideration of this great city as a great place to live: no state income tax and a lower cost of living. Florida is one of only seven states that don’t levy a state income tax. And the cost of becoming a resident is lower than the cost of living in more established metro areas.
Booming Suburbs
Located mostly south of downtown Jacksonville, these are growing areas with all the accompanying housing, shopping, dining and job scenes. The new SR 9B connector makes it easy to commute in-town from one of these neighborhoods, yet live outside it.
These suburbs also are close to beautiful Ponte Vedra Beach and historic St. Augustine. Both areas’ cultural and recreational amenities are draws for Jacksonville residents.
Jax’s booming southern suburbs offer communities with many sought-after perks — recreational trails, swimming pools, gated entrances, playgrounds and dog parks.
Fun Things To Do
Did we mention the beach? Jacksonville boasts 22 miles of sandy Atlantic shoreline. Offshore and nearshore waterways promote never-ending boating and fishing adventures. There are seven state parks and two national parks in this area. The city proudly trumpets the country’s largest urban park system (80,000 acres!).
For sports enthusiasts, Jacksonville is home to the NFL’s Jacksonville Jaguars and the Arena Football League’s Jacksonville Sharks. The PGA’s headquarters is in Ponte Vedra Beach.
Ready to search for your new Jacksonville home? As Florida’s Custom builder, ICI Homes offers numerous communities in the area — Amelia National Golf & Country Club in Fernandina Beach, Julington Creek in St. Johns, Nocatee in Ponte Vedra, North Hampton in Fernandina Beach and Tamaya. Click here to get started.
