5 Cities You'll Want to Call Home In Tampa Bay

if you're considering moving to the Tampa Bay area and haven't decided what area to call home yet today's video is going to be for you I'm going to share my top five suburbs of Tampa and one of them was just voted the best city to live in the state of Florida for lifestyle so make sure you stick around for that and if we've never met before my name is wan kala I make videos that are all things Tampa Bay what it's like to live here what it's like to work here what it's like to play here the food the dining the outdoors the beaches and the sunshine I'm also a licensed real estate h and a team leader here with the true living group where we help people just like you buy sell relocate and invest in the greater Tampa Bay Area all of my contact information is listed down below there's even a link to my calendar so you can schedule the time that's most convenient for you happy to jump on a zoom call with you and help you get started with the process all right so the first suburb I'm going to take you to is up in Pasco County which is located just north of Hillsboro County where Tampa proper is um we're going to drive about 30 minutes north north of downtown to Odessa Florida now Odessa is one of those areas that kind of um the best way I could describe it is it kind of Teeters between rural and suburban and I I wouldn't say it's one or the other it's kind of a really nice balance of both it is growing rapidly there's a lot to love about it it gets really high ratings on niche.com it gets an a overall rating it's recommended as the number two location to live in Pasco County it get gets an A+ in education it gets an A in jobs a B+ in housing and a B in the cost of living and it's really one of those quaint areas that isn't overwhelmingly busy and if you want to tap into you know a lot of um activity all you have to do is drive to the east over to Wesley Chapel which is right down the state road there um gives you a lot of access to the Premium Outlets Costco Target a lot of things there's a Publix directly in the community there mult pole um one of my favorite neighborhoods over there is called starky Ranch it was voted the number one master plan community in Pasco County for a few years uh consecutively and it's one of those very unique neighborhoods that feels like it was built into the surrounding area um it really takes advantage of nature when a lot of our subdivisions here in Florida you know they go in and they just clearcut everything and they put a few few palm trees back up that's not the way it feels in Odessa it really does feel like the the surrounding area would was um really taken into consideration and you have these old growth oak trees and they're beautiful and one of the things I love about ciry Ranch is how close it is all the schools and Odessa um you know the starky ranch park there and like you've got the the soccer fields and the baseball fields and the and the playground for the kids and you know there's there's hiking trails and walking trails and it backs up to the Nature Preserve it's just one of those areas that people have really come to um admire and love and obviously a huge focus on safety it ranks really well terms of crime also so something that um if that's important to you definitely worth uh putting in your your hat in terms of commute and drive time um again you're going to be 30 minutes to downtown Tampa give or take traffic um 20 minutes to Tampa International Airport which is super nice um you're going to be about 20 minutes away from the Costco and 20 minutes away from the Premium Outlets I think that's wonderful as well you can go over to Fred Howard um the the park there and go to the beach and that's a 40-minute uh Drive 45 minutes to Honeymoon and it'll take you probably about an hour to get to Clear Water Beach give or take with traffic again it depends on the time of year and what's going on over there and at the time of this recording the median single family home sells for right around $690,000 um give or take it really depends on the month there wasn't a whole lot of sales in the month of November we'll see what those numbers are in December but typically we see sales over there from ranging anywhere in the high FIV to over a million dollar so if that's something that fits in your budget and in your lifestyle D is a great place to check out again one of my high recommendations is starky ranch over there great neighborhood all right so the next one on our list is actually a former number one suburb in the State of Florida to live in just two years ago so another great spot and before I get into this y'all I would love to know what areas you are considering please let us know in the comments down below it's one of the um things that I really enjoy seeing where people have their eye on um you know obviously being in real estate I love to know where people are considering but uh more importantly if you you have questions about it other people can really kind of help lend some insight so I think that's really valuable now this one again getting back to the city at hand we're talking about West Chase now West Chase is a Northwest suburb of Tampa um it is in Hillsboro County and we're getting a little bit closer to the beaches a little bit closer to the city Drive times are going to be similar we'll get into that here in a second but another Community That's rated really really high and for a lot of reasons now um West Chase was a master plan Community or I should say is a master plan community and what that really means is ultimately it was designed from beginning to end with hey we know we're going to have neighborhoods here and we know we're going to have shopping here um rather than the old way that we used to build cities in this country which is like you know if there was a space you would go fight it out to figure out what zoning that would be um maybe it was a shop maybe it was a restaurant maybe it was a house like there was a lot of that kind of pieced together type of thing and that was just because of how we did things 150 years ago um but now with these master plan communities what they're really doing is they're saying okay what do we want this community to feel like how do we want this community to live because that really does have a tremendous impact on the quality of life and there's a big focus on this so master plan communities have the pros and cons right some one of the cons that people say about communities like this is they have HOAs that come along with them um and that is true but because of those HOAs there are you know the rules that people have to follow that that tend to keep things in better condition overall but again this is a lifestyle thing you may or may not appreciate that or prefer that and that's something to be aware of but a master plan Community definitely has this going on now they've got an incredible park downtown and I've done multiple videos on West chase their Shopping Center downtown is incredible they got that Park they got the splash pad down there all the restaurants you could ask for the doctor's office really really cool setup I love the community pool I love the fact that you can drive from the neighborhood under the main road over to the park which is awwesome it's a very very fun thing to be able to do and in terms of rating West Chase gets an A+ which is awesome it ranks a in terms of schools it ranks an A+ for families an A in jobs an A in outdoor activities an A in diversity and an A+ in health and fitness I mean those are all things to love and in terms of Drive times I'm sure you'd be happy to know that you're only about 30 minutes away from Honeymoon Island State Park which is an excellent Beach you're only 16 minutes away from Tampa International Airport and about 30 minutes to downtown Tampa again as well so a lot of love again the amenities you have in the neighborhood the focus on safety the focus on education the focus on families there is a ton of love about living in West Chase and if you're wondering what it cost to buy a home here again at the time of this recording the median single family home is right around 5 62,000 um now this is a range you can find them for you know in the high fours on on the low end and you can spend well over a million dollars to live in West Chase 2 uh again it really depends on your lifestyle and your budget but these areas that we're talking about today are absolutely incredible now make sure you stick around because we are still headed towards the number one city in the State of Florida live for lifestyle and I can't wait to share that with you guys number three on my list is Fishhawk and this is going to take us out to the city of Lithia on the east side of Hillsboro County um and this is one of those areas another great master plan Community it gets an a rating according to niche.com and there's a lot to love about this this is a very established neighborhood um a lot of this neighborhood was built in the 9s and 2000s the schools are very desirable right people are going after them all the time you know this gets an a to an A minus in every category that matters education Public Safety families diversity weather jobs there is a lot to love about these neighborhoods again you got great amenities you know the these incredible Resort style pools the parks the walking paths the Trails um and you know Fishhawk and Fishhawk Ranch are are very desirable but the entire Lithia area has really developed over the last few years and has become an area where people really love to live um again it's not too far away from the city being only about 35 minutes it is a 40-minute drive to the airport and if you going to drive over to Clearwater Beach it's going to take you about an hour and 20 minutes now that is if traffic's not crazy the one thing I do need to put in front of you is if you going to live on the east side of Tampa just be aware going through Through The Heart of the City anywhere near rush hour or heavy Drive times is going to slow things down quite a bit so do keep that in mind um I've got clients who have moved to areas like Lithia and they have to drive to the um west side of Tampa and man they're telling me it could take an hour and 20 minutes hour and 30 minutes regularly to do that so please be mindful um if you have to drive to the office if you have to commute to work these are things that will ultimately impact your quality of living and just because an are you know has all the high ratings doesn't mean it's the exact right fit for you and that's one of the things we love to help people do is solve that problem you know there are lots of places that are wonderful to live but they may not fit your ideal lifestyle and that's really our Focus as a team so if you are considering making that move and you have deeper questions like I said don't hesitate to reach out to us all my contact information is down below like I said there's a link to my calendar you can schedule a time I'd be happy to jump on Zoom that way you can make sure that you are getting the best information um that is going to help you make a qualified decision that is going to fit your ideal lifestyle now when it comes to buying a home in areas like Fishhawk or Lithia um the let's just go with Fishhawk Ranch as an example again one of the most desirable neighborhoods out there right now it's going to cost about $800,000 um on average to purchase a home however in Lithia and Fishhawk the surrounding area you could find a single family home for as low as the 450s um last month and as and spent as much as 1.2 2 million so I I think you're seeing a reoccurring theme here hopefully you're starting to get a general feel of you know if you want an a-rated community that focuses on safety education you know great for families those types of things you know you're going to see really consistent pricing across the board here you're going to be in that um low fours or um high five range to up over a million dollars pretty consistently but what we usually see is that range between like 550 and 850 is where most people tend to um make a purchase at least our clients so hopefully that's helpful for you the fourth place on my list today that I'd love to share with you guys is Safety Harbor now this is an area that not a lot of people are familiar with this is located in panel's County now which is out near the gulf beaches in that Clearwater St Pete Beach area there um it's actually located in Old Tampa Bay so it's right on the inside there and it got its name because this is a place where they used to store the ships in the harbor to keep them safe safety haror that's where it got its name and it's got a really cool Park um Kate and I have done family photos here um it's called philippy Park it's just absolutely stunning they have these beautiful owls that come in every year and people get all crazy and come down with their cameras that all you can see like 50 photographers in the parking lot with these huge lenses just looking at these things but this park is just absolutely stunning it's a great place to go hang out with the family they've got the Tot Lot of course and um you know it rates really really well get an A rating in niche.com again a b in Public Schools a for you know good for families a B+ in jobs a B in the cost of living an A minus in outdoor activities a in health and fitness and an A in night life now I know this is something we haven't talked a lot about but y'all this is a great Community to go and have a dinner or a cup of coffee or just go hang out there's this really Unique Home down there they call it the bowling ball home this artist has turned this house and just do this you know really unique um piece of artwork and you go down there and you can you know take a tour of the property and it's it's pretty unique that way it's a little bit quirky but it's fun and then when you get downtown it's so quaint man they've got the park down there um you know with the big giant gazebo and then the railroad tracks go through the middle of the community and there's a Speak Easy and a movie theater downtown and a really great restaurant right on the uh railroad tracks there that Kate and I love to go to and you know just some of our funnest places to go hang out and spend time together they do um you know the uh the whole shut down the streets and do the uh the farmers markets you know on the weekends it's just one of those quaint areas that you just absolutely love and it's right across the way so in terms of drive time now you can be down to clearw beach in like 30 minutes or less depending on traffic that day you can be to downtown Tampa in 30 minutes if the traffic is great you can be down there in 25 and you can be to Tampa International Airport in 20 minutes or less also so really nice now living that close to the coast isn't necessarily for every everyone I mean you're probably only about 7 mies as the crow flies um and maybe 8 mil at the deepest part from the Gulf of Mexico and again you're right on the water but again Safety Harbor got its name because of its uniqueness you know that does have some elevation and gives you some protection in that respect but if you're someone who may not be a beach baby or a little bit apprehensive of living that close to the coast the other areas I've mentioned West Chase Odessa um Lithia Fishhawk uh you know Val Rico those areas May be a better fit for you overall right now the median single family home costs right around $500,000 and just like all the other areas you know there's a purchase on there for 400,000 and one at 1.4 million so um unique area there um I think um Travolta used to own a home there and um a few other celebrities so it's one of those areas that got a little bit of notoriety again it reminds me of the whole like Mystic Pizza thing and that may be a very weird tie-in but to me that's what it really reminds reminds me of it again it's quaint I love it I love taking the family down go down to the uh Resort there and there's a great walking path and you can see Manatee and dolphin out in the bay it's just great you should go check it out and last but not least is the suburb that was voted the number one city to live in the state of Florida and that's none other than Wesley Chapel now if you've been on this channel before you know we talk a lot about this community there it has a ton to offer and uh according to niche.com it gets an A+ overall rating an A+ and Public Schools it is as a matter of fact statistically the second most safest place in the State of Florida an A minus and job and a minus and outdoor activities an A in diversity and it has just a ton to offer now those are all stats you can go to Google you can find all that information but here's the reality of it this community was voted number one because it's focused on safety the education the healthc care system here is amazing it has the highest number of healthc care practitioners per capita and the second most insured people in the state so that's something to uh really stay focused on you've got all the wonderful hospitals Advent Bay care Orlando Health Systems building a hospital there and many many more of course now that doesn't include all the lifestyle stuff now if you've heard us talk about Wesley Chapel obviously they've got the man-made Lagoon out there the 7 and 1/2 acre man-made Lagoon out at erson which really brings the beach to your backyard because I'm going to be honest with you driving the Clear Water Beach is going to take you about an hour and 20 to hour and 30 minutes to get there there are other areas like Honeymoon Island State Park but that's like an hour and 10 minutes you know you can get to Fred Howard Park in about an hour and 10 minutes but you know the beaches aren't real close you can be to downtown Tampa anywhere from 30 to 45 minutes with traffic same thing with the airport 35 to 50 minutes just depending on what the day looking like again Drive times can go longer just be mindful of that but on average that's what you're going to be looking at and if you're looking to pick up a house the median single family home is going to cost you right around $460,000 on average um there was a sale like last month in the high twos so they can definitely get down there there are some Builders out there that are very aggressive but there was also a home that sold for over 1.4 million so just like all the other areas that we've looked at they really have a um a wide spectrum of uh the the quality of Lifestyle right and the amenities that come along with this we haven't even talked about areas like crate which has these really cool events and like the 90 shipping containers where you can go shopping or um you know wire grass R Shopping Center or going over to the Premium Outlets you've got a Costco right in your backyard they've got a Target XL coming into the community there they there's public grocery stores everywhere um and again this area in general is one of those um what I would consider a very familyfriendly environment I take my family there on purpose we live very close to the beach y'all and I drive my family up to Wesley Chapel we'll go hang out at the parks we'll go to Florida Avenue Brewing Company they've got a really cool outdoor space the kids really like going there and the food's amazing too so definitely worth the trip you know toast is another great restaurant if you're into brunch definitely worth checking out there also and if you're considering making a move to any of these areas and you have more questions number one ask the community put it in the comments down below say hey I'm considering x what do y'all think cuz I think it's really really good to get perspective from other people but if you really want to go deep and dive behind the curtain um do not hesitate to reach out to me and my team like I said all of my contact information is down below be more than happy to jump on a zoom call with you we'll open up up Google Maps we'll talk about these different neighborhoods in these specific communities I gave you some of my top five today there are many more areas um that you may find that fit your needs better in terms of Lifestyle education maybe employment and I'd be more than happy to jump on a zoom call and help you shake that out and as always and until next time go out and live that Tampa life [Music]