Photo: 10593-H · CC BY-SA 4.0Even on the area’s higher pay, Pace costs more to live in than 56% of U.S. towns
It ranks #117 of 637 in Florida for affordability. Up 0.9% in a year, 13% below the Florida typical home.
Census 2020–24 home values, rents, tax bills and cost burden, measured against the median household income of the Pensacola-Ferry Pass-Brent, FL metro area ($76K). How TownRatings grades cost of living
The grade measures what housing costs against what households in the area earn. Pace’s area earns well above the typical U.S. town ($76K against $74K), but homes, rent and taxes here run higher still. Owners keep up better than renters: 22% of owners pay 30% or more of income for housing (typical U.S. town: 20%), against 46% of renters.
In dollars
- $326Ktypical home, 13% below the Florida typical homeZillow, September 2026
- $1,450a month for a two-bedroom, utilities includedHUD Fair Market Rent, 2026
- 98prices across the Pensacola metro, where the U.S. is 100 (housing 99)BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024
In paychecks the grade
- 3.9 yrsof area income buys the typical home; the typical U.S. town: 3.3$76K, Pensacola-area income
- 20%of area income goes to the median rent; the typical U.S. town: 18%Census 2020–24
- 46%of renters pay 30%+ of income for housing; across Florida: 60%Census 2020–24
- 22%of owners do; the typical U.S. town: 20%Census 2020–24
What stands out about housing in Pace
What’s behind Pace’s grade
Measured against what households in the area earn, Pace is more affordable than 44% of U.S. towns, #117 of 637 in Florida. Rent pulls the grade down most; property tax holds it up.
Prices here have kept pace with Florida: up 15.8% in five years, against 18.6% statewide (Zillow).
Up 15.8% in five years
About the same pace as Florida (18.6%).
Show as a table
| January | Pace | Florida |
|---|---|---|
| 2017 | $178,000 | $209,000 |
| 2018 | $192,000 | $226,000 |
| 2019 | $203,000 | $241,000 |
| 2020 | $216,000 | $252,000 |
| 2021 | $243,000 | $276,000 |
| 2022 | $298,000 | $339,000 |
| 2023 | $327,000 | $392,000 |
| 2024 | $330,000 | $402,000 |
| 2025 | $328,000 | $396,000 |
| 2026 | $324,000 | $377,000 |
| September 2026 | $326,000 | $375,000 |
A typical Pace home worth $176K in October 2016 is worth about $326K today.
Zillow Home Value Index: the typical value of all homes (middle third), smoothed and seasonally adjusted, through September 2026.
A balanced market
About 4 months of supply: neither buyers nor sellers have a clear edge.
Under ~4 months of supply favors sellers; over ~6 favors buyers.
Redfin Data Center, all residential sales, September 2026.
A typical home costs 3.9 years of area income
The calculator starts from the area income the grade uses. Switch to Pace’s own median, or type yours.
That’s $17K short of a typical Pace home.
A two-bedroom rents for about $1,450 a month here, $420 less than owning.
An estimate, not a loan offer: payments of up to 28% of income, a 30-year fixed loan, Pace’s typical property tax (0.59% of value a year, from the Census) and insurance of about 0.35%. Mortgage insurance, HOA fees and other debts aren’t included.
A two-bedroom rents for about $1,450
Renters already here pay a median of $1,282, so moving in tends to cost more than staying put.
Fair Market Rent a month, utilities included
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Fair Market Rents by ZIP code (Pensacola-Ferry Pass-Brent, FL MSA): the 40th-percentile rent plus utilities for a standard unit. Median rent and renters: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey.
Property tax runs below the Florida norm
The median bill is $1,742 (Florida: $2,730), 0.59% of a home’s value a year, against 0.76% statewide.
Census American Community Survey 2020–24: the median real-estate tax bill homeowners report, and that bill ÷ the median home value. Bills include town, school and county taxes. The Census reports bills over $10,000 only as “$10,000+”.
The rest of a budget near Pace
Only figures published free for the whole country, each labeled with the area it covers: the Pensacola-Ferry Pass-Brent, FL metro area, or Florida. Groceries follow the goods price level; nobody publishes them town by town.
| Cost | Here | Compared with | Area | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prices overall U.S. = 100 | 98 | FL 103 | metro | BEA, 2024 |
| Goods (groceries, clothing, cars…) U.S. = 100 | 96 | FL 98 | metro | BEA, 2024 |
| Utilities U.S. = 100 | 88 | FL 90 | metro | BEA, 2024 |
| Other services U.S. = 100 | 99 | FL 101 | metro | BEA, 2024 |
Price levels: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities 2024 (metro area and state). Electricity: U.S. Energy Information Administration, Electric Power Monthly, table 5.6.A.
Pace vs. its neighbors
Of the 1 towns here with a Zillow value, Pace has the lowest. Wallace and Pea Ridge have no Zillow value, so they are in the table only.
Cost next door · one source per column
| Town | Cost | Typical home Zillow, September 2026 | Median value Census 2020–24 | Tax rate bill ÷ value | 2-bed rent HUD 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pace | C+ | $326K | $294K | 0.59% | $1,450 |
| Pea Ridge | B+ | — | $221K | 0.43% | $1,460 |
| Wallace | C+ | — | $401K | 0.61% | $1,450 |
| Floridatown | – | — | — | — | $1,450 |
“—” under Zillow: Zillow publishes no value for that town, so it’s left blank rather than mixed with Census figures. “—” under Cost: not graded (too little Census data, or under 1,000 residents).
Questions about the cost of living in Pace
Is Pace expensive to live in?
Measured against what households in the area earn, Pace costs more than 56% of U.S. towns: a C+ for cost of living, #117 of 637 in Florida. The typical home costs 3.9 years of the median household income of the Pensacola-Ferry Pass-Brent, FL metro area ($76K).
How much does a house cost in Pace?
About $326K, Zillow’s typical value for September 2026, up 0.9% in a year. The Florida typical home is $375K.
What salary do you need to live in Pace?
To buy the typical home with 20% down at 6.3%, about $80,000 a year, keeping the payment (about $1,870 a month with tax and insurance) at 28% of income. To rent a two-bedroom at 30% of income, about $58,000.
How much is rent in Pace?
HUD puts a two-bedroom at about $1,450 a month with utilities, the going rate for someone moving in. Renters already here pay a median of $1,282 (Census 2020–24).
What are property taxes in Pace?
The median bill is $1,742 a year, 0.59% of the median home value (Florida: $2,730, 0.76%), from the Census 2020–24.
Are home prices in Pace going up?
Barely: up 0.9% in the past year and 15.8% in five years, against 18.6% across Florida (Zillow).
Neighbors talk housing
What Pace buyers, sellers and renters are saying.
Home values: Zillow Home Value Index (ZHVI), Zillow Research, September 2026. Sales, days on market and supply: Redfin Data Center, September 2026. Income, ownership, taxes and rent: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey. Fair Market Rents: U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. The calculator is an estimate, not a loan offer. Regional price levels: BEA; electricity: EIA. How TownRatings grades cost of living.