Even on the area’s higher pay, West Melbourne costs more to live in than 78% of U.S. towns
It ranks #269 of 637 in Florida for affordability. Down 0.8% in a year, close to the Florida typical home.
Census 2020–24 home values, rents, tax bills and cost burden, measured against the median household income of the Palm Bay-Melbourne-Titusville, FL metro area ($78K). How TownRatings grades cost of living
The grade measures what housing costs against what households in the area earn. West Melbourne’s area earns well above the typical U.S. town ($78K against $74K), but homes, rent and taxes here run higher still. Owners keep up better than renters: 19% of owners pay 30% or more of income for housing (typical U.S. town: 20%), against 46% of renters.
In dollars
- $373Ktypical home, 1% below the Florida typical homeZillow, September 2026
- $2,080a month for a two-bedroom, utilities includedHUD Fair Market Rent, 2026
- 100prices across the Palm Bay metro, where the U.S. is 100 (housing 112)BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024
In paychecks the grade
- 4.8 yrsof area income buys the typical home; the typical U.S. town: 3.3$78K, Palm Bay-area income
- 28%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
- 19%of owners do; the typical U.S. town: 20%Census 2020–24
Housing in West Melbourne, in brief
Prices are 9% below their 2022 peak
The typical West Melbourne home peaked at $408K in August 2022 and is worth about $373K now. Florida as a whole is 7% off its own peak. Over five years, West Melbourne is still up 12%. Price trend ↓
Rent is easier on renters here
46% of renter households spend 30% or more of their income on rent, against 60% across Florida. A standard two-bedroom is 27% of the median household income. Renting ↓
Mostly newer homes
Half of West Melbourne’s homes were built after 2003, against 1988 for Florida as a whole. Property taxes ↓
Most new homes are apartments and condos
Of the 4,959 homes permitted in West Melbourne’s past 10 years, 63% were in buildings with two or more homes, not single-family houses. New homes ↓
Written from the data on this page. Home values are the Zillow Home Value Index, through September 2026; sales and supply are Redfin’s for May 2026; permits are Census figures through 2025; incomes, rents paid, taxes and ownership come from the Census American Community Survey.
What’s behind West Melbourne’s grade
Measured against what households in the area earn, West Melbourne is more affordable than 22% of U.S. towns, #269 of 637 in Florida. Rent pulls the grade down most; property tax holds it up.
Values have lagged Florida: the typical West Melbourne home is up 11.6% in five years, against 18.6% statewide (Zillow).
Up 11.6% in five years
Slower than Florida (18.6%).
Show as a table
| January | West Melbourne | Florida |
|---|---|---|
| 2017 | $220,000 | $209,000 |
| 2018 | $243,000 | $226,000 |
| 2019 | $255,000 | $241,000 |
| 2020 | $262,000 | $252,000 |
| 2021 | $288,000 | $276,000 |
| 2022 | $357,000 | $339,000 |
| 2023 | $402,000 | $392,000 |
| 2024 | $401,000 | $402,000 |
| 2025 | $391,000 | $396,000 |
| 2026 | $375,000 | $377,000 |
| September 2026 | $373,000 | $375,000 |
A typical West Melbourne home worth $215K in October 2016 is worth about $373K today.
Zillow Home Value Index: the typical value of all homes (middle third), smoothed and seasonally adjusted, through September 2026.
A balanced market
About 4.4 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, May 2026.
A typical home costs 4.8 years of area income
The calculator starts from the area income the grade uses. Switch to West Melbourne’s own median, or type yours.
That’s $58K short of a typical West Melbourne home.
A two-bedroom rents for about $2,080 a month here, $80 less than owning.
An estimate, not a loan offer: payments of up to 28% of income, a 30-year fixed loan, West Melbourne’s typical property tax (0.66% 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 $2,080
Renters already here pay a median of $1,845, 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 (Palm Bay-Melbourne-Titusville, FL MSA): the 40th-percentile rent plus utilities for a standard unit. Median rent and renters: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey.
160 new homes permitted in 2025
Builders were permitted 160 new homes in West Melbourne in 2025: 154 single-family houses and 6 in buildings with two or more homes, worth about $42.7 million to build. That's 5.6 per 1,000 residents, slower than across Florida (8.3). Over the past 10 years, West Melbourne has permitted 4,959 homes in all.
Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses, West Melbourne gained 7,569 residents while 3,611 new homes were permitted: about 2.1 new residents per new home, fewer than across Florida (2.8): building outpaced growth.
Every year as a table
| Year | New homes | Single-family | 2+ per building | Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 (Jan–Aug) | 53 | 53 | 0 | $30.1 million |
| 2025 | 160 | 154 | 6 | $42.7 million |
| 2024 | 59 | 15 | 44 | $11.9 million |
| 2023 | 1,023 | 286 | 737 | $170.4 million |
| 2022 | 107 | 107 | 0 | $14.8 million |
| 2021 | 399 | 75 | 324 | $52.3 million |
| 2020 | 637 | 226 | 411 | $105 million |
| 2019 | 1,218 | 232 | 986 | $138.1 million |
| 2018 | 495 | 203 | 292 | $86.9 million |
| 2017 | 575 | 267 | 308 | $98.7 million |
| 2016 | 286 | 286 | 0 | $91.5 million |
| 2015 | 167 | 167 | 0 | $45.2 million |
| 2014 | 138 | 138 | 0 | $35.8 million |
| 2013 | 144 | 144 | 0 | $38.6 million |
| 2012 | 220 | 217 | 3 | $50.9 million |
| 2011 | 187 | 172 | 15 | $27.7 million |
| 2010 | 181 | 181 | 0 | $35.8 million |
| 2009 | 135 | 135 | 0 | $25.7 million |
| 2008 | 83 | 83 | 0 | $18.9 million |
| 2007 | 174 | 174 | 0 | $40.1 million |
| 2006 | 142 | 142 | 0 | $35.1 million |
| 2005 | 279 | 261 | 18 | $64.3 million |
| 2004 | 634 | 626 | 8 | $135.4 million |
| 2003 | 780 | 780 | 0 | $153.9 million |
| 2002 | 492 | 492 | 0 | $90.7 million |
| 2001 | 353 | 347 | 6 | $51.6 million |
| 2000 | 449 | 149 | 300 | $42.3 million |
Homes authorized by building permits, counted in the year the permit was issued. U.S. Census Bureau, Building Permits Survey.
Property tax runs below the Florida norm
The median bill is $2,488 (Florida: $2,730), 0.66% 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 West Melbourne
Only figures published free for the whole country, each labeled with the area it covers: the Palm Bay-Melbourne-Titusville, 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 | 100 | 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.
West Melbourne vs. its neighbors
Of the 4 towns here with a Zillow value, West Melbourne has the 3rd-lowest. June Park has no Zillow value, so it is 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| West Melbourne | C− | $373K | $377K | 0.66% | $2,080 |
| June Park | C− | — | $411K | 0.57% | $2,080 |
| Melbourne | C− | $358K | $306K | 0.68% | $1,870 |
| Melbourne Village | – | $437K | $385K | 0.73% | $2,080 |
| Palm Bay | C | $303K | $283K | 0.61% | $1,840 |
“—” 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 West Melbourne
Is West Melbourne expensive to live in?
Measured against what households in the area earn, West Melbourne costs more than 78% of U.S. towns: a C− for cost of living, #269 of 637 in Florida. The typical home costs 4.8 years of the median household income of the Palm Bay-Melbourne-Titusville, FL metro area ($78K).
How much does a house cost in West Melbourne?
About $373K, Zillow’s typical value for September 2026, down 0.8% in a year. The Florida typical home is $375K.
What salary do you need to live in West Melbourne?
To buy the typical home with 20% down at 6.3%, about $92,000 a year, keeping the payment (about $2,160 a month with tax and insurance) at 28% of income. To rent a two-bedroom at 30% of income, about $83,000.
How much is rent in West Melbourne?
HUD puts a two-bedroom at about $2,080 a month with utilities, the going rate for someone moving in. Renters already here pay a median of $1,845 (Census 2020–24).
What are property taxes in West Melbourne?
The median bill is $2,488 a year, 0.66% of the median home value (Florida: $2,730, 0.76%), from the Census 2020–24.
Are home prices in West Melbourne going up?
No: down 0.8% in the past year and 11.6% in five years, against 18.6% across Florida (Zillow).
Neighbors talk housing
What West Melbourne 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, May 2026. Income, ownership, taxes and rent: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey. New homes: U.S. Census Bureau, Building Permits 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.