Saint Augustine

Saint Augustine Community Info

Historic Downtown

St. Augustine is America’s oldest city and one of our country’s best kept secrets.  It has been continuously colonized dating from 1585, and celebrated its 450th anniversary in 2015.   This Historic Downtown is on the National Register of Historic Places – there are over twenty other sites within the district from the Alcazar Hotel to the Ximenez-Fatio House. The historic district is walkable with shopping, museums and galleries, dining, live music, historic sites and attractions.  You’ll also find the bayfront downtown with lovely panoramic views of the Matanzas Bay and an inviting bayfront walk along the Matanzas River from the Castillo de San Marcos to the former 16th Century Jesuit monastery that is now Headquarters for the Florida National Guard. St. Augustine is also among the Top 10 Holiday Light Displays in the world, according to National Geographic. During this festival of lights, downtown St. Augustine glows with holiday magic – from the ground to the rooftops. St. Augustine’s Nights of Lights features millions of tiny white lights that create a magical atmosphere in the Nation’s Oldest City, and it's free of charge.

And no discussion of St. Augustine would be complete without mentioning the extraordinary influence of New Yorker Henry Morrison Flagler. After co-founding Standard Oil with John D. Rockefeller and Samuel Andrews, Flagler stepped back from daily responsibilities of this successful venture and launched a second career as a developer in Florida. 

When Flagler first visited Florida in 1878, he recognized the state's potential for growth in tourism and agriculture, but noticed a lack of hotel facilities and transportation. In 1885, Flagler began building a grand hotel, the Hotel Ponce de Leon. In addition to building The Ponce and another iconic hotel, the Alcazar, Flagler also built schools, a hospital, churches, and even the jail in St. Augustine.  Many of Flagler’s historic buildings serve the community as part of our city government buildings and as part of Flagler College’s campus. 

The Historic Downtown is the oldest part of the city with many buildings dating back to the 1700s — and with streets that have existed from long before that — combine to create a walkable city obviously designed with old European concepts. America’s oldest street, Aviles, is found right off the City Square. 

The architecture downtown is primarily Spanish Colonial and Spanish Renaissance Revival. This area of town showcases everything from early European design, Florida bungalow-style houses, and Gilded Age extravagance.  And despite having a variety of architectural styles represented, St. Augustine has a cohesive feel reminiscent of an old European city.  The Historic Downtown of the nation’s oldest city represents much of U.S. History from 1565 and is sure to offer activities for the whole family to enjoy!

Investing in the St. Augustine Real Estate Market

Although only 14,000 local residents call St. Augustine home, the City hosts over 6 million visitors each year.  Because of the bustling tourism industry, St. Augustine is a hotbed for real estate investment.  Savvy investors are drawn to St. Augustine because it has a solid history of providing generous returns via residual income in short and long term rentals, hybrid vacation home/rental properties that pay for themselves, and flips or buy-and-hold properties that leverage our consistent growth in market appreciation.    

With stunning architecture, rich history and culture, a scenic bayfront, and walkable lifestyle, many visitors elect to make St. Augustine their full-time home.  These neighborhoods provide easy access to the downtown lifestyle: