We will be going head-to-head between Cocoa Beach and Satellite Beach in this post to help you decide which Florida beach town could be right for you.
Let’s look at the population of the two…Per the 2021 census information, the cities have practically the same population…Satellite Beach with 11,268 compared to Cocoa Beach at 11,332
The size or land mass of each city…Cocoa Beach is certainly larger with 15.19 Sq Miles compared to 4.29 Sq Miles for Satellite Beach.
Cocoa Beach is uniquely shaped. Long and skinny. A1A is the main road running north to south. Even though there are a few other options running north to south, they don’t take you all the way through town like A1A. Near the Cocoa Beach Pier you have Ocean Beach Blvd runs parallel to the beach and A1A. N Banana River Blvd is on the west side of A1A near 520. Brevard Ave connects 4th St North to 11th St South. Except for 520, the crossroads that run east to west end at either the river or the ocean.
Satellite Beach, just like Cocoa Beach, has A1A as the main road running north and south. They also have South Patrick Drive connecting the north and south too. If A1A is jammed up, you have another option. South Patrick is also convenient if you are traveling on the west side of town. There are several east and west connecting streets in Satellite Beach too. For this reason, I think the neighborhoods are better connected in Satellite Beach compared to Cocoa Beach.
Do you like the idea of a downtown area or a walkable area that has shops, bars, and restaurants? Cocoa Beach has a great downtown area from 4th St North to Minutemen Causeway that has 40+/- bars & restaurants, shopping, and office space. They also have a section of bars, restaurants, & shopping around the 520 and A1A area too. Satellite Beach has its restaurants, bars, and shops spread out along either A1A or South Patrick Drive in either shopping centers or strip malls.
Miles of beaches. Cocoa Beach has just over 7.5 miles of beach extending from the Cape Canaveral city limits south to Patrick Space Force Base. Satellite Beach has just over 4 miles of beach extending from the 404/Pineda Causeway/Patric Space Force Base south to the Indian Harbour Beach city limits at Volunteer Way.
Beach access points. The two cities have two different approaches to getting to the beach.
Cocoa Beach has a lot of public beach crossovers throughout the Cocoa Beach. I count 41 public beach access points from Garfield Ave to Patrick Space Force Base. Most streets that run east of A1A offer parking and a beach crossover. The beach parking in the city limits is paid parking. There are also several parks throughout Cocoa Beach that have beach access. Alan Shepard Park and Sidney Fischer Park and you pay to park. Lori Wilson Park and Robert Murshke Park are county-owned and are free parking. If there is a cost to park, it’s $5 hour or $15 for the day on the street/metered parking. At Shepard Park, Fischer Park, or the parking garage, it is $5 hour or $20 for the day. Annual parking permits are available that cost $20 per year for city residents or $75 per year for non-residents. More info on the parking inside the city of Cocoa Beach can be found here https://www.cityofcocoabeach.com/185/Parking-Information
Satellite Beach offers a lot of public beach access. The city of Satellite Beach offers 17 public beach crossovers, including 3 oceanfront parks that offer restrooms, covered picnic areas, and showers. Most of the beach access points are pedestrian access with very limited parking. North of Hightower Park is outside the city limits of Satellite Beach and there are 2 county parks for beach access. The city of Satellite Beach is in the process of approving a new ordinance to have non-residents pay for beach parking. The proposal is $2.50 an hour or $10 per day with the option to purchase an annual pass at $75 per year. Residents will need to request a parking pass and can park for free. You can learn more about this ordinance here https://satellitebeach.gov/news_detail_T1_R62.php
Here are a couple more things comparing the beaches of Satellite Beach and Cocoa Beach. Satellite Beach has coquina rocks in the shallow water. The city of Satellite Beach does have warning signs on the beach crossovers where the coquina rocks can be found. Cocoa Beach does not have rocks in the surf.
Cocoa Beach you are allowed alcohol on the beach. This is not allowed in Satellite Beach.
Dogs are not allowed on the beaches in Satellite Beach (along with most of Brevard County) Cocoa Beach is dog friendly from 4th St South to 16th St South either before 10 am or after 5 pm. Dogs are not allowed on the beach between 10am-5pm or between sunset and sunrise. Dogs must be on a leash & (sad you need to be reminded but pick up after your pup) https://www.cityofcocoabeach.com/192/Beach-Rules
Both Cocoa Beach and Satellite Beach have dog parks. Satellite Beach’s dog park is at 750 Jamaica Blvd and is an off-leash park. Cocoa Beach’s dog park is on the south side of Lori Wilson Park.
Parks and Recreation. Both Satellite Beach and Cocoa Beach offer great parks and recreation facilities for their residents. You have community pools, community center/rec centers, tennis, basketball courts, baseball fields, and even great skate parks. Cocoa Beach does have a municipal golf course that Satellite Beach does not have. Satellite Beach offers racquetball, that Cocoa Beach does not have. Satellite Beach also has Samson Island, which is a spoil island that has trails, bird watching, and primitive camping. Samson Island is only accessible by boat or kayak.
Schools
There are a lot of sites out there to find out school ratings. Here are 2 I know of
https://www.greatschools.org/florida/
Cocoa Beach Jr/Sr High School-everyone in Cocoa Beach will be attending Cocoa Beach Jr/Sr High School. GreatSchools.org rates this school as a 6 out of 10 https://www.greatschools.org/florida/cocoa-beach/161-Cocoa-Beach-Junior-Senior-High-School/
Depending on where you are living, your children will be going to either Roosevelt or Cape View.
Satellite Beach High School-Everyone in Satellite Beach will be attending Satellite Beach High School. Greatschools.org rates this school as an 8 of 10 https://www.greatschools.org/florida/satellite-beach/164-Satellite-Senior-High-School/
Depending on where you live, the middle school will be either DeLaura or Hoover. The elementary schools are either, Sea Park, Holland, Ocean Breeze, or Surfside.
Property Taxes for Satellite Beach and Cocoa Beach. Property taxes are going to be a little bit higher in Satellite Beach compared to Cocoa Beach. The millage rate for Cocoa Beach was 15.7744 in 2022 versus 18.1272 for Satellite Beach. To see what the current millage rate is for either city or a different area of Brevard County, please visit https://www.bcpao.us/
What are your thoughts on an AirBnb, short-term rentals, and the tourist/transient type population? Are you for it, against it, or indifferent? Are you interested in owning a short-term rental type property?
Cocoa Beach has quite a few hotels and there are several time-share properties in Cocoa Beach too. Cocoa Beach is also an airbnb friendly kind of town. You are able to use a single family home, duplex, triplex, and other multi family properties for daily rentals. Condos are a little trickier and depend on the complex and their rent restrictions. We still have year-round residents (like myself) and second-home/vacation homeowners…but we also have short-term rentals throughout the city.
Satellite Beach is just the opposite of Cocoa Beach in regards to hotels, airbnb’s, and airbnb type properties. Residential property west of A1A in the city limits of Satellite Beach has a 90 day minimurm rental restriction. Residential property east of A1A has a 30 day minimum rental restriction. For condos, you will have to refer to the condo docs & rent restrictions to determine what is allowed. You still have second home/vacation homes in Satellite Beach, just not the airBnB type rentals.
Let’s compare the real estate in Satellite Beach and Cocoa Beach, starting with the condos. Digging into the public records, Satellite Beach has 53 condos & over 1500 condo units. There are quite a few on the ocean, a few on a canal, and the rest I would consider dry lots. Compared to Cocoa Beach with 293 condos & over 7100 condo units. These are oceanfront, riverfront, canal front, and dry lots.
Sales prices for the last 12 months (June 1, 2022 through May 31, 2023)
Cocoa Beach had 300 sales ranging from $120K to $1.995M.
Satellite Beach had 88 sales ranging from $125K to $1.5M
Single family homes for Cocoa Beach. There are 2852 homes in public records for the 32931. 1367 homes are dry lots. 1037 homes on a canal. 343 homes on the river. 105 Ocean front
Single family homes for Satellite Beach. There are 5558 homes in public records. 4370 homes are dry lots. 1097 homes on a canal. 71 homes on the river. 20 homes are ocean front.
Sales prices for the last 12 months (June 1, 2022 to May 31, 2023)
Satellite Beach sold 210 homes between $250K and $1.9M
Cocoa Beach sold 90 homes between $362K and $3.25M
Cocoa Beach has more condos than Satellite Beach.
Satellite Beach has more homes than Cocoa Beach.
You can see what is for sale in our Beach-Side communities here https://www.ericlarkin.com/living-beachside
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Eric Larkin is a Broker Associate with Real Broker, LLC. He lives, works, and plays in the Cocoa Beach area. If you have questions about moving or relocating to Cocoa Beach and the Space Coast, let me know! I get calls, texts, direct messages & comments on my posts every day about the real estate market and things that are happening in Cocoa Beach and the Space Coast that I love answering. Ask me your questions on moving, relocating here, or anything about the community. I am here to help. I have been helping buyers and sellers with their real estate needs since becoming a real estate agent in 2003. My focus is always on helping, answering your questions, and doing everything possible to make certain you have a smooth transaction from beginning to end.
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