You are planning a move to Florida and the city of Melbourne keeps popping up on your radar? This article here will answer a lot of your questions and get you introduced to Melbourne Florida.
Melbourne Florida, is Brevard County’s second largest city, with a population of over 86,000 people, and is centrally located in Brevard County. The city offers amazing parks, great restaurants & shopping, live entertainment, golfing, access to the intracoastal, and was recently ranked in the top 10 safest places to live in the US for 2024-2025
Do you love the beach or being near the water? Beach access is very easy from Melbourne thanks to the Causeways that run from the ocean to I-95 & beyond. All you need to do is head east on either the Pineda Causeway, the Eau Gallie Causeway, or the Melbourne Causeway and your toes are in the sand in about 15 minutes.
If you like to boat or fish, maybe kayak or standup paddleboard? The eastern border of Melbourne is the Indian River/Intracoastal Waterway. Several tributaries run through the east side of Melbourne to connect you to the intracoastal. You have Crane Creek, the Eau Gallie River, and Horse Creek to explore. On the west side of town is Lake Washington and the St John’s River that offer fresh water resources. Think bass boats, air boats, or pontoon boats…maybe a gator or two…
Do you want a city that has a vibrant downtown area? Melbourne has two for you to consider. Historic Downtown Melbourne is off the Melbourne Causeway/192 between the river and Babcock St. There is a large assortment of restaurants and bars to choose from. Meg O’Malley’s restaurant & Irish pub is probably the most well known in the area. I like to have breakfast at Backwater’s. Grab a drink from the rooftop bar at the Melby’s hotel and enjoy the views of the city and river to the east. You can find a variety of other establishments in this section of town. Live music most weekends. Grab a show at the Henegar Center.
The other downtown area is north of there on the Eau Gallie Causeway and is known as EGAD, the Eau Gallie Arts District. It’s a little smaller scale than the Historic Downtown Melbourne, but certainly worth checking out. As the name suggests, there are art galleries throughout this section of the city between the Indian River and US 1 and a few blocks north of Eau Gallie Causeway. There are also dozens of murals in this area. Grab a pint from the Intercoastal Brewing Company, drinks at Pineapples, or a bite to eat at Nomad’s or Squid Lips.
I like a city that has great parks. Melbourne has over 40 parks throughout the city. Most are quaint neighborhood parks that offer green space, a playground, tennis courts, basketball courts, and pavilions. If you love the water, check out Ballard Park just south of the Eau Gallie Causeway. There is a public boat ramp where you can launch onto the Eau Gallie River. Head east from here for easy access to the intracoastal or explore west into the Eau Gallie River. I have launched kayaks here and paddled up the Eau Gallie River and into Elbow Creek (check it out!) Ballard Park also has pavilions and tennis courts. The largest park in Melbourne is Wickham Park. This 390 acre park offers just about everything. They have campsites, horse trails, pavilions, frisbee golf, volleyball, archery, horseshoe pits, 2 dog parks, 2 lakes to swim in, and a calendar of events throughout the year. Recently, they hosted a blueberry fest and the moving Vietnam Wall Memorial at Wickham Park.
Do you like to go golfing? The city of Melbourne has two municipal golf courses. One off Lake Washington Rd and the other off 192. There are also 5 golf courses outside the Melbourne city limits to the north in Viera, Suntree, and Baytree in the 32940. The golf courses here are Suntree Country Club, Baytree National, Duran’s, Viera East Golf Course, and the Indian River Colony Club.
If you like seeing concerts, comedians, and broadway style productions, we have the King Center Performing Arts. There are concerts throughout the year. L3Harris sponsors Broadway shows. There are always Christmas-themed performances in December. I also mentioned briefly the Henegar Center near Downtown Melbourne. They also have Broadway shows coming through throughout the year.
A new addition that the Mayor of Melbourne is working on is the Melbourne Fairgrounds. This will be in central Melbourne, just south of Sarno Rd and west of Wickham Rd. The trial run for the future Melbourne Fairgrounds was the Renaissance Festival and the Strawberry Festival, and they both had positive reviews. Future events at the Melbourne Fairgrounds will include Oktoberfest, as well as Christmas & other holiday events.
Depending on why you are making the move to Melbourne, how to get around the area is probably important. There are some main thoroughfares to get you from north to south. US 1 runs the eastern border along the Indian River. Wickham Rd connects Viera/Suntree to Melbourne & Palm Bay (Wickham Rd becomes Minton Rd south of 192). I-95 has 6 exits into Melbourne. 3 of these exits will connect you to the beaches. 192 will also connect you to Kissimmee/St Cloud.
If you are working at any of the government contracting/aerospace type jobs, Melbourne is a great place to live if you are OK with a shorter commute time. If you have PCS orders for Patrick Space Force Base, its also a pretty easy commute, you simply need to cross the rivers using the Pineda Causeway to the south gate of Patrick. If you are at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station or working at one of the Space Center jobs (SpaceX, Blue Origin, NASA, Boeing) you will have a 45 minutes to an hour commute to the main gate.
Speaking of zip codes, Melbourne has 5 zip codes for you to choose from: 32901, 32903, 32934, 32935, and 32940. I also talk a little about 32904, which is West Melbourne and Melbourne Village. Most of the city limits are in the 32901, 32903, 32934, & 32935. 32940 is the north end and is not in the city limits, but is still considered Melbourne and is where Viera, Suntree, and Baytree are located. 32903 is the anomaly located beachside. You will come to know this area as Indialantic, but there are sections just south of the Eau Gallie Causeway that are actually the city of Melbourne.
32901 is the southern end of the city. This is downtown historic Melbourne, FIT, the Melbourne International Airport, and a lot of the government contractors, tech, and aerospace companies.
32934 is north of here and on the west side of Wickham Rd. 32935 is north and on the east side of Wickham.
32940 I already mentioned is the very north end and home to the Brevard Zoo, Viera, Suntree, and Baytree.
32904 has some sections that are Melbourne. It has one of the smallest towns in the State of Florida, which is Melbourne Village, and worth exploring. The rest of the 32904 is the city of West Melbourne. Really, the Melbourne Mall is in the 32904 but is considered Melbourne. The Hammock Landing (Khols, Target, and the Publix on Palm Bay Road) is also in West Melbourne.
If you have not lived in Florida or along the Gulf Coast or East Coast, you probably haven’t experienced a hurricane yet. The good news is that most of Melbourne is not in a mandatory evacuation area. Mandatory evacuation areas are east of US 1 and all of the barrier islands. We have plenty of time & notice before a storm comes to prepare for it. Preparation includes securing your house and minimizing projectiles, getting batteries, flashlights, canned goods, bottled water, filling up your propane tanks, and testing your generator if you have one. The local news is great at keeping us informed and letting us know about any resources we need.
Property taxes for the city of Melbourne are about the same if you are inside the city limits (32901, 32934, 32935, & 32903). If you are outside the city limits (Viera/Suntree) your taxes are much lower. As we look closer at properties for you, we will discuss what to expect. Just know that the Brevard Property Appraiser’s website is a great resource to find out exactly what to expect with property taxes. https://www.bcpao.us/
Are schools important to you? According to GreatSchools.org, Melbourne has some of the best in Brevard County. Suntree, Longleaf, Viera, and Quest elementary schools are considered above average. Viera High and Westshore Jr/Sr high school are considered above average. Melbourne High and Lyndon B Johnson Middle are considered average. See how the other schools in Melbourne rank https://www.greatschools.org/florida/melbourne/schools/?gradeLevels%5B%5D=h&gradeLevels%5B%5D=m&view=list
Where in Melbourne will be the right place for you? The good news is, Melbourne can offer just about any type of property: single family homes, condos, townhouses, multifamily, manufactured homes, apartments…Waterfront can be on the Indian River, Crane Creek, Eau Gallie River, Horse Creek, Lake Washington, or one of the smaller ponds/lakes in a community. You can live on a golf course, back up to a preserve, or have a dry lot. There are multi-acre properties to zero lot lines. Brand new construction to homes built in the last 20 years. There are a lot of homes built in the 60s, 70s, 80s, & 90s. There are even turn of the century homes in Melbourne.
What do you think about living in an HOA? If you are a hard no, then you do not need to look in the Viera/Suntree area since they are all HOAs.
If you are getting ready to look online for properties, you can go to one of the many real estate portals out there, or you can start your search here https://www.ericlarkin.com/melbourne. If you want to talk more about an upcoming move or some specific questions you have about our area, let’s schedule an appointment.
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.
Planning a move or have questions about our area? Eric Larkin with Real Broker, LLC can help! Schedule a call here https://www.ericlarkin.com/schedule-a-call
OR leave your info here and I will call you https://www.ericlarkin.com/contact-form
Cocoa Beach Insider 