Last updated September 18, 2026
Palm Beach vs West Palm Beach: Cost of Living and Monthly Cost to Own
On the median closed single-family home in 2026, owning in Palm Beach costs about $16,084 a month (cash basis) and owning in West Palm Beach about $4,480. For a condo or townhouse, $13,287 versus $2,436. Palm Beach has the lower tax rate. Below is the full stack, every input cited. Single-family totals exclude HOA fees because Palm Beach has too few HOA listings to publish a median.
See what your home is worth Moving between Palm Beach and West Palm Beach? Start with the number on the home you already own, or call (561) 395-8418.
The monthly cost to own, side by side
| Palm Beach | West Palm Beach | |
|---|---|---|
| Median closed price, single-family (Jan 1 - Aug 31, 2026) | $12,594,762 (n=82) | $575,000 (n=1,077) |
| 20% down | $2,518,952 | $115,000 |
| Principal and interest, 30-yr fixed at 6.95% | cash basis, see note | $3,045 |
| Property tax with homestead, monthly | $15,557 | $908 |
| Home insurance, county average incl. wind, monthly | $527 | $527 |
| Median HOA fee (where applicable) | not enough data | $455 |
| Total monthly cost to own, single-family (excluding HOA fee: Palm Beach has too few HOA listings to publish a median) | $16,084 | $4,480 |
| Median closed price, condo/townhouse | $1,686,250 (n=230) | $246,750 (n=1,225) |
| Median condo fee | $2,124 | $588 |
| Total monthly, condo/townhouse | $13,287 | $2,436 |
Note on Palm Beach: the median closed single-family price is above $3 million and most purchases close without financing (85% cash share this year), so the total shown is the carrying cost of an owned home - tax, insurance and fees - without a mortgage payment. A financed purchase would add principal and interest on top. The county-average insurance figure understates the premium on a home at this price; treat it as a floor.
What the money buys and how fast it moves
| Single-family, closed YTD 2026 | Palm Beach | West Palm Beach |
|---|---|---|
| Median price per sq ft | $3,196 | $345 |
| Median change vs Jan-Aug 2025 | -3.1% (from $13,000,000) | +1.8% (from $565,000) |
| Median days on market | 94 | 40 |
| Closed price as % of list | 91% | 97% |
| Months of inventory | 5.8 | 4.4 |
| Share of sales under $500k / $500k-1M / over $1M | 2% / 2% / 95% | 39% / 36% / 26% |
| Median year built (closed sales) | 1975 | 1984 |
| Cash purchases, share of closings with financing reported | 85% | 40% |
| Condo/townhouse, closed YTD 2026 | Palm Beach | West Palm Beach |
|---|---|---|
| Median price per sq ft | $1,056 | $209 |
| Median change vs Jan-Aug 2025 | -8.9% | +2.8% |
| Median days on market | 86 | 60 |
| Months of inventory | 9.1 | 8.7 |
| Share of sales under $500k / $500k-1M / over $1M | 13% / 15% / 72% | 84% / 9% / 7% |
| Median year built (closed sales) | 1973 | 1984 |
| Cash purchases | 87% | 58% |
Property tax: rate versus bill
Total 2025 millage on the most common taxing-authority code: Palm Beach 14.869, West Palm Beach 20.4468 (Palm Beach County Property Appraiser, 2025 final rates). Both totals include the county, school district, South Florida Water Management District, Children's Services Council and health-care district levies; the difference is the city operating rate and debt service. Non-ad valorem charges (fire assessment, stormwater, solid waste) are billed on the same statement and are not included here.
Homestead arithmetic used above: the first $25,000 of assessed value is exempt from all levies and a second $25,000 from non-school levies (s. 196.031, Florida Statutes). Purchase price is treated as the year-one just value; Save Our Homes then caps assessed-value growth at 3% a year for as long as you keep the homestead (s. 193.155). A buyer moving from another Florida homestead may port up to $500,000 of accumulated cap. A long-time owner's bill will be lower than the figure above; a new buyer's will not.
Insurance: same average, different house
FLOIR's July 2026 stability report puts Palm Beach County's average homeowners premium with wind at $6,323 a year and the condo unit-owner average at $2,311. Both cities share that figure in the table because the state publishes county, not city, averages. Your actual premium is set by roof age, opening protection, elevation and deductible. Statewide average for comparison: $3,757.
Association fees and what they cover
Median monthly fees from the PBP fee indexes (active listings, refreshed nightly): Palm Beach HOA not enough data across - listings, condo $2,124 across 128; West Palm Beach HOA $455 across 142, condo $588 across 881.
What condo fees most often include, share of listings that state it: Palm Beach: common areas (90%), water (84%), trash (83%), cable tv (81%), sewer (78%). West Palm Beach: common areas (78%), grounds (70%), trash (63%), cable tv (60%), water (56%). A fee that covers building insurance and water is not comparable to one that does not.
Condo risk signals in current listing remarks: special assessment mentioned in 11.7% of Palm Beach condo listings and 7.0% of West Palm Beach; milestone inspection referenced in 4.7% and 0.7%. These are mentions, not a count of buildings under assessment.
Community-level fees and trends: Palm Beach condo fee index, West Palm Beach HOA fee index, West Palm Beach condo fee index.
Rent, income and the own-versus-rent gap
| Palm Beach | West Palm Beach | |
|---|---|---|
| Median household income (ACS 2023 5-yr) | $175,078 | $69,261 |
| Median gross rent (ACS 2023 5-yr) | $1,849 | $1,709 |
| Median closed lease, unfurnished, last 13 months (BeachesMLS) | $5,950 (n=9) | $2,100 (n=600) |
| Median owner cost with a mortgage (ACS) | $4,001 | $2,156 |
| Cost to own at today's median, single-family, as % of median income | +110.2% | +85.5% |
| Population (ACS) | 9,234 | 119,508 |
The ACS owner-cost figure reflects owners who bought years ago at lower prices and rates; the cost-to-own line at the top is what a buyer at today's median price and rate pays. The distance between them is the honest measure of how far the market has moved.
See what your home is worth
Every move between these places starts with one number on the home you already own. Gia Freer prepares a written opinion of value by hand from our own BeachesMLS data, with the comparable sales attached. No automated estimate is published on this site.
See what your home is worth or call (561) 395-8418. Conversations are confidential and there is no cost to having one.
Where the money goes next
- Compare communities: Palm Beach communities and West Palm Beach communities, each with a one-page fact sheet.
- Moving from the Northeast: property tax and homestead guide for New York buyers.
- County view and every other pair: Palm Beach County vs Broward County cost of living.
- Selling here first: what your home is worth.
Common questions
Is West Palm Beach cheaper than Palm Beach to own a home?
On the median closed single-family home in 2026, yes by about $11,600 a month: $4,480 versus $16,084, with the higher-priced city shown on a cash basis because most of its purchases are unfinanced. The price difference at the median drives most of the gap. HOA fees are excluded from this comparison because Palm Beach has too few HOA listings to publish a median.
Which city has lower property taxes, Palm Beach or West Palm Beach?
Palm Beach. The 2025 total millage on the most common taxing-authority code is 14.869 mills in Palm Beach and 20.4468 mills in West Palm Beach. Both include the county, school district and special-district levies; the difference is the city operating and debt rate.
Are HOA and condo fees higher in Palm Beach or West Palm Beach?
Median monthly HOA fee: too few HOA listings to publish in Palm Beach versus $455 in West Palm Beach; median condo fee $2,124 versus $588. Fees vary far more between communities than between the two cities, and what they include differs, so compare at the community level.
See what your home is worth Two cities, every input shown. The one figure this page cannot show you is your own; that takes a conversation: (561) 395-8418.
Sources and method
Closed prices, price per square foot, days on market, inventory: BeachesMLS, Jan 1 - Aug 31, 2026, retrieved Sep 15, 2026; medians shown only where n >= 10; price bands, year built and cash share from the same closed records. Mortgage: Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey, 30-year fixed 6.95%, week ending 2026-09-17, 20% down. Millage: Palm Beach County and Broward County Property Appraisers, 2025 final rates, most-parcels code per municipality. Homestead: ss. 196.031 and 193.155, F.S. Insurance: Florida Office of Insurance Regulation, Property Insurance Stability Unit report, July 2026 (data as of Mar 31, 2026). Fees and inclusions: PBP HOA and condo fee indexes. Rents: BeachesMLS closed leases, unfurnished. Income, rent, population: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year 2023. All figures are estimates for comparison; verify tax with the property appraiser and insurance with a licensed agent. General information, not tax or legal advice.
Common questions
Is West Palm Beach cheaper than Palm Beach to own a home?
On the median closed single-family home in 2026, yes by about $11,600 a month: $4,480 versus $16,084, with the higher-priced city shown on a cash basis because most of its purchases are unfinanced. The price difference at the median drives most of the gap. HOA fees are excluded from this comparison because Palm Beach has too few HOA listings to publish a median.
Which city has lower property taxes, Palm Beach or West Palm Beach?
Palm Beach. The 2025 total millage on the most common taxing-authority code is 14.869 mills in Palm Beach and 20.4468 mills in West Palm Beach. Both include the county, school district and special-district levies; the difference is the city operating and debt rate.
Are HOA and condo fees higher in Palm Beach or West Palm Beach?
Median monthly HOA fee: too few HOA listings to publish in Palm Beach versus $455 in West Palm Beach; median condo fee $2,124 versus $588. Fees vary far more between communities than between the two cities, and what they include differs, so compare at the community level.
Free to reuse with attribution and a link to PBP Real Estate. Figures, tables and charts on this page may be quoted, screenshotted or embedded. Keep the source line and link to www.pbprealestate.com/cost-of-living/palm-beach-vs-west-palm-beach/. Aggregates only: no address, listing number or listing-level record is published here.
For sellers
Pricing a home is a skill. Start with the current competition and recent closed sales.
23.7% of active single-family houses listings in Palm Beach have a recorded asking price below their original list price.
The data comes from the segment and recorded fields available in PBP Real Estate's BeachesMLS feed, as of the date shown. Gia Freer, Broker of Record, turns comparable sales and current competition into one written pricing opinion for your home, with the reasoning, before it goes live.
No website estimate, no automated number: a comparative market analysis done by hand, within one business day.
Request a pricing opinion for your property
Selling? Pricing correctly is a skill. Gia Freer prices your home from this data before it goes live.
Ask Ava about this dataPrice my home correctly