PUTNAM COUNTY, Fla. — St. Johns County may be one of the fastest growing counties in Florida, but some people are choosing to leave it because homes and rent are high-priced. Some of them are moving right next door to Putnam County.
Chris Fields works and lives in Putnam County. He is a broker assistant for Watson Realty in East Palatka. In the last few years, he along with many realtors, have noticed more people are moving out of St. Johns County and into Putnam.
"It’s more affordable," Fields paused, "Okay… a lot more affordable."
According to the real estate agency REAL MLS, the median price for a home in October 2023 in St. Johns County was $550,000. The median price for a home in Putnam County in October 2023 was $235,000, about half the price.
Fields told First Coast News there are a variety of other reasons people are leaving St. Johns and moving to Putnam.
"The homebuilding in St. Johns County, the traffic, and the H.O.A.'s," Fields said. "We have a lot of people over here that want to buy homes that are not an HOA subdivisions."
As for waterfront property, there is no beach in Putnam County. However, there is the St. Johns River.
"You can get a lot of house on the river in Putnam for relatively low price," Fields said.
Fields says he's seen people from different income levels choose Putnam County. He specifically mentioned people in the hospitality industry in St. Johns County.
"I’ve seen people who work at restaurants, hotels, things like that," said Fields.
And then there are others, he noted, where money isn’t the driving force, but St. Johns County’s population spike is.
"They are wanting to get out of the traffic and the boom of housing developments and things like that in St. Johns County," Fields said.
St. Johns County has one of the best school districts in the state and is also one of Florida’s wealthiest counties. Conversely, Putnam is one of the poorest.
"You know, really, a lot of buyers, they know it coming in," Fields said.
As homes cost more green in St. Johns County, the grass looks a lot greener in Putnam for some homebuyers.