Best Neighborhoods to Buy a Home in Miami

How to read Zillow's Miami neighborhood list

The list mixes neighborhoods inside the City of Miami with areas that share Miami mailing addresses but sit outside city limits, such as Kendall and other parts of unincorporated Miami-Dade. That matters for taxes, permits and which local government you deal with, so confirm the jurisdiction of any address before you compare tax bills.

Each figure is a typical home value for all property types. In a tower district like Brickell that number is mostly condos; in Westchester or Palmetto Estates it is mostly houses. Comparing the two directly can mislead you. I use the one-year and five-year changes mainly to see what kind of housing is in demand in each area.

Under $450,000: the entry points

• Overtown: about $326,167 (1y -1.6%, 5y 33.6%)
• Kendall West: about $345,166 (1y -2.7%, 5y 27.9%)
• Little Havana: about $364,520 (1y -0.5%, 5y 23.4%)
• Allapattah: about $409,902 (1y 0.7%, 5y 39.5%)
• Liberty City: about $411,084 (1y -1.3%, 5y 46.2%)
• Kendale Lakes: about $436,030 (1y -0.6%, 5y 32.6%)
• Flagami: about $436,568 (1y -0.2%, 5y 36.2%)

Most of this band was flat or slightly down over the past year, after strong five-year gains. For a buyer that is a calmer setup than 2021 or 2022. Little Havana, centered on Calle Ocho, and Overtown, just northwest of Downtown, are close to the urban core. Kendall West and Kendale Lakes are suburban and further west, with a mix of townhouses, condos and houses.

$450,000 to $700,000: where most Miami families shop

• Richmond Heights: about $498,650 (1y 2.5%, 5y 45.4%)
• West Perrine: about $504,460 (1y -0.6%, 5y 43.8%)
• Three Lakes: about $512,453 (1y -1.3%, 5y 26.1%)
• Kendall: about $534,853 (1y 0.4%, 5y 32.8%)
• Goulds: about $535,764 (1y -0.6%, 5y 43.2%)
• South Miami Heights: about $537,568 (1y 0.8%, 5y 44.0%)
• Alameda - West Flagler: about $560,333 (1y 1.7%, 5y 43.3%)
• Palmetto Estates: about $581,517 (1y 2.3%, 5y 46.9%)
• Glenvar Heights: about $606,847 (1y 1.1%, 5y 34.5%)
• Tamiami: about $608,277 (1y 2.2%, 5y 44.4%)
• Richmond West: about $625,663 (1y 0.2%, 5y 38.3%)
• Country Walk: about $639,387 (1y 0.4%, 5y 39.1%)
• Westwood Lake: about $655,261 (1y 1.8%, 5y 40.5%)
• Westchester: about $684,232 (1y 2.6%, 5y 47.9%)
• Coral Terrace: about $693,410 (1y 3.9%, 5y 41.7%)

This is the suburban house belt of south and west Miami-Dade. The areas with the most detached houses, like Westchester, Coral Terrace and Palmetto Estates, show the steadier one-year gains. Kendall, with Dadeland at its center, gives the widest mix of property types at a middle price.

The urban core: Brickell, Downtown, Edgewater, Wynwood, Little Haiti

• Downtown: about $529,291 (1y -1.5%, 5y 22.9%)
• Wynwood - Edgewater: about $587,320 (1y 1.2%, 5y 28.1%)
• Brickell: about $597,713 (1y -1.3%, 5y 31.7%)
• Little Haiti: about $615,550 (1y 7.2%, 5y 56.5%)
• Coral Way: about $715,126 (1y 6.0%, 5y 42.9%)

Brickell, Miami's financial district, and Downtown are almost entirely high-rise condos, and their soft one-year numbers match the citywide condo index. In these two areas the building matters more than the neighborhood: check reserves, the milestone inspection and recent assessments for each tower. Edgewater's towers line the bay, while Wynwood is known for its murals and galleries. Little Haiti, next to the Design District, posted one of the strongest five-year gains on the list. Coral Way, a mostly residential area of houses southwest of Brickell, gained 6.0% in a year.

$750,000 and up: Shenandoah to Coconut Grove

• Sunset: about $792,305 (1y 3.9%, 5y 47.8%)
• Shenandoah: about $863,599 (1y 7.9%, 5y 49.9%)
• Upper Eastside: about $874,108 (1y 5.0%, 5y 43.6%)
• South Miami: about $1,063,139 (1y 5.9%, 5y 58.0%)
• North-East Coconut Grove: about $1,532,653 (1y 11.4%, 5y 63.0%)
• Biscayne Island: about $1,535,825 (1y 3.8%, 5y 35.8%)
• Fair Isle: about $1,659,099 (1y 13.5%, 5y 53.4%)
• South-West Coconut Grove: about $1,896,386 (1y 12.3%, 5y 77.4%)

The strongest growth in the whole list sits here. South-West Coconut Grove is up 77.4% in five years, and the two Grove areas plus Fair Isle all gained more than 11% in the last year. Coconut Grove is one of Miami's oldest neighborhoods, on the bay with heavy tree cover and large lots. The Upper Eastside runs along Biscayne Boulevard and includes the MiMo district. South Miami is its own city with its own tax rate.

Matching a neighborhood to how you'll live

I usually narrow Miami down with three questions: house or condo, daily commute, and how much flood and insurance risk you will accept. Lower-lying areas near the bay can carry higher flood premiums, so check the FEMA zone for each address and get insurance quotes early.

The price bands above also hide a trade-off between land and location. For the price of a two-bedroom condo in Brickell, a buyer can often get a detached house with a yard in Richmond Heights or West Perrine, with a longer drive into the city. Neither is the wrong answer. What I want to avoid is a buyer choosing an area from a list and discovering the commute, the insurance quote or the property tax after homestead only once the inspection period has ended.

Tell me your budget and those three answers and I will put together a shortlist of neighborhoods and listings that fit.