A historic coastal town in Florida is quietly becoming one of the nation’s top remote work hotspots—bringing with it a wave of newcomers, rising home prices, and unexpected growing pains.
When Mike Waldron and his wife left the Boston area in 2020, they weren’t just looking for warmer weather.
They were chasing proximity to their adult children—and a lifestyle that remote work had finally made possible.
‘If I was still locked in an office, I would not have been able to move down here,’ Waldron, a sales executive in the healthcare industry, told AP News.
After selling his Massachusetts home at the height of the pandemic, he bought a three-bedroom, two-bath house in a gated golf course community outside St. Augustine. ‘Things really worked out to be less expensive down here,’ he added.
He and his wife are among the many remote workers who’ve reshaped St. Augustine, a centuries-old tourist destination now doubling as one of the nation’s most popular remote work hubs.
Once known for cobblestone streets and Spanish-style rooftops, the city is attracting professionals looking for a better quality of life—and bringing some growing pains with them.
Lori Matthias was one of those transplants. She and her husband left Atlanta for St. Augustine in 2023, tired of sitting in traffic and ready for a change. What she found was a slower rhythm—and a deeper sense of connection.
St. Johns County, which encompasses St. Augustine, has seen remote work explode in recent years
Mike Waldron and his wife left the Boston area in 2020 in search of a well-balanced lifestyle that remote work offered
‘The whole pace here is slower and I’m attracted to that,’ said Matthias, who works in sales and marketing for a power tool company. ‘My commute is like 30 steps from my kitchen to my office. It’s just different. It’s just relaxed and friendly.’
St. Johns County, which encompasses St. Augustine, has seen remote work explode in recent years.
According to U.S. Census Bureau figures, the number of people working from home rose from 8.6 percent in 2018 to nearly 24 percent in 2023—placing it among the top counties nationwide for remote work, ahead of much larger regions like Miami-Dade and Broward.
Only a handful of more populous, white-collar centers—like metro Atlanta, Washington, D.C., and North Carolina’s Research Triangle—reported higher percentages.
Scott Maynard, vice president of economic development for the St. Johns County Chamber of Commerce, said the remote work boom was catalyzed by Florida’s early reopening during the pandemic.
‘A lot of people were relocating here from the Northeast, the Midwest and California so that their children could get back to a face-to-face education,’ Maynard said.
‘That brought in a tremendous number of people who had the ability to work remotely and wanted their children back in a face-to-face school situation.’
Public schools in the county are consistently ranked among the best in Florida, making it especially attractive for families.
But that popularity has come at a cost. A rapid influx of wealthier out-of-state buyers has pushed local housing prices out of reach for many longtime residents and essential workers.
According to U.S. Census Bureau figures, the number of people working from home rose from 8.6 percent in 2018 to nearly 24 percent in 2023—placing it among the top counties nationwide for remote work, ahead of much larger regions like Miami-Dade and Broward
Public schools in the county are consistently ranked among the best in Florida, making it especially attractive for families
‘What happened was a lot of the people, especially coming in from up North, were able to sell their homes for such a high value and come here and just pay cash since this seemed affordable to them,’ said Aliyah Meyer, an economic researcher at the chamber. ‘So it kind of inflated the market and put a bit of a constraint on the local residents.’
The median home price in the county jumped from $405,000 in 2019 to nearly $535,000 in 2023, according to Census data.
But the average teacher earns just $48,000 a year, and law enforcement officers about $58,000—well below the $180,000 estimated income needed to buy a median-priced home.
As a result, many essential workers now commute into St. Johns County from surrounding areas, unable to afford to live where they work.
While the draw of relaxed beach-town living, top schools, and remote flexibility continues to attract newcomers, it has also reshaped the fabric of St. Augustine—a city with 16th-century roots now navigating 21st-century realities.
