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Ave Maria, Florida

Ave Maria is an unincorporated community of about 8,300 people in Collier County, Florida. It has no city government of its own: local services come from the county, or in some states from the town or township. A typical home costs about 4.5 years of the typical household's income, compared with 4.1 across the U.S. The nearest metro area of about a million people or more, Miami, is about 85 miles away as the crow flies.

College town

Population
8,258
Census survey, 2020-24
Typical home, 2020-24
$459,200
Collier County prices up 11% since 2022
Household income
$102,949
U.S.: $80,734
Prices, Naples area
103.2
U.S. average = 100
Emergency room
24 miles
Lehigh Acres, FL
To Miami
85 mi
straight line

The book's checklist

  • Lower cost of livingEveryday prices run 3.2% above the U.S. average in the Naples-Marco Island metro area.
  • More house for the moneyA typical home costs 4.5 years of the typical household's income here. Across the U.S. it's 4.1.
  • A safer neighborhoodThe FBI doesn't publish crime figures for unincorporated communities. Call the county sheriff's office (or the town or township police, where there is one) and ask what calls they get most.
  • Schools in townNo public schools inside the town. The nearest high school is Immokalee High School, about 7 miles away.
  • A hospital close byHCA Florida Lehigh Hospital in Lehigh Acres, about 24 miles away, has the nearest emergency room.
  • Within reach of a big cityMiami is about 85 miles away as the crow flies. The book suggests staying within about 60 miles if you'll miss big-city sports, concerts and theater.

A check means Ave Maria meets the rule of thumb from Frank and Dave's book. An empty box isn't a deal breaker: it's something to weigh for your family. A question mark means there isn't enough data.

What kind of town

College town. About 1 in 6 residents is a college student, with Ave Maria University in town. Concerts, sports and good food all year, and a big employer that rarely closes. Expect higher home prices close to campus.

The book sorts small towns into six types. These labels come only from the numbers; take the quiz to see which type fits your family.

For a lifetime

Homes and money

Typical home value, as owners valued them in 2020-2024
$459,200U.S.: $332,700
Home prices since then
Up 11%Collier County, 2022 to 2025
Typical rent, with utilities
$2,425 a monthU.S.: $1,413
Typical household income
$102,949U.S.: $80,734
Homes owned by the people living in them
82%U.S.: 65%
Typical property tax bill
$4,279 a yearFlorida: $2,730
Homes built before 1940
0%U.S.: 12%
Vacation and seasonal homes
13%U.S.: 3%
Everyday prices
103.2U.S. average = 100 (the Naples-Marco Island metro area)

Home values and rents are what households told the Census Bureau across 2020 to 2024, so they trail today's market: county prices have moved up 11% since 2022. Everyday prices are the government's average for the Naples-Marco Island metro area, not Ave Maria alone. Check current listings before you budget.

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates; Federal Housing Finance Agency, House Price Index for counties (all transactions); U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024.

The people

Population, 2020-2024 Census survey
8,258The Census Bureau makes yearly estimates only for incorporated towns
Median age
37.9 yearsU.S.: 38.9
Age 65 and older
24%U.S.: 17%
Under 18
19%U.S.: 22%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or more
45%U.S.: 36%
Moved here from another county or state in the past year
14%U.S.: 6%
College students
17%share of all residents

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates (Vintage 2025); U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Work

Biggest lines of work
Schools, health care and social services (28%); professional and business services (20%); retail (11%)
Unemployment rate
6%U.S.: 5%
Average commute
42 minutesU.S.: 26 minutes
Work from home
23%U.S.: 15%
Below the poverty line
11%U.S.: 12%

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Health care

Nearest emergency room: HCA Florida Lehigh Hospital, Lehigh Acres, FL, about 24 miles away. It's a general hospital. Medicare gives it 2 of 5 stars.

Look up doctors, clinics and the hospitals themselves on Medicare's Care Compare. Ask where the most serious cases are sent.

Sources: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Hospital General Information.

Schools

There are no public schools inside Ave Maria itself. The nearest public high school is Immokalee High School, about 7 miles away.

Colleges in or next to town: Ave Maria University (1,000 to 4,999 students).

See each school on the federal school search, then check test scores and graduation rates on Florida's school report card.

Sources: National Center for Education Statistics, Common Core of Data, 2023-24 (via the Urban Institute Education Data Portal); National Center for Education Statistics, IPEDS institution directory, 2024.

Internet

Homes with cable, fiber or DSL internet
88%U.S.: 76%
Homes with any internet subscription
96%U.S.: 91%

Before you buy, look up the address on the FCC's National Broadband Map to see which providers serve it.

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Weather

January average low
52°F
July average high
92°F
Days 90°F or hotter
123 a year
Nights at or below freezing
2 a year
Rain and melted snow
48 inches a year
Snow
0 inches a year
Elevation
24 feet

Weather station: Immokalee (10 miles away). Averages for 1991 to 2020.

Sources: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020; U.S. Geological Survey, 3D Elevation Program.

Getting around

Straight-line miles. The road is always longer, and as the book says, an interstate at 70 is a different trip from a farm road at 45. Check the real drive: HCA Florida Lehigh Hospital, Bonita Springs, Miami.

Collier County is in a metro area of 250,000 to 1 million people (USDA rural-urban code 2, on a scale where 1 is the biggest metro areas and 9 the most rural counties).

For a day

National Park Service sites within about an hour:

  • Big Cypress National Preserve8 miles
  • Everglades National Park30 miles

Campus life. Check Ave Maria University's events calendar for games, concerts and plays open to the public.

Read about Ave Maria's history on Wikipedia.

Know Ave Maria?

Tell us what a visitor shouldn't miss, and what living there is really like. Write to Main Street at mainstreet@smalltownguide.com. The best notes from people who know the town will be added here.

Nearby

Straight-line miles.

Small towns

Smaller places

  • Heritage Bay, FL (unincorporated)802 people, 14 miles

Sources

  1. U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates (Vintage 2025)
  2. U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates
  3. Federal Housing Finance Agency, House Price Index for counties (all transactions)
  4. U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024
  5. FBI, Crime in the United States, Table 8 (offenses known to law enforcement by city)
  6. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Hospital General Information
  7. National Center for Education Statistics, Common Core of Data, 2023-24 (via the Urban Institute Education Data Portal)
  8. National Center for Education Statistics, IPEDS institution directory, 2024
  9. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020
  10. U.S. Geological Survey, 3D Elevation Program
  11. National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places listings
  12. National Park Service, park unit boundaries
  13. USDA Economic Research Service, Rural-Urban Continuum Codes, 2023
  14. U.S. Census Bureau, 2025 Gazetteer files and 2020 urban areas

Census survey figures are estimates with a margin of error; we leave out any figure whose margin is too wide to be useful. Data last gathered October 5, 2026. See something wrong? Write to mainstreet@smalltownguide.com.