Living in Santa Rosa, Texas: homes, schools and costs

The book's checklist

Lower cost of livingEveryday prices run 14% below the U.S. average in the Brownsville-Harlingen metro area.
More house for the moneyA typical home costs 1.8 years of the typical household's income here. Across the U.S. it's 4.1.
A safer neighborhoodThe FBI has no 2025 figures for Santa Rosa itself. Many small towns are patrolled by the county sheriff, so call the sheriff's office and ask what calls they get most.
Schools in town3 public schools: 1 elementary, 1 middle and 1 high school.
A hospital close byHarlingen Medical Center in Harlingen, about 9 miles away, has the nearest emergency room.
Within reach of a big citySan Antonio is about 226 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 Santa Rosa 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.

For a lifetime

Homes and money

Typical home value, as owners valued them in 2020-2024: $67,400U.S.: $332,700
Home prices since then: Up 17%Cameron County, 2022 to 2025
Typical rent, with utilities: $919 a monthU.S.: $1,413
Typical household income: $36,780U.S.: $80,734
Homes built before 1940: 0%U.S.: 12%
Homes built since 2010: 13%U.S.: 11%
Vacation and seasonal homes: 1%U.S.: 3%
Everyday prices: 86U.S. average = 100 (the Brownsville-Harlingen 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 17% since 2022. Everyday prices are the government's average for the Brownsville-Harlingen metro area, not Santa Rosa 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, 2025 estimate: 2,3552020: 2,456
Median age: 24.6 yearsU.S.: 38.9
Age 65 and older: 6%U.S.: 17%
Under 18: 33%U.S.: 22%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or more: 12%U.S.: 36%
Moved here from another county or state in the past year: 0%U.S.: 6%

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 (32%); transportation, warehousing and utilities (19%); retail (13%)
Average commute: 20 minutesU.S.: 26 minutes
Work from home: 8%U.S.: 15%

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

Health care

Nearest emergency room: Harlingen Medical Center, Harlingen, TX, about 9 miles away. It's a general hospital. Medicare gives it 4 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

3 public schools in Santa Rosa, run by Santa Rosa Isd.

See each school on the federal school search, then check test scores and graduation rates on Texas'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: 56%U.S.: 76%
Homes with any internet subscription: 82%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: 49°F
July average high: 96°F
Days 90°F or hotter: 166 a year
Nights at or below freezing: 2 a year
Rain and melted snow: 24.6 inches a year
Snow: 0 inches a year
Elevation: 50 feet

Weather station: Santa Rosa 3 WNW (3 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

Harlingen Medical CenterEmergency room9

Harlingen, TXCity of 72,0009

San Antonio, TXMetro of 2.8 million226

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: Harlingen Medical Center, Harlingen, San Antonio.

Cameron 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:

Palo Alto Battlefield National Historical Park26 miles
Padre Island National Seashore38 miles

Read about Santa Rosa's history on Wikipedia.

Know Santa Rosa?

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

Primera, TX5,500 people, 5 miles
Palm Valley, TX1,300 people, 6 miles
Combes, TX3,300 people, 6 miles
Indian Hills, TX3,000 people, 7 miles
La Villa, TX3,300 people, 7 miles
La Feria, TX7,200 people, 7 miles

Smaller places

Tierra Bonita, TX (unincorporated)405 people, 1 mile
Ratamosa, TX (unincorporated)465 people, 4 miles
La Feria North, TX (unincorporated)134 people, 5 miles
Solis, TX (unincorporated)663 people, 6 miles
Heidelberg, TX (unincorporated)2,215 people, 6 miles
Sebastian, TX (unincorporated)1,021 people, 6 miles
Laguna Seca, TX (unincorporated)239 people, 6 miles
Las Palmas II, TX (unincorporated)808 people, 7 miles

Sources

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.