South Padre Island is a very small coastal town (i.e. on the ocean, a bay, or inlet) located in the state of Texas. With a population of 2,041 people and just one neighborhood, South Padre Island is the 635th largest community in Texas.
South Padre Island real estate is some of the most expensive in Texas, although South Padre Island house values don't compare to the most expensive real estate in the U.S.
South Padre Island is a decidedly white-collar town, with fully 94.88% of the workforce employed in white-collar jobs, well above the national average. Overall, South Padre Island is a town of managers, professionals, and service providers. There are especially a lot of people living in South Padre Island who work in management occupations (18.08%), food service (17.80%), and sales jobs (12.61%).
Also of interest is that South Padre Island has more people living here who work in computers and math than 95% of the places in the US.
A relatively large number of people in South Padre Island telecommute to their jobs. Overall, about 18.01% of the workforce works from home. While this may seem like a small number, as a fraction of the total workforce it ranks among the highest in the country. These workers are often telecommuters who work in knowledge-based, white-collar professions. For example, Silicon Valley has large numbers of people who telecommute. Other at-home workers may be self-employed people who operate small businesses out of their homes.
Another notable thing is that South Padre Island is a major vacation destination. Much of the town’s population is seasonal: many people own second homes and only live there part-time, during the vacation season. The effect on the local economy is that many of the businesses are dependent on tourist dollars, and may operate only during the high season. As the vacation season ends, South Padre Island’s population drops significantly, such that year-round residents will notice that the city is a much quieter place to live.
South Padre Island is also nautical, which means that parts of it are somewhat historic and touch the ocean or tidal bodies of water, such as inlets and bays. Such areas are often places that visitors and locals go for waterfront activities or taking in the scenery.
Residents of the town have the good fortune of having one of the shortest daily commutes compared to the rest of the country. On average, they spend only 16.70 minutes getting to work every day.
Do you have a 4-year college degree or graduate degree? If so, you may feel right at home in South Padre Island. 52.49% of adults here have a 4-year degree or graduate degree, whereas the national average for all cities and towns is just 21.84%.
The per capita income in South Padre Island in 2022 was $67,367, which is wealthy relative to Texas and the nation. This equates to an annual income of $269,468 for a family of four. However, South Padre Island contains both very wealthy and poor people as well.
South Padre Island is a very ethnically-diverse town. The people who call South Padre Island home describe themselves as belonging to a variety of racial and ethnic groups. The greatest number of South Padre Island residents report their race to be White, followed by Black or African-American. South Padre Island also has a sizeable Hispanic population (people of Hispanic origin can be of any race). People of Hispanic or Latino origin account for 14.83% of the town’s residents. Important ancestries of people in South Padre Island include English, German, Irish, Italian, and Scottish.
The most common language spoken in South Padre Island is English. Other important languages spoken here include Spanish and Italian.
The way a neighborhood looks and feels when you walk or drive around it, from its setting, its buildings, and its flavor, can make all the difference. This neighborhood has some really cool things about the way it looks and feels as revealed by NeighborhoodScout's exclusive research. This might include anything from the housing stock to the types of households living here to how people get around.
is a neighborhood that is on the ocean, a bay, or inlet. Many times, such places have amenities that bring locals and visitors to the waterfront for recreational activities or to check out the scenery. In some densely populated areas that are less financially well-off, the neighborhood waterfront can be relatively industrial and less open to recreation. In addition to being coastal, is a very nautical neighborhood, meaning that it is somewhat historic, walkable, densely populated and on the water. This gives the neighborhood a very nautical feel, with some seaside and shipping feel, which some may really enjoy the sights and sounds of.
In addition, vacant homes and apartments are a significant characteristic of this neighborhood. In fact, with 74.0% of the residential real estate vacant, the neighborhood claims the distinction of having a higher vacancy rate than 99.8% of the neighborhoods in America. This can either be because much of the property is seasonally occupied, like in many vacation areas, or that much of the real estate is more permanently abandoned.
Regardless of the means by which residents commute, this neighborhood has a length of commute that is notable. Residents of the neighborhood have the pleasure of having one of the shortest commutes to work of any neighborhood in America. 67.7% of the residents have a commute time from home to work (one way) of less than fifteen minutes. This is a higher proportion of residents enjoying a short trip to work than NeighborhoodScout found in 98.1% of U.S. neighborhoods. Less time commuting means more time for other things in life.
Would you like to be able to ride your bike to work? If you are attracted to the idea of getting a little exercise of the two-wheeled type while reducing your carbon footprint, bicycling to work might be the answer. But which neighborhood you live in can make this either impossible, or alternatively, a great and realistic option. NeighborhoodScout's analysis revealed that the neighborhood is a fantastic option for bicycle commuters, as 3.4% of commuters here do ride their bikes to and from work on a daily basis. This is a higher amount than we found in 96.6% of the neighborhoods in America.
Also, more people in choose to walk to work each day (13.2%) than almost any neighborhood in America. If you are attracted to the idea of being able to walk to work, this neighborhood could be a good choice.
If you're nearing retirement age, or in retirement, the is an excellent choice for you to consider for top-quality retirement living. This neighborhood is rated by NeighborhoodScout as among the top 7.7% of retiree-friendly neighborhoods in Texas, combining peace and quiet, safety from crime, and offering diverse housing options from which retirees can choose. Maybe it's because of these amenities that a large proportion of the residents here are college educated seniors, mixed with other age groups. For these and other reasons, NeighborhoodScout identifies this neighborhood as a top-notch place to consider if you are thinking of or planning to retire in Texas.
Did you know that the neighborhood has more Canadian and Romanian ancestry people living in it than nearly any neighborhood in America? It's true! In fact, 2.1% of this neighborhood's residents have Canadian ancestry and 1.9% have Romanian ancestry.
How wealthy a neighborhood is, from very wealthy, to middle income, to low income is very formative with regard to the personality and character of a neighborhood. Equally important is the rate of people, particularly children, who live below the federal poverty line. In some wealthy gated communities, the areas immediately surrounding can have high rates of childhood poverty, which indicates other social issues. NeighborhoodScout's analysis reveals both aspects of income and poverty for this neighborhood.
The neighbors in the neighborhood in South Padre Island are lower-middle income, making it a below average income neighborhood. NeighborhoodScout's research shows that this neighborhood has an income lower than 69.5% of U.S. neighborhoods. With 40.1% of the children here below the federal poverty line, this neighborhood has a higher rate of childhood poverty than 89.5% of U.S. neighborhoods.
A neighborhood is far different if it is dominated by enlisted military personnel rather than people who earn their living by farming. It is also different if most of the neighbors are clerical support or managers. What is wonderful is the sheer diversity of neighborhoods, allowing you to find the type that fits your lifestyle and aspirations.
In the neighborhood, 58.0% of the working population is employed in executive, management, and professional occupations. The second most important occupational group in this neighborhood is sales and service jobs, from major sales accounts, to working in fast food restaurants, with 33.5% of the residents employed. Other residents here are employed in manufacturing and laborer occupations (6.1%), and 2.4% in clerical, assistant, and tech support occupations.
The languages spoken by people in this neighborhood are diverse. These are tabulated as the languages people preferentially speak when they are at home with their families. The most common language spoken in the neighborhood is English, spoken by 86.2% of households. Other important languages spoken here include Spanish and Italian.
Culture is shared learned behavior. We learn it from our parents, their parents, our houses of worship, and much of our culture – our learned behavior – comes from our ancestors. That is why ancestry and ethnicity can be so interesting and important to understand: places with concentrations of people of one or more ancestries often express those shared learned behaviors and this gives each neighborhood its own culture. Even different neighborhoods in the same city can have drastically different cultures.
In the neighborhood in South Padre Island, TX, residents most commonly identify their ethnicity or ancestry as English (20.6%). There are also a number of people of German ancestry (16.7%), and residents who report Mexican roots (11.8%), and some of the residents are also of Irish ancestry (10.8%), along with some French ancestry residents (5.2%), among others. In addition, 13.8% of the residents of this neighborhood were born in another country.
How you get to work – car, bus, train or other means – and how much of your day it takes to do so is a large quality of life and financial issue. Especially with gasoline prices rising and expected to continue doing so, the length and means of one's commute can be a financial burden. Some neighborhoods are physically located so that many residents have to drive in their own car, others are set up so many walk to work, or can take a train, bus, or bike. The greatest number of commuters in neighborhood spend under 15 minutes commuting one-way to work (67.7% of working residents), one of the shortest commutes across America.
Here most residents (62.6%) drive alone in a private automobile to get to work. In addition, quite a number also hop out the door and walk to work to get to work (13.2%) . In a neighborhood like this, as in most of the nation, many residents find owning a car useful for getting to work.