Escambia County, Florida: A Local Guide for Home Buyers and Homeowners
Escambia County was created on July 21, 1821, the same day as St. Johns County, which makes it one of Florida’s two original counties. It covers about 657 square miles, from Perdido Key and Pensacola Beach north to Century, and about 330,000 people live here.
We put this together the way we’d brief you on the phone before your first showing in Pensacola: which government serves the address, which down payment programs cover an Escambia purchase, what Pensacola Beach leaseholds mean for a loan, how homestead and hurricane season change your monthly payment, and which offices you’ll deal with once you own the place.
Every source we used for this guide is listed at the bottom of the page.
- County seatPensacola
- FoundedJuly 21, 1821
- PopulationAbout 330,000
- Land areaAbout 657 sq mi
- Main highwaysI-10, I-110, US 29, US 90, US 98
- FHA limit, 1 unit$541,287 in 2026
- Conventional limit, 1 unit$832,750 in 2026
- School districtEscambia County Public Schools
- Cities and areas
- Homes and loan limits
- Down payment help
- Property taxes
- Storms and insurance
- Jobs, schools, commute
- Parks and local favorites
- Moving checklist
- Buying or refinancing
Pensacola, the beaches and the north county
Escambia has two incorporated municipalities: the City of Pensacola and the Town of Century, which incorporated in 1945. Listings across the rest of the county carry community names such as Pensacola Beach, Perdido Key, Warrington, Cantonment, Molino and McDavid, so check which government serves an address before you assume it’s in the city.
The county is named for the Escambia River, and the river’s name may come from a Creek word meaning “clear water” or a Choctaw word for “cane-brake.”
Pensacola
Pensacola is the county seat, and five governments have ruled it, which is where the City of Five Flags nickname comes from.
Palafox Place is where you handle county business downtown. The Ernie Lee Magaha Government Building at 221 Palafox Place holds the County Commission and the Property Appraiser, and the main Tax Collector office is at 213 Palafox Place.
Pensacola Beach
Pensacola Beach runs about eight miles along Santa Rosa Island, on land Escambia County owns and the Santa Rosa Island Authority runs. The Legislature created that authority in 1947.
Most of the island land stays in public use, and the rest is leased for homes and businesses. A buyer here is purchasing a leasehold interest, which lenders treat differently from land you own outright, so tell us early if the beach is on your list.
Perdido Key
Perdido Key is the county’s other beach community. Perdido Key State Park, at 15301 Perdido Key Drive, has boardwalks from the parking lot over sea-oat dunes to a white-sand beach where people swim and surf fish.
Century
Century began in 1901 as a sawmill company town and was named for the new century. Its original core is the Alger-Sullivan Lumber Company Residential Historic District, and freight trains on CSX and the Alabama Gulf Coast shortline serve the town.
Molino and the north end
Molino sits on Highway 95A, and owners up this way don’t have to drive downtown for county paperwork. The Property Appraiser and the Tax Collector both keep branch offices at 6440 Highway 95A North.
Warrington
Warrington is a Pensacola-area community with its own Tax Collector branch at 4051 Barrancas Avenue, one of the offices where you can book a driver license appointment.
Naval Air Station Pensacola
NAS Pensacola calls itself the Cradle of Naval Aviation, and the installation includes Corry Station, Saufley Field and Bronson Field. The Pensacola Lighthouse and the National Naval Aviation Museum are both aboard the base.
Buying in Escambia, and the loan limits
An Escambia home search covers a lot of ground: Pensacola’s downtown streets near Palafox Place, Warrington, Cantonment, Molino on Highway 95A, McDavid, Century in the far north, Perdido Key, and the leasehold land on Pensacola Beach. Only Pensacola and Century are incorporated, so the address decides whether city or county rules, permits and offices apply.
If you’re renting in Pensacola or anywhere else in the county, call 888-601-8344 and we’ll put a purchase payment next to the rent you pay so you can compare them line by line.
The FHA and Conventional limits for Escambia County are in the table below. HUD and FHFA set new ones every January, and the table follows HUD’s published figures.
| Loan limits in Escambia County for 2026 | Maximum loan |
|---|---|
| FHA, single-family home | $541,287 |
| FHA, two-unit home | $693,050 |
| FHA, three-unit home | $837,700 |
| FHA, four-unit home | $1,041,125 |
| Conventional, single-family home | $832,750 |
HUD sets the FHA limits and FHFA sets the Conventional limits for every county, and both change each January. This table refreshes itself from HUD's published figures.
On a $350,000 purchase, FHA’s 3.5% minimum down payment is $12,250, and the county, city and housing finance authority programs below can cover some of that or more. Call or text us at 954-816-8820 and we’ll work the numbers on the house you’re looking at.
Shopping Pensacola Beach? The Bob Sikes Bridge is a toll bridge with no cash lane, so the toll becomes part of every trip to the mainland and belongs in your monthly budget.
Down payment help for Escambia County buyers
Escambia buyers can draw on a county SHIP program, a City of Pensacola program and the Escambia County Housing Finance Authority, on top of the statewide Florida Housing programs. Each sets its own income limits and runs on its own funding, so below we explain what each program is and who runs it. Whether it’s paying, and how much, is the part we check by phone.
Escambia County Homebuyer Assistance Program
Escambia County’s Neighborhood and Human Services department uses SHIP money to help first-time buyers with down payment and closing costs. You need to live in the county already, meet the income limit, put some of your own money in, use a SHIP-approved lender and finish a HUD-certified homebuyer class. The amount depends on your income and whether the home is existing or new construction, and Community Redevelopment Areas may add extra help.
The county funds it first-come, first-served, so the money on hand changes over the year. Before you write on a house in Cantonment or Warrington, call 888-601-8344 and we’ll ask Neighborhood and Human Services, (850) 595-0006, whether SHIP dollars are still available.
City of Pensacola SHIP First-Time Homebuyers Program
The City of Pensacola’s Housing Department offers a 0% deferred-payment loan for down payment and closing costs on homes inside city limits, sized by income. You can’t have owned a home in the last three years, and you’ll take an 8-hour HUD-certified homebuyer class.
The city sets its SHIP funding each budget cycle and has opened and closed its buyer programs as money comes and goes. Call us before you write an offer inside Pensacola and we’ll check with the Housing Department at 420 W. Chase St., 850-858-0350, what the city is funding for your purchase.
Escambia County Housing Finance Authority: Big Splash
Big Splash pairs a 30-year fixed FHA, VA or USDA first mortgage with an optional deferred second for down payment and closing costs, which comes due when you sell, refinance or transfer the home. It’s a multi-county program run through the Escambia County Housing Finance Authority, and Escambia is one of the counties it covers.
The authority revises the Big Splash guide from time to time, and the second’s amount and the income and price limits move with it. Text us at 954-816-8820 and we’ll confirm the Big Splash terms for your Escambia address before you count on them.
Florida Hometown Heroes (statewide)
Florida Hometown Heroes pairs a Florida Housing 30-year fixed first mortgage with a 0% down payment and closing cost second. There’s no monthly payment, and it isn’t forgiven: it’s repaid when you sell, refinance, pay off the first or stop living in the home. One buyer must work full time for a Florida-based employer in health care, K-12 schools, first response, public safety, the courts or licensed child care, which can include staff at Pensacola’s hospitals and schools.
Active-duty military qualify with any employer, which covers sailors and Marines at NAS Pensacola. Veterans, Reserve and National Guard members qualify working full time for any Florida-based employer. A homebuyer education course is required, and you apply through a participating lender or broker. Florida Housing help is once in a lifetime, so make it count on the right house with the right lender. Call 888-601-8344 first and we’ll find out whether Hometown Heroes is reserving funds for a Pensacola-area closing and what it pays on your loan.
FL Assist and HFA Preferred / HFA Advantage (statewide)
These ride on a Florida Housing first mortgage, FHA, VA, USDA or Conventional HFA Preferred or HFA Advantage. FL Assist is a 0% deferred second with no monthly payment, repaid on sale, refinance, transfer or when you move out. FL HLP is a second with a small fixed payment over 30 years, and HFA Advantage PLUS pairs a Freddie Mac first with a second that’s forgiven over 5 years while you live in the home.
Florida Housing reserves these seconds one loan at a time and they can run out. Call us and we’ll show you which one is funded and leaves the most cash in your pocket on an Escambia purchase.
We also offer FHA 100% financing: a 96.5% FHA first mortgage paired with a down payment assistance second, so the down payment may not have to come from you at all. Before you make an offer in Pensacola, Cantonment or Perdido Key, call 888-601-8344 and we’ll check which of these programs are funded that week and how they work with your loan.
Property taxes and your homestead exemption
If the home will be your primary residence, file for the Florida homestead exemption on Form DR-501 with the Escambia County Property Appraiser. In Escambia, as everywhere in Florida, the exemption has two layers: $25,000 off the assessed value for every tax, school taxes included, and up to another $25,000 off assessed value above $50,000 for non-school taxes, for as much as $50,000 in all. It also caps yearly assessment increases under Save Our Homes, and some or all of that savings can move with you to your next Florida homestead.
Eligibility goes by who owns the home on January 1, so the filing deadline is March 1 of the following year. Close on an Escambia home in any year and you file by March 1 of the next one.
If your loan escrows taxes, the lender pays the Escambia bill out of your monthly payment. If you pay your own, the Tax Collector has four offices: 213 Palafox Place downtown, Marcus Pointe at 6451 North W Street, Molino at 6440 Highway 95-A North, and Warrington at 4051 Barrancas Avenue. The phone is (850) 438-6500.
Escambia County Property Appraiser
221 Palafox Place, Third Floor (Suite 300), Pensacola, FL 32502
Molino branch: 6440 Highway 95A North, Suite B, Molino, FL 32577
Phone: (850) 434-2735
Homestead filing and property search: escpa.org
Tax bills and payments: Escambia County Tax Collector
Ivan, Sally and what they taught Pensacola about insurance
Hurricane Ivan came ashore just west of Gulf Shores, Alabama, on Sept. 16, 2004, as a Category 3 with 120 mph winds. Storm surge along this coast ran 10 to 15 feet, and the Pensacola Bay gauge recorded 10.20 feet.
Hurricane Sally hit Gulf Shores on the same date, Sept. 16, in 2020, as a Category 2 with 105 mph winds. It brought 20 to 30 inches of rain to the southern half of Escambia County, with 24.88 inches measured 4 miles west of NAS Pensacola, and part of the Three Mile Bridge across Pensacola Bay collapsed. Sally’s 5.60-foot reading at the Pensacola Bay gauge is the third highest on record there, behind Ivan and the 1926 hurricane.
Those two storms are the reason to check the flood zone, the roof and the evacuation zone on any Escambia home before you write an offer.
- Look up the property on the FEMA Flood Map Service Center. A high-risk zone means required flood insurance on any federally backed loan, and Sally showed that heavy rain can flood homes outside the surge areas too.
- Find the evacuation zone with the county’s Know Your Zone lookup. Escambia uses zones A, B, C, D and E, and some addresses fall in no zone.
- Price the homeowners policy before you’re under contract. A roof that predates Ivan or Sally will cost more to insure, and a wind mitigation inspection can lower the premium.
- Bookmark the county Storm Center and sign up for Everbridge alerts through BeReady Escambia.
- The National Park Service flags Langdon Beach and the Fort Pickens area as high risk for rip currents, so read the flags before you swim.
Jobs, schools and getting around
Navy Federal Credit Union is the largest name on the regional Escambia and Santa Rosa employer list. Health care follows, with Baptist Health Care, Sacred Heart Health System, West Florida Healthcare and Medical Center Clinic, and the University of West Florida, Pensacola State College, Ascend Performance Materials, GE Vernova, International Paper and Florida Power and Light round out the big employers.
NAS Pensacola trains aviation personnel in the technical side of naval operations, and the Port of Pensacola is a deep-water seaport serving the region.
Schools and colleges
Public schools are run by Escambia County Public Schools, with the School Board at 75 North Pace Blvd in Pensacola.
Colleges include the University of West Florida and Pensacola State College.
Getting around
Regional highway access includes I-10, I-110 and I-65, plus U.S. 29, 90 and 98, and the Bob Sikes Bridge links the mainland side to Pensacola Beach.
Pensacola International Airport, at 2430 Airport Blvd, is the county’s commercial airport. Freight rail comes through on CSX, BNSF and the Alabama Gulf Coast Shortline.
Beaches, forts, jets and Bushwackers
Fort Pickens and Gulf Islands National Seashore
Visit Pensacola calls Gulf Islands National Seashore the longest stretch of federally protected seashore in the country. The Fort Pickens Area at 1400 Fort Pickens Rd has a Civil War-era fort, a tent and RV campground, and Langdon Beach, with lifeguards from Memorial Day to Labor Day.
Big Lagoon State Park
Big Lagoon covers 704 upland acres at 12301 Gulf Beach Hwy, between the mainland and Perdido Key. Climb the three-story observation tower, or start a paddle here: the park is one end of the 1,515-mile Florida Circumnavigational Saltwater Paddling Trail.
Naval Aviation Museum and the Lighthouse
The National Naval Aviation Museum aboard NAS Pensacola has more than 150 restored Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard aircraft. The Pensacola Lighthouse nearby dates to 1859, and it’s 177 stairs to the top.
The Blue Angels
The Blue Angels have flown for the Navy and Marine Corps since 1946, and during air show season they’re stationed at Forrest Sherman Field on NAS Pensacola.
Historic Pensacola
The UWF Historic Trust runs Historic Pensacola, including the Pensacola Museum of History. Its Rose Garden marks the edge of the First Spanish period fort, and its Haunted Happenings event has run there for decades.
Festivals and the Bushwacker
Fiesta Pensacola puts on the Pensacola Crawfish Festival in the spring and the Pensacola Seafood Festival in the fall. The frozen Bushwacker is the local signature drink, and Visit Pensacola treats it as part of the area’s identity.
Moving to Escambia County: your first-month checklist
- Electric: Florida Power and Light serves the old Gulf Power territory, which included Escambia County, after Gulf Power merged into FPL in 2021. Some rural north-county addresses may be served by Escambia River Electric Cooperative instead, so ask the seller for a copy of a power bill.
- Water and sewer: ask the seller or listing agent which utility serves the address and get the account in your name before closing.
- Driver license and tag: handled by the Escambia County Tax Collector. Book appointments at the Downtown, Molino, Brentwood or Warrington office; driving exams are given at Brentwood, and Real ID renewals can be done online.
- Homestead: file Form DR-501 at 221 Palafox Place or the Molino branch before March 1 of the year after your closing.
- County questions: use Ask MyEscambia at myescambia.com. Inside city limits, use Pensacola 311.
- Hurricane season: sign up for alerts through BeReady Escambia and keep the county’s Disaster Guide handy.
Buying or refinancing in Escambia County with AAA Capital Funding
Buying a home
Most Escambia buyers we work with go FHA: 3.5% down, credit guidelines with room for real life, and it pairs with Big Splash, the county SHIP program and the statewide seconds above. VA loans need no down payment for eligible veterans, and we also write Conventional loans, Hometown Heroes and FHA 100% financing.
We’ve been a licensed Florida mortgage broker since 1997, and we close loans statewide in all 67 Florida counties, Escambia from Century to Perdido Key included. We take your file to multiple wholesale lenders and tell you what you qualify for before you start touring homes.
Refinancing the home you have
A refinance can lower your monthly payment, pull cash out for a new roof or storm upgrades, pay off higher-rate debt, or buy a co-owner off the title.
Call 888-601-8344 and we’ll show you the new payment, the cash you’d walk away with and the closing costs on one page.
Escambia County questions we hear a lot
What is the FHA loan limit in Escambia County, Florida?
The FHA and Conventional limits for Escambia are in the loan limit table on this page, which pulls from HUD’s published figures. HUD and FHFA reset both every January, so the table always shows the limits in effect.
Is there down payment assistance in Escambia County?
Yes. The county’s SHIP-funded Homebuyer Assistance Program, the City of Pensacola’s first-time buyer program, the Escambia County Housing Finance Authority’s Big Splash second, and statewide programs like FL Assist and Hometown Heroes can all apply to Escambia purchases. Funding comes and goes, so we confirm what’s open before you write an offer.
What should I know before buying on Pensacola Beach?
Escambia County owns the land, and part of Santa Rosa Island is leased for homes and businesses through the Santa Rosa Island Authority. You’d be buying a leasehold interest, which lenders treat differently from land you own outright. Call us before you make an offer and we’ll walk you through what that means for your loan.
When do I file for homestead in Escambia County?
By March 1 of the year after you buy, with the Escambia County Property Appraiser at 221 Palafox Place or the Molino branch. Ownership on January 1 sets the year.
Do I need flood insurance in Escambia County?
If FEMA maps the Escambia address in a high-risk zone, your federally backed lender will require it. Outside those zones it’s optional, but Hurricane Sally dropped 20 to 30 inches of rain on the southern half of the county in 2020, so get a quote either way.
Sources for this guide (33)
- U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts: Escambia County, FL
- Escambia County, Florida (Wikipedia, history and name)
- Century, Florida (Wikipedia, town history)
- Escambia County: County offices
- Escambia County: Pensacola Beach
- Escambia County: Ask MyEscambia
- Escambia County Homebuyer Assistance Program
- Escambia County Tax Collector
- Escambia County Property Appraiser
- City of Pensacola: Home buyer programs
- Escambia County HFA: Big Splash program guide
- Florida Housing: Homebuyer programs
- Florida Housing: Hometown Heroes
- HUD: FHA mortgage limits lookup
- FEMA Flood Map Service Center
- Florida Department of Revenue: Homestead exemption (PT-113)
- FloridaWest EDA: Top employers
- Town of Century: Regional data
- Navy Region Southeast: About NAS Pensacola
- Pensacola International Airport
- National Park Service: Fort Pickens Area
- Florida State Parks: Perdido Key
- Florida State Parks: Big Lagoon
- National Weather Service: Hurricane Ivan
- National Weather Service: Hurricane Sally
- Escambia County Public Schools
- Fiesta Pensacola
- Blue Angels
- National Naval Aviation Museum
- Pensacola Lighthouse
- Visit Pensacola
- Historic Pensacola
- NextEra Energy: Gulf Power merges into FPL
AAA Capital Funding, Inc. NMLS #374739. Jason J. Sarji, NMLS #374700. Licensed Florida mortgage broker serving Escambia County and all 67 Florida counties since 1997. Equal Housing Opportunity.
You work with the same person from start to finish, in every county in Florida.
We've been closing Florida loans since 1997, in all 67 counties. If you want to know what's possible in Escambia County, call 888-601-8344 or text 954-816-8820. One call, under ten minutes. No application needed to start.
AAA Capital Funding, Inc. · NMLS #374739 · Jason J. Sarji, NMLS #374700