Signature Division · Coldwell Banker Global Luxury EST. 1906 120 YEARS · 2026
Ranked No. 2 Twice, Priced Like Neither
On August 27, Coldwell Banker turns 120. In the months leading into it, Travel+Leisure and FinanceBuzz each — independently, on separate lists, for different readers — ranked Vero Beach No. 2 in the country. Naples and Palm Beach still get the headlines. The zip code getting ranked is 32963.
Fireworks over the Barber Bridge, Vero Beach — the kind of anniversary this town also happens to be having.
1906 → 2026
IN BUSINESS
Coldwell Banker was three weeks old when it went to work. Colbert Coldwell was twenty-three, newly arrived in a San Francisco still smoking from the 1906 earthquake, when he founded the company on a simple objection: he'd watched other agents prey on families who'd just lost everything, and he decided to build something else instead. On August 27, that company turns 120 — the oldest national real estate brand in the country, now operating under the Global Luxury program in dozens of countries around the world.
Vero Premier Properties is its Signature Division on the Vero Beach barrier island. Which means this anniversary isn't really a story about a company's age. It's a story about how many times, across twelve decades, a promise got kept long enough for it to become a reputation. This year, twice, someone entirely outside the family checked.
Verdict One
No. 2, Travel+Leisure: the 10 Best U.S. Beach Towns to Buy a Home in Before Prices Soar
Travel+Leisure builds this kind of list around one indicator above all others: growth potential still left on the table. Vero Beach placed second in the country, the magazine's analysis pointing to a cost of living that sits roughly in line with the national average — while Palm Beach, the market Vero gets compared to most, runs about 14.1% above it. Same coast, same oceanfront access, same golf-course living. Materially different bill.
The magazine's read on where that leaves buyers: Vero Beach is exceptionally well positioned for further appreciation as more affluent relocators continue moving to Florida — the early-mover math that has, for a decade, defined every barrier island community from Riomar to Orchid Island.
Verdict Two
No. 2, FinanceBuzz: 10 Florida Beach Towns Realtors Predict Will Soon Be Retirement Hot Spots
Second on FinanceBuzz's list too, this time behind St. Augustine and for an entirely different reader — someone planning a retirement, not a spring vacation. The realtor FinanceBuzz called for the read was Jaclyn Anastasakos of LUXE Properties, and her verdict didn't hedge:
"Vero Beach is a hidden gem on Florida's Treasure Coast."— Jaclyn Anastasakos, LUXE Properties, FinanceBuzz
What sold her, and what FinanceBuzz's readers responded to: a laid-back coastal lifestyle, a bustling downtown, a thriving community, and — she was specific about this — the lack of high-rise congestion that defines so much of the rest of Florida's coastline. It's also worth noting how this reached you, or how it will reach the next buyer who asks: that screenshot below is Google's own AI Overview, surfacing the FinanceBuzz piece as the answer to "top Florida beach towns." When search itself is doing the ranking, showing up in the source article is no longer optional.
of Vero Beach–area home sales closed in cash in 2025 — more than double the national average, and the strongest cash market of any county in the United States.
Verdict Three
No. 1, the buyers themselves: America's strongest cash market
Magazines rank towns. Buyers write checks. In 2025, Indian River County — Vero Beach and Sebastian — led the entire country in all-cash home sales at 62.7% of transactions, more than double the roughly 28% national average, and ahead of both Naples (56.1%) and Punta Gorda (59.8%). In the barrier island's true luxury tier — oceanfront estates, Intracoastal compounds, gated communities like Grand Harbor — cash deals routinely run 70% to 90%.
That's not a market waiting to see what the Fed does next. It's equity-rich relocators from the Northeast and Midwest, and increasingly from Naples and Palm Beach themselves, moving capital rather than financing it — insulated from mortgage-rate headlines in a way almost no other Florida market can claim.
Metric | Vero Beach | Palm Beach |
|---|---|---|
Cost of living vs. national average | In line with average | +14.1% |
Travel+Leisure "10 Best Beach Towns to Buy" list | No. 2 | Not ranked on this list |
Coastal amenities | Oceanfront, golf, boating, private clubs | Oceanfront, golf, boating, private clubs |
Character | Understated, early in its discovery curve | Established, fully priced in |
Three verdicts. Three completely different observers. The same address.
A travel magazine found it while pricing appreciation curves. A retirement-finance site found it while pricing rent. And the buyers found it years ago, which is the only reason 62.7% of them didn't need a mortgage broker to close. Coldwell Banker spent 120 years building the kind of name that gets to be the one holding the sign when all three showed up at the same conclusion.
The infrastructure behind the verdicts
Questions Buyers Ask
Two rankings, one anniversary, answered plainly
Why did Travel+Leisure rank Vero Beach No. 2?
Travel+Leisure named Vero Beach No. 2 on its list of the 10 Best U.S. Beach Towns to Buy a Home in Before Prices Soar, pointing to a cost of living roughly in line with the national average — versus about 14.1% above it in Palm Beach — plus oceanfront access, golf-course living, and strong appreciation potential as more buyers relocate to Florida.
What did FinanceBuzz say about Vero Beach?
FinanceBuzz ranked Vero Beach No. 2 on its list of 10 Florida Beach Towns Realtors Predict Will Soon Be Retirement Hot Spots, just behind St. Augustine. Realtor Jaclyn Anastasakos of LUXE Properties called it "a hidden gem on Florida's Treasure Coast," citing the laid-back lifestyle, lack of high-rise congestion, and cultural attractions that draw retirees.
Is Vero Beach really the strongest cash market in the U.S.?
Yes. Indian River County led the nation in all-cash home sales in 2025 at 62.7% of transactions — more than double the national average of roughly 28%, and higher than Naples (56.1%) or Punta Gorda (59.8%). In the barrier island's luxury tier, cash deals routinely reach 70-90%.
What does Coldwell Banker's 120th anniversary have to do with Vero Beach?
Coldwell Banker, the oldest national real estate brand in the country, was founded on August 27, 1906, in San Francisco and marks its 120th anniversary on August 27, 2026. Vero Premier Properties operates locally as the Signature Division of Coldwell Banker Global Luxury on the Vero Beach barrier island.
Is now a good time to buy in Vero Beach?
Buyers are weighing two independent 2026 rankings naming Vero Beach a top value and lifestyle destination against a barrier island where inventory is structurally limited and prices have historically run about two-thirds below comparable Naples or Palm Beach properties. Timing should be discussed with a local agent, and for tax-sensitive buyers, a qualified advisor.
About Vero Premier Properties
Ben Bryk & J. Vance Brinkerhoff
Co-Founding Principals · Vero Premier Properties · Coldwell Banker Global Luxury
Vero Premier Properties built its practice around a single conviction, years before Travel+Leisure or FinanceBuzz put a number on it: the Vero Beach barrier island is the most undervalued quiet-luxury position in Florida. The firm pairs that thesis with a media-company approach to marketing — cinematic listing video, AI-driven wealth-intelligence prospecting, and a Financial Concierge Desk for relocating buyers — backed by Coldwell Banker Global Luxury's 120 years and worldwide reach.
