8 Reasons People Move to Fairhope

1. A downtown that feels like a postcard. Restaurants, bars, boutiques, and specialty shops (think handmade soaps, candles, and home decor), plus flower displays on nearly every corner.
2. The pier and the sunsets. The municipal pier and park overlook Mobile Bay. You'll see people fishing off the pier and strolling at sunset. Jess still calls it the most breathtaking sunset she's ever seen, and it's the moment we decided we'd live here one day.
3. Big town, small town at the same time. You get a walkable downtown and a marina, but also acres of farmland where you can live rurally with no close neighbors.
4. A real choice of lot sizes. Choose a subdivision with neighbors close by, a neighborhood with larger lots and more privacy, or land out in the country. It really comes down to what you want and what you want to spend.
5. Golf carts and golf courses. You'll see golf carts all over town, and several neighborhoods are built around a course.
6. Highly rated schools. Fairhope is part of the Baldwin County Public Schools system, with its own elementary, intermediate, middle, and high schools (see the Schools section below).
7. Holidays like something out of a movie. Christmas, Mardi Gras, the 4th of July, and Halloween are a big deal here.
8. Awards and national attention. Fairhope regularly turns up on national "best places to live" and "best places to retire" lists.

Cost of Living in Fairhope

Homes in Fairhope cover a wide range, from neighborhood homes to waterfront and acreage properties. Within one neighborhood alone, Rock Creek, homes listed for sale in October 2026 range from about $525,000 to about $895,000, with most between roughly $575,000 and $725,000.

Popular Neighborhoods in Fairhope

Old Battles Village

A newer neighborhood. You can tell because the trees are still young, and construction was still going on when we filmed. Amenities include tennis courts, a clubhouse, a pool, basketball courts, and fishing ponds. The neighborhood hosts community events like an annual chili cook-off and cornhole tournament. Tony tried every chili and is still talking about the brisket chili.

Rock Creek

Our neighborhood, and one of our favorites. It's a large neighborhood built around a golf course with some memorable holes (wait until you see the dogleg on hole two). What stands out is that every home feels unique: different layouts, mature trees, and landscaping full of palms, azaleas, and hydrangeas. The clubhouse has been updated and there's a nice pool.

Job Market in Fairhope

You won't find huge corporations or factories in Fairhope. What you will find is a town full of independently owned, local businesses: cleaning companies, nurseries, a butcher, barbershops, restaurants, marketing and landscaping companies, and more. If you're an entrepreneur or want to start something of your own, it's a great fit. Fairhope has become a popular home base for young professionals.

The largest employers close to town include Thomas Hospital and the many medical and doctor's offices nearby. Many residents also commute to larger employers elsewhere in the Mobile and Baldwin County area.

Things to Do in Fairhope

• Downtown: stroll the shops, restaurants, and bars, and see the flower displays.
• The pier and bayfront park: fishing, walking, feeding the geese on the beach, and sunsets over Mobile Bay.
• On the water: the marina is there for your boat.
• Golf: several courses in and around town.
• Holidays and festivals: Mardi Gras parades, Christmas festivities, the 4th of July, and Halloween. A local tip from our first Halloween here: trick-or-treating doesn't start until it's fully dark, and then it goes for hours.

Climate in Fairhope

Fairhope has a humid subtropical climate: hot, humid summers, mild winters, and plenty of sunshine, with the breeze off Mobile Bay taking the edge off. Like everywhere on the Gulf Coast, it sits inside the Atlantic hurricane season (June through November), so flood-zone status and homeowners insurance are worth checking on any home before you buy. When you tour with us, we'll help you read a property's flood zone and what it means for coverage.

Traffic and Getting Around

We'll be honest: traffic in Fairhope has gotten noticeably heavier as the area has grown. Fairhope grew from about 15,300 residents in 2010 to about 22,500 in 2020, an increase of nearly 50% in ten years (U.S. Census Bureau, 2010 and 2020 Census), and it has kept growing since.

Highway 98 is the main corridor and has been called the "Airport Boulevard of the Eastern Shore" (Airport Boulevard is Mobile's busiest commercial road). It's where you'll find stores, restaurants, Thomas Hospital, doctor's offices, grocery stores, and the entrances to many subdivisions, so plan around it at busy times. That said, if you're coming from a big metro, it's the lightest heavy traffic you'll ever sit in.

Schools in Fairhope

Fairhope is served by Baldwin County Public Schools. Public schools in Fairhope include Fairhope Elementary, Fairhope East Elementary, Fairhope West Elementary, J. Larry Newton School, Fairhope Intermediate, Fairhope Middle, and Fairhope High School. Assigned schools depend on the address, so check the Baldwin County Public Schools website for zoning, and see GreatSchools for ratings. Our own kids have gone to school here and have had great experiences with their schools and teachers. There are also lots of youth activities in town, from golf, bowling, baseball, football, and wrestling to social clubs.

Baldwin County Moving Guides