Florence, AL Homes For Rent

Homes for Rent in Florence, AL: What You Need to Know

Florence is known as Alabama’s Renaissance City for its popular festival that attracts about 35,000 people every year. The city is the seat of Lauderdale County in the northwest corner of Alabama.

Things to Do in Florence, AL

The Renaissance Faire, held for two days every fall, adheres to the theme of the Italian Renaissance. The event features dancers, musicians playing period instruments, sword fights, jugglers, jesters, a troll, and a theater troupe. Attendees may re-enact Renaissance customs, such as bringing their own candelabra and eating utensils, a practice among the nobility meant to flaunt their wealth. Visit the Rosenbaum House, the only building in Alabama designed by famed architect Frank Lloyd Wright. The single-family house was built in 1939 for Stanley and Mildred Rosenbaum. It’s a fine example of Wright’s Usonian design characterized by open-floor interiors and the use of natural materials.

Local History

The Cypress Land Company bought the area that became Florence after the Chickasaw Nation ceded its lands to the federal government in the early 19th century. Florence was established in March 1818. It immediately became the county seat. Italian engineer Ferdinand Sannoner surveyed the land for the settlement and named it after his hometown in Italy. The city was incorporated in 1826.

Cost of Living

You can save a pretty penny in Florence, with a housing cost that’s 55.7% lower than the national average and median gross rent at $643. The city’s cost of living rate and food costs are 12.9% and 5.3% lower than the national average respectively. The Yellowhammer State’s income tax rate of 2% to 5% is considered low. The state levies 4% to 11.50% in sales tax.

Know Your Neighborhoods

Florence, home to 40,993 people, touts itself as a showcase for Southern living at its best. Residents love downtown Florence, a lively, walkable area with a great arts scene, thanks to the Shoals Theatre and the Kennedy Douglas Center for The Arts. Florence has some of the highest-ranked public schools in the county. Nearby Saint Florian and Killen have comparable schools.

Weather and Climate

Florence receives about 56 inches of rain per year, more than the U.S. average of 38 inches. The city gets only two inches of snow annually versus the national average of 28 inches.  The one exception occurred on Feb. 1, 1985, when Florence, Lauderdale County, and northwest Alabama, received up to eleven inches of sleet and freezing rain. It was the first time that roads in Florence were closed. The ice storm paralyzed the area and resulted in collapsed roofs, loss of power, and school closures.