What areas are a MUST see near Ponte Vedra/Jacksonville/St. Augustine? (Plantation: transplants)

[prdanib]

My husband, 3 elementary/middle school children will be visiting the Nocatee area at the end of April. We are looking for a community with great schools, lots of children, friendly neighbors, with a lot of NY transplants! We are looking for a 4/5 BR 2.5 BA home no more than $370K.

Am I asking for too much? I've read a lot about Palencia, Nocatee, Durbin Crossing, Julington Creek Plantation,....Which communities are the closest to Target/shopping malls/movie theaters

Are there any other areas I should be checking out?

What are the drawbacks to these areas?

Any input would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you!
Dani

[insomniac911]

In my opinion you are on the right track.Are you looking only for new homes? I would add Julington Creek to the list if you're considering resales. Also st.johns forest may interest you. When it comes to elementary school age children i highly recommend Greenleaf Village. Though the sign says starting in the 200's, a five bedroom house may be a tad over what your price point is, but this place is crawling with young children. You may be able to find a great resale in Austin Park for a great price, but that is all timing.

[prdanib]

Thank you for your quick response. I'm a little overwhelmed and unfortunately, won't be spending that much time in the area, at least this first time around. I'm up for a resale, if it has what we're looking for and isn't more expensive than a newly built home!

[insomniac911]

I can tell you from my opinion only. I traveled many of the larger communities of st.johns. I was building new. In the end i was torn between Durbin and Nocatee. St.johns forest was really nice but i didnt see the children activity i observed in Nocatee. Look for resales in either. They go pretty fast in my neighborhood.

[Giants6]

Originally Posted by prdanib

My husband, 3 elementary/middle school children will be visiting the Nocatee area at the end of April. We are looking for a community with great schools, lots of children, friendly neighbors, with a lot of NY transplants! We are looking for a 4/5 BR 2.5 BA home no more than $370K.

Am I asking for too much? I've read a lot about Palencia, Nocatee, Durbin Crossing, Julington Creek Plantation,....Which communities are the closest to Target/shopping malls/movie theaters

Are there any other areas I should be checking out?

What are the drawbacks to these areas?

Any input would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you!
Dani

All of the communities you mentioned are the same distance... ~20 mins.

[Ruger20]

I just moved from MN to Durbin Crossing and love it so far. Lots of kids - to the point where the school bus only makes 2 stops and is full!

The new K-8 school opens next year for Durbin Crossing residents as well.

We looked in Nocatee but were in a tough spot due to the timeline, we had to choose from builder inventory homes in our price range and none were available in Nocatee.

Looked at a few resales in other areas and I didn't notice anything particularly wrong with any of them (Julington Creek, St Johns Forest, Aberdeen, etc).

From Durbin, there is grocery stores within 5 miles or so and the Target / Walmart / Home Depot is about 20 minutes.