Moving to JAX from TX, looking for advice on St Johns (houses, neighborhood)

[904jax]

Originally Posted by jaikishan

Is hurricane / flood insurance common ? Does proximity to ocean (1mile vs 25 miles) change insurance rates ?

Insurance prices, and the need for flood insurance, is more associated with flood zones and hurricane evacuation zones than proximity to the ocean (although, obviously, being directly on the beach will impact both). Flood zones and hurricane evacuation zones are in large part determined by elevation. If you review the attached linked map, you will see that much of Nocatee is not in a hurricane evacuation zone even though it is only a few miles from the ocean: ftp://ftp.bocc.co.st-johns.fl.us/gis...Zones_8x11.pdf. Due to this fact, my home insurance rates are low.

In contrast, San Marco, the example cited by Projectmaximus, is in a low lying area along the St. Johns River. Since much of San Marco is in a low lying area, it is more vulnerable to hurricanes and floods than Nocatee even through it's much further from the ocean. http://www.coj.net/departments/fire-...es_colors.aspx For reference, San Marco is the point south of downtown on the St. Johns River. Also, the red, orange and yellow zones on these maps denote vulnerable areas.

[jaikishan]

Thanks projectmaximus and 904jax.

Here in texas, for my $450k home, I currently pay $10k for property taxes (city, school, hospital), $1.2k homeowner insurance, $800 in HOA. What would be the equivalent amount in Nocatee and Durbin crossing ?

I checked online and it shows :
$7k for a $500k property in JCP CDD and Durbin Creek CDD. Insurance ranges from $1.5-$2.0k. Flood insurance $500 (if needed). Does that all sound about right ?

[SaintCabbage]

Originally Posted by jaikishan

Thanks projectmaximus and 904jax.

Here in texas, for my $450k home, I currently pay $10k for property taxes (city, school, hospital), $1.2k homeowner insurance, $800 in HOA. What would be the equivalent amount in Nocatee and Durbin crossing ?

I checked online and it shows :
$7k for a $500k property in JCP CDD and Durbin Creek CDD. Insurance ranges from $1.5-$2.0k. Flood insurance $500 (if needed). Does that all sound about right ?

That seems about right, maybe even a little high.

[Giants6]

Originally Posted by SaintCabbage

That seems about right, maybe even a little high.

I'd say low on the property taxes/CDD and high on the insurance.

~9-10k property tax/CDD depending on lot size
~1k insurance

[904jax]

That seems high on both. Our home was purchased in the mid-200s (of course, values have risen substantially since purchase) and we about pay $3,600 per year in a combination of property taxes, CDD and HOA fees in Nocatee. Considering the location, school district and amenities, it's a very good deal.

Our homeowners insurance is less than $500.00 per year. Being out of the hurricane evacuation and flood zones, new home construction in Nocatee (built with hurricane protection measures) has very favorable home insurance rates.

[jaikishan]

So, I started with 32259, and then everybody steered me towards Nocatee, now I started looking at Nocatee (which is 32081 zipcode), which I like.

However, online research suggests the demographic profile (household composition, age distribution, income distribution, ethinicity distribution) of zipcodes 32259 and 32081 is quite different. Not having seen either of the two, I can't tell how day to day living is different in these.

What are the pros and cons of Nocatee (32081) v/s 32259 (Durbin Creek/JCP/Julington Lakes) ?

[jaikishan]

One more quick question -

All the MLS listings in Nocatee - Greenleaf (3), Willowcove show Ocean Palms/Alice Landrum schools, and not Valley Ridge Academy. Whereas the Nocatee website says Valley Ridge.

Which one is correct ?

[904jax]

Originally Posted by jaikishan

One more quick question -

All the MLS listings in Nocatee - Greenleaf (3), Willowcove show Ocean Palms/Alice Landrum schools, and not Valley Ridge Academy. Whereas the Nocatee website says Valley Ridge.

Which one is correct ?

Nocatee is currently divided into three (3) school zones.

Eastern Nocatee which constitutes Coastal Oaks, The Town Center neighborhoods (Enclave, Lakeside, Addison Park, Siena, and Tidewater), Twenty Mile and Kelly Point go to Ocean Palms/Alice Landrum which are excellent, established schools located in Ponte Vedra Beach/Zip Code 32082.

Western Nocatee which constitutes Willowcove, all of the Greenleaf Neighborhoods, and Austin Park are assigned to Valley Ridge Academy which was a brand new school last year.

Finally, NW Nocatee which includes the Palms, Brookwood and Cypress Trails are located in Duval County and are assigned to Duval County schools.

It's difficult to tell on a map, but Nocatee (32081) is a massive master planned community which was designed to be an integrated town combining recreation, work, nature preserves and a town center shopping area. Not only is Nocatee one of the nicest master planned communities in the area, it is one of the nicest in the nation. Eastern Nocatee is 10 minutes to the beach and the existing infrastructure is the best in NE Florida.

After several year slow years in the housing bust, the vision of an integrated town is starting to take form as the Town Center is rapidly developing and new home construction is moving at a healthy pace. There are approximately 3,000 homes in Nocatee at present. At final built out, there will be between 11,000 and 13,000 homes (depending on who you ask) spread out across two counties.

Nocatee Pros & Cons are as folllows:

Pros:

1) Great amenities (splash park, fitness center, pool, and nature trails)
2) Ten minutes to the beach
3) Excellent schools (this applies to the 85% of Nocatee located in St. Johns County)
4) Best infrastructure in Northeast Florida
5) Diverse selection of neighborhood types. In Nocatee, you will find gated communities, retirement oriented communities, new urbanism communities, traditional suburban communities, and townhouses built by a variety of builders with differing architectural styles.
6) Family oriented, friendly people who are happy to live in Nocatee.
7) Substantial community activities (drive-in movies, farmers markets, food truck nights, resident parties, clubs, ect.).

Cons:

1) Long commutes to employment, certain types of shopping, and the airport.
2) CDD Fees (they are analogous to an additional tax to pay for all of the great infrastructure and amenities). The amount depends on the size of the lot. Our CDD fees run about $1680 per year, but many residents pay much more.
3) Lack of affordable housing. Prices start in the low 200s, but most neighborhoods start in a substantially higher price range.

[masonsmom4]

We moved form St Johns County to Dallas last year. I think you're on the right track thinking St Johns County as to what communities are most comparable to where you're coming from. I also think your decision between Durbin and Nocatee will be easier once you actually see them. As everyone has explained, they are a bit different from each other. Durbin is more like the new communities being built around here whereas Nocatee is its own town really. I can't think of anything around DFW that I've seen that is comparable.

[jaikishan]

I had a chance to visit Nocatee, Durbin and JCP. So I clearly liked Nocatee, and is the 1st preference for me. Mainly the Greenleaf (village mostly) and Willowcove. I liked JCP as a second choice given that it is more established, and has a nice rec ctr. Some of the resale Durbin homes I saw were really poorly kept, so I overall was not left with a great feel about Durbin.

I was excited to see some houses backing up to lakes and preserves, with lanais and pools. And this might sound crazy, but my latest worry now is alligators in these retention ponds, and I heard they can even crawl upto your backyards, may be even your pool if you accidentally left some door open. I even saw some video on youtube of an alligator in Nocatee.