Why Fee Increases In St. Johns County Matters For Surrounding Counties
On April 3, 2018 St. Johns County Board of County Commissioners voted to increase the fee charged to land developers building new homes and communities. The fee is designed to offset to cost of providing services and infrastructure to the ever-increasing number of homes in the county. So, what does this increase mean for the real estate market? In short, new construction homes in St Johns County will become more expensive. Some home builders are looking to surrounding counties for potential new construction sites.
The median home price in St. Johns County is already quite a bit higher than surrounding areas. Median Home prices by county: St Johns-$312,500 Duval-$180,000 Clay-$189,000 and Nassau-$229,000. Some builders are concerned that new fee increases will price more people out of the market. Those fees, which will necessarily be passed on to the customer, range depending on home size from $1,500 to $9,600. As a result, surrounding counties with lower impact fees, or none, could see some buyers look their way. If you can buy the exact same house from the same builder for almost $10,000 less, it is certainly something to think about. This could mean more growth for Duval, Clay and Nassau. Inventory is already quite low at most price points on the First Coast and it doesn’t look as though that will change any time soon.
The shift in destination may not be voluntary. As home prices increase, there are fewer buyers able to afford them. Homeowners, even those with relatively large budgets, could find themselves unable to buy the home they want or need in St Johns County. It is not all doom and gloom though, the county believes that the draw of great schools and new communities will keep demand high enough to justify the increase, and the increase will enable them to maintain the quality of public services at the current level. The fact is the area has seen explosive growth in the last few years, only time will tell how much of an impact, if any, these changes will have.
