New construction · Clay County, Florida
Buying new in Lake Asbury & Green Cove Springs.
A model home is a sales office. The person who greets you there works for the builder. I work for you — at no cost to you, because the builder pays my fee out of a budget that already exists whether you bring an agent or not.
Hyland Trail · Henley Road
The one mistake that costs buyers their representation
At nearly every builder in Northeast Florida, the agent named on your first visit is the only agent who can represent you in that community — for good. Sign in at the model alone on a Saturday drive, and you have used up that registration. It cannot be undone later, not after the contract, not after you decide you want help.
So call or text me before you go. Name the community, tell me when you’re going, and you’re covered. If you’d rather I meet you there, I will.
Why here, why now
The expressway changed the map.
For years, west Clay County was farmland and two-lane roads. The First Coast Expressway changed the arithmetic: Green Cove Springs and Lake Asbury became a reasonable commute to Jacksonville, Orange Park and the Southside, and the national builders moved in behind the interchanges.
What that means for a buyer is simple. There is more new inventory going up within fifteen minutes of my house than in most of the region — and inventory means leverage, incentives, and choices between communities that are competing with each other for the same buyer.
It also means the usual new-construction pitfalls: phases released at different prices, lot premiums that aren’t obvious, CDD assessments that vary community to community, and completion dates that move.
On the ground
Communities I watch
These are the ones going up around Henley Road, Sandridge Road and County Road 209. Phases, pricing and incentives change month to month — ask me what is actually available before you rely on a website.
Hyland Trail
Green Cove Springs / Lake Asbury, off Henley Road. Multiple phases, several floor plan series, amenity center.
Oakwood Estates
Green Cove Springs. Smaller community, larger homesites than the big master plans.
The wider Lake Asbury corridor
Additional communities in permitting and pre-sales along CR 209 and Sandridge Road. Several haven’t opened a model yet — those are often the best pricing you will see in them.
Green Cove Springs & Middleburg resale
Not every good answer is a new build. Sometimes a five-year-old home with a finished yard, blinds and a fence is the better buy. I’ll say so if it is.
Before you sign
What I check on a builder contract
A builder’s contract is written by the builder’s attorney. It is not the standard Florida contract you would use on a resale, and the differences are not in your favor by default.
Incentives, priced honestly
Closing cost credits, rate buydowns and design center allowances are real money — but they are usually tied to the builder’s lender. We compare the package against an outside loan, not against the brochure.
Lot premium vs. lot reality
What you pay extra for a preserve or water lot, and whether the preserve is protected or simply the next phase not yet cleared.
CDD assessments
Many of these communities carry a Community Development District assessment on top of property taxes and HOA dues. I make sure you see the actual number for your address, and how long it runs, before you commit.
Your own inspections
New does not mean flawless. I schedule a pre-drywall inspection and a final walk inspection with an independent inspector — not the builder’s quality-control checklist.
Completion and delay terms
What the contract actually promises about a completion date, what happens to your rate lock if it slips, and what your deposit is doing in the meantime.
Warranty and the punch list
What the structural, systems and cosmetic warranties each cover, and getting the punch list written down before closing rather than after.
How it works with me
Four steps, and none of them cost you anything.
Before your first model home visit
One text now saves you the whole thing later.
Tell me which community you’re looking at and when you’re going. That’s all it takes to keep your representation — and it costs you nothing at any point in the transaction.