Go south, young Realtor.
It’s no secret the region’s largest mass of homebuilding has shifted south into St. Johns County. The fast-growing community of Nocatee defines the very center of that universe.
Now Nocatee has pulled a few real estate companies into its orbit.
Re/Max Unlimited in March will open Nocatee’s first real estate office — a storefront in the community’s Town Center. On the heels of that, industry behemoth Watson Realty Corp. is planning to open a Nocatee office in November, a 1,200-square-foot stand-alone building off Crosswater Parkway.
Circling a wider trajectory, Yellowfin and Keller Williams within the past three months opened storefront offices on County Road 210 in northern St. Johns County.
And last September, D.R. Horton, Northeast Florida’s largest homebuilder, opened its regional headquarters on Race Track Road, with plans to grow its employee base from 84 to 270.
It’s a case of following rooftops.
In a regional market that’s averaging 5,400 home starts per year, Nocatee accounted for 971 of them and St. Johns County, as a whole, for 2,600.
Nocatee in 2013 was the third best-selling master-planned community in the nation, according to real estate advisory firm RCLCO.
Nocatee’s infrastructure and amenities were the ingredients that brought the community its breakout success, Re/Max Unlimited broker Brenda Horst said. It gave homebuyers an opportunity to see what the neighborhood was going to be.
Homes are already popular in Ponte Vedra for excellent schools and beach access. But the homes are older and may need repairs. Nocatee’s are new.
“It’s a good value for what you get. And, you’re still close to the beach,” Horst said.
While homebuilding has taken the area by storm, real estate companies haven’t until now.
Maps of the largest agencies show a virtual desert in the pattern of offices around the larger Nocatee area.
Re/Max Unlimited, at the corner of Florida A1A and Old Palm Valley Road in Ponte Vedra Beach, has one of the closest.
Location matters less for drawing clients than it used to since many homebuyers begin their search on the Internet, Horst said. Still, she considers an office in Nocatee-central to be a plus.
“We felt it would be a convenience for our customers and for our agents, who already do so much business there,” she said.
Watson officials, for their part, are effusive about plans to be in Nocatee.
Even though Watson already has two offices within 11 miles of the community, one to the west on County Road 210 and another in Ponte Vedra Beach, Watson President Ed Forman said the company “hit a home run” when it landed a deal within Nocatee itself.
“I feel it’s important to be positioned there,” Forman said. “We already have a strong market share in Nocatee, but if you want to bring the best service to the community, then you have to have an office in the community.
“It helps you grow your business and helps you recruit sales associates,” Forman said.
Other Realtors appear to agree — access to Nocatee matters.
Both Keller Williams’ Welch team and Yellowfin Realty leapfrogged over Watson’s County Road 210 office for their new locations — situated along the same road, but closer into the community.
Keller Williams team leader Christina Welch said the move puts her closer to her home in St. Johns County. But there’s no denying, it’s also a place she’s excited about.
“I think there’s a lot of interest (in Nocatee). Everyone’s trying to get in before it’s fully developed,” Welch said, “especially with Watson developing a huge building. It’s a new thing for that particular area.”
Nocatee, which will have 13,000 homes at build-out, may be the headline act, but there’s no shortage of development around it.
SilverLeaf Plantation to the southwest is approved for up to 10,000 homes. To the west, the Ashford Mills and Rivertown projects are active.
Also, a slew of new roads are planned, the most important being Florida 9B, connecting northern St. Johns to Jacksonville’s main beltway.
“It’s going to mean a huge increase in residential,” Welch said.
Cole Slate, broker for Yellowfin Realty-St. Johns, said the whole area is an easy sell.
Access to Interstate 295 connects homeowners quickly to the beaches and St. Augustine. Communities have new schools and amenity centers. With hardly a single family residence in the 32229 ZIP code selling for less than $200,000, the area is gold for Realtors.
“We’re at the center of one of the hottest markets in the region,” Slate said. “It’s just the real estate offices that are new — there’s already a ton of agents down here.”
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