ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. — A real estate agent is offering advice to homebuyers after Action News Jax spoke with neighbors in a St. Johns County community struggling with noise and damage they believe came from a nearby construction site.
Residents in the Shearwater community reached out, complaining about constant noise and house rattling — turning their once peaceful backyard views into an active construction zone.
The disruption stems from the First Coast Expressway project, which is building a new four-lane, limited-access toll road. This section runs from east of County Road 16A to east of County Road 2209 in St. Johns County.
After the initial report, Action News Jax contacted the Florida Coastal Team, a real estate company in St. Johns County, to get insight for current and future homeowners researching properties in developing areas.
Read: Traffic changes begin for St. Johns County road improvement project
Chris Snow, team leader of the Florida Coastal Team, shared this advice:
“If they’re working in that development, there’s a lot of green space, and a lot of land around that development. At some point, you’ve got to keep in mind that that is gonna get developed.”
He encouraged prospective buyers to ask agents detailed questions and to dig deeper into potential development plans nearby.
“If you’re a consumer, just ask the agent not just what’s going on in here, but you’ll have them dig in and just say, “Can you go and find what additional building plans might be out there for the future even if there are none?‘” said Snow.
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Snow also emphasized the importance of doing personal research.
“Look at the other minutes from the County Commission meeting. You can look at the zoning, see what’s happening with the zoning board, what things have been proposed,” Snow said.
For current homeowners, Snow offered a long-term strategy.
“Plan on staying there five years.”
The reason? So buyers don’t end up competing with the builder when trying to resell.
“If I try to sell too early on now, I’m still competing with the builder who’s offering a bunch of incentives to people to live in a construction zone.”
A flyer for a “Meet the Builder” event hosted by Ryan Homes, scheduled for April 10, was circulated, but homeowners who attended said no one showed up.
Chris Snow said that if you’re a homebuyer from out of town, he recommends considering properties in more established residential areas.
Ryan Shepley, vice president of business planning for NVR, the parent company of Ryan Homes, said they will be reaching out to local management to help address the homeowners’ concerns.
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