Freehold Communities' 1,000-acre master plan on Trout Creek near CR-210 — the Kayak Club amenity on the water, lazy river, pickleball, trails, and the Bartram Trail High feeder pattern.
HOA amount, CDD annual assessment, and pricing shift by village and year. Confirm with the current MLS listing, closing statement, or Shearwater CDD before relying on any specific figure.
Shearwater is Freehold Communities' 1,000-acre master-planned community on Trout Creek in northern St. Johns County, entered near CR-210. Freehold launched sales in 2016 and has since delivered thousands of homes across a rotating mix of Lennar, Mastercraft, DR Horton, and Providence Homes phases — a broader builder lineup than most Northeast Florida master plans.
Two things anchor Shearwater's identity: the Kayak Club on Trout Creek and the resort pool + lazy river. The Kayak Club is a full amenity building on the water with a boat and kayak launch, plus community programming. The pool complex includes a lap pool, family pool, and a genuine lazy river — a signature Shearwater feature that Silverleaf and Trailmark don't replicate. Add in fitness lodge, pickleball, tennis, and 15+ miles of trails and you have one of the deepest amenity packages in inland St. Johns.
Shearwater sits inside the Shearwater Community Development District. The CDD collects an annual assessment on every home to service the original infrastructure bonds and to fund operations. The HOA is separate and pays for amenity operations, common-area landscaping, and community events. Confirm both lines on the specific listing.
The amenity footprint is one of the deepest in inland St. Johns — the reason Shearwater consistently prices at a premium to Trailmark and Silverleaf.
Shearwater is governed by the Shearwater Community Development District, an active Chapter 190 special district in St. Johns County. The CDD collects an annual assessment on the property tax bill that funds debt service on the original infrastructure bonds (which retire on a defined schedule) plus operations & maintenance for shared infrastructure. Debt service is the larger share early in the bond life and steps down at bond maturity; O&M continues indefinitely.
The exact annual amount varies by phase and by year based on outstanding bond balance and the O&M budget the CDD board adopts. Confirm the current-year assessment with the MLS listing, the seller's closing statement, or the Shearwater CDD before you write.
The HOA pays for the Kayak Club and pool amenity operations, common-area landscaping, and community programming. Given the amenity depth (lazy river, Kayak Club, extensive trails), Shearwater's HOA runs on the higher end for inland St. Johns — another reason to confirm the specific number on any offer.
Shearwater has delivered in rotating builder-led phases. Buyer familiarity with sub-village names is inconsistent — the MLS field is the authoritative source.
Classic Lennar single-family product across multiple Shearwater phases — the largest builder footprint by count.
Higher-end custom-adjacent product on premium lots. Larger floor plans and upgraded exterior packages.
Entry-price Shearwater product. Traditional DR Horton floor plans with Shearwater amenity access.
Mid-tier Shearwater product from Providence, a Jacksonville-based builder with a strong local reputation.
Newer 2023-2024 phases with current interior packages. Fewer resale comps — run live pricing.
Builder participation and village boundaries rotate as Shearwater delivers new phases. Use the MLS subdivision/village field as authoritative and confirm the sub-HOA on any specific listing.
Shearwater is currently zoned to Timberlin Creek Elementary, Switzerland Point Middle School, and Bartram Trail High School in the St. Johns County School District. All are A-graded schools; Bartram Trail is one of the most-requested feeders in the county.
SJCSD periodically re-draws feeder boundaries to relieve capacity as new schools open. Confirm exact attendance by street address using the SJCSD lookup tool before you write. Historical zoning is a strong signal but not a guarantee.
Times are off-peak estimates. CR-210 near I-95 at rush hour is the biggest drag; the commute is very short by inland-St. Johns standards.
Yes. Shearwater has a signature lazy river as part of the main pool complex — a genuine differentiator versus other inland St. Johns master plans.
Nocatee is the flagship — larger (15,000 acres), closer to the coast, with its own K-8 schools and town center. Shearwater is smaller and inland, but the amenity depth punches above its acreage. Total annual cost differs by village.
Yes. The Kayak Club is a community amenity on Trout Creek with a launch. Trout Creek connects to the St. Johns River system.
The overall community is not gated. Confirm any sub-community arrangements in the MLS listing and title work.
Lennar, Mastercraft, DR Horton, and Providence Homes have all delivered in Shearwater. The builder lineup rotates by phase. Ask us for the current-availability report.
Different market. Coastal Ponte Vedra Beach is anchored by the ocean and the Intracoastal. Our coastal referral is Tim Sherman at thesaltwaterrealtor.com. Shearwater is inland with CR-210 as the main artery.
Because the total-annual-cost math (CDD + HOA + tax + insurance) meaningfully differs by village and builder, and Shearwater consistently carries one of the higher fee stacks. We come from Putnam County next door and cover inland St. Johns full-time. Call (386) 916-8707.
Shearwater is the CR-210 master plan with the deepest amenity package. Compare with Trailmark off SR-16, Beacon Lake also on CR-210, Silverleaf north of SR-16, or the flagship Nocatee to the east. Coastal Ponte Vedra Beach is a separate market — referral to Tim Sherman at thesaltwaterrealtor.com.
Read the full St. Johns County guide →Tell us the builder, the village, and the fee stack you can live with — we'll send the right listings, the year-one total-cost math versus Trailmark and Silverleaf, and the honest read.
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