Prefer to watch? The full tour is above — the written version is below.
Jacksonville did not stop building. Rates changed, buyers got more selective, and builders kept buying dirt anyway — pushing into parts of Northeast Florida most people relocating here are not even looking at yet.
Everybody has heard of SilverLeaf, Nocatee and Wildlight. Meanwhile developers were working on the next wave, and this time they are building in places that would have surprised you five years ago. Duval County's first lagoon community. A brand new master-planned community from the same group behind Nocatee and eTown. Wildlight doubling. Clay County pushing south.
So we drove all of it. Seven communities, four counties, and what you actually get for your money at each one.
The short answer: the newest communities around Jacksonville right now are Diamond Springs on the Westside, Terrapin Creek on the Northside, the Garden District at Wildlight in Yulee, Seven Pines off JTB, EverRange between Nocatee and eTown, and Saratoga Springs and The Preserve at Laurelton in Clay County. Prices run from just under $270,000 to well past $1 million depending on which one you pick, and the real decision is not the house — it is whether you are buying more house or better location.
Diamond Springs: Duval County's first lagoon community
When we covered this place last year we were standing in a pile of dirt saying trust us, there is going to be a neighborhood here. Now there is.
Diamond Springs sits on Normandy Boulevard on Jacksonville's Westside, developed by Metro Development Group, and it opened in October 2025 with roughly 2,700 homes planned. This one is personal for us — the community's first homeowner closed with us in February. We have watched it go from dirt to somebody's address.
The centerpiece is the lagoon: kayaking, paddleboards, a floating obstacle course, a splash pad and a swim-up bar. A swim-up bar on Normandy is genuinely wild, but 2026 is a strange time to be alive.
Builders and pricing: Lennar, D.R. Horton, DRB Homes and Dream Finders Homes are all building here. Dream Finders currently starts at $269,990 with plans from 1,622 to 3,498 square feet on 40-foot and 50-foot homesites. Realistically a lot of what is moving out here lands in the $300,000s to around $400,000.
Who it is not for: if your life is centered on the Westside, Cecil, Oakleaf or Nassau, this can make real sense. If you work at Mayo or the beaches, you need to have a family meeting first.
Terrapin Creek: bigger lots, no CDD fee
Terrapin Creek is almost the exact opposite of Diamond Springs, and that is the point. No lagoon, no swim-up bar. This is for the buyer who wants new construction but wants it quieter and more spread out.
Pulte Homes is building here, on 60-foot and 70-foot homesites, with walking trails and a private fishing dock. And here is the thing some of you have been waiting to read:
Pulte lists this community as having no CDD and low HOA fees. In a market where the CDD is the number that surprises people after closing, that is not a small detail.
Pricing: from $414,990, with eight floor plans running 2,016 to 3,842 square feet. These are not small homes.
The location is the real story. You are tucked near Cedar Point Road and Pumpkin Hill Creek Preserve, so you get the natural North Florida feel with access to the preserve's trail system — and you are still close to the airport, JAXPORT and River City Marketplace.
Wildlight's Garden District: 4,100 homes coming to Yulee
The Wildlight most people know is the Town District — the Publix, the restaurants, the YMCA, UF Health, Wildlight Elementary, the parks and trails. That part is built and running.
A few miles away, Wildlight is building part two, and it is not another phase.
The Garden District is 4,700 acres with up to 4,100 homes planned and roughly 2,000 acres held in conservation, connected by a 19-mile trail network including a 13-mile linear park along the St. Marys River. There is a planned amenity center, a 53-acre county park and a future elementary school site.
Builders: Toll Brothers, Perry Homes, David Weekley Homes and Ashton Woods. Toll Brothers kicks it off with Bellflower, opening fall 2026, starting from the low $500,000s with homes from 2,400 to over 4,000 square feet. The other neighborhoods follow through late 2026 and into 2027.
The easiest way to think about it:
the Town District puts you closer to the action, the Garden District puts you closer to the nature. Wildlight is not starting to feel like a neighborhood anymore. It is starting to feel like a town. We covered the rest of Yulee in its own post, because Wildlight is genuinely not the whole story up there.
Seven Pines: you are paying for the location
We showcased Seven Pines last year and there was no way to make this list without coming back, because it has something very few new construction communities in Jacksonville have. Location.
You are right off JTB and I-295, minutes from the Town Center, up the street from the beach, and downtown is not far. That combination almost never exists with new construction here. Usually the conversation goes: brand new house, great size, 15 minutes from everything — pick two.
Builders and pricing: ICI Homes and David Weekley Homes are building on a community of over 1,000 acres. ICI currently runs $517,900 to $1,335,900 across 1,603 to 5,222 square feet. David Weekley's 40-foot front-entry series runs $544,900 to $605,900. If you are hunting the cheapest new construction in Jacksonville, keep driving. That is not what this is.
What changed since last time: phase 2 opened, and the Village at Seven Pines is actually happening. Regency Centers broke ground on roughly 250,000 square feet of retail anchored by Publix, with first retailers planned for 2027 — the announced lineup includes West Elm, Williams Sonoma, Pottery Barn Kids, Chase Bank, Ember & Iron and 1928 Cuban Bistro. Regency Centers is also relocating its own headquarters there after the initial openings.
So think about what Seven Pines is becoming. Homes, lakes, amenities — and now the places where people eat, shop, work and grab groceries. You are not just paying for the house. You are paying for your time back.
