Cedarbrook

Executive Summary

Cedarbrook is the post-builder chapter of the 32226 growth story: D.R. Horton built it out roughly 2018 to 2023, sold the last home, and left a community that now trades purely on resale. Original pricing ran from the low $200s to the low $300s (NewHomeSource, 2026 retrieval); recent resales have traded around $400K (Homes.com Cedarbrook page, 2026). The appreciation already happened; the question now is what the second seat is worth.

The carrying-cost math is the durable advantage: a modest HOA and no CDD, per the original builder marketing. Against the CDD-loaded new construction still selling around the Northside, that is often a triple-digit monthly difference at the same sticker, and unlike a builder incentive it never expires. Verify the current dues and the absence of any CDD line on the actual tax bill during diligence.

The trade is that this is a young resale market with a thin track record: most homes have had one owner, comps are still settling, and the corridor itself, River City Marketplace, JIA, and the Pumpkin Hill Creek Preserve edge, is mid-transformation. Buy the house and the no-CDD math on their merits today, not on a promise that 32226 keeps repricing at the 2018-to-2023 pace.

Quick Facts

Community Overview & History

A builder suburb the builder already left

The New Berlin pocket of 32226 sits between the St. Johns River bend and the Pumpkin Hill Creek Preserve marshes, close enough to River City Marketplace and Jacksonville International Airport to function and far enough out that lakes and pine buffers still frame the streets. Cedarbrook went in off Cedar Point Road, entered near 4115 Emilio Lane, during the corridor busiest growth years: D.R. Horton delivered one- and two-story single-family homes from about 1,540 to 4,200 sq ft, three to five bedrooms, between roughly 2018 and 2023, with lake-view and preservation-backed homesites carrying the premiums. Then it sold out, and the community shifted to what it is now: a young resale market where every transaction is owner to owner.

The no-CDD position in a CDD corridor

What the original marketing led with still matters most: a modest HOA and no CDD. Much of the competing inventory in the airport-corridor growth ring carries CDD bonds that add real money to the tax bill for decades; Cedarbrook owners skipped that line entirely. The amenity package is correspondingly neighborhood-scale rather than resort-scale, which is exactly the trade that keeps dues low. For buyers comparing monthly cost rather than brochure photos, the math here tends to win, and for the original owners who bought in the low $200s, it compounded into one of the better quiet appreciation stories on the Northside.

What You Are Actually Buying

One builder, one product family, three honest buckets. Figures are third-party portal data, original pricing per NewHomeSource (2026 retrieval) and resale context per the Homes.com Cedarbrook page (2026); a single-community resale market moves listing by listing, so confirm current comps before you write.

The core resale band: around $400K

The center of the market: three- and four-bedroom plans in the roughly 1,800 to 2,600 sq ft range, mostly 2019 to 2022 builds, trading around $400K per the Homes.com Cedarbrook page (2026). At this band the cross-shop is brand-new CDD-carrying construction nearby; here the dollars buy a near-new house without the bond.

The larger plans: up to roughly 4,200 sq ft

The top of the original lineup, five-bedroom two-story homes pushing toward 4,200 sq ft, is scarce and trades above the core band when it lists. These move on condition and lot, lake or preserve frontage especially, so price each one individually rather than off the community average.

The premium lots: lake views and preservation backs

Homesites backing the lakes or the preservation buffers carried builder premiums originally and hold them on resale: a permanent no-rear-neighbor line is the closest thing this community has to an amenity moat. Confirm the buffer is genuinely protected, not just unbuilt, in your diligence.

Real Estate Market

The arc so far: D.R. Horton sold these from the low $200s to the low $300s during the 2018 to 2023 build-out (NewHomeSource, 2026 retrieval), and resales have repriced to roughly $400K (Homes.com Cedarbrook page, 2026). That step-up already happened; treat it as history, not a trajectory, and price today off the freshest closed comps your agent can pull.

Inventory is structurally thin: with the builder gone, supply is whatever current owners decide to list, and a community this age has few forced sellers. That favors sellers in normal conditions but makes individual pricing lumpy, so a single ambitious or distressed listing can distort the apparent market for months.

The honest comparison for buyers is total monthly against the new construction still selling around 32226: a Cedarbrook resale at a similar sticker typically carries no CDD and a modest HOA, while the new alternative carries the bond plus the year-two tax reset. Run both numbers side by side; the no-CDD line is where this community earns its keep.

Market Position

Cedarbrook fits buyers who want a near-new house without new-construction overhead: households working the JIA, River City Marketplace, or Northside industrial corridors, first and second-time buyers priced out of the CDD suburbs at the same payment, and anyone who values the Pumpkin Hill Creek Preserve side of 32226, lakes, marsh edges, and quiet streets, over a resort amenity campus.

Schools

A Cedarbrook address is served by Duval County Public Schools, with attendance zones set by home address. School runs from the New Berlin pocket of 32226 are genuine drives, and zoning in fast-growing corridors gets redrawn, so map the actual zoned campuses, check current ratings yourself, and confirm the assignment for the specific address before you buy.

Amenities & Lifestyle

The package is neighborhood-scale by design, which is precisely why the dues stay modest. The geography does the heavy lifting.

Lake-view homesites

Several streets frame community lakes, and the lake-backed lots carry the resale premium: open water behind the fence line instead of another roofline. Verify which lots actually front water versus drainage easements; the plat tells the truth the listing photos blur.

Preservation-area buffers

Other homesites back protected preservation areas toward the marsh side of the community: a no-rear-neighbor line that cannot be built out if the protection is real. Confirm the designation on the recorded plat during diligence rather than taking the word preserve on faith.

Pumpkin Hill Creek Preserve nearby

One of Northeast Florida bigger state-managed preserves sits in the neighborhood backyard: trails, paddling water, and thousands of acres of marsh and flatwoods that anchor the quiet, outdoorsy character of this side of 32226.

The growth corridor within reach

River City Marketplace retail, Jacksonville International Airport, and the I-295 North interchange are all a manageable drive, close enough to use, far enough that the community itself stays residential and unhurried.

HOA, CDD & Costs

The original builder marketing advertised a modest HOA and, the headline, no CDD. With no resort campus to fund, dues cover common-area basics, which is how they stay low. On a resale, verify the current dues figure, what they cover, and any special assessments directly with the association before contract; builder-era marketing numbers age.

Confirm the no-CDD claim on the document that matters: the Duval County tax bill for the specific parcel. It should show no CDD or special-district debt line. Five minutes on the property appraiser and tax collector sites settles it, and it is the single most valuable verification in this corridor.

The association is now owner-controlled rather than builder-controlled, so ask for the current budget, reserves, and meeting minutes during diligence. A young community transitioning off builder management is normal; you just want to see dues covering the actual obligations without a deferred-maintenance gap building.

Commute Analysis

The drives are honest Northside drives: River City Marketplace inside 15 minutes, JIA in 15 to 20, downtown around half an hour, and the beaches by the scenic Heckscher Drive and ferry route when the schedule cooperates. Everything works; nothing is walkable.

Shopping & Dining

River City Marketplace carries the weekly load, grocery, big-box, restaurants, and the airport-corridor retail cluster, about 10 to 15 minutes away. The Cedar Point and New Berlin corridor itself stays deliberately quiet, with convenience stops only, so the Marketplace run becomes the household rhythm.

Pros and Cons

Cedarbrook vs. Comparable Communities

Hidden Things Buyers Should Know

The tax bill is the whole pitch

Two houses at the same price, one here and one in a CDD community, are not the same payment. The CDD line often runs four figures a year for decades. Pull the actual Duval County tax bill for the Cedarbrook parcel and the competing listing, put them side by side, and the comparison usually ends there.

Builder-era quality varies by year

A community delivered across 2018 to 2023 spans supply-chain-crunch construction years. Two identical floor plans two streets apart can inspect very differently. Budget a thorough inspection on every house regardless of age, and check whether any original structural warranty coverage transfers.

The Mandarin name collision costs buyers time

Jacksonville has a Cedarbrook of Mandarin in the older 32257 area on the opposite side of the city. Portals and even agents mix them up. Before you drive to a showing or write on a listing, verify the address sits in 32226 off Cedar Point Road, not in Mandarin.

Momentum Expert Insight

Selling a Home in Cedarbrook

Selling here means competing with the new construction still marketing around 32226, so lead with what new cannot offer: no CDD on the tax bill, a settled year-after-reset tax history, completed fencing and landscaping, and a house the buyer can close on in 30 days instead of waiting on a build. Put the actual tax bill in the listing package; it is your best exhibit.

If your lot backs the lake or a preservation buffer, make that the headline and prove it: plat language, photos across the seasons, and the no-rear-neighbor line spelled out. In a community where the floor plans repeat, the lot is the differentiation, and the premium only gets paid when it is documented.

Flood Zones & Insurance

Jacksonville sees coastal, river, and creek flooding, and pockets near the St. Johns River tributaries can sit in higher-risk zones. Jacksonville participates in the FEMA Community Rating System at a class 6, which earns flood-insurance discounts of about 10 percent for homes outside a special flood hazard area and about 20 percent for homes inside one.

The reliable move is to pull the FEMA flood designation for the exact Cedarbrook address before you write an offer, since two homes in the same area can fall in different zones. A home in Zone X can cost far less to insure than one near water in Zone AE. Get a bindable flood and homeowners quote during your inspection period, so the cost is in your monthly math before you commit, not after.

Internet & Connectivity

The Jacksonville metro is served by Xfinity (Comcast) cable across nearly all addresses and by AT&T with DSL almost everywhere plus fiber to a growing share of homes. If working from home matters, confirm the options, and fiber in particular, at the specific Cedarbrook address rather than assuming.

The Tax Reality

Duval County total millage runs roughly 17.9 to 18.5 mills depending on the taxing district. The Florida homestead exemption for 2026 is 51,411 dollars for those who qualify, and the deadline to file a new homestead exemption is March 1.

The trap to plan for is the post-sale reset: when you buy, the Save Our Homes cap from the previous owner ends and the assessed value resets to the new just value, so your second-year tax bill is often higher than the seller current one. Budget the true number, and confirm whether the specific home carries a CDD or other assessment that is billed separately from the millage and is not reduced by the homestead exemption.

What Your Budget Buys Here

The working numbers: original D.R. Horton pricing from the low $200s to the low $300s during the 2018 to 2023 build-out (NewHomeSource, 2026 retrieval), and resales trading around $400K per the Homes.com Cedarbrook page (2026). Treat both as dated snapshots and price off current closed comps. At roughly $400K the cross-shop is sharp: brand-new construction nearby at a similar sticker plus a CDD bond and a year-two tax reset, or an older established Northside resale with a longer track record at a discount. What Cedarbrook specifically sells is the middle: near-new systems and layouts, the no-CDD tax bill, and lake or preserve lots, at the cost of a thin comp set and neighborhood-scale amenities. Budget the inspection seriously and qualify on the verified tax bill, not the listing estimate.

The Future of the Area

Duval County continues to grow, with new rooftops, retail, and road work reshaping parts of the area. That growth supports long-run demand, but it can also add competing inventory and construction traffic in the near term, so factor both the upside and the disruption into your timing and your pricing.

Resale Liquidity

The resale case rests on the corridor and the carrying cost: 32226 keeps adding jobs, retail, and rooftops around River City Marketplace and JIA, and Cedarbrook holds a structural cost advantage, no CDD, against most of what gets built next door. As the community ages past the builder era, the houses with documented maintenance, protected lot lines, and clean association finances will set the comps. The risk side is concentration: a young single-builder community reprices together, so the exit depends partly on corridor momentum you do not control. Sell into strength when the new-construction competitors are raising prices, and keep the tax bill front and center in every listing.

The Cedarbrook Playbook

How we would buy here: pull every Cedarbrook closing from the past six to twelve months before writing, because in a thin market the last three sales are the market. Verify the no-CDD claim on the parcel tax bill at the Duval County tax collector, and get the current HOA dues, budget, and any assessment history from the association, not the listing. Walk the lot line against the recorded plat to confirm lake frontage or preservation buffer status. Inspect hard with a builder-era checklist, roof, stucco, HVAC, and drainage, since 2018 to 2023 construction quality varied by year. And confirm the address is 32226 off Cedar Point Road, not Cedarbrook of Mandarin in 32257, before you schedule anything.

Questions We Would Ask Before Buying Here

Mistakes to Avoid

The expensive mistakes here: underwriting a repeat of the low $200s-to-$400K appreciation run instead of treating it as a one-time corridor repricing; skipping the tax-bill verification and discovering a special assessment or misunderstood dues at closing; paying a lake premium for a lot that actually backs a drainage easement; waiving inspection because the house is only a few years old; and showing up at the wrong Cedarbrook because a portal mixed up Mandarin and the Northside. Every one is avoidable with documents and a week of patience, and every one moves real money.

Live Market: Homes for Sale & Recent Sales

Live MLS inventory for Cedarbrook Jacksonville. Every active listing, what is under contract right now, and the last 12 months of closed sales, refreshed twice a day. Real closed prices beat any estimate.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is Cedarbrook in Jacksonville 32226?

A sold-out D.R. Horton single-family community built roughly 2018 to 2023 off Cedar Point Road in the New Berlin area of the far Northside, entered near 4115 Emilio Lane, with one- and two-story homes from about 1,540 to 4,200 sq ft, lake-view and preservation-backed homesites, a modest HOA, and no CDD per the original builder marketing.

How much do homes in Cedarbrook cost?

Original builder pricing ran from the low $200s to the low $300s during the build-out (NewHomeSource, 2026 retrieval), and resales have traded around $400K per the Homes.com Cedarbrook page (2026). Both figures are snapshots; a thin single-community resale market moves listing by listing, so price off current closed comps.

Is Cedarbrook still selling new homes?

No. D.R. Horton completed and sold out the community, so every purchase here is now a resale from a current owner. That changes the playbook: no builder incentives to negotiate, but also no builder competition undercutting your offer or your future listing.

Does Cedarbrook have a CDD fee?

The original builder marketing advertised no CDD, which is the community signature advantage in a corridor full of CDD-funded new construction. Verify it the reliable way: pull the Duval County tax bill for the specific parcel and confirm there is no CDD or special-district line before you close.

What are the HOA fees in Cedarbrook?

The HOA was marketed as modest, consistent with the neighborhood-scale amenity package. Builder-era figures age, so get the current dues, what they cover, and any assessment history directly from the association during diligence rather than relying on a listing or this guide.

How big are the homes?

The original D.R. Horton lineup ran from about 1,540 sq ft single-story plans to two-story homes around 4,200 sq ft, with three to five bedrooms. The wide range means first-time and move-up buyers shop the same community, and the larger plans are the scarcer resale.

Is this the same as Cedarbrook of Mandarin?

No, and the mix-up is common. Cedarbrook of Mandarin is in the older 32257 area on the south side of Jacksonville. This guide covers the D.R. Horton community in 32226 off Cedar Point Road on the far Northside. Verify the address and zip on any listing before you schedule a showing.

What schools serve Cedarbrook?

Duval County Public Schools, with attendance zones set by home address. School runs from this part of 32226 are real drives, and zoning in growth corridors gets redrawn, so map the actual zoned campuses and confirm the current assignment for the specific address before you buy.

What amenities does Cedarbrook have?

Neighborhood-scale ones: community lakes, preservation buffers, and quiet streets rather than a resort campus, which is exactly why the dues stay modest. The bigger outdoor amenity is the area itself, with Pumpkin Hill Creek Preserve and the Timucuan marsh country nearby.

How far is shopping and the airport?

River City Marketplace, the nearest major retail, is about 10 to 15 minutes, with Jacksonville International Airport about 15 to 20. Downtown runs 25 to 30 minutes, and the beaches are 30 to 40 via Heckscher Drive and the St. Johns River Ferry, schedule permitting.

Have Cedarbrook homes appreciated?

Substantially, once: original buyers paid the low $200s to low $300s (NewHomeSource, 2026 retrieval) and resales now trade around $400K (Homes.com, 2026). That repricing reflects the 2018 to 2023 corridor boom and broader market run; treat it as history rather than a forecast for the next hold period.

What should I inspect on a 2018 to 2023 D.R. Horton home?

Treat it like any production-era resale: roof and stucco condition, HVAC service history, drainage and grading, and finish quality that varied across the supply-chain-crunch build years. Inspect the specific house rather than trusting its age, and ask whether any transferable structural warranty coverage remains.

Are there lake or preserve lots, and are they worth the premium?

Yes, lake-view and preservation-backed homesites were the premium lots originally and hold the premium on resale, because a protected no-rear-neighbor line is durable. Verify on the recorded plat that the water or buffer behind the lot is what the listing claims before paying for it.

Will Cedarbrook homes resell well?

The structural case is solid: no CDD in a CDD-heavy corridor, near-new housing stock, and a 32226 location that keeps adding jobs and retail. The caution is concentration: a young single-builder community reprices together, and inventory is thin, so individual outcomes ride on corridor momentum and on how well each house is documented.

Who should I call about Cedarbrook?

Call Momentum Realty at (904) 351-6461 or use the form on this page, and we will connect you with the right agent.

Do I need my own agent to buy a Cedarbrook resale?

Yes. Every sale here is owner to owner now, so the listing agent works for the seller. Your agent pulls the real closed comps in a thin market, verifies the HOA and no-CDD picture on the actual documents, and negotiates inspection findings on a builder-era house. Representation is how you avoid paying the averages.

Related Reading

Working the far Northside and 32226 more broadly? Start here.