What's in this guide
- Executive Summary
- Quick Facts
- Community Overview & History
- Neighborhoods & Areas
- Real Estate Market
- Market Position
- Schools
- Amenities & Lifestyle
- HOA, CDD & Costs
- Commute Analysis
- Shopping & Dining
- Pros & Cons
- Neighborhood Comparisons
- Hidden Things to Know
- Momentum Expert Insight
- Live Listings & Recent Sales
- Price History Since 2012
- Flood Zones & Insurance
- Internet & Connectivity
- The Tax Reality
- What Your Budget Buys
- The Future of the Area
- Resale Liquidity
- The Buyer Playbook
- Questions to Ask
- Mistakes to Avoid
- Frequently Asked Questions
Executive Summary
Colony Cove is an established Arlington value play with a river card: 1970s-90s detached homes on Colony Cove Trail and Lane near University Boulevard North in 32277, some pockets sitting close to the St. Johns River, with minimal or no HOA and no CDD. Redfin reported a neighborhood median sale price around $455,000, up about 11.5 percent year over year at roughly $223 per square foot, as retrieved in June 2026, but treat those figures as directional: the neighborhood trades thin, and a handful of closings can move the median.
The product spans three build decades, and that range is the pricing story: a 1970s home with original systems and a 1990s home with a newer roof and updated electrical are different underwriting problems at different prices. Renovation depth, roof age, panel and plumbing updates, and the resulting insurance quote separate the band more than floor plans do, so the inspection and the premium quote are the diligence here, not HOA documents, because there are few or none.
Know the name problem before you search: Colony Cove is also the name of large mobile-home and manufactured-home communities elsewhere in Florida, most prominently in the Tampa Bay area, and portal searches mix those results in constantly. This guide covers the site-built single-family neighborhood in Arlington, Jacksonville, Duval County 32277 only. Verify the county, city, and zip on every record before you rely on it.
Quick Facts
| Category | Detail |
|---|---|
| Location | Arlington, on Colony Cove Trl and Colony Cove Ln near University Blvd N, close to the St. Johns River, Jacksonville 32277 |
| County | Duval County |
| ZIP code | 32277 |
| Homes | Detached single-family homes, mostly 3BR and 4BR, brick, block, and frame construction across the 1970s-90s build window |
| Built | Largely 1970s through the 1990s, with condition ranging from original to fully renovated across that span |
| Home sizes | Varied by build decade; roughly 1,400 to 2,500+ sq ft is a reasonable working band, verify per listing |
| Amenities | St. Johns River proximity and nearby public access points; University Blvd N and Merrill Rd retail corridors; no community amenity fees |
| Schools | Duval County Public Schools (verify zoning and current ratings) |
| Gate / HOA | Not gated; minimal or no HOA and no CDD, which means low carrying costs but little deed enforcement, verify per parcel |
Community Overview & History
The Arlington pocket the portals overlook
Colony Cove built out from the 1970s into the 1990s as Arlington filled in between University Boulevard North and the St. Johns River, and the streets still read like that arc: detached homes in brick, block, and frame, mostly three and four bedrooms, on real lots under mature oaks, with the later-built homes carrying more contemporary footprints. There is no master developer story, no amenity center, and minimal or no HOA; the neighborhood institutions are the river a short distance away, the established tree canopy, and the University Boulevard corridor handling daily errands. The stock is varied enough by decade that condition and build year drive price more than location within the neighborhood does.
What the address is actually buying
Position, lot, and low carrying costs. The neighborhood sits in the heart of Arlington with the St. Johns River close by and some river-adjacent pockets, while the Arlington Expressway and the surrounding arterials put downtown Jacksonville roughly 15 minutes away, the beaches about 20 to 25 minutes east, and Jacksonville International Airport around 25 to 30 minutes north. Add minimal or no HOA and no CDD, and against the Redfin-reported median around $455,000 (retrieved June 2026) the pitch is straightforward: an established detached house near the river, in the middle of the city map, without a fee structure stacked on the mortgage.
What You Are Actually Buying
Three build decades, one general product type, with build year and renovation depth doing the separating. The figures below come from third-party portals on stated dates; sales volume in Colony Cove is modest, so price off recent closed sales on comparable condition and decade, not blended neighborhood averages.
1970s-era homes: the character entry
The earliest stock: ranch-leaning footprints, brick and block exteriors, and the deepest tree canopy, often trading below the Redfin-reported $455,000 median (retrieved June 2026) when systems are original. These are the value-add plays, but budget the roof, panel, plumbing, and HVAC honestly; on a 50-year-old house the discount exists for a reason.
1980s homes: the middle of the band
The transitional product: larger footprints than the 1970s entries, more two-car garages, and systems one generation newer. These cluster around the neighborhood median depending on update level, and they are often the cleanest value math in the pocket when the roof and HVAC have already been replaced.
1990s and renovated homes: the top of the band
The newest construction in the neighborhood plus the most complete renovations of older stock, reaching toward and above the median, with river-adjacent positions commanding the strongest premiums. At this end verify the comp set carefully: the top of a thin market trades on a handful of sales, and one strong closing can look like a trend when it is one house.
Real Estate Market
The working numbers: Redfin reported a Colony Cove neighborhood median sale price around $455,000, up roughly 11.5 percent year over year, at about $223 per square foot, as retrieved in June 2026. Treat all of it as directional rather than precise, because the neighborhood closes a modest number of sales in any window and the mix of 1970s originals, 1980s mid-band homes, and 1990s or renovated product shifts the median as much as the market does.
The buyer pool is established-neighborhood shoppers priced out of waterfront-adjacent product elsewhere, Arlington and downtown commuters buying the expressway access, and renovators working the spread between original-condition 1970s homes and updated resales. Days on market and renovation scope matter when reading comps, because some of the strongest closings are flip resales rather than organic appreciation.
Watch the data hygiene: Colony Cove is also the name of large manufactured-home communities elsewhere in Florida, and portal searches, automated estimates, and even some listing feeds blend those records in. Filter every comp to Jacksonville, Duval County, 32277 before trusting it, and lean on recent closed sales from the actual Colony Cove Trail and Lane streets; with thin volume, the clean street-level read beats any neighborhood-level average.
Market Position
Colony Cove draws buyers who want an established detached house on a real lot without HOA or CDD overhead, Arlington and downtown commuters who value the expressway math, river-oriented buyers who want St. Johns proximity without true waterfront pricing, and renovators working the 1970s-90s value-add spread in a pocket the portals mostly overlook.
Schools
A Colony Cove address is served by Duval County Public Schools, with attendance zones set by home address. Zoning in the Arlington area has shifted over the years as the district has consolidated and re-drawn boundaries, so confirm the exact current assignment and the current ratings for the specific 32277 address directly with the district before you buy rather than relying on listing-page school fields, which can lag changes by years.
Amenities & Lifestyle
No fee-funded amenity package here; the assets are the river, the established streets, and the corridors around them, already paid for.
St. Johns River proximity
The river sits close by, with some Colony Cove pockets river-adjacent and public access points, parks, and boat ramps within a short drive elsewhere in Arlington. It is the amenity that defines the area, and it costs residents nothing monthly.
University Blvd N and Merrill Rd corridors
The nearby arterials carry the daily retail load: groceries, pharmacies, hardware, and local restaurants within a few minutes. Most errands never require the expressway.
The Arlington Expressway
The connector that makes the location work: downtown in roughly 15 minutes, the beaches in about 20 to 25 via the Southside connections, and the Regency retail cluster a short drive away. Few established neighborhoods at this price split the city map this evenly.
No-fee living
Minimal or no HOA and no CDD: the monthly carrying cost is taxes, insurance, and the mortgage. The trade is little or no deed enforcement, so street-by-street upkeep varies; drive the specific block before you commit.
HOA, CDD & Costs
Most of Colony Cove carries minimal or no HOA: little or no dues, no architectural review, and no leasing restrictions beyond city code. That is a real monthly advantage over fee-loaded communities, but verify the specific parcel anyway; recorded restrictions or a small voluntary association can apply to particular streets or phases, and the title search is where you confirm what actually binds the lot.
Little or no HOA also means little or no enforcement, so the streetscape is set by individual owners: most blocks are tidy established streets under mature trees, some carry deferred maintenance, and conditions can shift block to block. If a uniform streetscape matters to you, walk the immediate block at different times before writing, because no association will standardize it.
CDD fees do not apply in this established neighborhood, but the tax and insurance lines still need real verification: 1970s-90s homes can carry older roofs, panels, and plumbing that move insurance quotes significantly, and river-adjacent positions can add flood insurance questions. Pull the FEMA flood zone for the specific parcel and get the actual insurance quote during diligence, not after, because on a no-fee house those are the line items that surprise buyers.
Commute Analysis
| Destination | Typical drive |
|---|---|
| Downtown Jacksonville | About 15 minutes via the Arlington Expressway |
| Regency Square area retail | About 10 minutes |
| Jacksonville University | About 5 to 10 minutes |
| Jacksonville beaches | About 20 to 25 minutes via Atlantic Blvd or the Southside connections |
| St. Johns Town Center | About 15 to 20 minutes |
| Jacksonville International Airport | About 25 to 30 minutes via I-295 or the Mathews Bridge connections |
The location math is the quiet asset: the Arlington Expressway runs straight downtown, the beaches sit one arterial east, and the airport is a manageable run north. Colony Cove splits downtown, the ocean, and the airport about as evenly as any established neighborhood in the city, at a price that newer fee-loaded communities cannot match.
Shopping & Dining
University Boulevard North and Merrill Road carry the daily load within minutes, with groceries, pharmacies, and a bench of local restaurants along both corridors. The Regency area handles bigger retail runs about 10 minutes away, St. Johns Town Center covers the premium shopping and dining about 15 to 20 minutes south, and the beaches commercial strips are 20 to 25 minutes east when the errand doubles as an outing.
Pros and Cons
Pros
- Established detached homes on real lots near the St. Johns River, with some river-adjacent pockets
- Minimal or no HOA and no CDD: taxes, insurance, and mortgage are essentially the whole monthly
- Quick access to downtown, the beaches, and the airport via the Arlington Expressway and arterials
- Mature tree canopy and 1970s-90s lot sizes that new construction does not offer at this price
- A pocket the portals overlook, which can mean less bidding pressure than headline neighborhoods
Cons
- 1970s-90s systems: roofs, panels, plumbing, and HVAC drive inspections and insurance quotes
- Thin sales volume makes medians swing; pricing requires careful street-level comps
- Little or no HOA enforcement means block-to-block condition varies
- River proximity can raise flood-zone and flood-insurance questions on specific parcels
- Name collisions with Colony Cove mobile-home parks elsewhere in Florida pollute online search results
Colony Cove vs. Comparable Communities
| Community | How it compares to Colony Cove |
|---|---|
| Monterey | The river-side Arlington neighbor: similar established stock closer to Jacksonville University and the St. Johns, traded on exact streets, river access, and renovation level rather than any structural difference. |
| Holly Oaks | The step toward Fort Caroline: comparable era and tree canopy with its own river-adjacent pockets, traded on lot position and the specific commute corridor you want to live off. |
| Beacon Hills and Harbour | The boating-oriented alternative nearby: similar vintage with canal and harbour product in the mix, traded on water access ambitions against the simpler no-fee single-family math here. |
Hidden Things Buyers Should Know
Two kinds of Colony Cove online
Colony Cove is also the name of large manufactured-home communities elsewhere in Florida, most prominently in the Tampa Bay area, and portal searches and automated estimates blend those records in regularly. This guide covers the site-built single-family neighborhood in Arlington, Jacksonville, Duval County 32277 only. Verify city, county, and zip on every record before you rely on it.
Thin volume cuts both ways
Modest sales counts mean the Redfin-reported medians (retrieved June 2026) can swing on a handful of closings, which makes headlines unreliable but also creates opportunity: a well-priced listing here faces less algorithmic attention and less bidding-war traffic than headline neighborhoods, and patient buyers who comp at the street level can find value the averages hide.
The river premium is parcel-specific
River proximity reads as one amenity in the marketing but prices as many: a river-adjacent lot, a street one block back, and an interior position carry different premiums and different flood-zone answers. Pull the FEMA flood map and the elevation certificate question for the specific parcel, because two houses a hundred yards apart can carry meaningfully different insurance math.
Momentum Expert Insight
Colony Cove is what we show buyers who want established Arlington with a river orientation but keep getting quoted true waterfront prices or fee-loaded new construction: a detached 1970s-90s house on a real lot, minimal or no HOA, no CDD, and the expressway putting the whole city in reach. The trade is era systems across three build decades, and the inspection tells you within a week whether a specific house earns its price.
The diligence here is house-by-house, not community-by-community: there are few or no HOA documents to read, so the four-point inspection, the wind-mitigation report, the flood-zone pull, the insurance quote, and a comp set scrubbed of out-of-area Colony Cove records do the work instead. None of it is exotic, but skipping any of it on a thin-volume street is how buyers overpay or underwrite badly.
Selling a Home in Colony Cove
Your buyers are condition shoppers and location shoppers: lead with the systems story (roof age, panel, plumbing updates, HVAC, and the wind-mitigation report if you have one), because that moves both the offer and the buyer insurance quote that keeps deals together. Price off recent closed sales of comparable build decade and renovation level on the Colony Cove streets themselves, not blended Arlington averages, because thin volume makes neighborhood-level medians unreliable in both directions.
Name the location precisely in the remarks: Colony Cove, Arlington, Jacksonville, Duval County 32277. Listings tagged loosely get blended with Colony Cove manufactured-home communities elsewhere in Florida in portal feeds, which distorts the automated estimates buyers see before they ever call. Anchoring the river proximity, the no-fee monthly, and the 15-minutes-to-downtown math plainly is the listing that wins this pocket.
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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 Colony Cove 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 Colony Cove 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 anchor is the Redfin-reported median sale price around $455,000, up roughly 11.5 percent year over year at about $223 per square foot, as retrieved in June 2026, but build your budget around the spread, not the median: original-condition 1970s homes trade below it, updated 1980s product clusters around it, and 1990s or fully renovated homes, especially river-adjacent positions, push above it. The same dollars nearby buy newer fee-loaded construction further east or a smaller renovated house closer to the beaches. The honest comparison is monthly: with minimal or no HOA and no CDD here, the carrying cost is taxes, insurance, and the mortgage, and on river-adjacent parcels the flood-insurance answer belongs in the math from day one. Run it with the real quotes, because on 1970s-90s housing the insurance lines do the deciding.
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
Resale here rides location, the river, and the renovation cycle: the downtown-beaches-airport split keeps a steady commuter pool, the no-fee monthly widens affordability against HOA and CDD product, and river proximity gives the pocket a hook most inland Arlington streets lack. The risks to monitor are systems-driven insurance costs, which tighten the buyer pool on unrenovated homes as premiums climb, flood-insurance trajectories on river-adjacent parcels, and the thin sales volume that makes any single bad comp loom large. Sellers who document the systems work, carry the wind-mitigation report, address the flood question up front, and tag the listing precisely as Arlington, Jacksonville 32277 trade through all of it.
The Colony Cove Playbook
How we would buy here: scrub the comp set first, filtering every record to Jacksonville, Duval County 32277 so the out-of-area Colony Cove manufactured-home records never touch your pricing, then comp at the street level because volume is thin. Inspect for the build decade: four-point inspection, roof age, electrical panel make and capacity, plumbing material, HVAC age, and a wind-mitigation report to fight for the premium. Pull the FEMA flood zone for the specific parcel and get the insurance quotes, wind and flood if applicable, during the inspection period, not after. Walk the specific block at different hours, since little or no HOA standardizes anything here. Then price the decade-and-condition tier honestly: a 1970s original and a renovated 1990s home are different markets sharing one pocket, and overpaying happens when buyers comp one tier against another.
Questions We Would Ask Before Buying Here
Ask the seller
- What flood zone is this exact address in?
- What are the HOA dues, and is there a CDD or special assessment?
- What did the last few comparable homes actually sell for?
- How old are the roof, HVAC, and water heater?
- What is the true second-year tax estimate after reassessment?
Ask yourself
- Does the commute to work, schools, and daily life actually work?
- Do I need fiber internet, and is it at this address?
- Am I pricing against the right comparable sales, not the average?
- Does the lot and the condition fit my budget and my resale plan?
Mistakes to Avoid
The expensive mistakes in Colony Cove: pricing or appraising off comps polluted with Colony Cove manufactured-home records from elsewhere in Florida; reading the thin-volume median as a precise market signal when a few closings can swing it double digits; waiving or shortcutting inspection on 1970s-90s systems and meeting the roof, panel, and plumbing bills after closing; skipping the flood-zone pull on a river-adjacent parcel and discovering the flood-insurance premium after contract; and comping a renovated 1990s house against 1970s originals or vice versa. Every one of these is a verification problem, and every one is cheap to avoid before contract.
Live Market: Homes for Sale & Recent Sales
Live MLS inventory for Colony Cove 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 Colony Cove in Jacksonville?
Is this the same Colony Cove as the mobile-home communities I see online?
How much do homes in Colony Cove cost?
Is there an HOA or CDD in Colony Cove?
When were the homes built?
What is the housing stock like?
Is Colony Cove on the St. Johns River?
How is the commute from Colony Cove?
What schools serve Colony Cove?
What should I inspect on a home this age?
How is insurance on 1970s-90s homes here?
Why is it hard to find good data on Colony Cove?
What is nearby for shopping and dining?
Is Colony Cove a good value buy?
Who should I call about Colony Cove?
Do I need my own agent to buy here?
Related Reading
Shopping Arlington and the river corridor more broadly? Start here.








