Does Julington Creek flood? The name is a clue. Here is the map.
The area is named for a tidal creek and edged by the St. Johns River, so this is the first question a careful buyer asks here. I’m Krista Fracke, and rather than answer with an adjective I can show you the FEMA flood zone and the county evacuation zone of every home currently for sale in Julington Creek, Fruit Cove and Switzerland, neighborhood by neighborhood, from the same hazard data this site stamps on each listing.
By Krista Fracke — Broker Associate, Christie's International Real Estate First Coast · 20+ years in Northeast Florida · 500+ closings · client reviews
The live table: current 32259 inventory by FEMA zone
Of the 614 homes on the market right now in MLS areas 301 and 302, 97% map to minimal-hazard Zone X:
| FEMA zone | Homes for sale | Share | What it means |
|---|---|---|---|
| X | 597 | 97% | Minimal hazard, outside the mapped high-risk floodplain. Lenders do not require flood insurance. |
| A | 10 | 2% | High-risk floodplain without detailed elevations mapped. Flood insurance required on a mortgage. |
| AE | 7 | 1% | High-risk floodplain with base flood elevations mapped. Flood insurance required on a mortgage. |
Live from current MLS inventory, refreshed daily. Zones are FEMA’s mapping for each home’s coordinates; an elevation certificate can refine an individual property’s status.
Neighborhood by neighborhood
The same current listings, grouped by subdivision (five or more homes for sale). “High-risk” is FEMA zones A, AE and AO, where a lender requires flood insurance.
| Subdivision | For sale | Zone X | High-risk |
|---|---|---|---|
| Beachwalk | 49 | 49 (100%) | 0 |
| Stillwater | 33 | 33 (100%) | 0 |
| Julington Creek Plan | 32 | 32 (100%) | 0 |
| Durbin Crossing | 31 | 28 (90%) | 3 |
| Aberdeen | 24 | 24 (100%) | 0 |
| Rivertown | 23 | 23 (100%) | 0 |
| Rivertown - The Meadows | 23 | 23 (100%) | 0 |
| Watersong At Rivertown | 22 | 22 (100%) | 0 |
| Julington Lakes | 15 | 15 (100%) | 0 |
| Bartram Ranch | 14 | 14 (100%) | 0 |
| Middlebourne | 14 | 14 (100%) | 0 |
| Rivertown Forest | 13 | 13 (100%) | 0 |
| Mill Creek Forest | 12 | 12 (100%) | 0 |
| Celestina | 11 | 11 (100%) | 0 |
The second table: evacuation zones
St. Johns County orders surge evacuations by lettered zone, A first. This is the evacuation-zone mix of the same current listings, with 68% outside the surge zones altogether:
| Evacuation zone | Homes for sale | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Zone A | 70 | First zone called in a surge evacuation: the lowest ground nearest tidal water. |
| Zone E | 81 | Rarely called. |
| Zone F | 44 | Rarely called. |
| Outside surge zones | 420 | Outside the county’s surge evacuation zones. Evacuation would be for a different reason (mobile home, medical need, county-wide order). |
Why the ground reads the way it does
Julington Creek is a tidal creek that opens into the St. Johns River at the county line, and the river runs the length of the area’s western edge along State Road 13. FEMA maps a high-risk band along both: the creek-front streets of the Plantation, the river lots in Switzerland and Orangedale, and the low ground where smaller creeks (Durbin, Cunningham, Mill) feed in. Everything built after the master-plan era, which here means most of the housing, was laid out around engineered stormwater ponds, and those interiors read Zone X. The table above is that pattern in today’s numbers.
Hurricane exposure is different from flood exposure. This coast has recorded one direct hurricane landfall since 1851, and storms at this latitude tend to run parallel to the shore. This area is twenty miles inland of the dune line, so its storm history is wind, rain, trees, power and a swollen river rather than ocean surge; the river frontage is the exception, and the evacuation letters say so. The full seventy-year record lives on the regional hurricane-history page.
The part nobody tells you
Florida does not require a seller to disclose that a home has flooded, and Zone X is a map designation, not an inspection. The homes here that take water in a heavy rain are often not the creek-front ones, which were built to the flood elevation; they are interior lots that grade toward the house, 1990s homes whose pond outfalls silted up, and cul-de-sacs at the bottom of a subdivision’s drainage. On a creek or river lot the questions change: the dock permit, the bulkhead’s age, and whether the elevation certificate matches what the listing claims. I walk the lot in the rain when I can, I read the survey, and I ask the neighbors. The map is where the conversation starts.
Homes in minimal-hazard Zone X in 32259, on the market now
This is the work I do every week. Shortlisting in Julington Creek, Fruit Cove or Switzerland? Send me the addresses. I will pull each home’s flood zone, evacuation zone, elevation and roof age, and get a real insurance quote into the monthly math before you write anything.
Work with Krista (904) 333-8595 Text
Broker Associate · Christie's International Real Estate First Coast · 20+ years · 500+ closings
Common questions
Does Julington Creek flood?
Parts of it are mapped to flood, and the name tells you where. Julington Creek is a tidal creek off the St. Johns River, and the river itself forms the area’s western edge, so FEMA maps a high-risk band along both banks. The subdivisions set back from the water were built around stormwater ponds and mostly read Zone X. The live tables on this page show the actual mix of what is for sale right now, neighborhood by neighborhood; the zone of any one home is a per-address fact that every listing on this site shows.
What flood zone is Julington Creek Plantation in?
Mostly Zone X in the interior, with high-risk zones along the creek-front sections and the lowest lots near the preserve edges. The per-neighborhood table above gives the current count for the Plantation and its neighbors. On a specific home I read the FEMA panel, the survey elevation and whether the lot drains toward the house.
Do I need flood insurance in 32259?
A lender requires it only in the high-risk zones (A, AE, AO), which here means the creek and river frontage and a few low pockets. In Zone X it is optional, and I still raise it: Zone X premiums are typically the lowest a homeowner can buy and a large share of national flood claims come from outside the mapped high-risk areas. Knowing the zone before you offer is the part that is not optional.
What evacuation zone is Julington Creek in?
St. Johns County uses lettered surge zones A through F, called in order. Most of the area sits outside the surge zones or in the later letters; the river and creek frontage in Switzerland and Fruit Cove carries the earlier letters. The evacuation table on this page is the live mix of current listings, and every listing shows its own zone next to its flood zone.
Is the St. Johns River side different from the creek side?
Yes. The river frontage along State Road 13 in Switzerland and Orangedale is open water with a long fetch, so wind-driven water and surge reach it in a way the creek’s narrow, winding banks do not. Both are mapped high-risk at the shoreline; the difference shows up in the evacuation letters and in how insurers quote a dock lot versus a creek lot. On a waterfront home I pull both maps and the elevation certificate before anything else.
Julington Creek CDD and HOA fees →
The district that maintains the drainage you just read about, and what it costs.
Living in Julington Creek →
The rest of the decision: the rebuilt amenities, the resale age, the county line.
Julington Creek vs Mandarin →
Same creek, two counties, two tax bills.
Does Nocatee flood? →
The same tables for the county’s other master plan.
Homes outside high-risk flood zones →
Every St. Johns County listing currently mapped to Zone X, live.
70 years of storms in Northeast Florida →
Every named storm since 1956 and what it did here.
Want the flood picture on a specific home in 32259?
Tell me the address. I’ll pull its FEMA zone, its evacuation zone, the lot’s elevation story and how insurers are treating that street, before you fall in love with it. On a creek or river lot, the dock and bulkhead too.
The Julington Creek & Fruit Cove hub
Northwest St. Johns County along Racetrack Road and State Road 13: Julington Creek Plantation, Julington Lakes, Stillwater, Durbin Crossing and the neighborhoods between, with the fees, the flood map and the comparisons.
Neighborhoods
Compare & decide