First-Time Buyer Toolkit

8 cards
Buying your first home in Ponte Vedra Beach, St. Augustine, or greater Jacksonville? These are the programs, filings, and checks that save first-time buyers real money across Northeast Florida, gathered by the team at ERA ONETEAM Realty.
Start Your Home Search
...t.sites.erarealestate.com
Start Your Home Search

Live MLS search across the First Coast, including a Drive Time search that finds homes by commute length rather than zip code, which is handy when you're new to the Jacksonville area and don't know the neighborhoods yet.

avatar
Brad Stewart
Buying and Selling Tips from Brad
...t.sites.erarealestate.com
Buying and Selling Tips from Brad

A practical walkthrough of the buying process from ERA ONETEAM's Ponte Vedra Beach office, worth reading before your first showing so the inspection, appraisal, and closing steps don't surprise you.

avatar
Brad Stewart
Florida Hometown Heroes: Up to $35,000 Down Payment Help
floridahousing.org
Florida Hometown Heroes: Up to $35,000 Down Payment Help

Florida's flagship assistance program gives first-time, income-qualified buyers up to $35,000 toward down payment and closing costs as a 0% deferred second mortgage. The 2026 round opened in July and funding historically runs out fast.

avatar
Brad Stewart
Free Homebuyer Counseling (HUD Florida)
hud.gov
Free Homebuyer Counseling (HUD Florida)

HUD-approved agencies across Florida offer free and low-cost homebuyer education, including the pre-purchase course that assistance programs like Hometown Heroes require. Jacksonville has a HUD field office downtown on West Bay Street.

avatar
Brad Stewart
Check the Flood Zone Before You Offer (FEMA)
msc.fema.gov
Check the Flood Zone Before You Offer (FEMA)

On the First Coast, the flood zone can move your monthly payment more than the interest rate. Look up any address before writing an offer, especially near the beaches, the Intracoastal, or St. Augustine's waterfront.

avatar
Brad Stewart
New Owner Checklist for St. Johns County
sjcpa.gov
New Owner Checklist for St. Johns County

Closing in Ponte Vedra, Nocatee, or St. Augustine? The county's official new-owner page covers homestead filing, license updates, and more, everything for your first weeks of ownership in Florida's top-rated school district county.

avatar
Brad Stewart
File Homestead in Duval County
jacksonville.gov
File Homestead in Duval County

Buying on the Jacksonville side instead? File homestead with Duval County by March 1 for up to $50,000 off your assessed value plus the Save Our Homes 3% annual cap. The single best money move after closing.

avatar
Brad Stewart
Set Up Property Fraud Alerts (St. Johns Clerk)
stjohnsclerk.com
Set Up Property Fraud Alerts (St. Johns Clerk)

A two-minute signup with the St. Johns County Clerk that emails you whenever a document is recorded in your name. One local seller recently caught a forged deed on her title thanks to exactly this alert.

avatar
Brad Stewart