Southern Area (below SR 44)
The Villages' newest and most actively developing area — modern home designs, brand-new recreation centers, and a natural Florida character unlike any other area. 15+ neighborhoods in the southern area, with new communities still being added.
What is the southern area?
The southern area is The Villages' frontier — the newest area, south of SR 44 and mostly in Sumter County, where active construction continues to add new neighborhoods, recreation centers, and amenities. The southern area is served by two town squares — Sawgrass Grove (opened 2022) and Eastport (opened 2025) — and continues to expand south as new infrastructure is built.
The southern area is where buyers find the newest home designs — updated floor plans, modern construction standards, the latest architectural treatments. It's also where The Villages offers new construction directly: buyers who want to select their own finishes and move into a brand-new home have options in Sawgrass Grove that aren't available in the fully built-out northern area and the central area.
The honest trade-off: the southern area carries higher ongoing costs than the central area. Both are mostly in Sumter County, so for most homes the tax rate is comparable. The cost premium comes from the CDD bond: established southern villages carry verified Average bond tiers, and the newest 2025 sections carry the community's highest. Bond amounts are set per village — run the full annual cost comparison on the specific homes you're weighing before committing.
Southern Area at a glance
| Location | South of SR 44 |
|---|---|
| County | Mostly Sumter — 3 Lake County villages (Dabney, Lake Denham, Newell); verify by address |
| ZIP Codes | 32163 · 34762 (newer southern communities) |
| Built | 2010s–2020s (actively developing) |
| Bond Status | Mostly Average tier; highest in newest sections — verify per home |
| Tax Rate | Mostly Sumter (~1.0% standard, ~1.29% inside City of Wildwood limits); the 3 Lake villages ~1.6% — verify by address |
| Home Types | Designer Homes, Premier Homes, Patio Villas, Courtyard Villas |
| Neighborhoods | 15+ neighborhoods |
| Town Squares | Sawgrass Grove (2022) · Eastport (2025) |
| Rec Centers | Multiple — confirm specific names at districtgov.org |
| New Construction | Available — active building throughout |
The case for buying in the southern area
Buyers who want new construction
The southern area is the only area in The Villages where new construction is actively available. Buying new means no prior owner, no deferred maintenance, full builder warranty, and the ability to select finishes, flooring, and options before the home is built. For buyers who have always lived in new or near-new homes and aren't comfortable with resale unknowns — inspection surprises, updated systems, prior-owner taste in finishes — the southern area's new construction inventory removes that friction entirely. The premium in ongoing costs (bonds) is the price of that certainty.
Buyers drawn to Florida's natural character
Sawgrass Grove's naming vocabulary is intentionally ecological — Marsh Bend, Cason Hammock, Monarch Grove, Fenney, Citrus Grove. The southern area's natural setting reflects that naming: proximity to Florida's interior wetlands and wildlife corridors creates a landscape character different from the northern area and the central area's more manicured residential environments. Buyers who value the feeling of being embedded in Florida's natural landscape — seasonal wildlife, native vegetation, the visual and acoustic environment of a Florida marsh edge — find it most directly in the southern area.
Buyers who want the newest amenity infrastructure
Brand-new recreation centers have brand-new equipment, fresh pool facilities, and the condition advantage of not having 20 years of use. For buyers who use the recreation centers frequently — daily pickleball, regular fitness classes, pool lap swimming — the condition of the facility matters, and Sawgrass Grove's newest centers are in the freshest condition in The Villages. The southern area's recreation infrastructure was designed with the latest thinking about what active 55+ residents want, and it shows in the facilities.
Bonds, taxes & annual costs
The southern area carries the highest annual ownership costs in The Villages — and buyers deserve a clear-eyed view of what that means before committing.
CDD bond balances
Bond tiers in the southern area are set per village and verified against district bond schedules. Established villages such as Fenney, Monarch Grove, and Marsh Bend carry Average tiers ($1,500–$3,000/year); several villages vary by home; and the newest 2025 sections verified Average to High (roughly $2,700–$3,600/year) when the district published their schedules — only the unverified Village of LaGrange may run higher. A brand-new home carries its full original bond — verify the balance and annual payment for any specific home.
Sumter County property taxes
The southern area is predominantly in Sumter County — the same county as the central area. There is no county-based tax premium between the southern area and the central area for most homes, though some southern villages sit inside City of Wildwood limits at ~1.29% rather than the ~1.0% unincorporated rate — verify by address. The ongoing-cost difference between two specific homes usually comes down to their CDD bonds.
County exception — Lake County villages: Three newer southern villages — Dabney, Lake Denham, and Newell — are in Lake County, not Sumter County. Lake County property tax rates run approximately 1.6% — the highest of the three Villages counties — compared to ~1.0–1.29% in Sumter County. If you are considering a home in one of these three villages, verify the county by address at the Lake County Property Appraiser and calculate your projected tax from the purchase price — not the seller's current bill.
Total annual cost comparison
The gap depends on the two homes compared: verified tiers run from Low (under $1,500/year) in most of the central area to roughly $2,700–$3,600/year in the newest verified southern sections — one unverified 2025 village may run higher. Run that number over your expected ownership period.
Golf cart access in the southern area
Sawgrass Grove has a modern, purpose-built golf cart path network — designed from scratch with current standards, including dedicated paths, tunnel crossings at SR 44, and connections to The Villages' wider path system.
The path network in the southern area is newer and in better condition than older sections of the northern area and central area networks — but it connects to fewer established destinations because the area is still developing. As new commercial and recreational infrastructure is completed, cart connectivity in the southern area will improve.
Current cart-accessible destinations from most south neighborhoods:
- Brownwood Paddock Square — accessible from northern Sawgrass Grove; farther from southern communities
- Sawgrass Grove Recreation Centers — brand-new facilities in the community
- Neighborhood Recreation Centers — in every community
- Championship golf (south) — within cart range
- SR 44 commercial corridor — growing retail and services
Buying new in the southern area
The southern area is the only part of The Villages where new construction from the developer is actively available. Here's what buying new in Sawgrass Grove looks like compared to buying resale:
New construction advantages
- No prior owner — no deferred maintenance unknowns
- Select finishes, flooring, and options before building
- Full builder structural and systems warranty
- Current construction standards and energy efficiency
- Modern floor plan designs
New construction trade-offs
- Bond tiers set per village — Average in established villages, highest in the newest sections
- Surrounding area may still be under construction
- No mature landscaping — takes years to establish
- Typically priced at or above comparable resale
A different feel than the northern area or the central area
Sawgrass Grove has a character that's genuinely different from the Spanish-colonial northern area and the waterfront-entertainment central area — and buyers who respond to it often respond strongly.
The naming vocabulary is ecological: sawgrass, marshes, hammocks, monarchs, fenns, citrus groves. The landscape setting reflects it — the southern area is embedded in Florida's interior ecology in a way that the older, more densely built northern area and the central area aren't. Morning wildlife sightings, natural vegetation buffers, the visual and acoustic character of a Florida natural landscape — these are southern area qualities that don't exist elsewhere in The Villages.
For buyers who came to Florida partly for the natural environment (not just the climate), and who want their neighborhood to feel like it belongs to Florida's landscape rather than being imposed on it, Sawgrass Grove's natural character is a genuine differentiator.
Sawgrass Grove neighborhoods
Every neighborhood below has a dedicated page. The southern area's naming vocabulary draws from Florida's natural heritage — ecology, exploration, native flora.
More neighborhoods being added: The southern area is actively developing. New communities are announced and built on an ongoing basis. Contact Scout for the most current list of available communities in the southern area.
Homes for sale in the southern area
Updated daily. Newest construction in Sawgrass Grove, Sumter County.
Southern Area vs. Central Area vs. Northern Area
The honest trade-off analysis buyers need before deciding.
- Lowest ongoing costs (mostly No bond to Low tiers)
- Most established character + landscaping
- Spanish Springs Town Square
- Lake County taxes (~1.6% — highest of the three counties)
- Older floor plans (late 1990s–early 2000s)
- Sumter County — generally lower tax rate
- Both Lake Sumter Landing + Brownwood
- Widest variety of home types
- Strongest overall amenity access
- Some villages carry Average or higher bond tiers
- Newest construction + modern floor plans
- Brand-new recreation centers
- New construction options available
- Florida natural landscape character
- Highest bond tiers (newest sections)
- Farther from established town squares than the central area
Frequently asked questions — Southern Area
The southern area is the right fit for buyers who prioritize new construction and modern home design over established character and low ongoing costs. If you want the newest floor plans, the freshest recreation centers, and the option to buy new (or near-new resale), the southern area is where to look. It's also where buyers who are drawn to the southern area's natural character — marsh edges, wildlife corridors, Florida ecology — find a setting unlike anything in the northern area or the central area.
Sawgrass Grove is one of The Villages' five town squares — an entertainment hub that opened in 2022, with free nightly live music, dining, and shops. It sits in Sumter County, south of SR 44. Sawgrass Grove is not the name of the southern area; it is a town square within the southern area. The southern area's neighborhood names draw from Florida natural and heritage themes: Marsh Bend, Cason Hammock, Monarch Grove, Fenney, Citrus Grove. Eastport, which opened in 2025, is the newest town square and sits farther south.
Bond amounts in the southern area are set per village, not by area, and this site's tiers are verified against district bond schedules. Established villages such as Fenney, Monarch Grove, and Marsh Bend carry Average bond tiers ($1,500–$3,000/year); several villages vary by home; and the newest 2025 sections verified Average to High (roughly $2,700–$3,600/year) when the district published their schedules — only the unverified Village of LaGrange may run higher. A brand-new home carries its full original bond from day one — verify the bond balance and annual payment for any specific home before making an offer.
Most of the southern area is in Sumter County (ZIPs 32163 and 34762) — the same county as the central area — with property tax rates of approximately 1.0–1.29% (the higher figure applies inside City of Wildwood limits). The exception is the District 14 cluster of Dabney, Lake Denham, and Newell, which is in Lake County (ZIP 34762) and carries Lake's ~1.6% rate, the highest of the three Villages counties — always verify the county by address. For most southern area homes, the annual cost premium over the central area comes from the CDD bond assessment, not taxes: bond tiers are set per village — mostly Average in established southern villages, highest in the newest 2025 sections, and mostly Low in the central area. Verify per home.
The southern area has two of its own town squares: Sawgrass Grove (opened 2022) and Eastport (opened 2025), both in Sumter County south of SR 44. Brownwood Paddock Square is accessible by golf cart from the northernmost southern area neighborhoods. Sawgrass Grove and Eastport are still building out their dining and entertainment lineups compared to the more established Spanish Springs or Lake Sumter Landing, but free nightly entertainment runs at both. Eastport, centered on 250-acre Central Lake, is the newer and larger of the two southern squares.
Yes — the southern area is the primary area where The Villages is still actively building new homes. New construction options (buying directly from The Villages developer) are available throughout the southern area. New construction comes with the advantage of no prior owner, full builder warranty, and the ability to select finishes and options. The trade-off is that new construction carries full bond balances from day one.
The southern area offers the newest everything — newest homes, newest recreation centers, newest path network infrastructure — at the highest ongoing cost (the community's highest bond tiers in its newest sections; mostly the same Sumter County tax rates as the central area, except the Lake County District 14 villages of Dabney, Lake Denham, and Newell at ~1.6%). The northern area offers the lowest ongoing cost (mostly No bond to Low tiers, though its Lake County and Marion County villages carry higher tax rates than Sumter) and the most established character. The central area is the middle ground with Sumter County tax rates and two town squares within cart range. The southern area is best for buyers prioritizing new construction; the central area for buyers prioritizing value and amenity access; the northern area for buyers prioritizing established character and lowest ongoing costs.
Interested in the Southern Area?
I can walk you through the new construction options, run a real annual-cost comparison against the central area and northern area alternatives, and help you decide whether the southern area fits your budget and lifestyle.