Living in Florida's Space Coast
Otter Trace
Otter Trace is a small custom home enclave on the north end of the island, east of North Courtenay Parkway off Chase Hammock Road. Two streets, Winding Way and Otter Lane, both ending in trees. Lots start at half an acre and run past two and a half. Houses were built one at a time between 1993 and 2007, and no two of them match.
Otter Trace In Merritt Island, Florida
There is no builder signature in Otter Trace. Turn off Chase Hammock Road onto Winding Way and you pass a two story Victorian with wraparound porch, then a traditional stucco ranch, then a frame house with composition siding set well back under oaks. The lots were sold and built individually across roughly fifteen years, which is exactly why the neighborhood reads as a collection of houses rather than a development.
Scale is the other headline. Homes here run from 2,369 to nearly 4,900 square feet, with about 2,836 in the middle, four to six bedrooms and three to five baths. Three car garages are common. One property carries two separate residences connected by a paver deck around a forty foot pool. This is not a starter neighborhood, and the floor plans reflect owners who built for themselves.
The lots do a lot of work. Half an acre is the entry point and several parcels run well past an acre, most of them wooded with mature canopy and genuine separation between houses. Winding Way dead ends, which kills through traffic entirely. Four of five homes have an in ground pool, several with screen enclosure or salt systems, and fire pits show up on more than one back lot.
Otter Trace Homeowners' Association, Inc. is an active Florida nonprofit and the annual assessment is 150 dollars. That is not a typo. There are recorded covenants and a mandatory association, but the money covers the entrance and common area, not amenities. If you want the discipline of deed restrictions without a monthly bill, this structure is about as light as it gets.
Utilities are public water on septic, standard for this part of North Merritt Island. Prices have run from the mid 600s to just over a million with the middle near 740,000 and around 261 dollars per square foot. Homes take roughly two months to trade, and sellers have generally finished within a few points of where they opened. Inventory is thin because almost nobody leaves.
Otter Trace At A Glance
The essentials on Otter Trace before you drive out there.
| Detail | What you get |
|---|---|
| Location | East off North Courtenay Parkway via Chase Hammock Road, North Merritt Island 32953 |
| Built | 1993 to 2007, built lot by lot |
| Home size | 2,369 to about 4,900 square feet, roughly 2,836 in the middle |
| Bedrooms | Four to six bedrooms, three to five baths |
| Lot size | 0.5 to 2.6 acres, most around 0.6 acre |
| Construction | Predominantly frame with composition siding or stucco, shingle roofs, several two story |
| Architecture | No single style; Victorian, traditional and stucco ranch all present |
| Association | Otter Trace Homeowners' Association, Inc., mandatory, 150 dollars annually |
| Utilities | Public water with septic systems |
| Price range | About 694,000 to 1,080,000, middle near 740,000 |
| Price per square foot | Around 261 dollars |
| Pools | In ground pools on most homes, several screened or salt |
| Garage | Two to three car, three car typical |
| Lot character | Wooded, many trees, dead end streets |
| Water frontage | None navigable; one lot touches a non navigable canal |
| Streets | Winding Way and Otter Lane |
| Gated | No |
| Age restricted | No |
Otter Trace Details
Every House Is Different
Lots were sold individually and owners brought their own plans, so the street holds Victorian, traditional and contemporary side by side. If a neighborhood of matching elevations feels sterile to you, this is the antidote on North Merritt Island.
Trees, And A Lot Of Them
These are wooded parcels with mature canopy, not cleared pads with sod. Views from most houses are into woods rather than at a neighbor. It changes the temperature of the yard in August and it changes how the street sounds.
A Hundred And Fifty Dollars A Year
The association is mandatory and it costs 150 dollars annually. You get recorded covenants and a maintained entrance without any monthly assessment or amenity budget. For buyers allergic to association overhead, this is about as light as it gets.
Room For The Toys
Half acre minimum lots, three car garages and dead end streets mean the boat, the trailer and the workshop all have somewhere to go. Confirm the covenants on outside storage before you count on it, but the physical room is here.
Big Houses Without Downtown Prices
Around 261 dollars a foot for 2,800 to 4,900 square feet on acreage is a different math than waterfront. Buyers trading dockage for interior space and land consistently land in this pocket of the island.
Septic And A Long Driveway
Public water, private septic, and driveways that in some cases run a couple hundred feet. Get the septic located and aged, and think about how a long unlit drive works for you at night before you buy the privacy.
Homes For Sale In Otter Trace
Homes for sale in and around Otter Trace appear below. This is a small community that rarely has more than one thing available, so it is worth also watching the surrounding Chase Hammock corridor.
Otter Trace Frequently Asked Questions
What is the HOA fee in Otter Trace?
One hundred fifty dollars a year. Otter Trace Homeowners' Association, Inc. is an active Florida nonprofit corporation with recorded covenants. It is a mandatory association, but the assessment covers common area upkeep rather than amenities.
How big are the lots?
They start at about half an acre and run up to roughly two and a half acres, with most parcels near six tenths of an acre. Most are wooded, and several homes sit well back from the road behind mature canopy.
Is Otter Trace on septic?
Yes. Every home runs its own septic system with public water service, which is typical for this part of North Merritt Island. Locate the tank, confirm the drainfield age and check that nothing has been built over it.
Are there waterfront homes here?
Not in any meaningful sense. One lot touches a canal that is not navigable. Otter Trace is a wooded, dry lot neighborhood, and buyers who want a boat behind the house should be looking at the Sykes Creek and Banana River communities instead.
Who built the homes in Otter Trace?
There is no single builder. Lots were sold individually between the early 1990s and the mid 2000s and owners built to their own plans, which is why architectural styles vary so widely from one address to the next.
Is the neighborhood gated?
No. There is no gate. Winding Way is a dead end street with no through traffic, which gives the community a fair amount of natural privacy without a controlled entrance.
How do I get there from the Beachline?
Take State Road 528 to North Courtenay Parkway, head north past the Beachline interchange, then turn east onto Chase Hammock Road. Winding Way is the turn into Otter Trace, with Otter Lane branching off inside the community.
Should I get a flood determination for a lot here?
Yes, particularly on the larger wooded parcels where elevation varies. Brevard County Public Works, Floodplain Administration answers at (321) 617-7340, holds the county's official FEMA flood map panels, and will put a zone determination in writing for a specific parcel.
Winding Way off Chase Hammock Road, Merritt Island 32953
Otter Trace is on the north end of the island, above the Canaveral Barge Canal and above the State Road 528 interchange. From North Courtenay Parkway you turn east onto Chase Hammock Road and then into the community on Winding Way. The surrounding area is a mix of acreage properties, older homesteads and a few newer gated pockets, with citrus era road names still in use.
State Road 528, the Beachline, is a few minutes south, which puts Port Canaveral about fifteen minutes out and Orlando International near the fifty five minute mark. The Kennedy Space Center gates are a short run north on Courtenay Parkway, which matters if that is where you work. State Road 520 and the main retail corridor are roughly fifteen minutes south.
Near Otter Trace In Merritt Island
Considering Otter Trace?
When every house on the street was built by a different owner to a different plan, the inspection matters more than the comparables. Framing, siding, roof age and septic all vary address to address out here. My partner Nichole and I know the Chase Hammock corridor and can tell you what a given house should actually cost. Call or text (321) 212-7676 and we will get you out there.
