Living in Florida's Space Coast
Highland Shores Estates
Highland Shores Estates is essentially one street. Sunswept Road NE runs out to a navigable canal off Turkey Creek in the older northeast corner of Palm Bay. The houses are single story, built between 1977 and 1980, 1,589 to 2,706 square feet, most of them with a dock, a boat lift and a seawall. There is no homeowners association.
Highland Shores Estates In Palm Bay, Florida
This is old Palm Bay, the part east of Babcock Street that was built out before the city pushed southwest. You reach it from Palm Bay Road or Port Malabar Boulevard to Clearmont Street NE, then in through Mandarin Drive, Lemon Street and Citrus, where the pavement changes name and becomes Sunswept Road NE. Every house on it fronts a canal cut off Turkey Creek, and every one of them is a 1970s ranch.
The structures are period correct and modest. Plans run 1,589 to 2,706 square feet, three or four bedrooms, two or three baths, all on one floor under shingle roofs, with brick, frame and stucco elevations depending on the house. Lots are a quarter acre to a bit under four tenths, which was normal for the era and is generous by current Palm Bay standards. Three out of four have a screened in ground pool.
There is no association here, and that fact does more work than anything else on this page. No dues, no architectural review, no gate, no shared dock, no reserve study. Each seawall, dock and lift belongs to the individual owner and is maintained on that owner's schedule and budget. Sewer is septic while water is public, so plan on a drainfield inspection and a locate of the tank rather than a monthly sewer bill.
Boating is why people pay here, and it deserves plain talk. The canal is navigable and seawalled, and the creek runs east to the Indian River, but the entrance off the Intracoastal is unmarked with depths around three feet, and there is a fixed bridge of roughly fifteen feet of clearance about a quarter mile in. This is center console and small cruiser water. It is not sailboat water and it is not big flybridge water.
Ocean access is south through Sebastian Inlet, which the Sebastian Inlet District describes as the only charted inlet between Cape Canaveral and Fort Pierce and a fair weather inlet used mostly by smaller recreational boats. The A1A bridge over it carries thirty nine feet of clearance. All of that gets priced in. At roughly $274 a square foot on 1970s houses, you are buying the water frontage and inheriting the house.
Highland Shores Estates At A Glance
Highland Shores Estates, the specifics.
| Detail | What you get |
|---|---|
| Detail | Value |
| Location | Sunswept Road NE off Clearmont Street NE, northeast Palm Bay 32905 |
| Built | 1977 to 1980, about 1979 typical |
| Home size | 1,589 to 2,706 square feet, about 1,998 typical |
| Bedrooms | Three or four, with two or three baths |
| Levels | Single story throughout |
| Lot size | 0.23 to 0.39 of an acre, about 0.27 typical |
| Construction | Brick, frame and stucco ranch elevations, shingle roofs |
| Association | None. No homeowners association, no dues, no architectural review, no shared dock |
| Water frontage | Canal front on Turkey Creek, navigable, seawalled |
| Docks | Private docks, boat lifts and boat slips on most properties |
| Pools | Screened in ground pools on most of the street |
| Garage | Two and three car |
| Utilities | Public water, septic tank sewer |
| Price range | $375,000 to $715,000, typical $572,000 |
| Price per square foot | Around $274, the highest in this part of Palm Bay |
| Streets | Sunswept Road NE |
Highland Shores Estates Details
You Buy The Water, Not The House
At roughly $274 a square foot on late 1970s construction, the premium sits entirely in the canal frontage, the seawall and the lift. Underwrite the house as a renovation candidate and the waterfront as the asset. That framing keeps offers realistic and keeps renovation budgets honest.
No Association At All
Nobody bills you and nobody tells you what color to paint. It also means no reserve fund behind the seawall, no shared dredging, no group insurance and no common maintenance. Every repair on your side of the property line is yours alone to schedule and to pay for.
Know Your Boat Before You Buy
The creek entrance off the Intracoastal is unmarked with about three feet of water, and a fixed bridge with roughly fifteen feet of clearance sits a quarter mile in. Measure your draft and your air draft against those two numbers before you fall for a view.
Septic, Not Sewer
Public water and a septic tank is the arrangement on this street. Have the tank located and the drainfield evaluated, ask when it was last pumped, and factor a possible replacement into your reserve. On a waterfront lot the drainfield location matters more than usual.
Ocean Access Runs South
Sebastian Inlet is the closest charted way out to the Atlantic, described by its own district as a fair weather inlet used mostly by smaller boats, with thirty nine feet of clearance under the A1A bridge. Plan your runs around weather and tide rather than assuming an all conditions inlet.
Turkey Creek Sanctuary Next Door
The creek runs through a 113 acre preserve with about 1.85 miles of boardwalk, a canoe deck and the Margaret Hames Nature Center, which opened in 1992. Manatees, dolphins and wading birds work this stretch of water year round, and that is not sales language, it is why people stay.
Homes For Sale In Highland Shores Estates
Whatever is currently for sale in Highland Shores Estates shows below. There are only a handful of houses on this canal, so an empty result here is common rather than unusual.
Highland Shores Estates Frequently Asked Questions
Is there a homeowners association?
No. Highland Shores Estates has no association, no dues and no architectural review. Docks, lifts and seawalls are individually owned and individually maintained. That freedom is real, and so is the absence of any shared fund when a seawall needs work.
Can I get a boat to the ocean from here?
Yes, with limits. The canal is navigable and connects through Turkey Creek east to the Indian River. The creek entrance off the Intracoastal is unmarked with roughly three feet of depth, and a fixed bridge with about fifteen feet of clearance sits a quarter mile inside. Ocean access is south through Sebastian Inlet.
What kind of boat fits?
Center consoles, bay boats, small cruisers and pontoons. Anything with a fixed mast or a tall tower will not clear the bridge, and anything drawing more than a couple of feet will have to time the tide at the creek mouth. Bring the numbers for your specific boat to the showing.
Are these homes on sewer?
No. Water is public and sewer is septic. Have the tank located and the drainfield assessed as part of your due diligence, and ask the seller for the last pump out and any repair records.
Why is the price per square foot so high?
Because the houses are small and the water frontage is not. Around $274 a foot on a 1979 ranch reflects a seawalled canal lot with a dock and a lift, not the finishes inside. Compare against other Turkey Creek frontage rather than against inland Palm Bay.
What about flood zones and insurance?
Assume flood insurance will be part of your payment and price it before you go under contract. Brevard County Public Works, Floodplain Administration is the official county repository for FEMA flood map panels and issues written flood zone determinations and elevation certificates. Their number is (321) 617-7340.
How old are the systems?
These houses date from 1977 to 1980, so roofs, electrical panels, plumbing and air handlers have all been replaced at least once by now, or are overdue. Ask for permit history on the roof, the seawall and the lift, since all three are expensive and all three age.
How quickly does anything sell here?
Quickly when it is priced right. Time on market has run around a month, which is fast for the price point, and the reason is simple: navigable canal frontage with a lift and no association is a short list in Palm Bay.
Sunswept Road NE, Palm Bay 32905
Highland Shores Estates sits in northeast Palm Bay, inland of US 1 and east of Babcock Street, on the canal system cut off Turkey Creek. Most people come in from Port Malabar Boulevard or Palm Bay Road to Clearmont Street NE, north through Mandarin Drive, then Lemon Street and Citrus to where the road becomes Sunswept Road NE. It is a quiet dead end pattern with no through traffic.
The location trades new construction for proximity. US 1 is a couple of minutes east, the Melbourne line and the Palm Bay Road retail corridor are five to ten minutes north, and I-95 exit 176 at Palm Bay Road is roughly ten minutes west. The barrier island beaches are a causeway crossing away rather than a walk, because Palm Bay itself is on the mainland. Turkey Creek Sanctuary is close enough to paddle to.
Near Highland Shores Estates In Merritt Island
Considering Highland Shores Estates?
Canal frontage is only worth what your boat can actually use, and the difference between a seawall with ten good years left and one that is due shows up as a five figure line item, not a talking point. My partner Nichole and I know this stretch of Turkey Creek and can tell you what to inspect before you commit. Call or text (321) 212-7676.
