The Grand Haven Master Association answers the cost question in one line on its FAQ page: "The 2026 annual assessment is $175.00 per year." That is the HOA figure a buyer is likely to see when comparing Grand Haven with other gated golf communities in Palm Coast. Next to the monthly dues at many Florida club communities, it looks unusually low.
It is accurate, and it is also the smallest of the charges tied to a Grand Haven address. The gates, the guards, the common-area landscaping and the Village Center and Creekside amenities are not paid through the HOA. They are paid through the Grand Haven Community Development District, a public taxing district whose assessment arrives with the Flagler County property tax notice. Read the district's budget and you have the real cost of the community.
Where the Rest of the Money Sits
For fiscal year 2027, which runs October 1, 2026 through September 30, 2027, the CDD's adopted operations and maintenance assessment for a single lot or occupied condo is $2,682.12. That is up $97.12 from $2,585.00 in FY2026, or about $8.09 a month. The same budget adds a separate Capital Reserve Fund assessment of $568 per standard unit. Together that comes to roughly $3,250 a year for a standard lot, more than eighteen times the master HOA assessment.
The per-unit figures are gross amounts. The district's allocation adds county collection costs and an early-payment discount allowance on top of the net budget. Flagler County's Tax Collector describes non-ad valorem assessments like these as set amounts rather than value-based charges. They are merged into the certified roll and mailed with the tax notice. In practice, a buyer who budgets from the listing's HOA line will be short by about $3,000 a year, and the gap shows up on the first tax bill.
| Layer | How it is billed | Current amount, standard lot | What it covers |
|---|---|---|---|
| Grand Haven Master Association | Annual invoice, due January 1 | $175.00 for 2026 | Deed-restriction enforcement, Fine Committee, Architectural Design Committee |
| Grand Haven CDD, O&M | Flagler County tax notice | $2,682.12 for FY2027 | Gates and security, community landscaping, amenity operations |
| Grand Haven CDD, Capital Reserve | Flagler County tax notice | $568 for FY2027 | Reserve funding for capital work |
| Village or condo association | Varies by village | Confirm with the village | Village-specific facilities and services |
| Grand Haven Golf Club | Club billing | Pricing on request | Golf and social membership, optional |
A District With No Bonds to Repay
Across Florida, "CDD" often means debt. Developers use these districts to finance roads, utilities and amenities with bonds, and homeowners repay them through capital assessments over decades. Grand Haven's own FAQ still describes that general model and notes that CDD capital assessments may repay bonds.
Grand Haven's financial statements don't fit that model. The district's audited statement of net position for the year ended September 30, 2025 lists total liabilities of $138,040, all of it accounts payable and accrued expenses. It shows no bonds payable. The same statement reports $4,133,514 in cash and total net position of $14,852,387. The FY2027 assessment schedule lists an O&M assessment, a Capital Reserve assessment and a small La Vista landscape restoration assessment, with no debt-service line.
This changes how a buyer should read the number. In a district still paying off bonds, part of each year's assessment goes to infrastructure finished years ago, and that part stays fixed no matter how well the district is run. In Grand Haven, every dollar of the roughly $3,250 pays for current services or reserves for future repairs. The assessment rises and falls with operating decisions, and those decisions are made in public.
What the $4.8 Million Buys
The FY2027 general fund O&M levy is $4,817,252 net, up $174,442 or 3.76% from $4,642,810 in FY2026. A few lines account for much of the budget, and each one is a service an owner would otherwise pay for through an HOA:
- Security. $246,743 for gate-access staffing, within $320,645 in total security costs.
- Landscaping. $742,674 for the community landscape maintenance contract, $50,444 for landscape repairs and replacement, and $52,730 for oak tree pruning.
- Amenities. Amenity management and maintenance, plus separate utility and communications lines for the Village Center and Creekside.
- Infrastructure upkeep. $50,000 in planned stormwater maintenance, $20,000 for sidewalk repairs and $5,000 for roads and bridges repairs in the operating budget.
The capital plan, funded through the reserve, budgets $297,052 for road resurfacing, $79,568 for curb and gutter pre-work, $100,000 for stormwater system repairs, $35,000 for pond-bank reinforcement and $37,000 for lake aerators. These are planned projects, not finished ones. Some earlier work is already done. A March 2026 project tracker marked $29,600 in pond-bank erosion work complete on February 17, 2026, and listed a $13,401 gate operator replacement, with a second order placed February 25.
For a buyer, the capital plan works like a forecast. It shows which roads, curbs and ponds the district has already set aside reserve money for this year.
The Budget Debate Happens in Public
A CDD is a unit of local government, so its agendas, budgets and audits are posted for anyone to read. The FY2027 adopted budget was uploaded to the district's finance page on September 4, 2026. The board had approved the proposed version in May and set a public hearing for August 20.
The March 19, 2026 agenda package includes a budget fact-finding report from a team led by Supervisor John Chism. The team began its work in June 2025 and drafted formal budget policies covering a balanced budget, reserve funds, long-term focus, prioritization, transparency and personnel. Its central finding:
"essentially 81% of the annual expenses were located among only 10 individual fixed price accounts (including accelerators)."
The report also notes that residents it questioned said a budget built on fixed-percentage increases breeds distrust, and that they expected transparency. It found that some contracts are running on extensions that let vendors change rates or have not been renegotiated in years, and it recommended using government purchasing tools.
With no debt in the assessment, the future rate depends mostly on about ten contracts. Whether they get rebid or renegotiated will shape the tax bill more than anything a listing can say. The board deciding this is listed by name in the agendas. The May 28 roster shows John Chism, Dr. Merrill Stass-Isern, Kevin Foley, Richard Mayor and Nancy Crouch, and the July 16 packet lists Janet Greenwood and Kathy Myers along with Stass-Isern, Foley and Mayor.
Recent agendas also show the issues still open. In March, the board scheduled a resolution to reduce non-resident amenity memberships, along with discussion of nighttime swimming at the Village Center. In July, the agenda carried a draft no-parking and towing policy and plans for a resident-appreciation night and town hall. These were agenda items. Check the minutes for what was adopted before treating any of them as settled policy.
The Layers Below and Beside the District
The $175 master assessment is not every owner's total association cost either. Under the Master Declaration, villages within Grand Haven can carry their own budgets and assessments. Crossings, for example, has a private village pool that the Master Association says is not a CDD amenity and is reserved for Crossings homeowners and their visitors. Village and condo dues vary, so confirm the figures for the specific village during due diligence.
The Master Association handles architectural approvals. Exterior changes need Architectural Design Committee approval, including landscaping, paint colors, driveways, fences and generators.
The Grand Haven Golf Club sits outside both layers. The Master Declaration says owning a home in Grand Haven does not give a right to use the golf or country club property. The club offers golf, social and trial memberships to residents and non-residents, and it provides its dues schedule on request.
Quick Answers
Is any of the Grand Haven CDD assessment repaying bonds? The FY2025 audit shows no bonds payable, and the FY2027 assessment schedule has no debt-service line. The assessment pays for operations, reserves and the small La Vista restoration levy.
When does the CDD assessment get paid? It comes with the annual Flagler County property tax notice as a non-ad valorem assessment. The master HOA's $175 is billed separately, due January 1 and delinquent after January 15.
Where can a buyer read the district's plans before making an offer? Budgets, audits and meeting packets are posted on the Grand Haven CDD website, and the district's audit is filed with the Florida Auditor General.
If you are weighing a Grand Haven home, Coastal Pros can go through the district budget, the village association documents and the full annual cost for that address with you before you write an offer. Schedule a private consultation.
