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Dream Destin Realty

Destin · Community

Emerald Lakes Homes for Sale

Three platted phases of detached houses stepping inland from the US 98 corridor at Destin's eastern edge, arranged around freshwater ponds, with Emerald Bay's platted sections wrapping the north and east boundaries and a county-run beach park the closest public sand.

  • Primarily residential
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Living in Emerald Lakes

Emerald Lakes is a run of detached houses set back inland from US 98 near the eastern end of Destin, recorded in Okaloosa County's subdivision index as three phases: Phase I along the highway frontage, Phase II behind it, and Phase III at the back, with a separately identified commercial tract sitting between the residential streets and the road. The community carries a Destin mailing address but lies outside the city limits, in unincorporated Okaloosa County, which is worth knowing before assuming any city program applies to a given lot. Water is the organizing feature: county mapping shows more than a dozen ponds inside the plat, freshwater rather than navigable. The association publishes no amenity schedule of its own, so what is shared here, and whether the entrance is staffed, are questions for the association's current documents rather than for this page. Golf sits on both sides without belonging to the community: the Emerald Bay course lies east, Regatta Bay west, each under its own club. Nothing here fronts the Gulf. The nearest public sand is James Lee Park on Scenic Highway 98, roughly a mile south as the crow flies, owned and managed by Okaloosa County and free to enter, with dune walkovers, pavilions, restrooms and changing rooms, showers, a playground, and a parking lot.

  • Freshwater ponds throughout the plat
  • Emerald Bay course adjacent, Regatta Bay course nearby

Live Inventory

Homes for Sale in Emerald Lakes

4

Active Listings

$652K

Median List Price

$284

Avg Price / Sqft

Live from today's Emerald Lakes MLS file. This count applies no property-type filter, so it can run higher than the market page's dwelling-only count, which leaves out lots and land. The median and $/sq ft beside it cover the same 4 listings.

$655,000

285 Tequesta Drive

Destin, FL 32541

3 bd 2 ba 1,823 sqft
Price Reduced

$849,999

330 Tequesta Drive

Destin, FL 32541

4 bd 4 ba 3,340 sqft
Price Reduced

$649,000

226 Talquin Cove

Destin, FL 32541

3 bd 3 ba 2,091 sqft
Price Reduced

$534,900

317 Tequesta Drive

Destin, FL 32541

3 bd 3 ba 2,508 sqft

Local Answers

Emerald Lakes FAQ

Is Emerald Lakes the same place as Emerald Bay?

No, and they touch, which is why the names get crossed. Okaloosa County's subdivision index files them under separate identifiers: Emerald Lakes as phases I, II and III, Emerald Bay under its own entries, and each community answers to its own Florida-registered association. Emerald Bay is organized around its golf course; Emerald Lakes owns no course, and its water is the freshwater ponds inside its own plat. The Emerald Bay sections wrap around the north and east of the Emerald Lakes streets, so a map that ignores the plat lines will make them look like one place.

Is Emerald Lakes actually inside the city of Destin?

The mailing address says Destin and the listings file under Destin, but the land itself is not in the city. Okaloosa County's municipal boundary layer returns unincorporated at the community's center, and federal address geocoding returns no incorporated place for its streets while returning Destin for addresses like city hall. That distinction matters when you are checking which permits, programs, and service providers reach a particular lot, so verify jurisdiction per parcel rather than per mailing address.

How do people at Emerald Lakes get to the beach?

By car. No part of the plat touches the Gulf and no source describes a walkover belonging to the community, so beach days mean crossing US 98 and heading down to Scenic Highway 98. The closest public sand is James Lee Park, about a mile to the south in a straight line, which Okaloosa County owns and runs and which charges nothing to enter; showers, restrooms and covered pavilions are on site. If a specific beach arrangement matters to your purchase, confirm it in writing during diligence.

What governs renting a house at Emerald Lakes?

Two layers, and neither is a city program, because the community sits in unincorporated territory. Statewide, Florida treats an overnight stay of under six months as a short-term rental, and Okaloosa County directs owners of such property to hold vacation rental licensing from the Department of Business and Professional Regulation and to remit the county tourist development tax on stays of six months or less. Layered on top of that, the recorded covenants of Emerald Lakes Property Owners Association, Inc. decide what any individual lot may actually do, and nothing published openly by that association settles the question either way. Obtain the recorded documents and the current rules during your inspection period and read the leasing article before you plan on rental use.

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Sources

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Sale prices, trends, days on market, and inventory - refreshed monthly from MLS data.

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