Palm City, FloridaNeighborhood Guide and Homes for Sale

By Monika Phillips, Douglas Elliman

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25,883Residents, Palm City, 2020 Census
84Named communities
34990Zip code; 34991 for post office boxes
16.4 sq miCensus area, 2.5 of it water
1912Palm City Farms drainage and roads begin

Palm City is an unincorporated community of 25,883 people (2020 Census) in Martin County, on the west bank of the St. Lucie River across from Stuart. We cover 61 named communities with Palm City addresses, each with its own guide, plus nine smaller ones on one page, from yacht and golf clubs on the river such as Piper’s Landing and Palm Cove to the neighborhoods of Martin Downs, newer gated communities, Newfield and the acreage of Palm City Farms.

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Overview

West Across the River

Palm City sits on the west bank of the St. Lucie River in Martin County, across the Palm City Bridge from Stuart, where the South Fork carries the Okeechobee Waterway down to the river and the inlet.

The river side came first. Along the South Fork and the creeks that feed it, Danforth and Bessey among them, are the yacht and golf clubs, Piper’s Landing, Harbour Ridge, Palm Cove and the Evergreen Club, and gated neighborhoods with docks such as Cutter Sound and Cobblestone. The older center of Palm City, with its shops and the Old Palm City Town Square, sits along Martin Highway and Mapp Road near the bridge.

Inland is Martin Downs, master-planned from the mid-1970s around two golf courses and still the largest block of neighborhoods in Palm City, Monarch, Crane Creek, The Meadows and Sunset Trace among them. West toward the Turnpike and I-95 are newer gated communities such as Copperleaf, Highlands Reserve and Canopy Creek, then the ten-acre farm tracts of Palm City Farms, and beyond them Newfield, a planned town on former farmland that is selling its first neighborhood.

One thing to know early: Palm City is not a city. It is unincorporated Martin County, so the county sets the taxes, the permits and the building rules. What we watch for buyers here: how each club handles membership, the flood zone and elevation along the river and creeks, dock permits and the bridges between the dock and the St. Lucie Inlet, the history of Lake Okeechobee releases on the South Fork, and the age and reserves of the older villa and condominium associations. The community guides cover those one community at a time.

The St. Lucie River at the Roosevelt Bridge, downriver from Palm City
The St. Lucie River, which Palm City shares with Stuart.

At a glance

Location
Martin County, west across the St. Lucie River from Stuart, at the Turnpike and I-95
Water
The South Fork of the St. Lucie River (part of the Okeechobee Waterway), the North Fork at Harbour Ridge, and Danforth, Bessey and other creeks
Zip codes
34990, and 34991 for post office boxes
Jurisdiction
Unincorporated Martin County; there is no city or town government
Airports
Witham Field in Stuart about 15 minutes; President Donald J. Trump International (DJT) about 45 minutes south

84 named communities

Palm City Neighborhood Guides

We group the communities buyers ask about most by what they are, so you can compare like with like. Start with the featured communities, open A to Z for every Palm City community on record, or pick a type to narrow it down. Every community on this page is in unincorporated Martin County.

On the market now

Homes for Sale in Palm City

The newest Palm City listings across every price range, updated through the day from BeachesMLS.

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Beaches MLS

All listings featuring the BMLS logo are provided by BeachesMLS, Inc. This information is not verified for authenticity or accuracy and is not guaranteed. Copyright © 2026 BeachesMLS, Inc. IDX information is provided exclusively for consumers’ personal, non-commercial use and may not be used for any purpose other than to identify prospective properties consumers may be interested in purchasing. Information is deemed reliable but is not guaranteed accurate by BeachesMLS. Listings held by brokerage firms other than Douglas Elliman Real Estate are identified with the listing firm’s name on each listing’s detail page. Listing data is refreshed at least every 12 hours.

See All Palm City Homes for SaleSend Me New Listings

Rent first, then buy

Short-Term Rentals in Palm City

Many of our buyers rent here before they buy. A month or a season in a furnished home is the easiest way to learn Palm City: the drive, the beach, the club, the quiet weeks in summer. When the right home comes up, you are already here to see it.

See Furnished Rentals in Palm CitySend Me Your Dates

Leases of six months or less carry Florida sales tax and the county tourist development tax. For winter homes priced from $10,000 a month, see Luxury Rentals.

  • Furnished, by the monthHomes and condos with the rent quoted monthly, from a single month to a full winter season.
  • The rules come firstThe town, the association and the building each set a minimum lease, and some allow only a few leases a year. We read them with you before you commit, so the rental you love is one you can actually take.
  • Rent where you might buyTell us the neighborhoods on your list and we will look for rentals inside them, so your stay doubles as your search.

Closed sales, year over year

What Homes Sell for in Palm City

In the 12 months through {THROUGH}, {SALES} Palm City homes sold at a median of {MEDIAN}, about {PPSF} per square foot. Prices run from villas and condominiums in Martin Downs to river club homes and acreage, so the median by community below says more than any single number. Right now {ACTIVE} homes are for sale at a median asking price of {MEDLIST}, about {MSUPPLY} months of supply at the current pace.

On the Market Now

Averages across every active Palm City listing on BeachesMLS: how many homes are for sale, the average asking price, size and price per square foot. Houses, villas, townhomes and condominiums are counted together, so use the community guides for numbers by neighborhood.

Active listings update through the day from BeachesMLS

Beaches and the water

Beaches Near Palm City

Palm City is inland on the St. Lucie River and has no ocean beach of its own. The nearest ocean beaches are Martin County’s guarded beaches on Hutchinson Island, across Stuart: Stuart Beach is about 18 minutes away and Bathtub Beach about 22. Closer to home, the river parks along the South Fork are where Palm City launches kayaks and paddleboards.

Open the public beaches map ↗

Ocean beaches on Hutchinson Island

4 places

On the river in Palm City

2 places

Palm City’s waterfront is river and canal frontage; for any home on the water we check the flood zone, the seawall and the permits on file.

Parks, preserves and culture

Things to Do in Palm City

Palm City’s parks are Martin County parks: Charlie Leighton Park on the river at the Palm City Bridge, Jock Leighton Park and L. Cpl. Justin Wilson Memorial Park on Mapp Road, and the Patio at Palm City Place in the Mapp Road town center. Halpatiokee Regional Park and Phipps Park are about 12 and 18 minutes away, and downtown Stuart, with the Riverwalk and the Lyric Theatre, is about 9 minutes east.

Open the parks and attractions map ↗

In Palm City

6 places

Nearby

7 places
Show all 7 places

On the water

Boating in Palm City

Palm City sits where the South Fork meets the St. Lucie River, with the Okeechobee Waterway running west toward Lake Okeechobee and the St. Lucie Inlet to the east past downtown Stuart. Martin County’s ramps in Palm City are at Charlie Leighton Park by the Palm City Bridge and at Pendarvis Cove Park, with more at Phipps Park on the waterway and at Sandsprit Park in Port Salerno.

Open the marinas and boat ramps map ↗

On the water

6 places

For a waterfront home we check the route to the St. Lucie Inlet, the bridges along it and the depth at the dock.

Golf

Golf in Palm City

Palm City has public courses at Hammock Creek Golf Club and Crane Watch Club, plus Martin Downs Golf Club, and private clubs at Harbour Ridge, Piper’s Landing and Palm Cove. Martin County’s Sailfish Sands Golf Course in Stuart is about 12 minutes away.

Open the golf courses map ↗

Open to the public

5 places

Private clubs

3 places

Club membership terms differ by club and by home; we confirm what comes with a specific address.

Sports and recreation

Parks and Sports in Palm City

Martin County runs Palm City’s fields and courts at L. Cpl. Justin Wilson Memorial Park and Jock Leighton Park on Mapp Road and Citrus Grove Park on SW Newfield Parkway. Youth leagues are listed countywide, and the county pool and waterpark, Sailfish Splash, is about 8 minutes away in Stuart.

Open the parks and recreation centers map ↗

Sports and recreation

9 places
Show all 9 places

Every year in Palm City

Palm City Events Calendar

Palm City’s own events come from the Palm City Chamber of Commerce, including the Veterans Memorial Bridge 5K from Jock Leighton Park each November. Most of the larger events Palm City attends are minutes away in Stuart: the Stuart Boat Show in January, ArtsFest and the Martin County Fair in February, the Fourth of July downtown and the Stuart Air Show in November.

Every Year

10 events
Show all 10 events

Dates move from year to year; each link goes to the organizer’s current page. Chamber events are on the Palm City Chamber of Commerce site, and Martin County’s on Discover Martin.

Dining and shopping

Restaurants and Shopping in Palm City

Palm City’s restaurants and shops sit along SW Martin Highway, in the Martin Downs plazas and on the rebuilt Mapp Road town center. For more, downtown Stuart is about 9 minutes east and downtown Jensen Beach about 19 minutes.

Open the restaurants map ↗

Dining and shopping

7 places
Show all 7 places

Evenings

Evenings in Palm City

Palm City is quiet after dark, with restaurants and bars along SW Martin Highway and Martin Downs Boulevard. Most evening entertainment is in downtown Stuart, about 9 minutes away: the Lyric Theatre, live music on the Riverwalk and the restaurants on Flagler Avenue and Osceola Street.

Open the bars and live music map ↗

Evenings

6 places

Schools and education

Schools and Colleges Near Palm City

Palm City’s public schools are Martin County School District schools, assigned by address. District boundary data splits Palm City among Bessey Creek, Palm City and Citrus Grove elementary schools, and assigns nearly all of it to Hidden Oaks Middle and Martin County High. Indian River State College’s Chastain Campus in Stuart is about 11 minutes away.

Public schools serving the area

7 places

Elementary zones in Palm City do not follow one road, and zones change; we confirm the assigned schools for any home with the district’s Find Your School maps.

Show all 7 places

Charter and private schools nearby

6 places

Preschool and VPK

2 places

Colleges and universities

2 places

Career training

2 places

Libraries

4 places

Healthcare

Hospitals and Healthcare Near Palm City

Palm City has no hospital. Cleveland Clinic Martin North Hospital near downtown Stuart and Martin South Hospital on SE Salerno Road are each about 10 minutes away, both with 24-hour emergency departments. Martin County Fire Rescue serves unincorporated Palm City.

Open the hospitals and urgent care map ↗

Healthcare

6 places

Getting around

Getting Around Palm City

Palm City sits on SW Martin Highway (SR 714), with I-95 at exit 110 and Florida’s Turnpike at exit 133 each about 10 minutes west of Mapp Road. The Palm City Bridge and the Veterans Memorial Bridge cross the St. Lucie River to Stuart. President Donald J. Trump International Airport, formerly Palm Beach International, is about 55 minutes south.

Travel

5 places

County services

9 places

Palm City is unincorporated Martin County: there is no town government. Water and sewer depend on the address: Martin County Utilities, or a well and septic system; we confirm the provider for any home.

Show all 9 places

New construction

New Developments Near Palm City

Pre-construction and new condominium and home projects close to Palm City, with deposit schedules, delivery dates and what is included. Every project page is written from the developer’s own documents.

Atlantic FieldsNew developmentSee the projectThe Landings at Hobe Sound VillageNew developmentSee the projectSailfish CayNew developmentSee the project1 Homes Jupiter IslandNew developmentSee the projectKing's Landing VillasNew developmentSee the project

All Palm Beach County New Developments

Where everything is

Palm City on the Map

Active listings across Palm City on a live map, from the river clubs and the Palm City Bridge west through Martin Downs to Palm City Farms and Newfield. Zoom in on a neighborhood to see what is for sale there.

Choosing between neighbors

Palm City, Stuart or Hobe Sound

This page

Palm City

Unincorporated Martin County west across the river: yacht and golf clubs on the St. Lucie, the neighborhoods of Martin Downs, newer gated communities, Newfield and acreage.

Town guide →

Stuart

Across the bridge: the county seat, with a downtown on the water, Hutchinson Island condominiums and river homes with docks.

Town guide →

Hobe Sound

South on the Intracoastal across from Jupiter Island: golf and marina clubs, single-family streets near the water and the 1920s Olympia plan.

The St. Lucie River at Stuart, downriver from Palm City
The St. Lucie River, the reason Palm City is where it is.

History

A Short History of Palm City

Palm City began as a hunting camp on the river and a farm tract cut by drainage ditches. The river, the creeks and the canal to Lake Okeechobee still shape where its neighborhoods are.

  1. 1892

    John S. Danforth, a sportsman from Maine, brought a floating hotel to the west bank of the St. Lucie, where Palm City would grow; Danforth Creek carries his name.

  2. 1911

    C. C. Chillingworth opened a land office in Stuart, then part of Palm Beach County, to sell the tract that became Palm City Farms.

  3. 1912

    The land company began digging drainage ditches and roads through its 10,000-acre tract, with outlets through Danforth Creek and Bessey Creek, and sold the land in ten-acre farm plots.

  4. 1919

    The Florida Legislature created the Palm City Drainage District to drain the new farms. By 1923 it covered 14,300 acres, with 28 citrus groves on 900 acres.

  5. 1924

    The St. Lucie Canal, begun in 1916, joined Lake Okeechobee to the South Fork just west of Palm City.

  6. 1925

    Martin County was created from Palm Beach County, with Stuart as its seat.

  7. 1937

    Palm City’s town government was dissolved, and Palm City has been unincorporated Martin County since.

  8. 1976

    The first course at Martin Downs, Crane Creek, opened in December on land master-planned as Palm City Ranch; the Osprey Creek course followed in 1982.

  9. 2024

    Ground was broken on Rosette Park, the first neighborhood of Newfield, the planned town in western Palm City with Mattamy Homes as master developer since 2022.

Sources: Thurlow-Lippisch: Palm City history, from the Historical Society of Martin County and the 1923 Miami Herald, List of former municipalities in Florida, Hometown News: Martin Downs, Mattamy Homes: Newfield, Palm City, Florida.

Buying or selling

Buying or Selling in Palm City

Buying

  • Association and club documents: the budget, reserves, leasing and pet rules, and any planned assessments
  • Club membership terms where they apply: required, optional or by invitation, and what joining and dues cost
  • Flood zone, elevation certificate, and wind and flood insurance quotes before the inspection period ends
  • Dock and seawall permits, depth at the slip, the bridges to the St. Lucie Inlet, and the Lake Okeechobee release history
  • On acreage: zoning, wells, septic, fencing and any agricultural classification on the tax bill
Start a Conversation

Selling

  • A valuation built on sales in your community, not a Palm City average
  • The documents buyers will ask for, gathered before the listing goes live
  • Pricing against what is active and pending in your community today
  • Marketing through Douglas Elliman, BeachesMLS and the major listing sites
  • Coordination from contract to closing day with our transaction team
Arrange a Confidential Valuation

Relocating

Moving Here From Out of State?

Our relocation guides start with the place you know. Each one pairs the neighborhoods you love back home with the towns here that feel the same, side by side, with what to see and where to start looking.

Moving to South FloridaFrom New YorkFrom New JerseyFrom ConnecticutFrom BostonFrom PhiladelphiaFrom Maryland and DCFrom ChicagoFrom California

Work With Monika

Your Next Chapter Starts With a Conversation

Every move starts a new chapter: a first home, more room, a place on the water, a winter home that becomes year-round. That deserves more than a search bar.

So we start with a conversation. What should the next few years look like? What can you not give up? I listen, then shape the search around your answers, so you only see places that fit and know what each one costs to own.

From there, my team and I handle the details: visits around your schedule, documents read before you ask, questions answered the same day.

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Questions

Questions Buyers Ask About Palm City

What does a home in Palm City cost?

In the 12 months through {THROUGH}, the median Palm City home sold for {MEDIAN}, about {PPSF} per square foot, across {SALES} sales. The middle 80% sold between {P10} and {P90}: villas and condominiums at the entry point, Martin Downs and the gated neighborhoods in the middle, and river club homes and acreage at the top. The live listings on this page show current asking prices.

Is Palm City a city?

No, despite the name. Palm City is an unincorporated community governed by Martin County, which sets the tax rate, the permits and the building rules. It had a town government of its own once; that was dissolved in 1937. We confirm the jurisdiction and taxing districts from the county property record for every address.

Do I have to join a club to live in Palm City?

Only in some communities. Harbour Ridge and Piper’s Landing tie membership to owning a home, Monarch makes golf and social membership optional, and most Palm City neighborhoods have no club at all. Clubs do not publish their fees, so we get the current terms in writing.

Can I keep a boat in Palm City?

Yes. Homes on the South Fork and its creeks have private docks, and Harbour Ridge, Piper’s Landing and Palm Cove have marinas. The run to the ocean goes down the river past the bridges at Stuart to the St. Lucie Inlet, and the South Fork is also the start of the Okeechobee Waterway west across the state. We check depth and bridge clearance against your boat.

What are the Lake Okeechobee releases?

The St. Lucie Canal, finished in 1924, joins Lake Okeechobee to the South Fork just west of Palm City. When the lake is high, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers releases water through the St. Lucie Lock, and large releases change the water in the river. Release records are public, and we show buyers the history for the stretch of river they are looking at.

How tall can buildings be in Palm City?

Martin County’s Comprehensive Plan caps buildings at four stories and 40 feet, except as its land development rules provide. That is why Palm City has no high-rise buildings.

How far is Palm City from the airport?

President Donald J. Trump International Airport (DJT) is about 45 minutes south on the Turnpike or I-95. Witham Field, Martin County’s general aviation airport in Stuart, is about 15 minutes away, and Fort Lauderdale about 90 minutes depending on traffic.

What should I know about flood insurance in Palm City?

Flood zones change from street to street, along the river and the creeks most of all. We get the flood zone and an elevation certificate for the address and request wind and flood quotes during the inspection period, so the carrying cost is known before you close.

Nearby

Towns Near Palm City

StuartThe county seat, across the Palm City Bridge
Hobe SoundThe Intracoastal shore, about 25 minutes south
Jupiter IslandThe island town past Hobe Sound
TequestaThe village on the Loxahatchee, at the county line
All communities we serveClub communitiesCondosWaterfront & boatingRentalsNew developments

Palm City homes · clubs · acreage · docks

Let Us Take Care of the Details

Tell us the neighborhood, the club, the acreage or the boat, and we will come back with the listings, the fees and the documents for it, then arrange the visits and coordinate every step to closing day.

Start a ConversationArrange a Valuation

Monika Phillips, Sales Associate, Douglas Elliman Real Estate

  • Visits arranged and attended with you
  • Association, club and flood documents read with you once you are under contract
  • Dock, depth, bridge and inlet checks for boat owners
  • One team from the first look to closing day