Bradenton Fees
Bradenton HOA and CDD fees by community
24 communities · Updated quarterly · Last reviewed September 2026
Short answer: Bradenton is the cheapest place to carry a home of any area I track. The median community here runs about $1,783 a year in combined HOA and CDD, against roughly $2,808 in Parrish and $5,923 in Lakewood Ranch. The spread inside Bradenton is still wide, from about $357 in Braden Woods to $8,675 in Waterlefe, and two things explain almost all of it: whether the community carries a district assessment, and whether golf membership is built into the dues.
About these CDD numbers
The CDD and Stewardship amounts below are not estimates. They are the assessments actually levied on the parcel, from the Manatee County Property Appraiser’s certified tax roll, which is the record your tax bill is printed from. Listing data on these same communities was wrong in both directions, and three corrections are noted further down. HOA dues are still estimates, because the county does not record private association fees at all.
Why Bradenton carries less than the newer master plans
A Community Development District is a financing mechanism, not an amenity. It issues municipal bonds to build a community’s roads, drainage and amenities up front, and every homeowner repays a share through a non-ad valorem assessment that appears on the property tax bill. The assessment has a debt portion, which eventually retires, and an operations portion, which does not.
Most of Bradenton was platted before that became the standard way to finance a master plan. 15 of the 24 communities tracked here carry no district assessment at all, which is the single biggest reason the median lands where it does. Where a district does exist, it is usually a community built after 2000, and the assessment is doing real work rather than padding a budget.
Compare against Parrish, Lakewood Ranch, Sarasota and Wellen Park, or see all five side by side in the True Cost Index.
Bradenton fees by community, 2026 table
HOA figures are annual estimates compiled from listing data. CDD and Stewardship figures are the amounts assessed on the county tax roll, shown as the range across the community’s homes.
| Community | HOA / yr (est.) | CDD / yr (assessed) | Flood Zone | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Braden Woods | $192 - $522 | None | Lowest combined carrying cost tracked here; acre-plus lots in the early phases | |
| Central Park | $2,368 - $4,996 | $982 - $1,666 | Pays a Lakewood Ranch Stewardship assessment, not a CDD | |
| Country Creek | $528 - $600 | None | ||
| Country Meadows | $630 - $1,188 | None | ||
| Del Tierra | $1,320 - $1,620 | None | Recent construction at this size with no CDD at all is unusual | |
| Greenfield Plantation | $485 - $510 | None | ||
| Greyhawk Landing | $70 - $75 | $2,319 - $3,479 | The $70 HOA is real, the CDD carries the gate, clubhouses and amenities | |
| Hawthorn Park | $1,700 - $1,750 | None | ||
| Heritage Harbour | $4,252 - $8,568 | $1,589 - $2,274 | Master plan of three neighborhoods with two separate districts | |
| Lighthouse Cove | $508 - $548 | $806 | Flat $806 CDD, the lowest total cost inside Heritage Harbour | |
| Mill Creek | $535 - $660 | None | ||
| Mote Ranch | $1,156 - $1,416 | None | ||
| Oak Trace | $616 | None | ||
| Palma Sola Trace | $3,408 - $7,007 | $1,310 - $1,506 | CDD covers ponds, lighting, the bridge, the perimeter wall and emergency gates | |
| Peridia | $1,040 - $3,752 | None | Golf is included in the HOA, but the course is a par-60 executive layout | |
| River Club | $845 - $2,720 | None | Golf membership is optional and not in the dues | |
| River Strand | $4,720 - $8,572 | $1,794 - $1,873 | Golf membership is bundled into the HOA, compare only against other bundled clubs | |
| Rosedale Golf & Country Club | $1,600 - $3,828 | None | ||
| Stoneybrook at Heritage Harbour | $1,104 - $1,628 | $941 - $1,389 | Separate association and district from River Strand | |
| Tara Golf & Country Club | Not published | $1,286 - $1,933 | Only 38% of homes sit inside the Tara CDD; HOA range not yet published | |
| The Trails | $587 - $665 | None | ||
| University Park | $5,368 - $9,264 | None | Same 39 county plats as the University Park Country Club listing | |
| University Park Country Club | $6,260 - $9,208 | None | ||
| Waterlefe | $3,672 - $6,444 | $3,134 - $4,099 | Highest CDD in Bradenton, and the only community with its own marina |
HOA amounts are estimates and vary by lot, product type and sub-association; always verify against the association budget before writing an offer. CDD amounts are assessed figures from the certified roll and still vary parcel by parcel. Last reviewed September 2026. See the full fee table across every area.
Three places the listing data was wrong
Checking every community against the certified roll rather than against MLS entries changed three answers. None of these are rounding differences, they are the kind of gap that breaks a budget.
Heritage Harbour
$806 to $1,544→$1,589 to $2,274
The listing figure understated the assessment by roughly $700 a year at the midpoint. Heritage Harbour also runs two districts, North and South, and its three neighborhoods do not share one number.
River Strand
$1,008 to $1,480→$1,794 to $1,873
Effectively every home is assessed within a tight band, not the wide low range listings suggested.
Central Park
listed as a CDD, $953 to $1,835→a Stewardship assessment, $982 to $1,666
Not a CDD at all. It sits in the Lakewood Ranch Stewardship District, a different mechanism, and the site had this community filed under two regions with two different numbers. Both now carry the assessed figure.
What a district assessment actually buys
“CDD” on a listing tells you nothing about what you get. In two of these communities the documents are specific, and the difference is instructive.
Greyhawk Landing
$2,319 – $3,479
Its HOA is $70 to $75 a year, which looks impossible until you see what the district covers: the 24-hour manned gate, both clubhouses, the pool complex with its waterslides, the fitness center, the sports courts and the roads. Quote the HOA alone and the community looks nearly free to own. Quote both and it is mid-range.
Palma Sola Trace
$1,310 – $1,506
A City of Bradenton district over about 104 acres, responsible for a defined list: the ponds, the street lighting, the bridge, the perimeter wall and the emergency gates. Not the clubhouse, not the pool. Those sit with the association, which is why its total looks different from Greyhawk’s despite a similar headline.
The other 7 communities with a district are Central Park, Heritage Harbour, Lighthouse Cove, River Strand, Stoneybrook at Heritage Harbour, Tara Golf & Country Club, Waterlefe.
Bundled or optional: the decision that sets your fee
Bradenton has more golf communities than any area I cover, and they do not work the same way. This is the question to settle before comparing any two of them, because it moves the annual number by thousands.
Bundled
River Strand, Peridia
Membership is built into the dues. Every owner pays whether they play or not. River Strand runs $4,720 to $8,572 a year for 27 Arthur Hills holes and a 39,000 sq ft clubhouse. Peridia bundles too, but its course is a par-60 executive layout, which is why it costs a fraction as much.
Optional
River Club, Palm Aire, University Park
The course is there, the membership is not compulsory. A non-golfer can own on a fairway and skip the club. River Club runs $845 to $2,720 a year with a semi-private Ron Garl course open to the public; Palm Aire sells membership in five separate tiers.
Member-owned
Tara, Rosedale
The members own the club, and membership class travels with the home. Tara has a Class A with full golf and a Class B covering clubhouse, pool, fitness and tennis with golf at guest rates. Two neighboring houses can carry very different annual costs.
How to check the real numbers for one address
Pull the property on the Manatee County Property Appraiser site and read the non-ad valorem assessments section of the most recent tax bill. Every district that touches the parcel is named there with its exact amount, which is where the figures on this page come from.
For the association, ask for the current budget rather than trusting a listing field, and in a golf community ask specifically which membership class the sale conveys. That single answer has moved more Bradenton budgets than any other line item I see.
Common Questions
Bradenton HOA & CDD FAQ
How much are HOA and CDD fees in Bradenton?
Across the 24 Bradenton communities I track, the median home pays roughly $1,783 a year in combined HOA and CDD costs. That is the lowest of any area I cover, below Parrish at about $2,665, Lakewood Ranch at $5,923 and Wellen Park at $7,804. The range within Bradenton is wide, from about $357 a year in Braden Woods to roughly $8,675 in Waterlefe, and the difference is almost entirely whether a community carries a district assessment and whether golf membership is bundled into the dues.
Why are Bradenton fees lower than Lakewood Ranch or Wellen Park?
Because most of Bradenton was platted before Community Development Districts became the standard way to finance a master plan. A CDD issues municipal bonds to build roads, drainage and amenities, and the homeowner repays them through a non-ad valorem assessment on the tax bill. Communities built in the 1980s and 1990s largely financed infrastructure another way, so there is no bond to repay. Fifteen of the 24 Bradenton communities I track carry no district assessment at all.
Are these CDD figures estimates?
No. The CDD and Stewardship amounts on this page are the assessments actually levied on the parcel, taken from the Manatee County Property Appraiser's certified tax roll, which is the record your tax bill is printed from. That matters, because listing data on the same communities was wrong in both directions: it understated Heritage Harbour by several hundred dollars a year, understated River Strand, and recorded Central Park as having a CDD when it actually pays a Lakewood Ranch Stewardship assessment. HOA dues are a different matter, the county does not record private association fees, so those remain estimates compiled from listing data.
What is the difference between bundled and optional golf in Bradenton?
It is the single biggest driver of the fee spread here. At River Strand and Peridia, club membership is built into the HOA, so every owner pays for golf whether they play or not, which is why River Strand dues run $4,720 to $8,572 a year. At River Club, Palm Aire and University Park, membership is optional and separate from the dues, so a non-golfer can live on a golf course without paying for the club. Tara is member-owned with two membership classes, and which class attaches to a given home changes the annual cost materially. Always establish which model applies before comparing two communities' fees.
How do I find the exact CDD assessment for a Bradenton address?
Look the property up on the Manatee County Property Appraiser site and read the non-ad valorem assessments section of the most recent tax bill, where each district is named with its exact amount. For the HOA, ask for the association's current budget rather than relying on a listing figure. Send me an address and I will pull both the same day.
Fees are half the picture
A fee table tells you the carrying cost, not whether the community fits. Related reading: living in Bradenton, the Bradenton community directory, the full Bradenton community guide, the full fee table across every area, and the side-by-side comparison tool.