Living in DeBary, FL: Who It Fits, and Who Should Look Elsewhere

DeBary is really two towns sharing one zip code. At the south end, near the SunRail station, Rivington and Spring Walk at the Junction are selling brand new townhomes and houses, nearly all of them with a homeowners association. North of them is the older DeBary: houses typically built in the late 1970s, on streets with no association, selling within about $10,000 of what an older house costs in Deltona or Sanford. Close to three in ten homes that sold here in the last year were brand new, the highest share of the three towns on this page, and which half of DeBary you are shopping decides most of what follows.

Who DeBary Fits, and Who It Doesn't

Strong fit: buyers who want a new house on the Volusia side of the river for less than the same house costs in Sanford, since a new single-family home here closed at about $396,000 against about $476,000 across the river for roughly the same size; SunRail commuters, because the station is in town and both new communities sit close to it; buyers who want a new townhome, which closed at about $323,000 here; and buyers who want an older house with no association and a shorter drive than Deltona, at close to Deltona's price.

Weaker fit: families set on Seminole County schools, who need to cross the river to Sanford or Lake Mary; anyone who wants a new house without a homeowners association, because nearly all of the new construction here is in Rivington and Spring Walk; buyers who want a large market with a lot to choose from, since DeBary sells fewer than half as many homes as either Deltona or Sanford; buyers who want a walkable downtown now, since the town center planned around the SunRail station is still taking shape; and anyone buying into DeBary Plantation expecting a quick resale, since homes there took more than two months to go under contract, about twice the town's pace.

Still deciding between towns? We pulled the closed sales around a $400,000 budget and put DeBary side by side with its neighbors: what $400,000 actually buys in each. Square footage, bedrooms, year built, and how many came with a pool.

Where Is DeBary, and What Makes It Different?

DeBary sits in the southwest corner of Volusia County, where US 17-92 crosses the St. Johns River into Seminole County at Lake Monroe, with Deltona next door to the east and Orange City to the north. It has its own SunRail station on US 17-92, with trains south through Sanford, Lake Mary and Winter Park to downtown Orlando, and I-4 crosses the river into Seminole County a few minutes from town. The mean commute is 26.4 minutes, which is the average for everyone who works, not the drive to downtown Orlando at rush hour; one resident who makes that drive puts it at close to 45 minutes, which is the case SunRail exists for.

DeBary Housing Market Snapshot (2026)

Over the last twelve months 534 homes sold in DeBary at a median of $370,000, down 3.9% against the twelve months before. Per square foot, which strips out any change in the size of what sold, the figure fell 3.8%. In August 2026, 42 homes closed at a median of $369,000 and the typical one went under contract in 22 days. One month is too small a sample to read a direction from, which is why the twelve-month figure leads here. There are 118 active residential listings as of October 9, 2026, with a median asking price of $381,000, or $203 per square foot.

New Construction and Resale Are Not the Same Market

Every price figure quoted for DeBary mixes brand new homes with existing ones. Split apart, the last twelve months looked like this.

Both halves moved the same way here, so the combined figure is a fair summary of DeBary, which is not true everywhere.

Best Neighborhoods in DeBary, FL: Communities to Know

DeBary sorts by age, and in this town age mostly tells you whether there is an association.

• Rivington, the master-planned community west of US 17-92 at the south end of town, near the SunRail station and the St. Johns River. It accounted for about one sale in four in DeBary over the last twelve months, most of them new. It sells in tiers: townhomes in the low $300,000s, then three lines of single-family homes that closed at about $382,000, $470,000 and $574,000 as the houses grow from about 2,000 to 2,650 square feet, all with a homeowners association
• Spring Walk at the Junction, the smaller new single-family community about half a mile from the SunRail station, part of The Junction, the town center the city has planned around the station at US 17-92 and Dirksen Drive: 35 new houses closed at roughly $365,000 to $380,000, and they took noticeably longer to go under contract than Rivington's
• The older streets without an association, mainly Plantation Estates, the most active neighborhood outside Rivington, and Lake Marie Estates, both north of Rivington: houses from the 1950s through the late 1970s, about 1,250 to 1,400 square feet, no HOA, closing at about $285,000 to $300,000. Across DeBary, the 175 resales without an association closed at a median of $305,000
• The established communities in between, led by DeBary Plantation in the north, built mostly around 2000: 56 sales at about $414,000, though they took more than two months to go under contract, about twice as long as the town overall. Glen Abbey, Riviera Bella and St Johns River Estates, the last two on the west side toward the river, closed at about $490,000 to $530,000

Nearly every new home in DeBary is in Rivington or Spring Walk, so a buyer who wants new construction without an association will not find much of it here, and a buyer who wants no association will be shopping older houses, the typical one built around 1980. There is also a small manufactured-home market, mostly Terra Alta in the north and Leisure World Park in the south, typically under $200,000.

Communities in DeBary with their own page:

• Plantation Estates
• Rivington
• DeBary Plantation
• Springwalk at the Junction
• Riviera Bella
• Terra Alta
• Glen Abbey
• Springview
• Leisure World Park
• Saxon Woods
• St Johns River Estates
• Reserve at Debary
• Spring Glen
• Christberger Manor
• Summerhaven
• Miller Acres
• Orlandia Heights
• Lake Marie Estates
• Swallows East
• Traders Cove
• River Oaks Condos
• Terrace Hill Patio Homes Condos
• Woods

DeBary vs. Deltona vs. Sanford: The Honest Comparison

Off the association streets, the three towns cost about the same: an older house without an HOA closed within about $10,000 of $300,000 in each of them. The difference is new construction. A new single-family house in DeBary closed at about $80,000 less than one across the river in Sanford, for about the same size, and at the lowest price per square foot of the three. Sanford buys Seminole County schools and a real downtown. Deltona has far more to choose from and the lowest prices, with a longer drive. DeBary is the small one in the middle, and the one where new construction is the biggest share of what sells.

Schools, Commute, and Day-to-Day Life

Volusia County Schools serves the city, and assignment varies by address rather than by city name, so confirm the zoning for the specific property before you buy on a school reputation.

Mean travel time to work is 26.4 minutes, against 34.3 from Deltona.

Is DeBary, FL Safe?

DeBary has no police department of its own; it contracts with the Volusia County Sheriff's Office for law enforcement, so there is no city-level crime rate to publish here. The Volusia County Sheriff's Office reported a violent crime rate of 612.9 per 100,000 residents against 323.5 for Florida as a whole. That rate covers everything the Sheriff's Office polices, DeBary included, so read it as context for the wider area and not as a measurement of this town.

Figures are reported offenses from the FBI Crime Data Explorer for the Volusia County Sheriff's Office (ORI FL0640000), 2022, the most recent year that agency reported in a usable form. Reporting years differ between agencies, so this is compared to the Florida rate for the same year and is not comparable to another town's page.

Cost of Living in DeBary, FL

Housing is the line that moves a Central Florida budget. DeBary's median asking price is $381,000 against a median household income of $87,391, which puts a home at about 4.36 times household income here. That ratio, rather than the sticker price, is the number worth carrying between towns, and it is why a cheaper town is not automatically a more affordable one.

Florida charges no state income tax, so the property tax line matters more here than it would elsewhere, and a homestead exemption reduces the taxable value of a primary residence. Millage varies by taxing district, so treat any single quoted rate as an estimate until the specific parcel is checked.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is DeBary, FL a good place to live?

Start with the numbers. Against the 60 places this site tracks across Orange, Seminole, Lake and Volusia counties, the median asking price of $381,000 is near the middle and the mean commute of 26.4 minutes is shorter than most. The median household income here is $87,391, which puts housing at 4.36 times income, a lighter load than in most of those places. On local incomes, that makes buying here easier than in most of the group. Who it fits, and who it does not, is laid out at the top of this page.

What is the median home price in DeBary, FL?

The median sale price was $369,000 in August 2026 across 42 closed sales. Over the last twelve months 534 homes sold at a median of $370,000, down 3.9% against the twelve months before. The median asking price across 118 active listings is $381,000, or $203 per square foot.

Is DeBary cheaper than Deltona?

On the asking median, no: $381,000 against $329,900. Measured against household income, DeBary is at 4.36 times income and Deltona at 4.52, so on that basis DeBary is the more affordable of the two. See what $400,000 buys in each town.

Is DeBary, FL safe?

DeBary has no police department of its own; it contracts with the Volusia County Sheriff's Office for law enforcement, so there is no city-level crime rate to publish here. The nearest measure is the rate reported by the Volusia County Sheriff's Office, which covers DeBary along with the rest of its territory, so it is not specific to this town.

What is the cost of living in DeBary, FL?

Housing is the deciding line. A median asking price of $381,000 against a median household income of $87,391 puts a home at roughly 4.36 times income, and Florida charges no state income tax, which shifts weight onto the property tax line.

What school district serves DeBary, FL?

Volusia County Schools. Assignment varies by address within the city, so confirm the zoning for the specific property.

Thinking About a Move to DeBary?

I work these four counties every week and I will tell you when a town is wrong for you. If you want the numbers for your budget before you tour anything, start with what $400,000 buys across DeBary and its neighbors, or call me at 407-616-9019.

You can also browse homes for sale in DeBary, which updates with current inventory.