Rio Vista FAQ: Boundaries, Canals, Boating, Flood Zone, Schools & Home Sales

Rio Vista is in Fort Lauderdale, in ZIP codes 33301 and 33316 and City Commission Districts 2 and 4. On the City's neighborhood-association map, the Rio Vista Civic Association area runs from the New River on the north to SE 12th Street on the south, and from S Federal Highway (US 1) on the west to the Intracoastal Waterway on the east. The City's 2023 architectural survey uses the same lines. Harbordale and Lauderdale Harbours are south of SE 12th Street; Idlewyld, Las Olas Isles and Colee Hammock are across the New River.

Source: City of Fort Lauderdale GIS (neighborhood-association, address, waterbody-name, flood, evacuation, district, zoning and school layers; Oct 24, 2026) · City of Fort Lauderdale: Rio Vista Area architectural resource survey · Rio Vista Civic Association: About Us

No. The south line is SE 12th Street on the City's neighborhood-association map, in the City's 2023 survey and in the civic association's own description. The area between SE 12th Street and SE 17th Street belongs to other neighborhoods, such as Harbordale.

Source: City of Fort Lauderdale GIS (neighborhood-association, address, waterbody-name, flood, evacuation, district, zoning and school layers; Oct 24, 2026) · City of Fort Lauderdale: Rio Vista Area architectural resource survey · Rio Vista Civic Association: About Us

Broward County Property Appraiser records for the tax folios in the association area show 1,053 parcels as of October 24, 2026: 857 single-family homes (63 of them recorded with a guest house), 53 vacant residential lots, 65 condominium units, 14 townhomes, 17 multifamily buildings, and 47 commercial, institutional and other parcels, mostly along S Federal Highway. The civic association describes the neighborhood as over 1,000 homes.

Source: Broward County Property Appraiser (records pulled Oct 24, 2026) · Rio Vista Civic Association: About Us

Rio Vista has a civic association, not a mandatory homeowners association. The Rio Vista Civic Association is a volunteer organization governed by a board of 12 elected representatives. Ask the association about membership and dues, and check the title work on a specific lot for any recorded restrictions. Condominiums in the area have their own associations.

Source: Rio Vista Civic Association: About Us

Mary Brickell recorded the first plat of Rio Vista in 1916. After her death, C.J. Hector re-subdivided the land in 1922 and sold lots as "River View" during the 1920s land boom, and the Rio Vista Isles were dredged and platted in the mid-1920s. The September 1926 hurricane ended the boom. The oldest single-family house in the county records was built in 1918, and the median was built in 1966.

Source: Architectural Resource Survey of Rio Vista (January 2024 presentation) · Rio Vista Civic Association: About Us · Broward County Property Appraiser (records pulled Oct 24, 2026)

No. Rio Vista is not a designated historic district on the City's historic-district map. The City's 2023 intensive-level survey, paid for with a $50,000 state grant, documented 29 potential individual landmarks in Rio Vista and looked at possible districts, but designation would require a separate application and public hearings.

Source: City of Fort Lauderdale: Rio Vista Area architectural resource survey · City of Fort Lauderdale GIS (neighborhood-association, address, waterbody-name, flood, evacuation, district, zoning and school layers; Oct 24, 2026)

From a canal, New River or Intracoastal dock, boats run to the Intracoastal and turn south. The only bridge between Rio Vista and Port Everglades is the SE 17th Street (Brooks Memorial) bascule bridge, with 55 feet of vertical clearance when closed. It opens on the hour and half-hour, except weekday rush hours (6:50 to 9:10 a.m. and 3:50 to 6:10 p.m.), when it opens only on the hour. Depths and overhead clearance vary by canal, so check the route from a specific dock on a current NOAA chart and a survey.

Source: 33 CFR 117.261 (eCFR) · Federal Register 2026-00932 · NOAA Coast Pilot 4 (Oct 18, 2026 ed.) · City of Fort Lauderdale GIS (neighborhood-association, address, waterbody-name, flood, evacuation, district, zoning and school layers; Oct 24, 2026)

On the City of Fort Lauderdale's address-point data, most Rio Vista addresses are in FEMA zone AE, a Special Flood Hazard Area; more than a quarter straddle the AE and X lines, and about one in ten are in zone X. Hurricane evacuation zones A, B and C all occur in the neighborhood. Check the effective FEMA map and an elevation certificate for any specific house.

Source: City of Fort Lauderdale GIS (neighborhood-association, address, waterbody-name, flood, evacuation, district, zoning and school layers; Oct 24, 2026)

Broward County Property Appraiser records list RS-8 for 749 parcels and RS-4.4 for 200, both single-family districts. RML-25 (multifamily) covers 78 parcels, mostly on SE 12th Street and SE 5th Court, and CB and B-1 business zoning covers the Federal Highway frontage. Confirm setbacks and other rules for a specific lot with the City.

Source: Broward County Property Appraiser (records pulled Oct 24, 2026)

Broward County Property Appraiser records list Harbordale Elementary, Sunrise Middle and Fort Lauderdale High for every single-family parcel in Rio Vista. The City's school-boundary map layers also show Croissant Park Elementary, New River Middle and Stranahan High for parts of the area. Always confirm the assignment for a specific address with Broward County Public Schools' Find My School tool.

Source: Broward County Property Appraiser (records pulled Oct 24, 2026) · City of Fort Lauderdale GIS (neighborhood-association, address, waterbody-name, flood, evacuation, district, zoning and school layers; Oct 24, 2026) · BCPS Find My School

Broward County Property Appraiser records show 53 qualified sales of single-family homes and vacant residential lots in the area from October 2025 through September 2026 (51 homes and 2 lots), with a median recorded amount of $2,050,000 and a range of about $758,000 to $13.4 million. Condominium, townhome and commercial sales are not included. Recorded amounts are derived from deed stamps, and medians swing from year to year. See the market snapshot page for prior years.

Source: Broward County Property Appraiser (records pulled Oct 24, 2026)