A Love Note about Boca Raton

In Spanish "Boca" means "mouth" and "Ratón" means "mouse" (not "rat" as is it is commonly mistranslated.) However, in nautical terms the word "Boca" refers to an inlet. The original name

"Boca de Ratones" appeared on eighteenth century maps associated with an inlet in the Biscayne Bay area of Miami. The beginning of the nineteenth century, the term was mistakenly moved north to its current location on most maps and applied to the inland waterway from the closed inlet north for 8.5 miles, which was called the "Boca Ratones Lagoon". The word "ratones" appears in old Spanish maritime dictionaries referring to "rugged rocks or stony ground on the bottom of some ports and coastal outlets, where the cables rub against".

The first settler was T. M. Rickards in 1895 who resided in a house made of driftwood on the east side of the East Coast Canal south of what is now the Palmetto Park Road bridge. He surveyed and sold land from the canal to beyond the railroad north of what is now Palmetto Park Road.

In the early 1900’s Boca Raton was a tiny agricultural community, many of the farmers specializing in pineapple cultivation. In May of 1925, the Town of Boca Raton was incorporated at the height of the Florida land boom. The town council commissioned noted society architect Addison Mizner to plan a world-class resort community. The exclusive hotel, was known as the Cloister Inn and was completed in 1926. It continues its reign as a city landmark as the Boca Raton Resort and Club. Although many of Mizner’s plans for the young community were stopped by the end of the land boom in 1926, a few of his architectural triumphs remain today but his style continues to influence the city and South Florida landscape. The 1969 addition of its "Pink Tower" hotel building is visible from miles away as a towering monument on the Intercoastal Waterway.  

Japanese farmers of the Yamato Colony  converted the land west of the city into Pinapple Plantations  beginning in 1904. The Japanese heritage of the Yamato Colony survives in the name of Yamato Road (NW 51st Street) just north of the airport and at the Morikami Museum and Japanese Garden just                                                                                     North West of the City in Delray Beach.

During WWII, much of their land was confiscated and used as the site of the Boca Raton Army Air Force Base, a major training facility for B-29  bomber crews and radar operators. Much of the airbas was later donated to Palm Beach County and later become the grounds of Florida Atlantic University and Boca Raton Airport, many of whose parking lots are former runways of the airbase; when viewed from above, the site's layout for its previous use as an

In 1991, the new downtown outdoor shopping and dining center, Mizner Park, was completed over the site of the old Boca Raton Mall. It has since become a cultural center for the southern Palm Beach County. Featuring a landscaped central park between the two main roads (collectively called Plaza Real) with stores only on the outside of the roads, Mizner Park resembles a Mediterranean suburban "town center" with a more contemporary look. It features many fine restaurants an outdoor amphitheater where concerts are frequently held and it is also home to the Boca Raton Museum of Art. Mizner Park has significantly aided downtown revitalization.

Boca Raton is the second most populous and southernmost city in Palm Beach County. It is located on the east coast of Florida between Delray Beach to the north and Deerfield Beach, of Broward County, to its south. Boca Raton is the core of the south Palm Beach Country metropolitan community, offering beautiful parks, beaches a unique quality of life that is coveted by many, I recommend that you visit and get to know Boca Raton! 

A few 60 Minutes to Home Improvement Recommendations

Below are a few helpful, quick and inexpensive tips to freshen up your home. Especially if you are starting to consider listing your home on the market in the near future. These tips make the difference buyers putting an offer on your home, and the one prospective buyers saw down the street! Many of these tips can be completed in 60 minutes . . . 60 minutes to SOLD!!   

Freshen Up an Old Room With Paint

Inexpensive and easy. Pick a fresh bold color then use it to paint just one wall in a room. Covering only one wall will cost less and won’t take as much time as painting the whole room.

Switch Out Your Faucet

Sick of your leaky faucet? If you can wield a wrench, you can easily install a new faucet. Before you start the job, turn off the water supply. Then just unscrew the connections from your old faucet and screw in your new faucet. Add an aerator, and you'll lower your water bill at the same time.

 

Clean Your Dryer Ducts

If your dryer doesn’t work as quickly as it used to, lint could be the culprit. Buildup not only affects efficiency, it also increases your risk of fire. To clean your ducts clean your ducts first you’ll need some muscle to move your dryer away from the wall. Then you just need a vacuum, I recommend investing in a shoppe vac. Unplug the dryer, disconnect the ductwork, and vacuum out the ducts as well as you can.

Inspect Your Electrical

Conduct an audit of your outlets. For childproofing purposes, insert outlet covers into unused wall and power strip outlets, and secure any loose wires. For general safety, look for overloaded circuits and power cords, and adjust as necessary. Frayed cords should be replaced as should any light switch that is hot to the touch.

 

Build Raised Flowerbeds

You can build an 8-foot-square garden bed in less than an hour, using eight 8-foot-long sections of pressure-treated lumber, screws, construction adhesive, and landscape adhesive. Using a saw and a drill, cut pieces to size and secure them together. Add landscape fabric to the base to prevent the growth of messy-looking weeds this can add instant charm and interest.

 

Scrub Your Pathways

Sidewalks, walkways, and driveways can become stained by wet leaves, rain, mildew, and automotive leaks. Get rid of these eyesores with a thorough power-washing. Makes a big impact. 

 

De-Grime Your House

With a pressure washer, there’s no need to crawl on the roof to clean your gutters—just aim and spray. A pressure washer can also clean grime off your gutters and your stucco walls as well. It can even be used to clean your second floor windows. Just be sure that all your windows are securely closed before you start.

 

Update Your Hardware

Once you select new door-knob or cabinet pulls, installation often requires nothing more than a screwdriver. To mount pulls on doors that never had them before, create a template to ensure that you drill your holes in the same spot each time. 

Install Weather-stripping

Weather-stripping will make your home more comfortable while ensuring that your AC and Heating Equipment won’t have to work so hard to cool and heat your home. Permanent weather-stripping, which has adhesive, is recommended around doors and windows that are opened throughout the season. For windows that will stay shut until fall, consider temporary weather seals or sealant that peels off when it’s no longer needed.

To err is human . . . but don’t err on having your future home Inspected

 Mistake No. 1: Not having new construction inspected

Even experienced homebuyers sometimes make this rookie mistake. They assume that because a home has passed all local codes and ordinances, it must be in good shape. Don't be so sure. I have seen and heard of brand new homes that had just passed the final municipal and county building inspections. But when a certified inspector explored the crawl space beneath the house, they discovered someone had removed about 3 feet of the home's main support beam to accommodate duct work.

Thus the house was already beginning to sink in that area. The moral of the story: Don't assume your builder -- or the contractors -- did everything right just because the home passed code. An inspector is your last line of defense against major defects that could quite literally sink your financial future no pun intended.

Mistake No. 2: Choosing an inspector for the wrong reasons

When you choose an inspector, you're selecting the professional who will give one of your biggest investments a full physical checkup, just like a physician gives you a physical. You want to choose someone you know who is competent, thorough and trustworthy. Unfortunately, too many buyers just go with the cheapest inspection company or the one recommended by their Realtor, do you homework, this is usually your biggest investment!

If you want a referral from your real estate agent, ask for two or three different names, and then interview each one to determine who you feel most comfortable with. Always ask about licensing, professional affiliations and credentials, and whether the inspector carries errors and omissions insurance.

Mistake No. 3: Not going along on the inspection

The written report you get from the inspector doesn't give you nearly as clear a picture of the condition of the house as you might think. It has been shown that buyers who don't go along on the inspection can overemphasize minor problems, or worse, not realize how serious a defect is. You really follow along with the inspector; ask lots questions and REALLY LISTEN when he gives you his professional opinion on the house, villa or condo.

Mistake No. 4: Not following up on the inspector's recommendations

Sometimes, buyers don't follow up on items discovered in the inspection before they close. Like the man who didn't grasp that the carbon monoxide coming from his water heater was a big problem, you may not realize how much it will cost to fix a given defect. Often inspectors will recommend buyers get an issue evaluated further, but the buyers wait to do it until after closing this could yield more expensive than anticipated results. You should always get several estimates on repairs before closing, and you should feel comfortable calling your inspector to discuss these estimates.

Mistake No. 5: Expecting your home inspector to be a Clairvoyant

No matter how experienced or skilled your home inspector is, he can't see the future; they don’t have a crystal ball. I urge you to be realistic and cautiously optimistic many homebuyers think a system still has a few good years just because there aren't visible signs of malfunction at the inspection.

A home inspector can tell you that an A/C system like the one in the home you're buying usually only lasts 10 years, and yours is 11 years old. But keep in mind he can't tell you exactly when it will fail. That's when you need to follow up with people who know more about each specific system, they have the knowledge and skills to answer your questions.

The home inspector is hired by you! The inspector is there to give you an honest straight 3^rd party objective opinion about the property. They're paid to inspect, not to sell. So they're in a better position to be neutral and to be your conscious about additional cost you could incur in the future as a homeowner.