Young Family Moving to West Boca (Miami, West Palm Beach: real estate, sex offender, houses)

[GCP2012]

I am planning on moving my family with two 7 year olds to west Boca. We are looking for a family friendly area with public great schools. A friend recommended Boca Falls or Island Lake. Does anyone live in or know about these communities? And are there any other good areas I should consider? Thanks.

[Swimmom32]

We lived in Boca falls nice development...a lot of kids.....Island Lakes small development I remember when we lived in Boca Falls my son's friend lived in Island lakes there was a sex offender who lived there....Schools are good however My kids werent happy and as parents were werent too thrilled although not bad schools just didn't suit mine academically or socially...We didn't find the people in Boca Falls to be all that nice and very welcoming, and boy those women love to drink...and from here I will keep my opinions to myself as I do not want to offend anyone

Good Luck with your Move....

[garyhitchcock]

I have friends in Boca Falls and its ok, I think they would have rather moved to Parkland where homes retained their values better during the down turn and now on the rise. Boca home values still going down. Schools are much better in Parkland, Forbes magazine rated them #1 in the US. I also have a golf buddy in Boca Falls in his 60s so not all young families like yours.

[Jchiamom]

Originally Posted by garyhitchcock

I have friends in Boca Falls and its ok, I think they would have rather moved to Parkland where homes retained their values better during the down turn and now on the rise. Boca home values still going down. Schools are much better in Parkland, Forbes magazine rated them #1 in the US. I also have a golf buddy in Boca Falls in his 60s so not all young families like yours.

I see you repeatedly post that Forbes lists Parkland as having the number 1 schools, but I am having trouble finding that article. I can find the one that lists Parkland as 8th in the country for the best schools for your real estate buck. The article that I read caps the houses at 800k and it eliminates a bunch of cities if they are over or under populated. Unless there is a different article you are referring to? I am a bit confused......

[Swimmom32]

Jc I wouldnt even answer him he Obviously doesn't know where schools rank..Boca High and Spanish River came in quite high in the best high schools in America much higher than expected as I had read the article very recently....Parkland is nice but very rural and this guy has nothing more to Add than to keep telling people false things about Boca....

[Jchiamom]

Yea Swim, you are probably right....I just thought maybe I was missing something. I do think Parkland has a great school system but it is to far west for me.

[Swimmom32]

Yup I have to agree with you...

[garyhitchcock]

Originally Posted by Swimmom32

Jc I wouldnt even answer him he Obviously doesn't know where schools rank..Boca High and Spanish River came in quite high in the best high schools in America much higher than expected as I had read the article very recently....Parkland is nice but very rural and this guy has nothing more to Add than to keep telling people false things about Boca....

I would read what you wrote very carefully, to have the #1 school(s) in the US you have to have great elementary schools, great middle schools AND great high schools. I know exactly where MSD ranks, my wife teaches AP American History there and my son was salutatorian in 2002. She writes recommendation letters to all the Ivy League schools where her kids get into MIT, Yale, Princeton, Stanford, Columbia, Duke, etc.

Obviously you've never been to Parkland, because we have a lot more nice gated neighborhoods than west Boca. CypressHead, The Landings, Ternbridge, Fox Ridge, Meadow Run, Parkland Isles, Tall Pines, Grand Cypress Estates. Heron Bay and Parkland Golf and Country Club. Nothing RURAL about these gated communities. And pick a price $300,000 to $5,000,000. Better schools, better neighborhoods better home values, and access to the Sawgrass Expressway, I-95 and I-75, so people work anywhere between Miami and West Palm Beach. West Boca is very west and access to no roads.

[Swimmom32]

I do not live in West Boca however I did and wasn't too impressed and my kids attended West Boca schools including West Boca HS and it just didn't work for my son doesn't mean it wont for someone else's child...Because we didn't like the schools there doesn't mean they aren't good and we have plenty of country club gated communities Where we live...As a matter of fact I visited the schools in Parkland and a very nice community Heron Bay when we came looking back in 2009 we just felt it wasn't what we were looking for, and found the Boca Schools to suit our needs....I don't give much to any of the lists including the Forbes...My neighbor is an Honor's Teacher at our HS and she has taught in other schools and loves Spanish River and also feels its one of the better high schools around..I never said the Parkland schools were bad so please don't put words in my mouth..People need to do their homework, its amazing the influx of people who have moved to my area just for our schools so that does say something about about them..Cypress Bay in Weston out Ranked MSD anyhow and we felt Weston was much nicer than parkland as the schools were just as good as Parkland and As Boca....I did a lot of research and I have family here and friends who have lived in South Florida for quite sometime some in Weston, a Swim Mom I met who lives in parkland and well all very comparable areas as far as schools are concerned...

[Jchiamom]

I'm still curious about the Forbes #1 in the US article?
I disagree that Parkland has better neighborhoods, better schools, and home values than Boca Raton....but that's all subjective to what you are looking for and how you want to raise your family. I personally like to be close to the beach, shopping, nightlife and restaurants.