Renovation Contractor in Boca Raton, FL

Boca Raton, Florida

Boca Raton has been selling a Mediterranean idea of Florida since Addison Mizner was named town planner after the city incorporated in 1924. His Cloister Inn became the Boca Raton Resort, and the city has kept a strict development code ever since. Homeowners here range from oceanfront and Intracoastal condo owners to families in Royal Palm Yacht & Country Club, the historic Old Floresta district and the waterfront streets around Lake Boca Raton.

The first thing to settle on any Boca project is a simple one: are you actually in the City of Boca Raton? Many homes with a Boca Raton mailing address, especially west of the city, sit in unincorporated Palm Beach County. That changes who issues the permit, which rules apply and who inspects the work.

Boca is the northern edge of our service area, and 26 Builders has not completed a project here. What we bring is relevant work to the south: a 1960s lakefront house in Hollywood rebuilt from its structure, a ground-up waterfront home in Sky Lake, and condo renovations in towers from Hallandale Beach to Bal Harbour, including a full apartment gut in Bay Harbor Islands.

City of Boca Raton or Palm Beach County?

Inside city limits, permits come from the City’s Building Permits and Inspections division, part of Development Services. Outside them, the same kitchen or bathroom is permitted by Palm Beach County’s Building Division, with its own process and its own rules for condominium milestone inspections. Gated communities add a third layer either way: they usually have an architectural committee that approves exterior work, contractor access and working hours.

We confirm jurisdiction from the property records before we price anything, because it affects timing, fees and the inspection schedule. Our guide to HOA approval for home renovations covers the association side.

Condos on the ocean and the Intracoastal

Many condominium buildings along the ocean and the Intracoastal are now decades old, and the City runs its own recertification program for them under Ordinance 5589. Condo and co-op buildings of three or more stories need a structural inspection at 30 years, and at 25 years when they sit within three miles of the coastline, then on a recurring schedule. Associations working through that process are understandably careful about renovations that touch slabs, risers or balconies.

For an apartment renovation, that means drawings, insurance certificates and a schedule go to the board first, and layout changes are planned around the building’s shared plumbing. We ran exactly that process at the Bay Harbor apartment, including board approval, elevator reservations and a shared riser. The milestone inspection guide for condo owners explains what the law asks of buildings and why it changes what boards allow.

Houses: flood maps, seawalls and the beach

The City says a large portion of Boca Raton lies in a Special Flood Hazard Area, and new FEMA flood maps took effect on December 20, 2024. If your house changed zones under the new maps, check before you plan a large renovation. In high-risk zones, improvements costing half or more of the structure’s market value require the house to meet current flood standards. Our article on the FEMA 50 percent rule walks through the valuation.

Waterfront lots on the Intracoastal and Lake Boca Raton bring seawall and dock work. The City reviews it under its marine structures code and engineering standards: plans must show the seawall cap elevation and measurements to the property line, a location survey is inspected before the cap is poured, and an engineer’s final report confirms the finished elevation. On the ocean side, construction seaward of the state Coastal Construction Control Line also needs a permit from the Florida Department of Environmental Protection.

For waterfront houses that are past renovating, a new build is often the cleaner answer. Our Sky Lake House is a waterfront home with impact glazing, a pool terrace, glass fence and dock, built in about twelve months.

Older Boca houses and what we check first

Boca’s single-family stock spans 1920s Mizner-era homes, post-war houses and newer estates in gated clubs. On an older house we begin with structure and systems: the roof framing, the condition of original drain lines, the electrical service and whether past additions were tied in correctly. Yosef’s structural engineering training is most useful there, deciding what can stay and what has to be rebuilt before anyone chooses tile.

At the Hollywood Lake House, that approach meant keeping a sound 1960s structure and replacing the roof, windows, kitchen, bathrooms, stucco and yard around it. It is the same sequence we would follow on a dated Boca house with good bones.