SoSo, block by block.
Front Office buys and builds homes only in West Palm Beach's South of Southern neighborhood. This is our guide to where it is, how it was built, and what that means if you own a home here.
- Name
- SoSo, short for South of Southern
- North & south
- Southern Blvd to Forest Hill Blvd
- West & east
- S Dixie Hwy to the Intracoastal
- City
- West Palm Beach, Florida
Where SoSo begins and ends.
SoSo isn't an official city boundary, so the edges shift a little depending on who you ask. Most people mean the blocks south of Southern Boulevard, between South Dixie Highway and the Intracoastal Waterway, running down toward Forest Hill Boulevard. Some include the blocks west of Dixie toward I-95.
Southern Boulevard is the front door. Its bridge crosses the Lake Worth Lagoon to the south end of Palm Beach, and downtown West Palm Beach is a few minutes north.
A hundred years of houses on the same streets.
SoSo grew in waves. The 1920s land boom brought Mediterranean and Mission Revival homes. After World War II came block after block of one-story concrete block houses, and the 1950s added mid-century modern design. Today those homes sit beside renovations and new construction.
- 1920s
The Florida land boom. Developers lay out the city's south end with Mediterranean and Mission Revival homes.
- 1922–45
Homes in what becomes the Prospect Park–Southland Park Historic District are built.
- 1940s–50s
The bulk of SoSo fills in with concrete block ranch homes and mid-century modern houses.
- 1993
West Palm Beach names Prospect Park–Southland Park a city historic district.
- 2011
The district is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
- Today
Restorations, new construction and the SoSo Design District along Dixie and Georgia Avenue.
Mediterranean Revival
Stucco walls, barrel-tile roofs, arched windows and sometimes a small tower. The look of the 1920s land boom.
Mission Revival
A curved parapet at the roofline, smooth stucco and deep-set openings. Common in the city's early historic districts.
CBS Ranch
One story of concrete block and stucco under a low hip roof, with awning windows and a carport. The most common SoSo house.
Mid-Century Modern
Flat or butterfly roofs, clerestory glass and breeze-block screens. Many have been restored by design-minded owners.
Close to everything, quiet on the side streets.
The waterfront path
South Flagler Drive runs along the Intracoastal with a path for walking, running, biking and dogs, and views across to Palm Beach.
The Dixie corridor
The SoSo Design District runs along South Dixie Highway and Georgia Avenue from Southern to just past Forest Hill: design showrooms, galleries, vintage shops and restaurants.
Parks and schools
South Olive Park is the neighborhood's recreation campus. South Olive Elementary serves many SoSo addresses; check your assignment with the School District of Palm Beach County.
Getting around
Downtown West Palm Beach is a short drive north, the Southern Boulevard bridge reaches Palm Beach in minutes, and I-95 is close by.
Original systems
Many SoSo homes are 70 years old or more, with original plumbing, wiring or windows. We price the house as it stands, so you don't fix anything first.
Roofs and insurance
An older roof can make a home hard to insure or finance for a traditional buyer. A cash sale has no lender and no financing contingency.
Flood zones
Blocks nearer the water may need flood insurance. We already know how that affects value street by street.
Lots and tear-downs
In SoSo the land itself is often the value. We buy vacant lots and homes that are better rebuilt than repaired.
Estates and inherited homes
Settling a family home from out of town is hard. We can work around probate timelines and close when the family is ready.
SoSo, answered.
What does SoSo stand for?
SoSo is short for South of Southern, the neighborhood just south of Southern Boulevard in West Palm Beach.
Where exactly is SoSo?
The name is informal, so the edges vary. Most people mean the blocks south of Southern Boulevard, between South Dixie Highway and the Intracoastal Waterway, running down toward Forest Hill Boulevard. Some include the blocks west of Dixie as well.
Is SoSo a historic neighborhood?
Parts of it are. The Prospect Park–Southland Park Historic District, with homes built from 1922 to 1945, was named a city historic district in 1993 and added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2011. Homes in a historic district can have extra review for exterior changes.
What kinds of homes are in SoSo?
Mostly one-story concrete block ranch homes and mid-century modern houses from the 1940s and 1950s, with 1920s Mediterranean and Mission Revival homes, newer infill construction and estates along South Flagler Drive.
Is SoSo in a flood zone?
Some blocks are, especially those closer to the Intracoastal, and lenders may require flood insurance there. Check your address on FEMA's flood map or with your insurance agent.
Does Front Office buy homes anywhere in SoSo?
Yes. We buy lots and homes throughout South of Southern in any condition, including older homes that need roof, plumbing or electrical work, estate properties and vacant lots.
Local cash buyers, building in our own neighborhood.
Front Office LLC buys and builds homes exclusively in South of Southern. Knowing its lots, its homes and what buyers want next door lets us move faster and offer more certainty than a national cash-buyer chain. There's no listing, no showings, no repairs and no financing contingency. We make a fair, all-cash offer based on your property's real condition and close on your schedule, often in as little as two weeks.
M. CHAPMAN · PRINCIPALA principal, not a call center.
Matt Chapman founded Front Office to buy and build in the neighborhood he knows best. When you reach out, you talk to him, and he stays with you from the first conversation to the closing table.
Front Office works alongside our capital partner, Capital Funding.