This article is part of "The Patrick AFB Online Relocation Package".   One of the best things about a relocation to Patrick AFB is the 72 miles of coastline. The beaches here are some of the best in Florida, and directly across from the base are some of the nicest beaches in Brevard County.The Brevard County Parks and Recreation Department runs 13 ocean beach parks as well as 42 beach access sites. In addition to these parks many cities run their own beach parks too. Many of these parks have restrooms, showers, picnic areas, and playgrounds.The Cocoa Beach Pier is a very popular location for surfing, tourists and locals alike. It can get very busy on the weekends, but if you want to be around a young active crowd, that is probably the beach for you. Cocoa Beach is also home to the world... 06/23/2008

This article is part of "The Patrick AFB Online Relocation Package".     I am very excited to offer a new FREE premium offer on my website: The "Discover The Space Coast" DVD. It is a professionally done video tour that is over thirty minutes in length. It will take you on a tour of the areas surrounding Patrick Air Force Base, highlighting shopping, schools, parks, and various local points of interest. The areas of Melbourne, Palm Bay, Viera/Suntree, Indialantic, Melbourne Beach, Satellite and Indian Harbour Beaches are all covered. It truely is a fine production and almost a must have for those of you PCSing to the area. It will give you a good "feel" for each of the areas and might help you to decide where you want to live. Click Here to request your TOTALY FREE copy. *Photos from Vi... 06/18/2008

    Patrick AFB News And Events Blog Why Call Your Blog "Space Junk"?  Well, what is space junk? It is objects orbiting the earth, that no longer have any useful purpose. After very little and not too careful consideration, it seemed to be the obvious choice. This blog is going to be about news, events, and real estate issues as well as other "junk" tailored to the military moving to the Space Coast and Patrick AFB Area, and those already living here. Hopefully these articles will serve some useful purpose, but if they don't ... look out for the debris. Here you will find all the articles is in one place. This is a work in progress and will continue to have more information added on a regular basis. If you have an idea for an article, let me know.   Latest: It Doesn't Take A Rocket Scie... 03/31/2008

  There Really Are Rocket Scientists: I was afforded a great opportunity this past week. Being a member of the Military Affairs Council from the Cocoa Beach Chamber of Commerce, we were privileged to have our March meeting at the Morrell Operations Center (MOC) at the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. The Morrell Operations Center was until recently know as the Range Operations Control Center, and it was renamed after General Jimmey R. Morrell, who was the first commander of the 45th Space Wing. For those who don't know what happens at the MOC, it is the base of all the launches on the Eastern Range. It handles the launches and the command and control systems for the range, and tracks and monitors the performance of the rockets and space shuttles.  It was truly a fascinating experience.... 03/28/2008

  Welcome to Patrick Air Force Base, FL - Florida's Space Coast - Brevard CountyMoving to the Patrick AFB area is a great move. Brevard County is a great place to live and work, but a PCS move is never easy, especially if you have never been here before. There is a lot of information that you need to gather and decisions you need to make. Thanks to the Internet, this information is widely available, but it is in a thousand different places. What I have done here , is try to put together a comprehensive collection of articles and information in one place to help you with your move. If you would like to search for homes, you can search the entire Brevard County MLS on my website. Hopefully all of this will make your search a lot easier. This is just the beginning and a work in progress. ... 03/26/2008

Is More Property Tax Relief On The Way For Veterans?  Recently, The Florida State House passed Tax relief for Florida's veterans. What this bill would do is to exempt Patrick AFB military personnel and all military from Ad Valorem property taxes on their Florida homesteaded property while they are doing duty outside of the US in designated military operations. This would come in the form of a credit that is calculated by the amount of time deployed. The exact amount and method of this credit has yet to be established. The measure was passed unanimously by the Florida House, but has yet to been voted on by the Senate. There was a similar bill that passed the house last year, but didn't go anywhere in the Senate. Hopefully with the large tax reform measure that passed last year, the Senat... 03/25/2008

This article is part of "The Patrick AFB Online Relocation Package". Recent History For Home Values In Brevard County FL, "Florida's Space Coast": The median home price in Brevard County, like almost everywhere else, has declined since its highs in 2005. From 2003 to 2005, the median single-family home price shot up 72% in two years. That was "silly appreciation" and was one of the highest in the country.  This obviously was way ahead of what the "normal" appreciation would have been, and should have been. It was fueled by a lot of speculation, new construction, cheap money, and the overall hot market. It did create quite a problem though. For first-time homebuyers, and many already living in the area they had been priced out of the market. Oh my how things have changed. As with the re... 03/24/2008

  This article is part of "The Patrick AFB Online Relocation Package". Brevard County Schools:Brevard Public Schools are top notch. They are second in the state for graduation rate and have a significant number of Grade "A" schools. •·          58% of the 60 Elementary Schools in Brevard County are ranked in the top 25% of the State.•·          42% of the 12 Middle Schools in Brevard County are ranked in the top 25% of the State.•·          73% of the 15 High Schools in Brevard County are ranked in the top 25% of the State.•·          2nd in the State for Graduation Rate 2007-2008•·          Brevard School District Ranked 3rd in the State 2008-2009, (#2 2007-2008) Florida uses a grading scale to rate is schools, and that is primarily measured by the results of the FCAT test. How this is... 03/17/2008

  This article is part of "The Patrick AFB Online Relocation Package".You have decided to live off base. Now how are you going to finance that new home? A VA loan seems to be a logical choice... But not always. Here are some of the advantages of a VA Loan:No downpayment is requiredNo monthly mortgage insurance premium to payThere is a limitation on your closing costs30 year loans with a choice of payment plans- Traditional Fixed Payments- GPM (low initial payments slowly rising to a level payment in the sixth year)- GEM (slowly increasing payments, with the increase applied to principal - faster payoff)- Hybrid ARMs- Traditional ARMsVA Loans are assumableNo prepayment penaltyWhat can a VA loan be used for:Purchase and existing home (house, condo, townhouse)To build a homeTo buy and impr... 03/10/2008

This article is part of "The Patrick AFB Online Relocation Package".WELCOME TO PATRICK AFB FLORIDA, BREVARD COUNTY!About Patrick Air Force Base:Patrick AFB is located on one of the outermost barrier islands in Brevard County FL. The whole area is colloquially know as the "Space Coast" The base is located just south of the world famous Cocoa Beach and just north of Satellite Beach, and is between the Atlantic Ocean to the east and the Banana River to the west The base and the Canaveral Air Station cover roughly 2300 acres. Map of Patrick AFB.In 1950 Patrick AFB was renamed for Major General Mason M. Patrick.  General Patrick had been Chief of the American Expeditionary Forces Air Services in World War I. The mission of Patrick Air Force Base is to provide combat capabilities through Eas... 03/03/2008