715 Frances Street - Old Town - Key West

Just listed, but not by me, 715 Frances Street, in Old Town Key West. This classic three bay eyebrow house was built circa 1895. I found an old black & white photo of the house taken in 1965 (see photo below) and compare the same house as photographed nearly fifty years later. Quite a makeover, wouldn't you agree?

 The outside is still simple even if the colors are a bit more lively.  The inside has been upgraded to be sure, but not so much so that the house has lost its character.  When I stepped inside the front door I was greeted by the rich tones of the Dade County Pine accent wall located at the far side of the living room. Three of the original windows with ancient glass bathed the inside with semi-filtered light.  Although I knew the house has just been completely remodeled, the house still has a great old house "feel".

A guest bedroom with en-suite bath is located just to the right of the front door. The room has lots of filtered light as well.  The stairway to the second floor appears quite long when compared to stairways in other eyebrow houses I have seen. Imagine how grand that stairway would look at Christmas wrapped with pine boughs and garland. Buyers who doing long term planning may appreciate having a large first floor bedroom when climbing stairs in later years can become a challenge

There are two bedrooms on the second floor both of which have en-suite baths. The north bedroom has a great view of the pool below while the south bedroom has a wonderful bathroom with multiple windows that look out to the palm tree views of neighboring properties.  The listing agent had to remind me I was standing inside an eyebrow house with dormers that permitted the rear space for these expanded bathrooms.

The new kitchen has a vaulted ceiling and three sets of windows that provide lots of daytime sunlight into the space.  Travertine marble floors give the space a cool and sophisticated feel. The travertine floors continue to an alcove behind the kitchen where the laundry and a separate guest bathroom are located. The travertine then continue over to what the listing agent calls the "indoor/outdoor" room that overlooks the pool. This room has a stunning vaulted wood ceiling that adds both height and dimension to the space.  The area is presently protected by screens to enjoy our wonderful winter and spring weather. When summer arrives, the screens can be replaced with custom made window inserts.  The area is air conditioned when necessary.

 

 This indoor/outdoor room is quite clever in my opinion.  Our fall and winter seasons are quite mild and most homeowners use their outdoor living areas most of the year. But there are those few occasional days or nights when the weather is a bit too cool.  This conversion option is a feature that others might adopt.

The indoor/outdoor room provides views of the backyard area and the newly installed pool. An IPE deck area provides stepped down access to the pool and spa.  This pool is long and sunny - quite a change from so many Old Town pools that are cramped into small spaces and shielded from sunlight by mighty houses or tropical foliage.  Sun-worshipers will delight in this sunny space.  The owner has also added an outdoor shower for pre-swim and post-tanning.

You can view a slideshow of more photos I took of this thoughtfully updated Old Town eyebrow home if you CLICK HERE.   I know a lot of potential buyers think they might want to rent a place like this as a vacation rental when they are not using the property themselves.  I think this place could be a very successful vacation rental. It has three very nice bedrooms with en-suite baths, two large living areas, a very comfortable new kitchen, and a stunning pool and sunning area. The property has off street parking. And it is located within an easy walking distance to Duval Street or the Historic Key West Seaport. Most of Key West's gyms and yoga studios are located within a five block walk to the south or east.  People that come here for extended vacation stays love being able to walk to locations like these and usually prefer a bit of distance from being right in the heart of the Duval crawl.

CLICK HERE to view the Key West Association of Realtors mls datasheet and to view professionally photographs of this property. which is offered at $1,495,000.  If you would like to see this home, please call me, Gary Thomas, 305-766-2642 or send me an email at kw1101v@aol.com. I am a buyers agent and a full time Realtor at Preferred Properties Coastal Realty, Inc.  Let me help you find your place in Paradise.