1218 Duval Street, Key West - Mixed Use Commercial & Residential

1218 Duval Street, Key West - Offered For Sale at $1,845,000

The listing Realtor, not me, describes this property this way:

Location, Location, Location! Duval street property consisting of 2 buildings with 4 residential units and 1 high-visibility commercial unit. Over 3000 Sq Ft of Air-conditioned space and more than 1000 Sq Ft of covered porches with a fantastic view of the Atlantic ocean. Situated on a large lot with parking for 4+ cars and a tropically landscaped pool area. Property is in a receivership zone for City of Key West transient licenses and has had many recent upgrades.

I searched my old shoe box and found the black and white photo taken in 1965 when the property may still have been a single family home or possibly used as apartments. I then searched the Historic Sanborn Fire Maps and learned that this property probably existed before the first map was drafted in 1889. The front building was then identified as 57 Duval Street. Later the number was changed to 1220 Duval. The change to 1218 Duval St does not appear as of the 1912 map so I can only surmise the number change occurred after 1912.  The black and white photo  shows a vacant spot south of the property. The color photo above taken in December 2015 shows that same space as being vacant. Yet the 1912 Sanborn map shows that there was house located on that spot identified as 1224 Duval Street. I assume that building was either razed or destroyed by fire. The 1912 map showed a lengthy addition to the rear which extended to the west property line and a stairway that led to the second floor of the main building. Neither that extension nor the stairway survive. There is a new building at the rear which is partially visible in the photo below. There are two residential units in that building. .

The Monroe County Property Appraiser shows this property as having 3084 sq ft of interior living space situated on a 68' X 100' lot. The property is located about 70 feet north of United Street in a block which is a mix of restaurants, shops, and residential uses. There are spaces for off street parking on either side of the property. The property enjoys a dominant presence in this section of Old Town.

The front building has retail usage on the front side of the ground floor. There is an apartment on    the rear side which has a large covered rear porch. There is also a second floor apartment which has front and rear porches.

The second floor apartment has a great front porch for watching people watching. Inside there are two good sized bedrooms, a living room and dining area, plus kitchen and bath. That apartment also has a private second floor covered porch which looks down to the shared pool.

The rear building has two fully equipped apartments each with private porches with views of the pool and toward the south parking area. The lot is spacious. The pool is an added feature that makes this an ideal location for upscale residential rentals for locals. I think the current rents are under market.

A new owner might convert the historic front building into a large single family home which could be rented as a luxury monthly vacation rental. The two rear apartments could be likewise upgraded and made into small luxury rentals.  On the other hand, the current use works. I did not see any noticeable deferred maintenance. So a new owner might just consider keeping things the way they are but maybe carving out one space for personal use. 

1218 Duval Street went under contract very quickly after it was listed. It just came back on the market and is priced to sell at $1,845,000. CLICK HERE to view the Key West mls datasheet and to view listing photos. Please call me, Gary Thomas, 305-766-2642, to schedule a private showing before this incredible property gets snapped up by someone else. I am a buyers agent and a full time Realtor at Preferred Properties Key West.

1107 Southard Street, Key West - Price Reduction

I blogged about 1107 Southard Street in Key West soon after it was listed for sale. That was in December when the house was priced at $549,000. There have been two price reductions since then. The asking price has been reduced to $509,000. The listing agent, not me, describes this property this way:

"This great Old Town Historic property is a large two story home that could become a new jewel on Southard Street. The rooms and ceilings are spacious, the side yard offers a cistern. Downstairs includes front living room, good size bedroom, half bath, kitchen, dining room and storage room. Upstairs are two bedrooms, one full bath and large storage area. The floors and walls are wood. Walk to all the festivities, art shows, historic bight and restaurants."

Sometimes when you see a house that needs so much work you dismiss it as being simply impossible. Don't rush to judgment. That may not the case here. I photographed the house immediately above earlier today. That house is located one-half block away from 1107 Southard Street. A few years ago it looked equally in need of renovation. It was purchased, gutted, and totally renovated into something much different than ever existed before. A new owner could do about the same to 1107 Southard Street.  Please look over the photos below that show the current condition. Leave your mind open to change and envision how the existing house could become something much greater than now exists.

Note from the outset the potential for off street parking and the possible conversion of the old cistern into a swimming pool.Since the cistern exists, I believe  a new owner would not have to comply with pool setback requirements. I think the open space between the house and the new cistern-pool could be decked to create an even space between the interior and new deck and pool area. Perhaps a loggia could be created at the rear.

A new owner is not obligated to use the current room configuration. I would radically change the room layouts and functions. I would expand the current front room and make it into a bedroom with an interconnecting bath that could also serve as a guest bath. I would add closet space to give the room real functionality. I would combine the other rear rooms into a modern-day great room with new kitchen, dining, and living spaces. I would add French doors that would open out to the new deck and pool area. The back end of the house is a mess. It needs rebuilt no matter what a new owner chooses to do. Re-building is the key. If you tear down instead of renovate, you would have to comply with modern setbacks.

The second floor has two not-so-large bedrooms, a store room, and a bathroom. I think spaces between the existing bedrooms could be expanded and place one or two bathrooms between each bedroom. I would convert the current bathroom and store room into the master bedroom space and utilize part of the rear bedroom to do this. CLICK HERE to view more photos I took of this property.

The photo two above is of the existing front bedroom at 1107 Southard Street. The photo immediately above is of the renovated front bedroom of a similar home on Stump Lane. I think Southard could look equally impressive.

CLICK HERE to view the Key West mls datasheet on 1107 Southard Street which is now priced at $509,000. Then please call me, Gary Thomas, 305-766-2642 to schedule a private showing. I am a buyers agent and a full time Realtor at Preferred Properties Key West.

To Kill a Mockingbird

Dill Harris and Jem Finch eyeing the scary house of Mr. Boo Radley in To Kill a Mockingbird

It was fifty-four years ago that To Kill a Mockingbird hit the silver screens across America and later the world. I had read the book by Harper Lee in my high school college prep English class so I knew the story line. Watching the funny and terribly sad episodes unfold, the characters came to life. I was fifteen that year. A pipsqueak. I had lived a sheltered life in Wheat Ridge and later Lakewood, Colorado - lily white suburbs just west of Denver where the Great Plains meet the Colorado Rockies.

There were no Negros in my school and none anywhere near where I lived. There were no Mexicans either. A neighbor boy my same age lived in the next block. He was Catholic and went to Holy Family School about a mile away from where we lived. I didn't understand why he went to a special school.  My sister, who was seventeen years older than I, married a Catholic. He in turn was ten years older than my sister. He lost a lung during World War II. My dad stayed at home. My mother refused to go to my sister's wedding. My grandmother, who I loved deeply, said all Catholics were sinners and would go to hell. My grandmother told me that I was a sinner as well. I remember questioning her statement because even at the age of five or six, I reasoned that while I might have lied or done some little things that were 'wrong', I certainly was not a sinner. And then I question her about Joe, my sister's new husband. I distinctly remember asking her if she liked Joe. Yes, she admitted. I asked her if Joe was a good man. Yes, she said. Then I asked her why God would make Joe go to hell. She said it was because he was a Catholic and a sinner. Her logic. Not mine.

I heard my mother say some terrible things about Negros. Utterances so horrible I won't tell them to living persons and which I refuse to commit to the Internet. She was my sweet grandmother's daughter - the product of prejudice and bigotry. Maybe I was adopted as my brother had said. That must be it.

We had a Christmas play at my elementary school when I was probably in the third grade. Children from each grade in my school were supposed to be orphans awaiting the arrival of Santa Claus. My character was a negro boy. My teacher rubbed burned cork on my freckled face and tiny hands to make me look like a Negro boy. She coached me on how to speak my two lines in a Negro dialect. I remember the audience guffawing when I spoke my lines - a Negro in Wheat Ridge, Colorado. Fat chance of that ever happening.

Holland House Cafe - Golden Colorado

In 1960 my mother and I went to see Psycho at the old Golden Theater in Golden, Colorado, the place where Coors beer is made. We went to the Holland House cafe to eat dinner before the movie. I remember my mother not wanting to eat her food because the cook was a Negro. I remember looking at my food with skepticism and wondering a bit whether some of what she said was true. But I ate anyway. Then we saw the movie. That was something to really fear.

During the summer of 1963 I got to go on the best vacation of my life: a summer trip to Europe with seventeen other kids from my school district and two chaperons. We did the grand tour for six weeks. There were many memorable stops and events. I got drunk for the very first time at the Moulin Rouge in Paris where I saw a couple of nearly naked women except for pasties and a G-string. We ran wild in the rainy streets of Salzburg, and we swam in the Mediterranean west of Rome. But it was in Berlin that two events became etched in my memory card.

Kennedy motorcade in Berlin 1963

On June 26th 1963 three other kids and I left our group to see if we could get a glimpse of President John F. Kennedy. He spoke at two different locations on his famous trip to Berlin. He gave his "Ich bin ein Berliner" speech at the Schöneberg Rathaus (City Hall) in Berlin. We went to the other location - the Free University of Berlin. We got to our location quite early so that we could get
get a good view of the Presidential motorcade. We stood in the hot sun for what seemed like an eternity. The longer we waited, the more people arrived. By the time the motorcade arrived the sidewalks were crowded with Germans. As he approached the crowds roared with applause. The limousine got near and I raised my camera above the assholes that had crowded in front of me to snap a couple of photos of My President. I as so excited to see him that I took four very blurry photos. But more than the photos I remember the adulation the German people had for Our President. So many of the people who lined that section had brought American flags. And they screamed in delight of the man who symbolized America. It was a feeling I will never forget. Equally amazing was the reaction of my often bunk-mate, Bill Phillips. He was a waspish little Republican if there ever was one. We lived only a few blocks apart back in Lakewood, Colorado. He, like me, was Irish and freckled, and as I later found out, gay. Only his family was Republican and against anything Democrat. How surprised I was to see Bill scream and yell for Kennedy. Bill is retired now and lives in the California with his partner of over 36 years. We exchange Christmas cards each year.  I wonder if he is still a Republican.

One day our group took a bus ride into East Berlin which then was locked behind the Berlin Wall. As we drove around we saw buildings that had been bombed into rubble maybe twenty years earlier during World War II. There were blocks upon blocks of rubble. I remember the sky being so clear blue and the landscape being so blah and devoid of color. It was like a movie. Only it was real. I felt so sorry for the East Germans being trapped there. Unable to leave that horrid place.

I think it was the same night we went to a movie theater on the Kurfürstendamm. We watched To Kill a Mockingbird which had been dubbed into German. No matter what language you heard, the story was so easy to understand. The imagery as I said before is etched into my memory. The images of 1930s south. Of poverty and of privilege. Of Scout and Jem and Boo Radley. Of Atticus Finch defending an innocent Negro accused of violating a white girl. Of intolerance and prejudice. Of a lynch mob.



My exposure to non-whites was very limited. I am thankful that my high school college prep and civil studies teachers opened my eyes and my heart to accepting a wider universe than my parents or grandparents were willing to accept.

I am glad I voted with my feet and left the big city of Denver (big to me, at least). I moved to a place where One Human Family is the motto. There is no place like home, especially if home is Key West.

Harper Lee, the author of To Kill a Mockingbird, passed away this week. She wrote one of the best if not the best books of the Twentieth Century. The racial intolerance about which she wrote was not isolated to the South nor to the first half of the last century. It lives on strong all over America.

1607 Laird Street, Key West

If you are a buyer looking for a place that is totally livable as it exists and that does not need to be fixed, the charming home at 1607 Laird Street in the mid-town area of Key West may be the place you have been hoping to find. The listing Realtor, not me, describes this house as

"This VERY WELL MAINTAINED home is priced well below comparable properties in the area. Located in beautiful Mid Town Key West it is perfectly positioned for quick access to downtown yet far enough to enjoy quiet privacy. Freshly renovated floor plan brings additional light and tranquil airiness to the common rooms. Including a Permitted unfinished Detached Studio ready to make it your own! New Hard Wood Flooring, Covered Parking, Granite Counters, Out Door Shower, Mature Landscaping, and Extra Storage are just some of the amazing features of this MUST SEE Key West Gem!"

When you enter the home you walk into foyer and then pass into the living room which has a functional fireplace located to the right. Dual openings on either side allow access to the family area. While I wrote at the outset that this home is livable as it exists, I can't help but thinking opening the fireplace so that it opens to either side would be money well spent. This space is already classy. Updating the fireplace would give this area much more appeal in my opinion. The photo directly above shows one of several new impact glass sliders and windows that recently were added to this home. The new sliders and windows are part of the updating that was recently done to this home. The impact glass will significantly reduce the cost of wind insurance and also reduce sounds from the outside.

The kitchen and dining area are located to the left of the front entry. The kitchen door opens out to the covered carport area. This makes it easy to bring in the groceries under sunny or rainy skies. You need to think about this when considering buying a house in Key West. This is a rarity here. The guest bath is located just off the dining area.

The master bedroom has new French doors that open out the backyard which has room for a pool. Another set of French doors open out from the family living area out to a covered porch and into the backyard area. This open area is begging for someone to spice it up. There  is so much potential here.

The guest bedroom is located at the left rear of the home where another set of French doors open out the backyard where there is newly built rear building that has yet to be completed. The building measures 16' X 12' and is built to code as it sits. The interior is totally virgin and awaits the creative mind of the new owner to finish off this space. There is an outdoor shower located just a few feet away from the new building. And the laundry area is nearby. Also notice the new fence and nicely landscaped yard.

1607 Laird Street is offered at $669,000 or $421 per sq ft for this 1588 sq ft home that sits on a large 61.5' X 88' (5412 sq ft) lot. The house was originally built in 1958 but has been upgraded by the recent owners. CLICK HERE to view the Key West mls datasheet and more listing photos. Then please call me, Gary Thomas, 305-766-2642, to schedule a showing of this nice home. I am a buyers agent and a full time Realtor at Preferred Properties Key West. Even though the place looks great as is, a new owner could add a few things to really make this place an outstanding home. And don't forget, the Great Atlantic Ocean and the Key West Beaches are only a couple of blocks away. People from all over the world to come to Key West to spend a few days enjoying all we have to offer. If you lived here, you would be home right now.