Behind the once carefully manicured ficus hedge at 1211 Catherine Street sits a hidden 1930's vintage home with great potential. The 3 bedroom 2 bath home totals 1463 sq ft. The living room has really interesting architectural features including original hardwood floors and elegant windows. The master bed and bath are quite large and were redone by the previous owner. Very nicely done. There is a door leading from the master bath to one of the gardens.
The two other bedrooms share the second bath. One of the bedrooms has French doors that open onto the pool. Another set of French doors open onto the pool area from the kitchen. There's a separate laundry area and outdoor shower as well.
There are good sized side yards on both sides of the house. (The lot is 500 sq ft.) The property to the west is Island Gym. There is a huge ficus hedge that screens that property from view. The property next door to the east are apartments. Across the street on the corner is a real estate office. Then there are three successive houses for sale: 1212 Catherine St., 1214 Catherine, and 1216 Catherine.
This property is Bank Owned and it is priced at $589,000 or $402 per sq ft. I like the house. It has some issues (I think the roof needs replaced--at least repaired--as there is evidence of minor leaking in one bath.) But the listing agent has not let this property deteriorate. Hooray for responsible listing! CLICK HERE for more info on 1211 Catherine St.
I think somebody can pick this house up for around $535,000 to $550,000. If you want to look at this house please call me, Gary Thomas, at 305-766-2642. I am not the listing agent.
July 9, 2008 Please read the Comments Section Below for more discussion of issues the listing agent feels I failed to disclose when I wrote this item.
11 comments:
At over $400/sq ft, still high in today's market. And why do the marketing remarks say "off street parking" when the actual listing says "Parking No" The property has been on the market almost 3 months and nobody noticed that? Isn't there a group or board that polices that? Or do agents get to say whatever they want? Buyer beware.
I think the person who entered that data made an error. There is off street parking. The property has not been on the market for 3 months. It has been on the market 219 days. That is a real long time. The price has been reduced and I think the actual sales price will be below the asking price.
$400 per sq ft is not out of line for this house. In late June 2008 the same real estate company that lists this house closed on a single family home two blocks away that was also Bank Owned. The sales price on it was $403.92 per sq ft. And that house was much inferior to 1211 Catherine.
A dilapidated home about 100 feet west of upper Duval closed within the last month and sold for $412.25 per sq ft. It too had commercial buildings and so-so houses as neighbors. 1211 Catherine is far superior to that unremarkable house.
I said this is not my listing. But I think this house could be a good buy for someone who is willing to trade an inferior location for a lot of quality features. I forgot to mention in the piece that the home was on the Home and Garden Tour several years ago. It isn't a bad house. It is just a foreclosed house.
Gary
The link in your piece to the MLS listing has "DOM 80." That's where I got the almost 3 months on the market. (Is it common to now have, as here, 2 errors in a single listing?)
But actually your clarification proves my point. The property is overpiced. Any broker will tell you that properties priced correctly sell quickly in any market. And conversely, properties priced incorrectly languish, like here, for over 7 months. Kudos to the listing agent for maintaining the property in reasonable shape but s/he should really have a heart-to-heart with the lender/owner about pricing this property realistically, like in the low $400s.
I agree with the above post; who wants to pay over half a million dollars to live between an apartment building and, yikes, a gym!
Don't forget 1423 Catherine, still no sale even at less than $382/sq ft. What is wrong with that block? Everyone wants out. Hardly sounds like paradise.
Well, maybe, perhaps the listing agent will forward the comments on this blog to the asset manager at the bank. Maybe he'll see that the bank's asking price might be correct if the property did not have locational issues.
Maybe the asset manager will reassess the asking price as a result of your input.
I didn't write this post to try to influence the price. I think the house is a good buy. But the location has been a definite factor in making this property non-salable.
Gary
The listing realtor asked that I advise readers as follows:
"As for the DOM, the listing was with C21 before and when we moved to the new company on Southard St., the bank re-listed with me once again, thus the DOM count being split between 2 listings, maybe that should be explained in detail so that buyers don’t feel REALTORS® are misleading and can “write whatever they want..” on a listing, as the post says.
It worries me that some of these questions are being brushed off and these people feel as though there is something hidden and the trust in us agents is being compromised because the questions aren’t answered completely. "
Point taken.
The listing realtor also thought I mislead about the property condition: "I feel that you should’ve used the photos provided in the MLS and not old photos of when the property was in good condition as I personally consider that misleading, also minor leaking in one of the bathrooms???? Again, misleading, we both know that the master bath a SERIOUS leak, has mold issues and that the den/office/3rd bedroom has a hole in the wall where the property inspector’s hand went right through it as he was checking it, you have a copy of the inspection report and are FULLY aware of this. VERY MISLEADING.
I am going to ask you to please remove the above comments or change your verbiage to appropriately disclose the condition of the home, otherwise please do not address it at all on your blog."
The listing realtor has an inspection report that details exactly what a home inspector reported the condition of the property to be. My opinion is not important. And I always urge buyers to get their own inspection done. This house has a flat roof and the leak in the master bath is directly below the southeast corner where there is a drain from the roof that extends to the outside like a gutter. My suspicion is that the "gutter" is clogged and that the accumlation of water unable to drain is what lead to the leak inside. But I'm not a home inspector. But I don't recall leaks in any other area of the house.
There is mold in the front entry way. And it needs to be mitigated. But I did not smell mold or see any evidence of it in other inside areas. These are issues that need to be addressed when someone makes an offer to purchase.
I added the old photo of the furnished living room because it showed the architecturally interesting windows better than the current photos. I'm guilty.
Finally, the listing Realtor said this:"My main concern is that whoever ends up with this home is fully aware of what “issues” the property comes with is completely comfortable with the project/repairs that come along with it etc. I am not in a rush to get just anyone under contract and have it fall through during inspection, it’s a waste of time."
I couldn't agree more.
Gary
Wow! I appreciate the candor of the listing agent. But why doesn't she now go back to the Bank and get them to agree to a realistic sales price. I earlier estimated low $400s. Maybe it should be less than that.
Gary, I'm concerned you downplayed the leak and omitted the mold, hole in the wall, etc. (There is also a missing shutter to the left of the front door). However, I must defend you for showing the photo of the furnished living room. Obviously the furniture doesn't convey. But it gives prospective buyers an idea of what can be done with the property. Of course, that's why condo developements always have a "model" (or at least they used to).
Finally, if the listing agent is so concerned that people will feel "as though there is something hidden," why not just post the inspection report? How about that for full disclosure?
Yeah, and why doesn't the listing realtor just post a comment herself instead of going thru you, Gary. S/he obviously reads the blog. Very wierd.
This is what I understand: there was a prior contract between seller and buyer. Buyer obtained an inspection report that pointed out problems with the roof and mold in the front entry. It also such things as a missing J-bend in the outside wash basin in the laundry area. I've written several times about the need to get a certified home owners inspection prior to completing the purchase on any property. And this is especially true with bank owned properties because the banks require buyers to read and sign very specific releases related to the condition of the property.
The bank sellers typically convey title only to the property that the bank acquired. The bank seller provides title insurance to the title that bank conveys. More than any other conveyance, these sales are truly "AS IS".
This blog is not offered as a total condition report on any one or on many properties that are for sale. I want to sell real estate. If I can get a potential buyer to go look at a property I have written about, the buyer will have ample time to see for himself issues that might influence him to make an offer to purchase.
I personally don't think this property has any structural or mechanical issues that cannot be repaired. I think the mold issue is akin to termites. Every house in Key West has termites. Some properties are worse than others. I think many, many houses in Key West have mold to some degree. Some property owners address the issue and others do not. That is what inspection reports are for.
Gary
The Captain says:
*UPDATE - UPDATE - UPDATE*
Price for this property has been reduced to $545K. No doubt as a result of these posts. Still too high in my opinion.
Captain out.
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