809 Eaton Street - Key West - Short Sale of Significant Importance

809 Eaton Street in Key West is now offered as a Short Sale at the asking price of $2,295,000. That's a lotta money! But this is a lotta house!  The listing Realtor describes the property this way:

"Classic 1800's Old Town property which is a combination of the Henry Lowe House and the Samuel Kemp House, built in 1840. This 5 bedroom / 4.5 bath 3 story home with 1 bedroom / 1 bathroom guest cottage has all the amenities you're looking for! This historic home offers a spacious living area with large open kitchen which is great for entertaining. Additional features include large porches throughout, high ceilings, Dade County Pine, hardwood flooring, large covered deck, fantastic pool & Jacuzzi & off-street parking. Converted cistern as wine cellar. There is also a 60,000 watt generator so you're never in the dark. On the National Registry of Historic Places."

I have written about this property before.  809 Eaton Street in Key West dates back to circa 1840 when it was built for Henry Lowe. The house was totally restored and enlarged in 2005 when it was featured in the Old Island Foundation House Tour. Today this home is one of the finest examples of a Bahamian styled home located in the Old Town Historic District.

Many of the Key West's founding fathers were expatriates from the Bahamas. They brought with them the architectural style and construction techniques with which they were familiar.  Bahamian styled houses were placed on piers and had wood frames and had tall ceilings and large windows with Bahama shutters which permitted air to circulate through the house to provide natural cooling. The houses were built with wood clapboard siding. This home has a stunning wrap-around porch on the first and second levels.

I dug deep into the old shoebox and found a photo of the roof of 809 Eaton Street (black and white photo immediately below) that from 1914.  I just love the look of Key West back in the day. You can see that the Historic Seaport is only a couple of blocks away. Note all of the smaller buildings which back then were cook houses or privies.  I found another photo of 809 Eaton Street that was taken in 1965 (black and white photo second below). The house would have been about 125 years old when that pic was taken. The large building in the foreground is the backside of the Island City House.  Nearly half a century later 809 Eaton Street looks as prominent as ever (color photo below).

I recently found a photo of 809 Eaton Street that was taken in the 1960's from the Island City House located across the street. The outline of a man standing on the porch reminds me of Freddy in the Nightmare on Elm Street. I took a photo from the same location just to prove the point that once what was is often still the same on our little island where historic homes are preserved - not destroyed.

This house has 4712 sq ft of living space divided between the main house and the guest cottage. The main house is a very large three story home. The main floor includes a spacious living room, dining room, family room, and extra large kitchen and pantry. The master bedroom with en-suite bath is also located on the main floor at the left rear of the home.  There are multiple sets of French doors that line the back of the house that open out to the loggia that overlooks the long rectangular pool, garden, and guest cottage. Dual entryways from the living area flow into the informal family room and kitchen at the rear. This creates a feeling of less formality than the photos rich with architectural detail might suggest.

The gracious staircase leads to the second floor where there are three bedrooms and baths. Each of these bedrooms open onto the wrap-around second floor porch. A smaller staircase leads to the third floor which has a dormitory style bedroom plus bath which as a view looking toward the Gulf of Mexico in the distance and the pool, garden, and guesthouse in the foreground. If you counted them, there are four bedrooms and baths in the main house plus a fifth bedroom and bath in the guest cottage.

This home would make a great vacation rental. There are just a few homes as large as this in Key West. This home ought to appeal to wedding parties, family reunions, friends travelling together, and business groups that require sophisticated lodging in an understated luxury environment. 

The interior finishes and materials are all of the highest quality. While the house is rich in history and the house itself has several formal living spaces, most of the living areas on the inside and outside are quite relaxed. The family room and kitchen are essentially one large living space with a vaulted ceiling with skylights and multiple sets of French doors that bathe the space in light.

It is the outdoor living area that will probably entice that special buyer to select this home. The rear loggia overlooks the pool and spa which are surrounded by bricked walkways and sunning areas. The guest cottage on the west side was built as part of the 2005 restoration and expansion. The cottage has a separate sitting area in the bedroom, bath, and mini-kitchen each with views of the pool.


The home has two off street parking spots - one adjacent to the front entrance and a second at the rear.  The whole house generator will provide electricity to keep you comfortable and cozy in the event of power failure elsewhere on the island. CLICK HERE to view more photos of this incredible Key West property.

This is a very large house with an extra large guest cottage. You can see it has a great outdoor entertaining area with an extra large sunny pool. The property is located two blocks south of the Historic Key West Seaport and only four blocks from Duval Street.

Nearby Key West Seafood Market

 The mortgage on this Short Sale property is held by a local Key West lender. That suggests to me that a serious offer would get serious and prompt consideration by that lender. I have negotiated a large short sale purchase with this same lender before. 

CLICK HERE to view the Key West mls datasheet and listing photos of this special Key West home which is a Short Sale offered at $2,295,000. If you area qualified buyer and would like to see this special 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 Key West.