809 Eaton Street Key West - Bank Owned - Buying Opportunity

809 Eaton Street in Key West just became a Bank Owned Property. It is an historic house. It is a very large house with 6 bedrooms 5 1/2 baths, a pool, a guest cottage, two off street parking places, and an incredible street presence. It is priced beyond the means of most potential buyers. But it is an incredible buying opportunity for the buyer who wants to own a significant home in a great Old Town Key West location. It is offered for sale at $1,995,000.

The front section of the house stands three stories tall and appears to resemble an eyebrow house in construction except that it has wrap-around balconies on the first and second levels. The front portion of the house dates back to circa 1840.  I found a photo of the property taken in 1965 which shows the front portion, a sawtooth addition, and an extension. The building was meticulously restored in the early 2000s and was was featured in the Old Island Foundation House Tour in 2005.

The house is typical of other Bahamian styled homes of that era located in the immediate neighborhood. 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. I stood on the front porch of this home a couple of days ago and noted the extra wide siding which suggested to me that the wood used was quite old when the house was built around 1840. That suggested that the trees used in construction must have dated back to the founding of our country or even before. Old growth lumber only comes from old trees.  The wood inside the house is Dade County Pine and would be of similar age. Dade County Pine is as tough as petrified lumber.  This house is about as solidly built as any you are apt to find.  Look at the photo immediately below and notice the tiny window just under the roof as it slopes downward. That window is located at floor level on the third floor. In the time before central air conditioning the windows and doors could remain open to ventilate the house. The architecture was not only graceful but also functional. The graceful style survives.

I believe that the original main floor wood walls were removed to provide a grand open space. The configuration today provides a semi-formal dining room on one side and a large living area on the other. Large posts and beams appear to have been added to support the weight of this massive building. An elegant stairway at the rear provides access to the second floor.

I have been inside numerous eyebrow houses in Key West. They all have a similar interior layout which includes a center hallway with rooms on either side on the ground floor. Rooms on the second floor vary depending on the size of the house. Smaller houses have one bedroom on either side and perhaps a narrow passage on one side of the second floor stairway landing which might lead to the rear where a bathroom has been added. Some larger homes have a larger bathroom addition with doors leading from the bedrooms on either side. This home has  two large bedrooms on the second floor each of which has private baths and a large hallway with a set of stairs that goes up to the third floor where there are two more bedrooms which share a bath at the rear. A dormer with a bank of windows looks off to the Gulf of Mexico just a couple of blocks to the north. A few years ago you could see the water from the window. Today trees have grown so tall that the water views are pretty much obscured. But the blue skies and white clouds still illuminate that room in the daytime.

The two additions seen in the old black and white photo were reconfigured to provide an open living and kitchen area with high vaulted ceilings. A bank of French doors at the rear open out to the covered rear deck that looks down toward the rear gardens, pool, and guest cottage.

The kitchen is even larger than the photos suggest. There is a butler's pantry at the rear of the kitchen where there is a side door that leads to the off street parking spot on the lane. This makes delivery of groceries and beverages a breeze. Your caterer will love this! There is a main level bedroom with en-suite bath located just off the great room. It has a set of French doors that open out to the covered rear elevated veranda. The guest cottage at the rear expanded the total living area to 4712 sq ft (per Monroe County Property Appraiser records). The irregularly lot runs 57' X 125' or around 7079 sq ft. The house sits at the corner of picturesque Caraballo Lane where one of the two off street parking spots is located.

If you look carefully you'll see a whole house generator tucked away at the end of the pool. There's plenty of space to get a famous Key West tan here. The guest cottage can be accessed via gate and pathway from the Eaton Street entrance or off the lane entrance. Guests can come and go without disturbing anyone.

CLICK HERE to view the Key West mls datasheet then please call me, Gary Thomas, 305-766-2642 to schedule a showing or to provide more information on this exciting new bank owned property. I am a buyers agent and a full time Realtor at Preferred Properties Key West. This property is owned by a local bank. Decisions will be made locally and will be made promptly. Don't miss out on this exciting buying opportunity of an important historic home.