723 Catherine Street, Key West - Just Sold

Just SOLD, but not by me, 723 Catherine Street, Key West. I wrote about this property a couple of times over the past few years and showed it to several prospective buyers. Let me share a bit of what I previously wrote.

723 Catherine Street in 1965

From a bottling plant to a contemporary gem, this former cola bottling plant was converted in 1995 into a spacious, open, modern home and is a recipient of the prestigious Ceramic Star for Architectural Preservation Excellence. Lush gardens surround a beautiful pool with a waterfall, an outdoor shower and a large poolside loggia that is great for dining and entertaining. High privacy walls insure peace and quiet. There are three large bedrooms and two and a half baths equipped with elegant modern fixtures. Inside the ceilings soar in the first floor living areas. The gourmet kitchen opens over a breakfast bar to the great room. This property is in the low-flood-hazard x zone.

 This home has 2356 sq ft of living space and sits on a 3939 sq ft lot. The property definitely has a New York loft type of feel to me. The building is concrete and the floors are decorative concrete. Even though the walls and floors and glass are hard surfaces, the house does not give off what I'll call hard vibes. The simple lines, warm colors, high ceilings, and spacious rooms make this home inviting, not harsh. The open courtyards and pool off the living areas remind you right away that you are not on the Isle of Manhattan but the Island of Key West instead.

I dug down into my old shoebox and found the black and white aerial photo taken of St Mary's Star  of the Sea church and convent in the 1950s. The convent burned down a few years later. I added a check to mark the location of 723 Catherine Street.  If you are familiar with this part of town you will appreciate all of the new construction and historic preservation that has taken place over the past six decades. One of the challenges in selling this property was its location across the street from the Suburban Propane tank farm. It's time for that thing to be relocated to another island. It has had a negative influence on many other sales over the years. The thing that changed the dynamics was the acquisition of a transient rental license. The owner had successfully rented the property as a monthly vacation rental. But a transient license makes that property (and any other property in close proximity of Duval Street) a money making prospect.

The property was sold in 1994 for $132,500. The recent owner/seller purchased it in 1998 for $490,000. It CLOSED yesterday for $1,842,500.  I am not good at math and I know someone who is will correct me. But I think that is a 386.2% gain or an annual gain of 18.3%.  Plus the owner/seller had the use and or income of the property for the past 21 years. It kind of beats owing a CD. CLICK HERE to view the Key West MLS datasheet on this property. Congrats to the listing and selling agents.