The listing agent describes the new transient licensed home at 516 Catherine Street, Key West this way:
"TRANSIENT! TRANSIENT! TRANSIENT! TRANSIENT! LOCATION! LOCATION! LOCATION! LOCATION! In Old Town Key West. Key West has always been a great place to come and enjoy your vacation time, why not make this your next great investment. You can enjoy this amazing property while you are here and just rent it out when you are not. You can come and go as you please and make money while you are away. An extremely well taken care of property, with great attention to detail, makes this an easy property to just take over and reap the benefits. Two bedrooms (2), Two (2) Full Bathrooms, one (1) large office and great salt water pool with outdoor shower makes this historic one thousand two hundred one (1201) square foot home just perfect for you and your guest to sit back and enjoy. Also, don't forget you get to rent it out when you are not there. Very private for you and your guest, but just a short walk to all that Key West has to offer. This Key West investment strikes all your boxes. New roof has been done within the last couple of years, fresh paint inside and out. Old Key West Charmer is what this home really is. Beautifully landscaped for your tropical oasis. One (1) off street parking is very important with only being a half of a block from Duval Street. Location is just perfect, on the lower end of Duval area, so you can walk to everything. Just far enough away to have some peace and zen. Don't wait!! This is the one you have been looking for. Please contact for showing times, we are not showing while guests are appreciating their vacations."
I looked for but could not find any really historic photos of this house. I also searched the Historic Sanborn Fire Maps and learned that this house along with dozens of similar home were located on the blocks north, south, and to the east which built before 1889. Locals and returning guests may be more familiar the the nearby LaTeDa Hotel and Restaurant. But back at turn of the 19th Century the Gato Cigar Factory was located just half a block to the north. The Key West Electric Company operated the street car system that included a line beginning at the Atlantic Ocean ( three blocks to the south) and that ended at the Key West Seaport about one mile to the north. The cigar factory burned to the ground and the street car line was later ended. Cigar making shifted up to Tampa while Key West stagnated for several decades. The wooden houses were lived by locals during those years. But as Key West evolved into a tourist destination, those little houses became increasingly more desirable because of their proximity to Duval Street, the ocean, and all the attractions that Key West offers.
I think the larger bedroom with guest area functions like a junior suite at one of the pricey hotels except this one opens out to a private pool where you can take a late night dip worrying about prying eyes of others. (If you like that sort of thing go the the Bull and Bush.)
The place is in really good condition. I checked it out and discovered a super cute outdoor shower with well placed mirror for shaving al fresco. The pool is sunny and like I said totally private. How cool is that?
UPDATE JULY 25, 2021. The transient licensed property at 530 Catherine St sold for $2,525,0000 cash or $1,848 per sq ft. Sold in 11 days.
