1307 Truman Avenue, Key West - Bank Owned Grand Dame - A Buying Opportunity!

 Just Listed, but not by me, is the Bank Owned home at 1307 Truman Avenue, Key West, Florida. This Victorian home was built by a Cigar factory owner from Cuba in 1906. The home was expertly renovated in 2002 to restore the original elegance while adding all the modern amenities. The house sits on two lots which span from Truman Avenue to Albury Street ( 161' X 46.08' or 7418 sq ft). According to the Monroe County  Property Appraiser this home has 3352 sq ft of interior living space plus 1500 sq ft of porches. Bedrooms have 12 ft ceilings. There is a second floor maid's quarters (or guest suite) with a private porch and a view of the stunning pool below. Original Dade County Pine floors, crown molding, and custom interior trim decorate the interiors. The extra large kitchen is located at the rear. There is an abundance of custom cabinets, soap stone counters and a large white marble island counter the doubles as a place to dine. The covered rear porch just off the kitchen provides a shady setting to watch the family and guests enjoy the large and sunny pool.

 Wikipedia describes Grand Dame as "In popular culture, the grande dame is usually portrayed as a slightly flamboyant woman, prone to extravagant and eccentric fashion, such as feather boas, large hats, and excessive costume jewelry. She may be overly pre-occupied with the concept of 'acting ladylike" and expect all those around her to conform to her own high standards of etiquette." This home has a prominence that cannot be denied. The wrap around verandas are her boa; the towering height is her large hat; and the gardens are her costume jewelry. I dug down into my old shoebox and found the black and white photo of this property taken half a century ago. That photo shows the house before the 2002 addition at the rear was added. You can't see the addition in present day photos as it is hidden behind the white picket fence and privacy foliage. The most notable change was the creations of the third floor open balcony that overlooks Bayview Park across the street.

 This house on millionaires row was built circa 1906. Only a few of the grand houses that once populated Truman Avenue from Eisenhower Drive at the east to Duval Street at the west continue to remain as single family homes today. These large homes were built in sizes and to standards (and lifestyles) that are no longer current. Many of the houses that do remain have been converted into guest houses or re-configured into a combination of commercial and/or retail with some residential use. This house has not been messed around with and sits almost like a virgin, albeit an old virgin.

This house is in very good condition with the exception that the exterior will need to be painted and the gardens will need some TLC to get things back to where they should be.

This home has all the character and formality as it did when it was built. There is a grand three story entry hall. The living room is located at the front of the house.  A Victorian era divider provides a bit of separation which allows for two distinct living areas. A similar divider provides a separation from the formal dining room.

The kitchen sits at the rear. The kitchen is huge and would make a great gathering place for modern living in an old house. The wrap around verandas at the and rear seem to envelop the house. Each of the rooms on all three levels of the house (including the third floor) have very tall ceilings, crown molding, and exude a sense of formality we don't see in current architecture. For readers who have been in dozens of Key West Conch houses, this isn't one. This house probably more than any I have seen in Key West imparts the feel of the Victorian Era.

Second floor front bedroom has covered balcony that overlooks Bayview Park

The house has five bedrooms, each of which is quite large. And most have en-suite baths. The third floor has a sitting room off the bedroom. The ceiling up there must be 15 feet tall. There is a small porch off the front of the third floor where you can see the treetops and rooftops of much of the southern end of the island. Bayview Park is just across the street. What a view! There is a rooftop deck at the rear with an amazing view of the north. I could see water on the Gulfside of the island. You could not build a house of this height in Key West today. But if you buy it, you have the view forever. CLICK HERE to view more photos of this home, garden, and pool area. Click on any photo to enlarge.

 CLICK HERE to view the Key West mls datasheet on this Bank Owned home that is offered at $1,950,000.  This is a real buying opportunity for someone who wants a major Key West home with lots of bedrooms and quality interior spaces.  Each of the bedrooms (except the maid's quarters) are large and have en-suite baths. The public spaces are all large and exude a sense of formality that modern architecture normally omits. Please call me, Gary Thomas, 305-766-2642 to set up a private showing on this home. I am a buyers agent and a full time Realtor at Preferred Properties Key West. 

1501 Truman Avenue, Key West - Transient Licensed Property

Sometimes we need to look backward to see forward. That's the case for the investment opportunity located at 1501 Truman Avenue in Key West. The listing Realtor, not me, describes this listing as a:

"Great Investment Opportunity. High Visibility On Truman Ave. 4 Units Each With Full Kitchen And Private Bath. Transient Licenses, Pool And Off Street Parking For Two Cars.Original Structure Has Dade County Pine.Needs Tlc,Being Sold As Is."

I recently took some photos for a potentially interested buyer which you can see if you CLICK HERE. I used the pocket camera and the pics are not all that good. You will quickly see that the camera would not have made much of a difference. This place needs work! A lot of it. Let's look back to a couple of older photos of this property.

 This photo shows the house much better than we can see it today because of all the trees and foliage that protects the house from Truman Avenue.  You'll notice the broad front porch which angles back on the right side where there is also one off street parking spot. Note also the exterior staircase to the second floor. That tells us there is no interior staircase. And finally we see a second floor front balcony that appears to have been added.

The above photo shows a banner across Truman Avenue welcoming M.W. Davis H. Wilkinson, Mason Grand Master of Florida to Key West in 1960. You can also see that wrap-around porch. The house has a stately look back then. Today, the beauty of the house is more difficult to see party because of all the trees but also because the place has not been maintained.  A good haircut never hurt anybody. It's gonna take more than a paint job to fix this old place, but it will certainly look much better after it gets a spiffed up.

The site is located at the corner of Truman Avenue and Pearl Street. The lot measures 49' X 88' or 4371 sq ft. The Monroe County Property Appraiser records show the main house plus rear first floor addition and a second rear cottage on the Pearl Street side total 2214 sq ft of living space capable of being air conditioned.  The stairs were removed from the main house. Today these areas are used as kitchens or baths for the three apartments that make up the current building. I think any renovation would remove the exterior staircase and relocate it back in the main house. 

Original staircase area now used as a kitchen.

The above photo shows the second floor apartment. The room on the right is where the stairway would have landed. The opened door leads to the front balcony that overlooks Bayview Park across the street. The views from the balcony are actually pretty interesting.

The three photos immediately above show two sawtooth additions appended to the rear of the main house followed by a rear cottage which the listing Realtor describes as an owner's unit. You'll see a nice pool located just off the owner's unit plus the sunny expanse on the opposite side of the tall white fence.  Each of the three apartments in the main house have a valuable Transient Rental License which permits daily rental.  The street photos also show what the listing Realtor describes as off street parking. CLICK HERE to view the Key West Association of Realtors mls datasheet on 1501 Truman Avenue which is offered for sale at $949,000.

The large building lot located on the far side of 1501 Truman Avenue is my listing at 1430 Albury Street (formerly 901 Pearl Street). This lot measures 50' X 70' or 3500 sq ft.  I think a smart investor might be able combine the two parcels into a single lot and potentially relocate one or two of the transient licenses into structures moved from the front portion to the rear or to build a new structure or structures there. There is actually plenty of room to have three stand alone cottages each with separate pool and parking. A land planner and a real estate attorney would need to advise a buyer whether such a combination is legally permissible and politically acceptable.  CLICK HERE to view the Key West mls datasheet on 1430 Albury Street which is offered for sale at $750,000.

I think that the old house combined with new construction could create a wonderful Renaissance project that could work. The transient licenses and the size of the vacant lot provides all sorts of potential for such a project. Please call me, Gary Thomas, 305-766-2642 to schedule a private showing of both properties. Let's look at what exists and explore what might be. I am a full time Realtor at Preferred Properties Key West.