Huge Price Reduction --421 Simonton -- Commercial

The asking price just got a lot better on 421-423 Simonton Street in the very heart of Old Town Key West. This property is the ugliest of ducks in Old Town. But the location is just about as good as it gets. The property is ripe for renovation and the new asking price makes that prospect of renovation more realistic.

421 Simonton was originally listed in April 2006 at $2,299,999. It didn't sell, and the price has been sporadically reduced on March 4th. The new price is $1,350,000. This is what you get for the money: 3766 sq ft building on a 3520 sq ft lot. There are 5 ROGO UNITS WITH TRANSIENT LICENSING plus 2 retail stores on the ground floor located one block from Duval. Possible Guesthouse or Condo conversion. Renovation project with lots of potential. Room for a pool. CLICK HERE for details offered by the listing realtor.

The current facade is hideous and probably dates to the 1950s. But behind the facade is what appears to be a big old Key West conch house. I say "appears" because I have only been inside the front building which housed an antique store. But the property behind the facade is what restorers want. This property will take some digging and investigating. But my suspicion is that you will find interesting photos of the building at the Monroe County Library. You can then develop a plan to renovate the building and make maximum use of the land and space. Perhaps you can use the 5 transient licenses to create a small boutique guest house with a pool. If you are a repressed innkeeper at heart this may be your opportunity to create your own very special guest house. And that location would be a killer!

I think a serious renovation project would also get the cooperation of the Historic Architectural Review Commission (HARC). The building next door to the south is an antique store and just underwent a restoration of its facade. Its picture at night is featured above.

Want to buy commercial space in Key West? CLICK HERE to do your own personal search of the Key West mls website. If you see something you like, please call me, Gary Thomas, 305-766-2642 or e-mail me at kw1101v@aol.com. Let me know the mls property number and let me know how I can help you. Even if what you want is not listed does not mean it may not be available. Let me know what you are looking for and maybe I can find it. Commercial sales have not been going very well and there may be a willingness on the part of some sellers to negotiate now more readily than they would have done in the past. You never know until you try.

630 Eaton Street, Old Town, Key West, Fl--Commercial

Development Opportunity. Four years ago this property would have been sold the first day or so it was on the market because of the Location and Development Opportunity associated with this large property.

630 Eaton Street sits on a lot totaling 7898 sq ft on the corner of Eaton & Elizabeth in heart of Old Town. Just two blocks off Duval St. Main building is 4,750 sq ft wooden structure with 7 residential apartments. There is an additional 237 sq ft building fronting Eaton St. (A studio apartment.) Lot coverage & Floor Area Ratio (FAR) are within current limits for HNC-2 zoning which permits Single, 2 family residential units, churches, hotels, transient lodging, businesses, professional offices, and medical offices.

CLICK HERE for additional photos and more info on this development opportunity. This property has not been on the market since 1984.

CLICK HERE to search all Key West mls properties and then please call me, Gary Thomas, 305-766-2642 or e-mail me at kw1101v@aol.com for more information or to schedule a showing.

Key West Investment Property

Just Listed: 513 Olivia Street Key West, Fl. Two story legal duplex in Old Town and just 1/2 block off of Duval Street.

Just a few steps from Duval sits this great conch house with a secluded pool and gardens. This historic duplex is an ideal income or owner-occupied property. The exposed Dade Pine walls accent a beautiful upstairs owner's unit with one bedroom and one bath. The downstairs unit has two bedrooms and one bath and opens to the rear gardens and pool. There are upstairs and downstairs porches that lend themselves to people watching or relaxing with a good book and your favorite beverage. This property is a possible transient rental license receiver location. CLICK HERE for more info and pics of this property.

The area is densely populated with other transient rental units. And its proximity to Duval lends itself to use as a transient rental operation. I would suggest any potential investor checkout the websites of several companies that rent units in the area to see what kind of income a new owner could expect to achieve after a couple of years in the business. THIS 2 BEDROOM ON OLIVIA rents for $6080 to $7500 per month during season. THIS ONE BEDROOM @ DUVAL SQUARE rents for $3320 to $4100 during season.

CLICK HERE to do your own search of the Key West MLS website where you can checkout all residential and commercial listings. Then call Gary Thomas at 305.766.2642 to schedule a showing.

510 Fleming Street -- Commercial Deal

Do you remember the old days when you could leave the door to your house unlocked all the time and not worry about somebody committing a Home Invasion? I do. And for the most part Key West is still the kind of place where you can leave your house unlocked and not worry about somebody coming inside without an invitation. A friend recently entered her teenage son in a New England Prep School and told him that he would have to start locking his door to protect his things. This, she said, came as a total shock to her son. He had never thought of anybody needing to lock something up.

Remember the old days when a merchant lived above his store. I actually do. There was a small grocery called Eddie's Red & White a corner from my grandmother's house. Eddie and the Mrs. lived upstairs. I want to write a book about that memory someday. But that is another story.

Anyway, there is a nifty little commercial and residential duplex just steps off Duval at 510 Fleming Street. The commercial space downstairs is about 390 square feet. The upstairs residential is a 410 square foot apartment. The property is now listed at $595,000 or just $735 per sq ft. The zoning is HRCC3. CLICK HERE for more pics and info on this little piece of yesteryear.

Raise High the Roofbeam Carpenters

Just listed at 330 Julia Street is a wonderful historic building In the Heart of Old Town, just one block from Duval Street. It was originally built in 1900 as the Old Keystone Church. This unique building has been meticulously renovated and converted into mixed residential and commercial space. There are four units including one huge commercial space & three apartments (one 2bd/1ba, one 1 or 2bd/1ba & a studio). Open cathedral ceilings, original wood beams, antique stained glass windows, hardwood & tile floors, reception area & conference room. A rare opportunity to purchase this exquisite, historical building. The building is 4809 square feet on a 3999 square foot lot. It is offered at $2,400,000 or $499 per square foot.

This building is also just a short walk to the Monroe County Courthouse. Since it has 4 off street parking spaces, it would make excellent law offices or other business offices.

CLICK HERE to checkout all of the photos of this one of a kind building in Key West. There are not a lot of opportunities like this.

Upper Duval Commercial Building For Sale

1211 Duval Street is th e perfect opportunity to move or expand your business onto Duval St.. Real estate for sale only. This beautiful two-story historical building is the birth place of Mario Sanchez and now home to the world famous Banana Cafe. Located just two blocks from the Atlantic Ocean in the 'Gallery District' of upper Duval St., it is within a short walk to South Beach and the Southernmost House. The ocean can be glimpsed from second floor. The commercial unit on the first floor is currently operating as high volume, established restaurant with indoor & patio seating. There are 3 transient licensed units upstairs with conversion possibilities. Could be purchased along with one or both of the adjoining properties located at 1207 Duval St and 505-507 Louisa Street located immediately to the east. CLICK HERE for full information on the 505-507 Louisa Street properties.

The asking price on this property is $1,685,000 or $790 per square foot. Not bad for a Duval Street location with transient licenses. Please call me to schedule a showing or to provide you with more financial information on the property.

Key West Commercial Real Estate

Ever hear of Seller's Remorse? It is when a seller regrets having nixed a sale because he thought he could get more for the property at a later date only to find out that he was wrong. Dead wrong.

Such may be the case for the owner of a commercial condo CLICK HERE located in the same developments as our office, Duval Square at 1075 Duval Street.

The Duval Square is is a planned unit development that stretches from Duval to Simonton Street just one block south of Truman. There are several restaurants including Square One Restaurant plus various commercial businesses on the ground floor and about 22 two story townhomes on the second and third levels of the buildings. We are about four blocks from the Atlantic Ocean. Upper Duval has really changed in since the mid 1980's. Back then the world famous LaTeDa's guesthouse and restaurant were the primary commercial activity in the area. But two decades later there are many restaurants, galleries, guesthouses, and the Butterfly Conservancy that line the street.

Club Body Tech closed its doors two years ago. I was a member and the gym had been a thriving business. In my opinion the absentee owners hired a very poor manager that ran the business into the ground. Equipment got broken and wasn't repaired. The showers and locker rooms were never clean. The office was as messy as a pig sty. And the membership fees were very high compared to the level of service offered.

The condo owner has had the property on the market ever since the gym closed. The initial asking price was $1.3 million. That is $387 per square foot for the largest commercial space in the complex--3361 square feet. The first Realtor to list the property told me that the seller did have offers near the asking price but that he wouldn't budge off the asking price. Two years later the price was just reduced to $600,000 or less than half of the original asking price. The price per foot today is $178. There are three other commercial spaces also for sale and they are priced at $684 per sq ft (656 sq. ft.), $570 per sq. ft. (700 sq. ft.), and $873 per sq. ft (800 sq. ft.).

Now the owner of the former gym property bought the unit in 1996 and paid $300,000 so he will not lose and principal but his holding costs (taxes, insurance, association fees, cma fees, and debt service if any) are adding up. Two of the owners of the other units for sale bought at prices much lower than their asking price so they are alright as well. But I do think there prices are very aggressive for this market. The owner of the forth unit paid $450,000 three years ago and he must be bleeding. His space is across the courtyard from the old Club Body Tech and several different businesses have failed at that same location.

I think the owner of the commercial condo that was the Club Body Tech probably does have seller's remorse. And I think the sellers of the three other units for sale need to reassess their current asking prices. There is not a lot of commercial space for sale in Key West overall. There are, however, too many commercial spaces for sale of for lease on Duval. Duval Street property owners have gotten way to greedy for their own good. They charge exorbitant rent which causes small business owners to fail whether they lease or own the property because the lease payments or mortgage payments are too demanding. Other commercial areas of Key West seem to fare much better.

CLICK HERE to search for additional commercial properties in Key West and the lower Florida Keys. Then give me a call to help you find your next business in Paradise 305-766-2642 or email at garyethomas@aol.com.