1421 Eliza Street - Short Sale - Key West

1424 Eliza Street - Key West

Just listed by Preferred Properties Coastal Realty (that's where I work but this is not my listing), 1421 Eliza Street, Key West. The home has been featured on HGTV and now is offered for sale as a short sale at the asking price of $360,500. The listing Realtor describes this utterly charming house this way:

"Bank approved short sale. Decorated & owned by exp. designers, this 2br/1 bath home nestled in a quiet neighborhood can be yours for a steal! Tropical foliage surrounds this beautiful Conch house creating your own private paradise. The inside boasts many windows which create natural light throughout. The kitchen is complete with stainless steel appliances. Outside there's a cozy pool for cooling off during those warm Key West summers & because it's heated & has jets, it allows you to relax & unwind during those cold winter nights. There are french doors coming off from the kitchen to the large deck area that makes this a great home for entertaining. The spacious front porch allows room to stretch out & relax to pass the time away."

This house is located in the Arts & Deco District just south of Bayview Park. The former home of Tennessee Williams is located two blocks away on Duncan Street. This area has a mix of old family owned homes and properties like 1421 Eliza Street, that have been gentrified. Bayview Park is one block to the north. The Atlantic Ocean is an easy five minute bike ride to the south.

The pool at 1421 Eliza Street is so cool

1421 Eliza Street is a two bedroom one bath house with 1159 sq ft of living space on a compact 2309 sq ft lot. The house has an inviting facade, tony interior, and a kewl pool. The price is just $360,500. This is a short sale. CLICK HERE to checkout more details in the Key West mls database for this property.

If you want to see 1421 Eliza Street please call me, Gary Thomas, 305-766-2642. I am a buyer's agent and a full time Realtor at Preferred Properties Coastal Realty, Inc. in Key West. Don't procrastinate on this house because it will go under contract quickly.

Key West on National Open House

Announcement from the Key West Association of Realtors

Key West will be featured in HGTV’s popular television series “National Open House”. Hosted by local real estate Broker, Rudy Molinet, the show compares homes in Key West with those in Las Vegas and Virginia Beach. The show features local homeowners showing their homes in several parts of town and in different price ranges. There is even a houseboat on the show, probably the first time one has been featured.

The episodes were filmed last year with local Key Westers “showing off their homes” and Rudy Molinet acting as the local real estate expert and ambassador for Key West. The show was filmed at local landmarks including the Old Town Historic District, the Oldest House on Duval Street, the Southernmost Point and many other Key West scenes.

This show will provide national exposure for Key West. This is the first time our city has been featured. The episode will air on Tuesday, July 15, 2008 at 9:30 PM on Home & Garden Television.

The pic at the top is Rudy Molinet about 40 years ago. He uses his pic in all of his advertising. (He even has his pic in one of his listings on Pecan Lane along with the photos of the homeowners children. I kid you not!) The guy right below Rudy is me about 30 years ago. Rudy looks pretty much the same. I look much older and have lots of grey hair these days.

I'm neither an expert nor ambassador. But I know a thing or two about Key West real estate. CLICK HERE to preview all Lower Florida Keys real estate listings. If you see something you like please call me, Gary Thomas, 305-766-2642 or e-mail me at kw1101v@aol.com. Let's all watch Rudy next week.

Water-Blogged in Key West

I was watching a new episode of HGTV's National Open House last night. The episode featured homes in Minneapolis, Charleston, S.C., and San Francisco, at price points of $250,000, $500,000, $750,000 and $1 million. CLICK HERE for more info on that episode. In the middle of the program there was a gay couple in Minneapolis that bought a home in a deteriorated neighbor hood about ten years ago. As I recall they paid somewhere around $100,000 for their home. They worked their magic on the house and made it absolutely shine. I was just amazed at what they accomplished without spending a helluva lot of money. I think the announced said that in today's market the house is worth $750,000. I may be wrong on the number, but that is not the point. The bought a good house in a somewhat bad neighborhood and turned it into a showcase that is now worth a lot of money.

The camera veered outside to show other houses on the block that were also re-vitalized. House after house had the gay flag flying. All the lawns were mowed and all the facades were crisp and clean. It made me think about what happens when gays move into an area. They play house. They build and re-build and decorate and re-decorate. Just like their heterosexual counterparts, they nest. Sometimes they just build more fancy nests.

When I bought my first house in Denver in the 1970's I decided to find one in the Capital Hill area. That part of town was the area developed after the first generation of miners settled in Denver. A couple blocks from my house you will find the Governor's Mansion and the home of the Unsinkable Molly Brown. But back in the 1970's a lot of the grand homes were split into apartments and many had deteriorated. The wealthy moved on to greener pastures. When that happened, prices went down. My generation of gay men and women did what the unthinkable in earlier times: they bought homes together. In fact the City of Denver had an ordinance which forbid unmarried people from owning homes together in specific areas of Denver. I remember looking a property one time and my Realtor told me "Gary, you know that you cannot buy here." I told her "Oh, yes, I can!" The city eventually abolished that arcane law. Denver's Capitol Hill area is now one of the toniest parts of town.

When prices were low gays moved in and bought the houses nobody else wanted and brought them back to their former glory -- just like the guys in Minneapolis in the National Open House episode last night. That made me think what may happen now that prices are returning to levels where normal people (as is not rich) can buy a permanent home or second home in Key West.

There are some good deals in the Old Town area as compared to prices from a few years ago. Prices are still high as compared to other areas of the U.S. But you cannot find the architecture or lifestyle that is Key West in Minneapolis or San Francisco. If you are gay you can find many gay neighborhoods. But you'll have to deal with other issues like having a real job, commuting, long lines, buying clothes to impress others, things like that.

I think the people that have homes on the market in Key West today really need to sell. So if you are a serious buyer and you want to buy a place in Key West you should spend some time and see if you can find a place that meets your needs. CLICK HERE to checkout single family homes in the Key West area on the water (canal to open water) that are priced between $700,000 to $900,000. You will be surprised what your money can buy today. And, remember, these are asking prices. If you see something you like call me, Gary Thomas, 305-766-2642 or e-mail me at kw1101v@aol.com.