627-629 Eaton Street - Key West Historic Landmark Property For Sale

My friends at Prudential Knight and Gardner Realty in Key West recently listed one of the last untouched Old Town landmarks in Key West. Dear Readers, this property located at 627-629 Eaton Street might just be your dream property. Think I'm a little wacko?  Read on.

I searched the old Sanborn Fire Maps for Key West and found this building on the 1889 map which means it was built some time prior to that date. The Monroe County Property Appraiser's official records show the construction date as being 1929. (I think the Sanborn Map is more correct, but the official record is the official record.)  In any case, the building is ancient and has the crow's feet and wrinkles to prove it.  I dug deep into the old shoe box and found a photo taken back in 1965 shown immediately below. The back of the photo shows the downstairs as being a launderette and dentist's office. The upstairs presumably were apartments. I took a similar photo to compare the old versus current facades. I think the old girl looked a bit better back in the day, but this is one solid building which ought to respond to a keen renovation. 

 The listing Realtor describes 627-629 Eaton Street this way:

"This historic concrete block building consists of two commercial spaces downstairs and two residential units upstairs. One commercial space is empty, the other tenant is a laundromat. Each residential unit has it's own staircase and entrance. One unit is a one bedroom, one bath, the other unit is a two bedroom, one bath."

The listing Realtor shows the building as having 3627 sq ft of interior space divided between the two floors. The building sets on a rectangular lot of 2201 sq ft (55.5' X 39.67') at the corner of Eaton and Elizabeth Streets. The building itself measures 50' X 38' plus the covered ground floor walkway and second floor porch that run 50' X 38' to the east rear. The building is built literally to the rear and side lot lines. There is no room for a pool, hot tub, or parking.

The downstairs east commercial space has been a self-service laundry ever since I moved to Key West in 1993. The writing on the 1965 photo suggests that it has been a laundry for a much longer time period. The adjacent space is not currently rented which creates lots of possibilities for a new owner. There are several small ante-rooms behind both spaces. The vacant space was previously a dentist's office and most recently was rented as a floral shop.  The tropically painted wall shown below is either poured concrete or cinder block.  The listing Realtor told me the wall extends up through the second floor above and provides support for the building. I think it would be possible to merge the ground floor spaces into one larger commercial space or alternatively create a new living space in the former dentist's office. A new owner would need to obtain permission from the City of Key West to do this or merge the ground floor space into the second floor space via the adjacent stairway.

There are two apartments on the second floor. Both are currently rented under market value and both are on a month to month rental agreement.  Both tenants have been in place for some time. The tenant in the east apartment has been in the space for 20 years.  The landlord has not made any substantial improvements to this building over recent years. Below are some photos that provide a basic image of how the properties look today.

The above photos are of the west second floor apartment or the one above the former dentist's office.  One alternative for renovating this space might be to combine the first and second floor west spaces into one two story living unit. I think a new owner could do the same for the east spaces as well, but I will discuss an alternate proposal for that space below.  Part of the allure of this building is the second floor balcony which extends nine feet over the city sidewalk. Construction like this would likely not be permitted today. But since it is in place and since this is such a recognized property that it has achieved 'landmark' status, I seriously doubt anyone would consider allowing the removal of the balcony.

The east second floor apartment is filled with tenant owned pieces that make this space shine. A new owner might move some interior walls to create more modern spaces, replace the kitchen and bath, and so on. I would replace the existing metal louvers with real windows.  As an alternative to keeping this space an apartment, a new owner might consider combining the two upstairs units into one large loft type living space. The interior floor to ceiling cinder block or poured concrete wall will need to be addressed in any renovation. Almost anything is possible if you have a talented engineer, architect, designer, and money. Both the ground floor spaces and the second floor apartments have very tall ceilings. This opens all spaces to imaginative renovation possibilities not available in most existing properties.  I took more photos which you can view if you CLICK HERE. Please do so and consider what kind of new property you could create in these spaces.

627-629 Eaton Street is offered for sale at $775,000.  CLICK HERE to view the Key West mls datasheet. But better than looking at photos online, please call me, Gary Thomas, 305-766-2642 to schedule a private showing of this unique Key West property.  I am a buyers agent and a full time Realtor at Preferred Properties Key West. The buyers are returning to Key West in droves. Don't miss the opportunity to create something stunning.

Old Town Key West - Commercial - Location

514 Southard Street - Key West

If you are an investor or user looking for commercial space in Old Town Key West with a great "just off Duval Street" location, the new listing at 514 Southard Street may be the property you have been trying to find. I know the location quite well because our offices at immediately next door. A more notable landmark is Bank of America's Old Town location which is next door to the right of the new listing. Click the MAP for both aerial and street views of the location.

This property is located about 200 feet east of the intersection of Duval and Southard Streets. CLICK HERE, you'll recognize that location for sure. Southard Street is a major feeder (one way) street for locals and tourists that make the pilgrimage to Duval. The seller is the current user of this building and it would "consider a leaseback". Seller is credit union that is in a conservatorship.

The county records show that the building was constructed in 1957. Just below you will see how snazzy it looked back in 1965 and what is looks like in 2010.

514 Southard Street Key West as it looked in 1965 (above)

July 3, 2010

Bank of America and 514 Southard have ATMs that are non-stop day & night

The listing Realtor describes 514 Southard Street this way:

"Affordably priced office building on Southard Street just steps from world famous Duval Street. This building is perfect for any type of office or professional service use. The building contains and extensive build-out of multilevel professional office space. The property contains a rear parking area. Seller would consider a sale leaseback. Priced at a recently appraised value."

Below you will see some photos of the rear parking area. Notice the covered awning. That area used to house a private mortgage brokerage company totally separate from the credit union up front. Also notice the enclosed walkway between the two buildings. This space is locked at night but during the daytime it provides quick access to Southard Street up front.


The building has 2900 sq ft of space on two levels. The asking price is $800,000 or $361 per sq ft. Zoning is HNC-1 which is short for Historic Neighborhood Commercial-1. Uses for this zoning include include residential (including single family, duplex, and multi-family) and limited commercial including professional offices, banking and financial services, personal service shops, specialty shops, limited retail, transient accommodations and guest cottages. Rather than rely on what I write, do your own investigation to determine suitability for the use you intend. CLICK HERE to read the City of Key West zoning ordinances and consult with your own attorney. Just because some use may be permissible does not mean you will necessarily be able to do what you want.

I did a quick search of comparable office and commercial space in the immediate Old Town vicinity so you can do your own price comparison. CLICK HERE to view. The average price on all of the properties is $429 per sq ft. But you need to compare location, construction, availability of parking in this mix.

CLICK HERE to see the mls listing info on this property. But better than that, please contact me, Gary Thomas, 305-766-2642 or send me an email at kw1101v@aol.com if you would like to schedule a showing on this property. I am a full time Realtor at Preferred Properties Coastal Realty, Inc. in Key West, Florida.