Key West Real Estate Sales Report - June 2018

I took the above photo a few years ago. It shows the sleek metal spiral staircase in a modern addition to an historic home in the Old Town Key West. The photo is a bit symbolic of real estate prices in most parts of the county which go up and down. I have been selling real estate in Key West for the past twenty-two years where, save for the 2008 Recession and a couple of years thereafter, real estate prices have gone up an average of ten per cent or more each year.

I have become more and more pessimistic by the ever-increasing cost of housing in Key West. My business is down as there are fewer buyers for reasonably priced second homes. The fewer listings has made some sellers less willing to bargain.

Several months ago readers of my blog invited me to listing their house for sale. I knew the property because I wrote a blog about it when it was then for sale and showed it to several potential buyers. It had a few "issues", but it also had a terrific location and all that charm so many buyers want. The current owner bought the place and did a thoughtful and stylish renovation. I the asked the gent if he had a price point in mind. He deferred and asked me what I thought. I don't dillydally. I reminded him he paid top price per square foot when he bought the house and replaced things all houses have. I told him my suggested price which was a bit more than the average ten percent appreciation houses achieve year over year in Key West. He thanked me for my time and said they know the market and think their renovation commanded a higher price. That "seller" then listed the house with the agent who sold it to them. The price was in the stratosphere. The house did not sell and the listing was cancelled after a couple of months. This "seller" is not a lone wolf. There are a lot of sellers like this in this market right now or who cancelled their listings rather than sell at a discount to their perceived value of their property.

I performed a simple search of single family home sale in the Old Town and Casa Marina areas by number of units sold, average price paid, and price per square foot for the seasonal time period of  January 1 to June 1 for each year starting in 2013 through 2018.  I knew prices had risen dramatically but suspected sales would there would be fewer sales in each area in 2018.

CASA MARIA
 

Year	No of Sales	Avg Sale Price	Price Per Sq Ft
2013	7	1594687	581
2014	11	1660785	657
2015	8	1452000	704
2016	8	1591875	711
2017	8	1804000	693
2018	7	1413333	728

 Current Inventory of Unsold Single Family Homes on the Market
                                          8            1786250                      858

 OLD TOWN

Year	No of Sales	Avg Price	Price Per Sq FT
2013	62	688	479
2014	45	984	601
2015	73	952065	633
2016	38	926	660
2017	46	992965	700
2018	40	1257904	789

Current Inventory of Unsold Single Family Homes on the Market
                                               64        1659347                     836


I wondered what happened in 2015 that may have attributed to the higher than average sale. I went to Google which led me to a Washington Post article. One item stuck out:

The Fed raised interest rates, marking the end of an era
The Federal Reserve's rate hike in December was notable not for its size -- the federal funds rate increased by a tiny one quarter of a percentage point -- but for its symbolism. It was the first rate hike in more than a decade and a sign that some of America's most prominent economic thinkers believe the economy is once again sound, roughly seven years after the onset of the global financial crisis.

I added the emphasis at the bottom of the above paragraph. Remember during the 2008 presidential campaign when the US and world economy took the huge tumble. The Key West market was hit very hard because a lot of our houses are second homes. A lot of the sales preceding the 2008 tumble  were financed with little money or no money down.  Those owners/buyers had no substantial stake in their "investment" property in Key West. Many of those owners abandoned their properties which were then sold at a discount to prior year cost. Buyers who bought homes in Key West during the next few years should have received substantial appreciation on their properties. Later the FAKE NEWS about the BP Oil Spill spewed from CNN and the Weather Channel. The spill happened, but it did not affect the Keys. But the noise impacted our tourist and real estate market for two years. Our local economy steadily recovered as did the national economy. Unemployment decreased, the stock market and optimism increased, and America was back on the right track again.

I am a firm believer that the FAKE NEWS spewed by CNN about Hurricane Irma's predicted devastation of Key West and the images of real destruction in the Lower Keys has done substantial damage to our tourist economy and is partially responsible for the lower interest in buying in Key West. Most of the damage that occurred in Key West was the loss of our canopy trees. Many like the above tree on Flagler Avenue uprooted and fell to the ground. Trees were down everywhere. They damaged roofs, fences, cars. We lost one house where two trees fell onto the porch. The damage was so severe that house did come down. That one house.

Realtors gossip just like everybody else. The honest ones will tell you their business is down from prior years. I am doing okay, but not as good as I did in previous years. Also, nearly every buyer asks me about Irma, flood elevation level, and the cost of flood and wind insurance. There is a constant pessimism over the risk of buying here.

Before I moved to Key West I had thought of buying a place in Laguna Beach. I love that little town.
I was staying at the Newport Hyatt in June 1992 when the 7.3 magnitude earthquake hit. The building shook and shook and shook. About an hour later I was sitting on the balcony with my legs up on the railing when a huge aftershock occurred. It was so strong that I fell on yo the floor. That sounds funny now but it wasn't then  That quake caused me to re-evaluate any thought of moving there. It was my Irma moment.

There will always be earthquakes in California and there will always be hurricanes that hit someplace in the United States Some are worse than others. And New York City and surrounding areas will be freezing cold in the winter and hotter than hell in the summer.  This is life. Where you decide to live it is up to you. I prefer living on a little island out in the middle of the ocean  The sales numbers don't affect me as much as the traffic.

Gary's Got a Secret Listing in Key West

I received a phone call a couple of days ago from a lady who said she wanted look at such and such address. I then asked her if she had read a blog I wrote about that house. She said yes. I asked the date. She said it did not have a date. I said all of the blogs are dated, but I did not want to debate that point. I had a potential buyer for a house - I found the blog which I wrote in early 2014. (The date was in the upper left hand corner of blog.) The price was low, less than $250,000 for a fixer. I told the lady that property sold years ago, was renovated, and resold in 2017 for just under one million dollars.

I then asked her what she was looking for. She said a fixer that she could renovate and flip. I then asked the area or areas she wanted to buy and how high she was willing to pay. At this point I was preparing to search the Key West MLS. She did not respond. I thought she had dropped the call. I said "Hello?  Are you still there?" She then said yes. I asked again the area of town and the highest price she would consider paying. She told me wanted to buy a house in Old Town. She said if she told me the price she might pay I would only search for high priced properties.

I explained that the prices available in 2014 are no longer available. By that point I had the MLS up and had searched for single family homes priced between $299,000 to $500,000. There were only four active single family homes and they were located in marginal areas. I told her the address and price of each. They were price too high for her. She then said "You have my name and number. Call me when you get something."

You bet!

627 Caroline Street, Key West - Conch House in Need of Revival

Just Listed, but not by me, 627 Caroline Street, Key West. This home is located is located a little over one block from the Historic Seaport which was the economic hub of commerce in the 1880s and early 1900s. I searched the Historic Sanborn Fire Maps and determined 627 Caroline Street was built before the 1889 map which makes sense given the located near the seaport.  As I studied that map I learned a large portion of the 600 block was a sponge drying field. I can visualize a horse drawn cart relocating freshly harvested sponges to Caroline Street to be tried then put back on the boat to set sail for northern destinations. Today this house and two other original homes are the only buildings that have not been renovated in the modern era. That's what makes this particular old house so interesting and appealing from my point of view. Let me tell you why.

 

I wrote above this house has not been renovated. It wasn't. But it was messed around with. The original front porch was partially enclosed and had jalousie windows added. French doors were added to the adjacent parlor that is adjacent to the enclosed porch. The space is dark and dreary. The porch enclosure should be removed and existing interiors should be dramatically changed. Plans to renovate the property are included in the offering. The elevations shown below would "restore" or perhaps "create" a Grand Conch front facade with two story porches. The new house would have three bedrooms and a new detached guest cottage plus pool. The existing "garage" would disappear and be replaced by two tandem parking spaces. The bay window on the first floor would be re-purposed as a steam room for the first floor front bedroom.

The second floor was built for the way people lived one hundred fifty years ago. It had a bathroom added and that worked for the past century. Modern Key West functions much differently. We may not need as much closet space as folks living up north in America, but we need more bathrooms. The plans include a main floor guest bath located under the stairs. The first floor bedroom has shower plus steam room. The two second floor bedrooms have en-suite baths and the guest cottage has a half bath. There is even a pool bath located. New glass slider glass panel doors will open out to the pool from the first floor and second floor rear decks. The view from the second floor rear will be amazing.  The back yard is quite large and undeveloped. The plans propose a guest cottage and pool. A new owner might prefer a larger pool  The plans are proposed and not determinative as to what must be done.

This little part of town has changed dramatically since I moved to Key West in 1993. The old seaport was renovated and now is an esplanade that wraps around toward the Truman Waterfront Park. The seedy old buildings on Caroline Street have become upscale shops and restaurants. More restaurants and hotels are located where the original boat docks existed to the north and west. The photos just below show the corner next to 627 Caroline. The photos show the history and the change over the years. Such is also the story of much of Old Town. So much is the same, and so much has changed, mostly for the good.

CLICK HERE to view the Key West MLS datasheet on 627 Caroline Street, Key West. Then please call me, Gary Thomas, 305-766-2642, to set up a private showing. I am a buyers agent and a full time Realtor at Preferred Properties Key West. Let me show you this house and walk the area to see how much opportunity this building, this lot, and this location have to offer to a new buyer who is seeking a project property. This is going to be a serious renovation and not one where you apply a coat of paint and put in a Home Depot kitchen. Our office sold the house next door (621 Caroline St) in 2016 for $3,200,000. It was the home of author Phil Caputo. It had 4,0000 sq ft of living space and a transient rental license which generates a lot of income. A new owner at 627 Caroline Street could rent that property as a monthly vacation rental throughout the year. Or not. Renting is not required but could be very profitable if that is something a new owner wants to pursue.

917 Hibiscus Lane, Key West - Living Life in the Slow Lane

This particular week is one of the busiest weeks of the year in Key West. Thousands of families, college kids, and single adults are here seeking fun during Easter Week. The are moving about en-mass up and down Duval Street and nearly every other street in town. Getting anywhere by car is a chore and walking on Duval Street is nearly impossible especially if you get behind a fat family of which there are many. There are some exceptions where there is no traffic this week, nor any other week. These are what I like to call the slow lanes of Key West.

Some of the lanes are so small or hidden that you may need a map to find the houses located there. Such is the case of 917 Hibiscus Lane, also known as Billygoat Lane.  Tell your UBER driver to take you to 917 Billygoat Lane and he'll look at you like you have had one too many.  But if you go to the Monroe County Property Appraiser website and search the address, you will see the land officially identified as "Billygoat Ln".  By either name, the lane runs parallel to Fleming Street which is located about 150 feet to the north. Today there are only three individual homes on this street. Two other houses located on Grinnell Street border this lane. Other original cottage size houses have been incorporated into large homes on Fleming Street which gives those larger homes off street parking and a guest cottage. Hibiscus dead-ends at a massive estate which also includes two homes located on Margaret Street. The end result is life on this little lane is very tranquil even during a week like this week.

The listing Realtor describes 917 Hibiscus Lane this way:

"This contemporary style home is perfection. Located on a quiet and secluded lane in the heart of Old Town this architectural gem is an ideal primary residence or second home getaway. Enter the front door to a great room with a soaring ceiling and an open concept floor plan perfect for entertaining. The large living / dining / kitchen is flooded with light from lots of windows. The master bedroom at the rear of the home has an ensuite bath and multiple closets. The guest bedroom has an ensuite half bath with laundry. Sliding glass doors open from the living area and both bedrooms to the picture perfect garden with outdoor dining, pool with water feature, adorable garden cottage, garden shed and private outdoor shower. The oh-so-charming garden cottage is the perfect spot for hanging out."

This charming home looks and feels especially large. The vaulted ceiling runs the length of the house. Multiple sets of glass panel doors and windows bathe the interiors with daylight. A large collapsing wall in the master suite opens the space into the main living area which I believe will be primarily used by the owners and occasionally shared with a guest. That is the way most homes like this are used.

The second bedroom, or guest bedroom and private bath, are located at the front of the house. There is a small guest cottage located at the back of the property. This is where you ask your brother in law to stay. There is an outdoor shower which everyone will fall in love with. The pool and waterfall are another unexpected delight.  I was envious of the grass and had to feel it to see if it was real. It's real pretty, but not natural.

The house is located within a three minute walk to Azur, Old Town Bakery, Mangia Mangia, and Michael's.  The Historic Seaport is two blocks north and Duval Street is four blocks west. People save all year and spend thousands of dollars to come to Key West. You could be here living the life of your dreams.


CLICK HERE to view the Key West MLS datasheet on 917 Hibiscus Lane, Key West, offered at $1,395,000. Then please call me, Gary Thomas, 305-766-2642, to schedule a private showing. I am a buyers agent and a full time Realtor at Preferred Properties Key West.

1619 Rose Street, Key West - Just Listed

Just Listed, but not by me, 1619 Rose Street in Key West, Florida. I was invited to preview this lovely mid-century home that has been recently totally renovated for 21st Century living. I have shown similar homes in this same area (and sold two nearby homes of the same original design). They did not look anything like this. And that means if you are a looker, you must really take a look at this home.

According to the Monroe County Property Appraiser records, the house is 1610 square feet of living space and sits on a 6100 sq ft lot (61' X 100'). There are three bedrooms and two bathrooms. Numbers mean nothing when you see the house in person. A large privacy fence blocks viewing the house from the street. The front yard is  minimally landscaped which means less work for the homeowner or gardener. I was truly awed when I first entered the house. Every design element suggested "new", "modern", "clean", and "efficient".  Where other houses of this era have small, boxy rooms, this living area of this home has been opened to allow movement from living space to living space without having to move through hallways which take up potentially valuable living space.

There is an abundance of cabinets and counter-tops in the new kitchen as well as down lights and under cabinet lights.  What the photos don't reveal is that the sliding doors disappear completely into the walls creating a seamless transition from the interior living area to the outdoor space. 

The current owners use the front guest bedroom as a media room. Notice the black cabinet recessed into the wall that was formerly a closet. Today that space provides all varieties of media devices and storage. The barely visible hall leads to the rear guest bedroom which the current owners use as a home office where there a a Murphy Bed system that includes a desk. The Murphy bed system conveys with the house.

I could write an entire blog about the master bedroom, but I'll try to keep my comments to a minimum. The double opaque doors near the dining area open into the bedroom which is minus part of a wall. The bathroom is just plain elegant.  You'll notice the cabinets appear to float. The tile wall at the rear wraps around the corner where you will find the two person shower. Part of the framing of the original house was removed and re-framed to allow the addition of a a transom window in the shower which introduces light into the space. The end wall of the shower is actually an opaque glass door which adds more light into the space. The transom effect carries on into the garage that was transformed into a new super-closet and wine storage area. I told the owners Imelda would be jealous. Finally, look backup to the first picture above of the bedroom area. Another set of sliders open out to the outdoor area.

The owners use the outdoor space all year around. The covered area provides protection from the sun or rain. The table is the perfect place to dine alone or with friends among the garden filled with specimen orchids, many of which convey with the property. There are a lot of little things the owners added that were totally unique to what I have ever seen in a home in Key West that will convey including a living vertical garden that acts as a bit of privacy barrier from the home next door to the west. It is so damned cute. (Photo below)

Not shown in the photos is the east orchid garden and additional covered storage areas. And also not included in the square footage of the house is the storage shed at the far side of the rear garden where large chaise lounge provides a perfect perch to admire the orchids and sip a glass of wine.

CLICK HERE to view the Key West MLS datasheet and listing photos of 1619 Rose Street. Then please call me, Gary Thomas, 305-766-2642, to set up a private showing of this incredible home that is located within walking distance to either Smathers Beach of Higgs Beach or the private pool where no bathing suit is required.I am a buyers agent and a full time Realtor at Preferred Properties Key West.