Just listed, but not by me,
715 Frances Street, in Old Town
Key West.
This classic three bay
eyebrow house was built circa 1895. I
found an
old black & white photo of the house taken in 1965 (see photo
below) and compare the same house as photographed nearly fifty years
later. Quite a makeover, wouldn't you agree?
The
outside is still simple even if the colors are a bit more lively. The
inside has been upgraded to be sure, but not so much so that the house
has lost its character. When I stepped inside the front door I was
greeted by the rich tones of the Dade County Pine accent wall located at
the far side of the living room. Three of the original windows with
ancient glass bathed the inside with semi-filtered light. Although I
knew the house has just been completely remodeled, the house still has a
great old house "feel".
A
guest bedroom with en-suite bath is located just to the right of the
front door. The room has lots of filtered light as well. The stairway
to the second floor appears quite long when compared to stairways in
other eyebrow houses I have seen. Imagine how grand that stairway would
look at Christmas wrapped with pine boughs and garland. Buyers who doing
long term planning may appreciate having a large first floor bedroom
when climbing stairs in later years can become a challenge
There
are two bedrooms on the second floor both of which have en-suite baths.
The north bedroom has a great view of the pool below while the south
bedroom has a wonderful bathroom with multiple windows that look out to
the palm tree views of neighboring properties. The listing agent had to
remind me I was standing inside an eyebrow house with dormers that
permitted the rear space for these expanded bathrooms.
The
new kitchen has a vaulted ceiling and three sets of windows that
provide lots of daytime sunlight into the space. Travertine marble
floors give the space a cool and sophisticated feel. The travertine
floors continue to an alcove behind the kitchen where the laundry and a
separate guest bathroom are located. The travertine then continue over
to what the listing agent calls the "indoor/outdoor" room that overlooks
the pool. This room has a stunning vaulted wood ceiling that adds both
height and dimension to the space. The area is presently protected by
screens to enjoy our wonderful winter and spring weather. When summer
arrives, the screens can be replaced with custom made window inserts.
The area is air conditioned when necessary.
This
indoor/outdoor room is quite clever in my opinion. Our fall and winter
seasons are quite mild and most homeowners use their outdoor living
areas most of the year. But there are those few occasional days or
nights when the weather is a bit too cool. This conversion option is a
feature that others might adopt.
The indoor/outdoor
room provides views of the backyard area and the newly installed pool.
An IPE deck area provides stepped down access to the pool and spa. This
pool is long and sunny - quite a change from so many Old Town pools
that are cramped into small spaces and shielded from sunlight by mighty
houses or tropical foliage. Sun-worshipers will delight in this sunny
space. The owner has also added an outdoor shower for pre-swim and
post-tanning.
You can view a
slideshow of more photos I took of this thoughtfully updated Old Town eyebrow home if you
CLICK HERE.
I know a lot of potential buyers think they might want to rent a place
like this as a vacation rental when they are not using the property
themselves. I think this place could be a very successful vacation
rental. It has three very nice bedrooms with en-suite baths, two large
living areas, a very comfortable new kitchen, and a stunning pool and
sunning area. The property has off street parking. And it is located
within an easy walking distance to Duval Street or the Historic Key West
Seaport. Most of Key West's gyms and yoga studios are located within a
five block walk to the south or east. People that come here for
extended vacation stays love being able to walk to locations like these
and usually prefer a bit of distance from being right in the heart of
the Duval crawl.
CLICK HERE
to view the Key West Association of Realtors mls datasheet and to view
professionally photographs of this property. which is offered at
$1,495,000. If you would like to see this home, please call me,
Gary Thomas,
305-766-2642 or send me an email at
kw1101v@aol.com. I am a buyers agent and a full time Realtor at
Preferred Properties Coastal Realty, Inc. Let me help you find your place in Paradise.
