707 Southard Street - Old Town Key West

707 Southard Street - Key West, Florida

This special little home at 707 Southard Street is located in the heart of Old Town Key West and is back on the market. You can't beat the location for convenience. Most of the neighboring homes are equally charming and certainly much pricier. The asking price will fit the budget of many buyers who want a simple getaway place: asking $565,000.

The house next door to the east

The listing Realtor describes this special property this way:

"The Quintessential Conch Cottage on one of the best blocks in the center of Old Town. Utterly charming. Relax on your front porch and watch the world go by. Just a block to Sarabeths and two blocks to Duval. Separate outdoor building houses the original kitchen. The interior was just updated with refinished bath with stone floors, new fixtures, completely repainted interior, refinished wood floors. Outdoor shower and laundry."

The funny thing is I walked by this house on Monday and thought to myself I wish a place like this or its neighbor on either side were for sale. All three look absolutely perfect. Serendipity, perhaps?

The roof is composed of two sawtooth gables plus a rear shed addition. The home is painted a bright white. The blue shutters contrast the white so perfectly that the resultant appearance is crisp and clean. The front porch provides an excellent perch for viewing the continual people parade. I can imagine sitting there sipping an iced tea greeting passersby as they say things like "I love your home!" or other such words of praise and envy.

The house itself is small, just 606 sq ft. The living area is quite spacious and tastefully designed. Six over six window provide light on the south and east walls. The master bedroom is located front west and when the bedroom door is open the filtered light from that room adds additional light to the living area. So what one might assume to be a small space actually appears quite large. There is a smaller second bedroom at the rear. Both bedrooms have private baths. The dining area is nestled between the main house and the historic cook house at the rear which is housed in a smaller building. The cool pool is located to the west of the cook house. What a delightful place to spend the spring, or summer, or fall, or winter, or the rest of your life. 707 Southard Street may be everything you need in a picture perfect setting and located near where ever you want to go. CLICK HERE to view photos I took of this charming cottage home.

Dade County Pine walls and ceiling plus six over six windows equal Key West Classic

Sophisticated but not stuffy

Master bedroom (above) master en suite bath (below)

The second bedroom (below) has private bath and a view of the darling pool

Dining is nestled between the main house and cook house

The cook house is located in a separate building at the rear

The pool

Sarabeth's is just a block away to the west. The Cafe Marquesa is a five minute walk. The Monroe County Library is around the corner: perhaps a three minute walk. Ten minutes if you stop to speak to neighbors. Five Brothers is located a couple of blocks east. You can be almost any place in Old Town within a five to fifteen minute walk. And that's why living here is so great. Your needs are less and they are fulfilled without a lot of to-do.

CLICK HERE to view the Key West Association of Realtors mls datasheet and to view the listing Realtors photos. Better yet, please call me, Gary Thomas, 305-766-2642 to schedule a visit to see this place. Don't wait. I got to show this house late Tuesday (the day it was in the mls) and there were other agents following right behind me. This house ought to sell very quickly. Our market has few places left and this Key West property is offered at the price point where many buyers are prepared to buy. I am a buyers agent and a full time Realtor at Preferred Properties Coastal Realty, Inc.

829 Simonton Street - Bank Owned Investment Property - Key West

  829 Simonton Street - Bank Owned - Old Town - Key West

Preferred Properties Key West just listed the landmark building at 829 Simonton Street in Old Town Key West.  I wrote about this property several months ago when it was a short sale that, well, didn't sell.  Now the building is Bank Owned and Offered at $935,000.

The building was originally built circa 1874 and was significantly updated  in 2002. The building sold in 2004 for $1,600,000. The building was updated again when the last commercial tenant customized the offices which occupy the main floor, or about 2858 sq ft. The offices have been divided into two separate office units but can be easily combined into one large space as was the most recent use. Upstairs there are two apartments. The upstairs is made up of two residential units. One unit is a 2br/2ba with 1678 square feet. The other is a 1br/1ba affordable housing unit with 463 square feet. There is off street parking to accommodate seven vehicles and the building has both handicapped access and handicapped bathroom facilities.

"Affordable" one bedroom unit with front porch below

Handicapped access

CLICK HERE to view more photos of this property.

I distinctly remember going inside the old building at 829 Simonton Street on Superbowl Sunday (January 25, 1987). The place was a sandwich shop called "La Bodega". I had spent the afternoon at Atlantic Shores and wanted to grab a sandwich. The place was near and the food was good. My needs were met. Fast forward 25 years and the building looks pretty much the same.

The unpainted facade looks pretty much today like it did when the two photos below were taken.

829 Simonton Street Key West May 2012

The building was called The Square Deal Market when the photo above was taken in 1965 by the Monroe County Property Appraiser. The appraiser says the building was built circa 1974. The sign at the street advertises "STEAK 89 cents lb." and "Homo Milk".

The pic above was taken in 1970 before Key West got gentrified.

May 2012

The 4662 square foot building is located on a 51' x 106' (5353 sq ft) lot near the top of Solares Hill and just one block south of Truman Avenue.

CLICK HERE to view the Key West mls datasheet on 829 Simonton Street which is offered at $935,000.  If you are interested in this property, please contact me, Gary Thomas, 305-766-2642 or send me an email at kw1101v@aol.com.  I am a buyer's agent and a full time Realtor at Preferred Properties Key West.

Fool's Gold

In the next couple of days I will blog about the results of the past Key West real estate selling season. I thought it worth while to discuss a re-emerging facet of Key West real estate and that is the return of the greedy sellers.  Maybe they never went away. Maybe they just hid sheepishly, lingering in the background, awaiting the right moment to re-appear from their sulk-fest after the American economy spiraled out of control in 2008. 

Key West got a double whammy during the economic downturn. A huge number of the homes and condos people own in Key West are second homes.  Some bought little getaway places thinking they could rent them  and let their investments appreciate in value until some time in the future when the owners could sell at a profit and buy something bigger, perhaps the actual wintertime retreat they had dreamt of owning. Some locals also bought permanent residences as prices began to rise during the early 2000s.

When the tide turned and the getaway places and the permanent residences became worth less than the price owners paid for them, many of the new owners defaulted on their mortgages and either let their lenders foreclose or tried to short sale their properties.  Even good hearted owners gave up as the value of their homes diminished in value.  And since so many others were walking away from debt, there was no shame in walking away.

Some owners hired lawyers to delay the foreclosure process as long as possible so that they could continue to collect rent.  In may instances these owners did not pay real property taxes or home owner association dues.  The cost of educating kids, providing police and fire protection and other vital community services was passed along to everybody else-people like you and me who play by the rules and pay our taxes. Many home owner associations had to increase monthly fees to make up for the short fall in revenue.

Some unscrupulous owners ripped out appliances, kitchen cabinets, air conditioners, ceiling fans, light fixtures, you name, they took it.  Others conjured up schemes to move or sell property rights (such as transient rental licenses or ROGO units) to other locations or other persons. These shenanigans diminish the value of the real property and often put money in the hands of defaulting borrowers.

The second part of the whammy was the BP oil spill. Even though the BP oil slick never hit Key West, the public stayed away from the Florida Keys in droves. Many Realtors lost deals over the prospect of the oil slick hitting Key West. One broker told me of two instances where buyers walked away from significant escrow deposits because the buyers feared their planned investment in Key West real estate would turn into a financial disaster.  Local guest house owners, restaurateurs, shopkeepers, and a host of tourist-related businesses saw their respective income drop dramatically. That loss in tourist revenue spread throughout our local economy. No tourists, no shifts, no income.

The oil slick predicted in 2010 did not happen. The tourists returned in 2011. Tourism skyrocketed in 2012.  Good times were here again. Fixer houses that were purchased within the past couple of years turned into renovation projects in the Old Town and Casa Marina areas.

730 Southard Street - May 2012

The large number of bank owned properties and short sales that scared away potential buyers who feared a further downward spiral of the Key West real estate market between 2008 - 2011 all but disappeared in 2012.   Oh, we had new bank owned properties hit the mls and new short sales as well. But we did not have the same volume of bank owned properties or short sales as in previous years. And buyers who previously were apprehensive about buying a foreclosure or short sale welcomed the opportunity thinking that they could get a bargain.

My sense was that we had properties linger in our mls for several months during the regular selling season. Then in late March 2012 buyers started buying again. First one and then another. Buyers took over and grabbed what was available. And the most interesting thing I noticed was the return of the big spenders. Several properties that had lingered in the mls for two years or longer suddenly went under contract. Most full time agents have a list of potential buyers for properties that do not exist.  We all have people that want to buy a two or three bedroom home in Old Town with a pool and off street parking that is priced under $500,000. They didn't make enough of them. But there aren't very many trophy houses left either.  These are high end homes with all the amenities and great locations. They are gone too. Agents have been calling other agents to see if anyone has a pocket listing. Some agents have resorted to calling homeowners to see if they would consider selling. I foresee a buying frenzy next season which means sellers will rule again. When sellers rule, prices go higher and there are fewer sales. If you think I am being overly dramatic, wait and see.

The reason some houses in Key West have not sold is their greedy owners. (I'll make lots of friends with a statement like that.) But it is true.  I believe that houses that are fairly priced tend to sell rather quickly and that houses that are over-priced stay on the market too long and begin to resemble old fish. Sellers will believe they listed a house too low if it goes under contract as soon as it gets listed. But isn't that the point anyway - to find a buyer?

Some sellers like to play mind games with buyers. They think if their house did not sell at "X" price, it ought to be listed at "X+1" that way the seller can negotiate back down to "X" and the buyer will never be any the wiser. It does not work. Smart buyers know how to search the Internet. They know how long properties have been listed for sale and at what price or prices.

I have seen home sellers raise their asking price just so they can lower it. I recently represented a buyer who was trying to buy a house from a seller who has re-priced the same property five times (up and down) over the past 18 months. All this nonsense does is irritate people who follow the rules of life. It serves no useful purpose.

I remember one young buyer I was working with in the early part of 2005, before Hurricane Wilma. His mother passed away and left him and his brother about $500,000 each. He bought a sports car and planned to buy an investment property in Key West with the balance. He had made a couple of attempts on buying a place on Northside Drive that I repeatedly told him I thought was over priced.  The seller there was very demanding and refused to budge. My guy decided to look elsewhere and bought two places in St. Pete for the price of the Key West property. I lost a sale. The seller lost a sale. The place did not sell that season. Then Wilma hit the north side of the island.  Housing prices in that particular housing complex were devastated. The complex was plagued with lots of short sales and foreclosures. Seven years later housing prices there are still down compared to other parts of town.

I remember another deal back in 2005 that illustrates how seller greed can interfere in making a good business decision. I represented two cousins that inherited a 1960s vintage ranch home located in our New Town area. The house was as plain Jane as you could imagine. Another Realtor told the cousins that he could sell the house for a lot more money that I thought it was worth. I suggested we get an appraisal and list the house at appraised value.  I told them anyone can promise big dollars, but I wanted to price the place to actually sell it. We got a near full price cash offer of $750,000. My sellers hesitated at first and worried that they were leaving money on the table. I told them you never know what could happen. They followed my advice and accepted $750,000. Three months later Hurricane Wilma flooded that house (along with the east end of town) with about four feet of water. The tenants moved out leaving their worldly possessions on the front lawn.  Had my sellers not accepted the $750,000 cash,  they would have killed the golden goose and lost the huge gain they did received.  Accepting a good deal should be preferable to getting no deal.


If you are looking to buy a home or condo in Key West, please consider working with me, Gary Thomas, 305-766-2642. I am a buyers agent and a full time Realtor at Preferred Properties Key West. I try not to be a fool when it comes to other people's money (or gold).

20874 W 9th Avene - Cudjoe Key - Florida

90 foot lap pool overlooking the Atlantic Ocean

You might call this 90 foot pool overlooking the Atlantic Ocean the lap of luxury. The 3384 sq ft home is located at 20874  W 9th Avenue on Cudjoe Cudjoe Key at Mile Marker 20, about a 20 minute drive out from Key West. The house sits just at the end of a canal that provides immediate access to the Atlantic Ocean. The house is located on an 18,960 sq ft lot with all major views oriented toward the water. Click GOOGLE MAP for an aerial view of this waterfront property.

The master suite is located on the east side and the guest rooms are on the west side of the house. The living and entertaining areas are located in the middle and separate the two wings to provide total privacy for the owners.

Living room

Informal dining area

When I first entered the home my eyes were immediately drawn to the left beyond the bring living area shown above and past the informal dining area to the mangroves and water. Just to the right was the formal dining room and beyond it was the large kitchen with a large window with an incredible view of the pool and open water beyond.

I couldn't wait any longer. I had to step outside to see for myself how wonderful the outdoor space was to be.

The family room is seen above

The spa and 90 foot lap pool

The master suite is larger than some of the two story homes in Truman Annex. And the views are just incredible. The master suite has immediate access to the pool area, but there is an inside spa in the master bath.

The home has its own 125' private dock with two davits

CLICK HERE to view the Key West mls datasheet and to view more listing photos of this luxury Key West area home that is offered by Preferred Properties at $1,950,000.

If you would like to view the lap of luxury up close or if you would like to see any other home in Key West, I would appreciate your phone call. I am a buyers agent and a full time Realtor at Preferred Properties Coastal Realty, Inc. in Key West. Please call me Gary Thomas, 305-766-2642, to schedule your showing.

1019 Whitehead Street - Old Town - Key West

1019 Whitehead Street - Old Town - Key West

How would you like to own a three bedroom two and 1/2 bath home with a pool and off street parking in Old Town Key West for just $615,000.  You could if you purchase the newly listed home at 1019 Whitehead Street.  The listing Realtor describes this picture perfect property thus:

"Absolutely wonderful! This Conch cottage is located in the heart of Old Town Key West and has 3 bedrooms 2.5 baths, heated pool and off street parking. The property has been totally remodeled from foundation piers to the shiny Victorian shingled roof which adds to the comfort and convenience of this fine home. The master bedroom with bath is on the first floor and there are 2 bedrooms with shared bath on the second floor. The home has Maple floors throughout, quality fixtures in bathrooms and kitchen, central AC, storm shutters for all the windows and doors, and a storage shed."

 Sawtooth and two story additions shown above

This home was totally renovated about ten years ago. I held numerous open houses there then and I became very familiar with the house.  The original home (shown below in the black and white photo) has been expanded with a sawtooth addition and a recent two story addition which contains the new really adorable high end kitchen and dining area on the main floor plus two bedrooms, a full bath, laundry area, and a coffee bar on the second floor.

Living room has vaulted ceiling that really expands the feel of this room

High end cabinets and appliances make this kitchen a standout!

Maple floors are another feature of this beautiful home

There are two bedrooms and a large bath on the second floor. And this home has a really nifty additional feature - a coffee bar where the family or guests could make morning coffee or grad a late night snack from the mini-refrigerator.

Very inviting pool!

CLICK HERE to view more photos I took of this super cute cottage home. And CLICK HERE to view the Key West Association of Realtors mls datasheet.  If you would like to see 1019 Whitehead Street, or any other property in Key West, please contact me, Gary Thomas, 305-766-2642. I am a buyers agent and a full time Realtor at Preferred Properties Key West. This place could be your perfect getaway in Paradise.

1014 Vareal Street #1 - Bank Owned - Key West

If you are looking for an affordable Key West home in Old Town Key West, the just listed Bank Owned stand alone cottage at 1014 Varela Street #1 might be the place you have been looking for. The listing agent describes this 542 sq ft cottage this way:

"Great stand alone conch cottage, 1 bedroom and 1 and a half baths. This unit has its own front porch and a private fenced back yard."  

Bricked but not pretty - yet! Waiting for a New Owner

 The house is pretty simple. The single bedroom is located up front where you will find the master bath. There is a guest bath located in the hallway. The rear end of the cottage has a cathedral ceiling which adds huge volume to the space as a whole. The bright and cheerful kitchen is fully equipped. French doors open out to the bricked backyard where a new owner could create his or her own private paradise. The asking price on this Bank Owned property is just $229,900. CLICK HERE to view the Key West MLS datasheet on this property.

This unit is a stand alone cottage, but it is part of the Villa Vera Condominiums.  Monthly condo fees are $498 and include sewer, water, building insurance, and common area maintenance. The limited common area consists of a walkway that provides access to the other cottages that make up this small association. The bank owner may provide financing to a qualified buyer.

If you would like to see this property or any other property in Key West, please call me, Gary Thomas, 305-766-2642. I am a buyers agent and a full time Realtor at Preferred Properties Key West.

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Feds Behaving Badly

 
For nearly two weeks the nightly news and 24 hour cable news channels like MSNBC and CNN have been running continual updates on the Secret Service Scandal that started out over the refusal to pay for services rendered by one pick-up artist in Columbia.  The US military got scrutinized and then Congress got into the act. Never saw a politician pass up a chance to get his ugly old puss in the media, especially if he could cause pain for the sitting President. Had the President's security really been endangered, I think all of us would be outraged. It was not. While some high thinkers professed moral superiority over the episode, I laughed. I was reminded of my own stint working for Uncle Sam and other government officials behaving badly.

I worked at the Resolution Trust Corporation (RTC) in the Denver office which managed the liquidation of savings and loan assets seized during the S&L crisis in the 1990s. Very little really happened to the crooks who profited from their looting of the S&Ls. Very little. Any time we saw evidence of the hands of a state or federal politician with his hands in the cookie jar, we had to refer what we found to RTC legal in Washington. That was normally the end of the inquiry.

I worked as a senior subsidiary asset specialist. The S&Ls used subsidiary corporations, many of which were single purpose subsidiaries, to conduct business operations to develop real estate and to participate in partnerships or joint ventures with subsidiaries from other S&Ls across the country. High ranking execs from one S&L would sit on the board of other each others boards and share risks in each others ventures. One really big S&L in New Mexico owned and developed properties in Tennessee and Florida. One owned a nursing home in New Orleans. Another had a Burger King in southern New Mexico. Three S&Ls owned massive developments just north and west of Los Angeles.

You may remember the name Lincoln Savings. That S&L had 22 subsidiaries with assets over $2 Billion. My office worked on liquidating those assets among the assets of many other failed thrifts. I traveled to Arizona or locations where the assets were located on a weekly basis.  On one trip my boss and I had flown into the Sky Harbor Airport in Phoenix. We usually arrived around 8:00 AM so we could get a full day of business accomplished. We were making our way into the terminal and I asked my boss if he would like to stop and get a Hertz Donut. He asked "What is a Hertz Donut?". You already know the punchline, so to speak. I clinched my fist and gave him a good tap on the shoulder. But I didn't hit him hard enough to actually inflict any pain. Just to surprise him and shock him.

My boss played football at the University of Michigan. I played politics at Colorado State University. As an adult, he ought weighed me by maybe thirty or forty pounds. He was about my same height, but he was built like a school bus.

He did not take the indignity of being tapped well. He clinched his fist and turned and slugged me on my shoulder so hard that I thought I might die.  Remember, he used to hit big guys for a living. (That's what college football players do you know.) I guess I could have called CNN and reported him. I did not. I never pulled that gag on anyone larger or smaller than me.

Back in the Denver office the head of a large department in the RTC had just returned from deployment to Iraq. He flew helicopters during the invasion.  He left his desk job and was gone for several months. After Sadam Hussein gave in, the department head returned and resumed his job. He was about my age and height but a little bigger around the waist. Not fat, however.  He was a nice guy who never ruffled my feathers or anyone else that I know. That is, except, for one taller fellow in his department who he supervised. The tall guy did not take orders from a shorter man very well. One day he threw a punch (and not a Hertz Donut!) at his boss, the ace war helicopter pilot. Oh, he sould have never done that. Who knew a small guy could be so tough. They fought it out. The cops were called. The tall guy got canned instantly. No Congressional inquiry needed. No CNN coverage for days on end.

None of the above has anything to do with real estate in Key West. I learned not to hit a boss. And I try not to hit anyone else. It is better to get along than it is to get fired or beat up.