1717 South Street, Key West - Bank Owned Fixer-Upper

If you have been hoping to move to Key West and buy a Bank Owned property that you could fix-up and make your home, the new listing new listing 1717 South Street in Key West may be the property you are looking for.  The listing broker, not me, describes this home this way:

"Location, Location, Location! This oversized lot with a privacy fence that currently has a main house with 3 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms and a mother-in-law 1 bedroom with 1 bath. Property has a large pool and back yard great for entertaining."

The house and detached mother-in-law cottage total 1900 sq ft and sit on what used to be a very beautifully landscaped 8531 sq ft lot (93.5' X 94').  The grounds and house are hidden from view behind a tall privacy fence. imagine how beautiful this home once was and could be again.

The house has a pretty impressive formal entry for such a relaxed home. A pergola spans much of the front facade on columns of carved stone. Similar columns are located at the rear where there is an huge pool and gardens.

The master bedroom and bath are located to the left of the living room while the two guest bedrooms and share hall bath are located to the right side of the living room. This arrangement would work well for a family to provide privacy for the parents for a few moments of the day. Note the terrazzo floor  in the original parts of the house.

The kitchen and laundry room are the the target of most new home owners. There is a really sweet rear pergola off the dining room and kitchen. I am sure a creative mind could re-invent this space into something even more magical.

You can clearly see that a portion of the drywall was moved in that area. There are a couple of holes in other rooms were drywall was also removed. The bank owner has treated the house for termites. The dining room and adjacent den have saltillo tile floors. The front entry and the rear garden area also have saltillo tiles.

The garden area must have been breath-taking. It still is to some extent. The pool sits quietly under the canopies of several beautiful trees that have created a little Eden of sorts. I found an old photo of the pool in its glory days. The lush garden could be replanted. The gardens would thrive in no time. CLICK HERE to view more photos I took of this property.

There are two gated entrances for cars. The one on the right is electrically operated. The long driveway terminates where the mother-in-law cottage begins. The rear yard seems boundless from the west border. The former owners created an outdoor kitchen to the south of the what was the den. The pool equipment and A/C are hidden from view on the far side of the outdoor kitchen.

1717 South Street in Key West is offered for sale at the asking price of $749,000 or just $394 per sq ft. CLICK HERE to view the Key West mls datasheet. Then please call ma, Gary Thomas, 305-766-2642 to set up a private showing of this remarkable property.  I am a buyers agent and a full time Realtor at Preferred Properties Key West. Let me help you find your home in Paradise.

1609 Patricia Street, Key West - A Hidden Jungle Paradise Awaits

The two photos above show the pool and fountains at 1609 Patricia Street in Key West when photographed a few years ago. Today the pool is surrounded by a child-safe fence and the gardens are over-grown and hidden. This property was the former home of noted landscape architect Raymond Jungles who left Key West a few years ago and relocated in Miami where he does projects of international re-known.

The listing Realtor describes 1609 Patricia Street as:

"Amazing landscaping by Raymond Jungles and the beautiful custom pool with waterfalls pouring from the designer wall are striking features of this extra large property (over eleven thousand square feet, enough for two houses). The two bedroom, one bath ground level home is hidden in the dense foliage, scarcely to be seen from the street. This is a unique home in the neighborhood just off Atlantic Boulevard."

I recently showed this home to a couple seeking a renovation project. They were intrigued by the 11,200 sq ft lot (112 feet wide X 100 feet deep). That's more than twice the size of a typical Casa Marina Area lot.  The existing house occupies only a tiny foot print on the lot. It measures just 910 sq ft. There is an attached 247 sq ft deck. The CBS house was built in 1956 which was updated in 2000 by Raymond Jungles and his former wife designer Debra Yates. They re-invented the space into a unique mid-century modern home. Years have passed since that renovation. This home has been a rental property for several years. A new owner might move in and not do anything to the house except paint it. A new owner might expand the existing house into a larger space. That would be easy here since the Historic Architectural Review Commission would not have any say over this property. Or a new owner could tear down the original house and build something quite large on this huge lot. Alternatively, the lot itself could potentially be split into two lots and two houses built (with the purchase of a separate ROGO unit). This house and this extraordinary lot offer so many wonderful possibilities.

Readers unfamiliar with Raymond Jungles are encouraged to Google his name and look for images of his work. When I did this I discovered many of the design elements he used on this space. Or simply CLICK HERE to view his website. Then click the CASE STUDIES to see how he transformed outdoor spaces into extraordinary gardens and public spaces. Consider how valuable an asset you would have if you were to purchase this property and how you might enhance this hidden Jungle Paradise. 

CLICK HERE to view the Key West mls datasheet and listing photos of 1609 Patricia Street is offered for sale at $695,000. Please contact me, Gary Thomas, 305-766-2642 to schedule a private showing of this incredible property. I am a buyers agent and a full time Realtor at Preferred Properties Key West.

1218 Duval Street, Key West - Mixed Use Commercial & Residential

1218 Duval Street, Key West - Offered For Sale at $1,845,000

The listing Realtor, not me, describes this property this way:

Location, Location, Location! Duval street property consisting of 2 buildings with 4 residential units and 1 high-visibility commercial unit. Over 3000 Sq Ft of Air-conditioned space and more than 1000 Sq Ft of covered porches with a fantastic view of the Atlantic ocean. Situated on a large lot with parking for 4+ cars and a tropically landscaped pool area. Property is in a receivership zone for City of Key West transient licenses and has had many recent upgrades.

I searched my old shoe box and found the black and white photo taken in 1965 when the property may still have been a single family home or possibly used as apartments. I then searched the Historic Sanborn Fire Maps and learned that this property probably existed before the first map was drafted in 1889. The front building was then identified as 57 Duval Street. Later the number was changed to 1220 Duval. The change to 1218 Duval St does not appear as of the 1912 map so I can only surmise the number change occurred after 1912.  The black and white photo  shows a vacant spot south of the property. The color photo above taken in December 2015 shows that same space as being vacant. Yet the 1912 Sanborn map shows that there was house located on that spot identified as 1224 Duval Street. I assume that building was either razed or destroyed by fire. The 1912 map showed a lengthy addition to the rear which extended to the west property line and a stairway that led to the second floor of the main building. Neither that extension nor the stairway survive. There is a new building at the rear which is partially visible in the photo below. There are two residential units in that building. .

The Monroe County Property Appraiser shows this property as having 3084 sq ft of interior living space situated on a 68' X 100' lot. The property is located about 70 feet north of United Street in a block which is a mix of restaurants, shops, and residential uses. There are spaces for off street parking on either side of the property. The property enjoys a dominant presence in this section of Old Town.

The front building has retail usage on the front side of the ground floor. There is an apartment on    the rear side which has a large covered rear porch. There is also a second floor apartment which has front and rear porches.

The second floor apartment has a great front porch for watching people watching. Inside there are two good sized bedrooms, a living room and dining area, plus kitchen and bath. That apartment also has a private second floor covered porch which looks down to the shared pool.

The rear building has two fully equipped apartments each with private porches with views of the pool and toward the south parking area. The lot is spacious. The pool is an added feature that makes this an ideal location for upscale residential rentals for locals. I think the current rents are under market.

A new owner might convert the historic front building into a large single family home which could be rented as a luxury monthly vacation rental. The two rear apartments could be likewise upgraded and made into small luxury rentals.  On the other hand, the current use works. I did not see any noticeable deferred maintenance. So a new owner might just consider keeping things the way they are but maybe carving out one space for personal use. 

1218 Duval Street went under contract very quickly after it was listed. It just came back on the market and is priced to sell at $1,845,000. CLICK HERE to view the Key West mls datasheet and to view listing photos. Please call me, Gary Thomas, 305-766-2642, to schedule a private showing before this incredible property gets snapped up by someone else. I am a buyers agent and a full time Realtor at Preferred Properties Key West.