1400 White Street Key West - Price Reduction

The Asking Price  was just reduced on 1400 White Street #A in Key West was just reduced to $649,000 or or $479 per square foot. This lovely home is located in the Casa Marina Area just a short stroll to the Atlantic Ocean.

Historic Cuban Tiles will impress your guests as they enter your home

Be the first to live in this freshly renovated two story, three bedroom Casa Marina Area condominium. There are just three units in this sharp building located near Higgs Beach. You will be greatly impressed by the grand new designer kitchen with breakfast bar and adjacent dining area. The kitchen features shaker cabinets and carrara marble counter top plus stainless steel appliances. There are two new baths featuring travertine marble floors and designer tiles. A new laundry is located on the second floor. New Brazilian cherry hardwood floors were added to all other areas of this classy home. Wind impact glass windows and doors were added to many areas of the house as well. A new whole house air conditioner was added in 2016. And there is large 22 foot by  14 foot completely private deck off the dining area where there is room for hot tub or maybe a swim spa. This home is offered fully furnished as shown. 

You'll be surprised at the height of the ceilings and the size of each of the rooms. This places is spacious. It looks and feels like a private home and not a condominium. That is really important for full time living.

Main floor bath

There is a spacious first floor bedroom located opposite the stairway. The kitchen and dining area are at the rear. The kitchen features shaker cabinets and carrara marble counters and under counter glass tiles. Stainless steel appliances complete the look of this beautiful space. The new glass sliding doors in the dining area are impact glass and are built to resist winds up to 185 miles per hour.

The rear deck is totally private. There is room for a hot tub and maybe room for a swim spa. City building code is too strict to allow a pool without a variance, however.  There is a small side yard to the south where your dog could run to keep an eye on the front.

The large master bedroom easily can accommodate a king size bed. Note there are two large closets each with closet organizers (all closets have closet organizers) in the master bedroom. This is a bright and cheery space with partial views of the back yard.

1400 White Street is located just a few short blocks to the Atlantic Ocean to the south and two blocks to the new city hall and our Dairy Queen to the north. There are several nearby gyms and yoga studios. I imagined that the buyer for this property would be a local - you can't buy a single family home this nice in Key West for this price.  But many of the people who have looked at this property are seeking a second home that they can rent either on an annual basis or as a vacation rental. This property would definitely work either way. Low condo fees of just $500 per month includes all building insurances and weekly yard maintenance.

CLICK HERE to view the Key West MLS datasheet. Please call me, Gary Thomas, 305-766-2642 to schedule a private showing of this never-been-lived-in renovation now offered at $649,000. I am a full time Realtor at Preferred Properties Key West.

2601 S. Rossevelt Blvd #404 A Key West - Stunning Waterfront Condo at an Affordable Price

If you have been dreaming of buying a waterfront home in Key West as either a full time residence or maybe as a vacation home, the recently listed one bedroom waterfront condominium at Key West by the Sea may be the place you have been waiting for. I went over to Smathers' Beach this morning at sunrise to take a couple of photos for today's blog. This is my favorite time of day. There were singles and a few couples either walking on the beach or sitting under palm trees waiting for the sun to pop up. I saw one lady doing yoga excises. This is why so many people move to Key West - to be able to live this healthy lifestyle and experience the joys of this earth during the few years we have here. While we do get our rainy days, we have many more days like today where the sky is a kaleidoscope of colors. Two young guys waited till the sun popped out so they could take muscle selfies with the sun showing their physiques. Other people were jogging or riding bikes along the esplanade that is South Roosevelt Boulevard as it winds its way from the Casa Marina Resort to the entrance to the island that is Key West.

The listing Broker describes 2601 South Roosevelt Blvd. #404A this way:

"Stunning direct Atlantic Ocean and beach views from this light filled one bedroom and one bath unit. The open floor plan is designed for entertaining. Beautiful finishes with bright kitchen and spacious master bath. The in-unit washer and dryer is a coveted convenience Key West By The Sea, is a secure gated community with 8 acres of lushly landscaped property featuring two swimming pools, two tennis courts, and sandy Smather's beach directly across the street."

This is a one bedroom one bath unit with 754 sq ft of living space plus the balcony that overlooks the ocean. Not all condos at Key West by the Sea have washers and dryers in the unit. This one does and that is a positive feature.  The building also has an elevator which is another very valuable feature as well. The FAA noise abatement program is about to be implemented there with new a/c, impact doors and windows at no cost to the owners. The A building will be the last one to receive about 4 years from now.

The buildings are part of a very healthy condominium association  which is professionally managed. Monthly condo fees for this unit are $446.10 and include cable TV, exterminating, building maintenance, building insurances, common area and pool maintenance, security, and management. The association is strong. Some of the owners here have lived at this development for decades. The rules and the way the place is managed reflect the values that have kept KWBS stable throughout the years. While owners may rent their units, they may not rent them until after one year of ownership and then the rental must be over 90 days. This has prevented the community from be destabilized by turning the condos into a resort like hotel. Don't get me wrong, living here is already like living in a resort. But the rules prevent it from becoming one. There are two large pools one which is heated the other is solar heated. And there are two tennis courts. The spacious common areas include garden spots populated by living orchids and babbling water features.

The one story building at the end of the south pool is the community center and on-site property management for the property. While I don't go out here a lot, I can attest that the grounds are always in perfect order. The buildings were painted this past year.

CLICK HERE to view the Key West MLS datasheet and listing photos for 2601 South Roosevelt Blvd. #404A which is offered for sale at $510,000.  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. Let's go take a look. I think you will really like this community and this unit. You can't beat the view for the price!

721 Chapman Lane, Key West - Something Special!

Yesterday, during Realtor caravan, I finally got a chance to see the recently listed home at 721 Chapman Lane in Key West. I had been there years earlier and sort of remembered it. It looks totally different now than it looked a few years ago. As I made my way from the living room to the kitchen at the rear I could hear different agents going "Ooh!" and "Aah!" and "This is really nice". That normally does not happen. This place was something special.

This house is one of several cigar maker style homes on this block. The Monroe County Property Appraiser says this house was built circa 1906. The public records I saw did not show when the rear addition was added, but it looks to me like it was in the late 1990s. That addition expanded the living area toward the rear and increased the total living area to 1900 sq ft. The current owner replaced much of the siding and redid all of the interiors. The place looks, feels, and smells brand new through out.

The listing Realtor describes this home this way:

"The minute you enter 721 Chapman Lane you know you've found a special property! Located on one of the quaintest streets in the Village, one block from restaurant row! This 3 bedroom, 3 bath home has been tastefully renovated with an elegant Caribbean feel including beautiful Brazilian Mahogany floors and Amish made solid Cherry cabinets. The open concept kitchen, dining and living area lead out to the beautiful covered lanai and heated, salt water pool. There is also a formal living room in the front of the home. Two master bedrooms both boast gorgeous en suite baths, one with a private covered porch overlooking the pool. Don't miss this one!"

The covered rear lanai merges with the interior when the glass doors are opened. You will be able to leave the doors open and walk back and forth between inside and outside from October through most of  May while other parts of the country deal with snow and blowing winds from Canada. The net effect is your living space is much larger and far more enjoyable than you can imagine until you experience in real life.

The entire house feels and looks new. The layout works for modern living. If you grew up in a post World War II ranch, you will understand the difference of modern open living concept as opposed to single purpose rooms. The second floor has two large bedrooms. The rear bedroom has a living area and a balcony which overlooks the pool below. I'm pretty sure back in the 1960s and 1970s only the rich had rear second story balconies overlooking a sweet pool. You can have it all today.

The master bedroom suite is just that: sweet. This is a place where you are walled off from the rest of the world (or at least whoever is in the other master suite at the front of the house). The bedroom has a big vaulted ceiling which in many houses makes one feel lost. But intimacy prevails here because the space is humanized by the furnishings and the opened balcony doors. The balcony provides another place to chill and bask in knowing this is your home - your inner sanctum. 

The second floor front bedroom and bath are equally as nice as the master at the rear, but not quite as large. Every room in this house is special. I doubt you will find anything like it in Key West today. And that is why  people like you want to own a place here - it's not located up north in America where everything is the same.

Opposite to the stairway to the second floor you will find a room currently used as a study and a guest bath. If the desk and chair were removed, that room could be used as a third bedroom. Also, there is a good sized pantry located under the stairway.

Nearby 221 Petronia Street - 2010

2015

2016

 721 Chapman Lane is home is located in the Bahama Village section of Key West, just two blocks west of Duval Street. This area is now changing at a much quicker pace than before. The City of Key West is finally working on the Truman Annex Waterfront Park. This week the waterfront is packed with attendees at the boat races.  I have long believed that when the park is completed, buyers will appreciate the undervalued homes in the Bahama Village area which has not risen in price equal to the houses in the Old Town area. I really think this is finally going to happen. One by one, the straggler properties like the one pictured above at 221 Petronia Street are getting bought up and redone. The house across the street is nearing expansion and completion of its renovation. Nearby hot eateries include the iconic Blue Heaven, Santiago's Bodega, and Firefly. 721 Chapman Lane is 200 feet away. Ft Zachary Taylor beach is a ten minute walk or a few minute bike ride. This area is gonna get hot and it's gonna go up in price.

CLICK HERE to view the Key West MLS datasheet on 721 Chapman Lane which is offered at $1,399,000. This same house would cost about $1.8 million on the other side of Duval Street. Please call me, Gary Thomas, 305-766-2642, to schedule a private showing of this very lovely home. I am a buyers agent and a full time Realtor at Preferred Properties in Key West Florida.