816 South Street #4, Key West - Big Price Reduction!

The asking price 816 South Street #4  in Key West was just reduced from $479,000 to $450,000. This is a real buying opportunity for a buyer who wants a move-in-ready place three blocks to Duval and a short walk to Higgs Beach. South Park condos have one of the best pools in all of Key West and each unit has a private parking space.

I have sold four units in this four building complex with a total of 16 units over the past few years.  I think Southpark Condominiums are the best buy in Key West based on size, quality of construction, location, and amenities.

 Southpark Condominiums are made up of four four unit buildings located between William Street and Reynolds Street (the pathway to Higgs Beach and the Atlantic Ocean).  This second floor unit is located in the easternmost building. The unit has been tastefully updated including the new kitchen which was added just two years ago. This unit has central air conditioning and an in-unit washer and dryer.  Not all units have private laundries in the unit. The unit enjoys light throughout the day either from morning sunlight from the south which filters in through the kitchen window and the French doors in the bedroom. As the sun moves from east to west during the day, light bathes the living room in muted tones early afternoon until sunset. A door in the living room opens out to the front porch.

The dining are contains a built in display wall for showing off artwork, books, and nick-knacks. Another mirrored wall visually tricks the eye and enlarges the entire living space. Note also the natural finished oak flooring found in living room, dining area, and bedroom. Crown molding and bright white trim and baseboards plus pops of color on the walls add a bit of drama throughout this abode.

All of the units have private rear porches.  This one is sunny throughout most of the day. There is a rear interior stairway from a door in the kitchen which leads down to the pool at the rear of the property. The pool is located about fifty feet or more to the west. The Southpark grounds are quite spacious and professionally maintained. Each building has access to the gardens and pool area plus gated access from the front and side yards. The pool is one of the largest and most beautiful of any condominiums in Key West. There is a small building located at the east end of the pool which houses a coin operated laundry plus storage units for each of the condominiums.

CLICK HERE to view the Key West MLS datasheet and listing photos of 816 South Street #4 which is now offered at $450,000. Then please call me, Gary Thomas, at  305-766-2642, to schedule a private showing. I am a buyers agent and a full time Realtor at Preferred Properties Key West. I can't make enough positive comments about these units especially when compared to higher priced units in the Key West area.

1402 Pine Street, Key West - Tropical Duplex

My jaw dropped when I entered 1402 Pine Street, a tropically inspired  Meadows Area duplex during Realtor caravan a couple of days ago. I see so many ho-hum houses that I almost always starting humming before I entered this place. But that didn't happen here. I entered the first floor unit just off the pool. 

This place is sharp, clean as whistle, and ready to move in. The listing Realtor describes it this way:
"Beautifully maintained and recently updated duplex in the quiet Meadows neighborhood of Old town Key West. Close enough to bike or walk to the beach and parks or the best local restaurants and nightlife. Relax by the pool surrounded by lush landscaping and tall fencing for added privacy and ambiance or go inside to enjoy spacious, bright and sunny rooms, built in cabinetry, wet bar, Murphy bed, and Australian cypress wood floors throughout. Two vibrant bedrooms and bathrooms on the first floor, one generous sized bedroom and bathroom on the second floor. Front and rear porches located on both levels of this charming duplex for additional outdoor living space."

I looked through my old shoebox and found a "before" taken in 1965. Compare that with a similar current view.

The sidewalk on the left side leads to the new rear entrance to the ground floor two bedroom, two bath owners' unit with private deck overlooking the pool.  I turned the corner, saw the pool, and thought this is nice. Then I entered the house and revised my thoughts to this is really nice!

The entrance is through a bright kitchen that just sparkles.The wood cabinets in the kitchen are echoed in the living room where a built-in home office occupies a prominent corner. The master bedroom and bath are located at the far end of the space which is actually the front of the house. New Australian Cypress Wood Floors are found in the living room and master bedroom. The other rooms are tiled. There are new windows throughout as well as new electrical and plumbing systems. This house is located in the X Zone which means lenders will not require floor insurance or if purchased as an abundance of caution, premiums are just $450 per year.

The guest bedroom is just that. This owner did something I have advocated for years - they used a Murphy Bed to provide "as needed" bed space while keeping the room functional all those days and nights no guests are around. There is a wet bar and under counter refrigerator as well. This room has its own private bath and separate entrance out to the pool.

Occupants of the second floor one bedroom apartment enter through the original front door. The stairway ends about mid-point in the house where a small hall enters into the living room. The kitchen is to the right (south) where a comfortable second floor rear deck has south and southwest views.

The bedroom is at the front and has the only access to the second floor front porch which ha s a view of 1401 Pine Street where John Dos Passos author of the U.S.A. trilogy and many other works, first visited Key West in the 1920s and told his friend Ernest Hemingway about the place. 

During the winter of 1934, Dos Passos and his wife lived in this house at 1401 Pine Street, then the outskirts of town wrote author J. Willis Burke in 'The Streets of Key West' "No doubt, John dos Passos, who lived at 1401 Pine during the 1930s, made the fifteen minute walk (to downtown Key West )often. After one nocturnal amble, he arrived at Hemingway's house and met his future wife, Kate, for the first time. Perhaps it was kismet: "Dos" had, after all, been the one to suggest to "ole Hem" give Key West a try if he was looking for a warm place "to dry out his bones."

Key West today has its share of new writers, poets, artists, and even bloggers, some of whom surely will be famous in years to come.  They may even live on Pine Street or nearby. Bay View Park is just two blocks south. The White Street corridor is a couple of blocks west. There you will find numerous small eateries, several yoga studios, a couple of gyms, two gas stations (one of which has the best fried chicken in town), and a grocery store. Duval Street and all that goes with it is a few minutes walk to the west.

CLICK HERE to view the Key West MLS datasheet and to view listing photos of 1402 Pine Street offered at $1,200,000. 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.  This place deserves a look. You will be pleasantly surprised.

620 Frances Street, Key West - Just Listed Classic Eyebrow House

Just Listed, but not by me, 620 Frances Street, Key West. This is a classic eyebrow house which is located on one of the best blocks in Old Town. You can tell from the outside that the inside is going to be very special as well.

The house is located on the west side of Frances Street and enjoys early light as the sun rises across the skies over Key West. The houses on the opposite side of Frances are one story and do not have any huge trees to block the sun. The Key West cemetery is located one block to the south. The Historic Seaport is a five minute walk to the north. Duval Street is a seven to ten minute walk to the west. Several gyms and yoga studios are located five minutes or so by foot. You can be about anyplace in Key West within five minutes by car, but most locals can find all that they need in a matter of minutes by foot. That's part of why we choose to live on a little island out in the middle of the ocean.

 I searched the Historic Sanborn Fire Maps to determine when the house was built. The 1889 Map did not show any houses on this block, but knew they existed. The 1892 and 1899 Maps showed the house but it had a different street address on each Map. It was not until the 1912 Map that the 620 Frances Street was placed of record. I also found the Water-Front Pass of Mr. HM Roberts who resided at 620 Francis Street. He was a car inspector for the Florida East Coast Railway which Henry Flagler brought to Key West. Probably not co-incidentally Roberts Lane is located about seventy feet to the north of 620 Frances Street.

I actually looked at and seriously considered buying this house in 1995. My Realtor wanted me to by the house behind at 621Catholic Lane to use as my guest house. I considered doing that. I wish that I had. But that would have required me to spend a lot of money and time to remodel which I did not feel comfortable in doing. The house at 620 Frances Street was purchased by someone else who undertook the renovation and expansion of the house and who added the pool. I had not been inside the house until yesterday. I felt I made a grave mistake. This place is really beautiful.

The master suite is located at the left front of the house. The first thing I noticed was the incredible coffered ceiling and wainscotted walls which wrapped the room. The room is quite large and could easily accommodate a king size bed. A second door at the rear opens to the main hallway. The en-suite bath is very large. Travertine marble is used on the floor and also wraps the walls at the height as the wainscotting in the bedroom.

A second large guest bedroom with en-suite bath is located on the right side of the main entry hall. Both bedrooms and the entry hall have Dade County Pine walls and ceiling which have been painted. The floors were replaced with what I believe to be Brazilian Cherry.  This bedroom is quite large and is much larger than you might see in other eyebrow houses. I mention this because this house has two large first floor bedrooms. There are two bedrooms plus a large shared bath on the second floor. And there is a pool bath as well.

The pool was added during the 1995 renovation  The covered outdoor living area provides shade from the sun as it crosses Key West while the rooftop sundeck provides a private space to get than all over Key West tan so many people desire. There are no neighbors which have a view of whatever goes on up on that deck.

 This is a great block with lots of charming homes that date back over a century. 620 Frances Street is utterly captivating. It has significant street appeal, off street parking, and desired X zone location so many buyers want.

CLICK HERE to view the Key West MLS datasheet and listing photos of 620 Frances Street which is offered at $1,900,000. 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. Don't make the same mistake I did. Buy this house!

Former Key West Association of Realtors Executive Gets Prison Time for Embezzlement

                                                                                                               Photo credit Key West Citizen

Ydaris Wood, former executive director of the Key West Association of Realtors, was led out of Monroe County Circuit Court in handcuffs last Thursday after being sentenced to five years in prison to be followed by twenty-five years on probation. She was ordered to pay $175,035 in restitution to the Association and an additional $35,000 to insurance companies plus administrative fees and court costs. 

She was charged with  embezzling nearly $280,000 from the Key West Association of Realtors between 2016 - 2017. She abruptly quit here job in March 2017 and left Key West without prior notice. She allegedly destroyed all office files and bank records and took the Association's computer with her - all except for some tell-tale records left in the document destruction box which had not been touched. Those records helped the Association and police reconstruct records which led to defining the length of time, scope, financial loss incurred in the embezzlement. She fled to Kentucky with her husband and children but was later extradited back to Key West in December 2017.

In March 2018 she plead guilty to felony theft of over $100,000. Last Thursday I sat in the courtroom for about two hours with more than twenty fellow Realtors to attend her sentencing. Her attorney offered mitigating evidence to justify a lenient sentence. A psychologist described very personal childhood experiences Ydaris endured suggesting they were an excuse for her behavior as an adult.   The psychologist testified about the impact her recent life altering medical diagnosis had on her.  

The past and current association presidents testified about the betrayal of trust they and fellow Realtors felt upon discovering the embezzlement. They testified Ydaris had set up an American Express card in the Association's name where she charged over $252,000. Monthly credit card statements ranged from $2,613 to $32,249. Embezzled funds were used to help pay for a Camaro automobile and a new Nissan truck. Ydaris created a false set of Association bank records which showed a balance of $190,000 when she left. The true balance was less than $6,000.

Separation Anxiety

The little kid is wee me and the bigger guy is my big brother. The photo was taken on the lawn at the now razed Presbyterian Hospital in Denver in about 1948 or 1949.  My mother worked at the hospital as a switchboard operator back then, but today's blog relates to a different visit there and how it impacted my life forever.

I was about two years old when I was admitted Presbyterian Hospital to test for a heart murmur. Readers may be skeptical of my recollection, but it is real. I have seen it in my mind's eye for decades. It was nighttime. My parents came to visit me. I was held and comforted. Then they started to leave me. I begged them to take me with them.They left me alone.  I cried myself to sleep. I was a prisoner inside an iron crib.

Google is really something. Put in a word or phrase and you get to see things from your present or your past. The above photo shows a hospital crib like the one where I was held - except I was much smaller than the boy shown in the photo. I was trapped inside that iron crib. I could not escape. I was too young to reason.

In later years I was told I was in the hospital for testing.  I don't think I was there very many days. But it was an eternity to tiny me. While I do not have nightmares over the incident, I remember it to this day and feel again the sense of abandonment that the experience left me with. 

A few weeks ago I saw a Senator, or Congressman, or someone from the Trump Administration was on television discussing the "immigrant children" who have been separated from their parents who are being held in detention facilities. The man said something to the effect that these kids are better off than many American children because these kids have three meals a day and are in clean facilities.  He seemed to express a disdain for the children because they were being treated better than American children. Maybe they are, but I think not. I can never imagine a tiny child feeling good about being separated from his mother. And as big and tough as a 14 year old boy can be and as sassy at a 14 year old girl might be, I am confident many revert to children when their world is ripped apart no matter the cause. The press is now referring to some of these children as "orphans".  I bet that will happen to some. 

Who knows how these immigrant children who have been separated from their families by the American Government will feel about and maybe act toward or against the United States in the years ahead. Whatever they may feel or do, I am sure they won't forget it.