615 Thomas Street, Key West - Just Listed

Just Listed 615 Thomas Street, Key West. This place looks just like you'd expect an historic house in Old Town would look like. But you would be wrong because this home was built in 2013 and is now offered for sale. I took photos during the construction - CLICK HERE to see the home designed by Tom Pope, the dean of Key West architects.

 

This 2,200 Sq Ft home has four bedrooms and three bathrooms, a large, pool, and off-street parking. Best of all it is located just two blocks from Duval Street and one block away from the Monroe County Justice Center. The current owner uses the first floor bedroom as a home office and fishing pole store room. Note new pine walls replicating the style of our older homes. Real hardwood floors, tall ceilings, crown molding, high baseboards, period correct doors, and down lights complete this space. 

The open concept living area includes a custom kitchen featuring breakfast bar, GE Profile Appliances, and a walk-in pantry. It's the open doors leading to the 30' X 12' heated pool that will probably grab the attention of your guests. 

Tom Pope incorporated a couple of the building features used in our old homes - the louvered shutters on the side of the two rear decks and expansive covered decks. During the winter our temperatures are so mild that owners leave doors open so that the inside and outside spaces become one. Here the transition from inside to outside is seamless. In the summer the porches provide shade from the sun. Believe it or not some hot shot do it yourself designers fail to provide outdoor covered areas. The porches here are both beautiful and practical. 

The master bedroom with en-suite bath are located at the front of the house where there is a covered porch providing sunset views. Mallory Square is located about five minutes to the north. You can avoid the crowds and sip cocktails while others dodge the buskers.

Earlier I mentioned this home is located near the Monroe County Justice Center. This home might "appeal" to a local lawyer who could walk to the courthouse - just a thought. The first floor office may appeal to buyers seeking to relocated from far away to find a place they can work at home. And it may attract a buyer who is looking for a space they may rent as a monthly vacation rental - it's located in the perfect location a five to ten minute walk from Ft. Zachary Taylor and the Truman Waterfront Park as well as Duval Street. 

CLICK HERE to view the Key West MLS datasheet and listing photos for 615 Thomas Street, Key West. 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.

 

 

 

802 Southard Street, Key West - Just Listed

Just Listed but not by me 802 Southard Street, Key West. I saw this on a late June afternoon in 2018 - the day it was first listed for sale after having been used as multiple apartments The property sits in the heart of Old Town. I arrived at the appointed time and was advised the house was already under contract. I recall a couple of other agents being there as well. I think we all stomped our feet in disappointment. I still took my look around to preserve what my buyer could not get.  Now almost two and a half years later this house has been thoroughly renovated and is now offered for sale "turnkey". Look carefully at all that you see, because all that you see is included in the purchase price

I literally stood in the living room studying the space for five minutes or longer. I was amazed at the transformation that took place. I recall there were several small rooms on the first floor. The front door opened into a dark hallway with stairs rising to the south. Now the first front part of the first floor is an open living plan. And then I started took at how elegantly the furniture, fixtures, and art melded with the "soft" new hard interiors. By that I mean the hard spaces appear gentle. The natural wood appears throughout the house, but does dominate the place like so many renovations and restorations. The wood floors and walls, created a continuous canvas upon which the designer created the perfect move-in-ready-home. 

The Realtor opened the twin Lazy Susan Cabinets at either end of the kitchen. Each was filled with pots, and cooking implements of all types. I asked if the owner had moved or if the house had been rented or would be rented until it sells. Oh, no. The house has never been used and is offered turnkey so that everything is perfect for the new owner. Imagine that, not having to hire a designer or bring one down form up north to only draw things out and plan and move and spend more money. It's that a shame!

The hallway from the living room leads to the south side of the house where the first floor master bedroom and bath are located. (There is a guest bath in the hall.) I posted a "before" photo of the exterior so you can see how clever the designer was is borrowing the cottage on the right and making it a part of the new master suite. I didn't appreciate the taking until I entered the space, gawked at the view, and reenacted to the height of the vaulted ceiling and wondered "How'd they do that?"

The master bath is located on the east side of the main floor rear. Windows provide daytime light and muted views of this ever-changing old fishing village. I have become both an avid and reluctant follower of many designers and manufacturers who post Instagram photos of new kitchen and bath installations. I see a sameness in so many of these photos. It makes me wonder if white will become the new Avocado or Harvest Gold, Coppertone. Probably not, but it id does there will be a lot of remodels i the next 40 years replacing the whites. But probably not here where the white allows the furniture and fixtures become the focus of attention. 

I went up the new stairs and paused again. Remember the original staircase started near the front door had rose up from there. The new staircase is relocate to the south wall that intersects with the cottage next door where the master suite is located at ground level. The stairs  end arrive at a new second floor landing that provides access to the rear bedroom and private bath and the front bedroom both of which have access to the wrap-around second floor porch. 

The front bedroom is entered off the second floor hall into a vestibule around which the large bed chamber emerges. French doors open out to the covered porch which has a view of the dip pool below. No diving. 

Your guests will have sunset views from the comfort and quietness of the covered porch and the convenience of your beverages all during their stay.

The guest cottage is a self-contained one bedroom single family home with full bath and bedroom and bathroom. Take my word on it. Read the detailed description of the property in the MLS Listing CLICK HERE. Then please call me, Gary Thomas, 305-766-2642. I am a buyers agent and a full time Realtor at Preferred Properties Key West. Plan on spending an hour. You want to sit in every chair and lay on each bed to savor the comfort that makes this place truly turnkey. It will know your socks off! 802 Southard Street could be your home this Christmas!

 

Key West Real Estate Throwback Thursday No. 11

from:  March 6, 2010

You're Gonna Howl with Laughter at this New Bank Owned Key West Property

 

From Dale McDonald Collection showing a funeral march through Old town

I have written before that in a prior life I did commercial loan workouts for a couple of big national banks in Denver. Part of my job responsibilities included the sale of bank owned properties. I got pretty good at doing my job. I tried to get the last nickle out of every deal, but I knew that when I had a problem property I had to sell it and get rid of it. I only "fell in love" with a couple of properties that I refused to sell at give-away prices. One such property was a big two story house on the golf course in East Vail. We had lots of offers from greedy buyers that thought they would steal the place. They lost. When I had a dog foreclosure, I got rid of it. Sometimes we had to fix the dog up and make it pretty enough to attract a new buyer. You must understand that all dogs are not ugly. Some look perfectly normal. But location and previous usage can make a once viable property a pretty difficult sale after a property has been foreclosed upon. One such property was a small house that had been converted into offices near City Park in East Denver. Nothing 0dd about the conversion except the neighboring property had become an abortion clinic which was being picketed all the time. Another time I took over a medical building in North Denver. That building had been used as a pill pushing clinic where the doc pushed diet pills and Valium. The building had creepy old medical devices and lots of pills stored in boxes in the basement. We could not sell the drugs and absolutely could not throw them out. I ultimately found another doctor to purchase the building and he took responsibility for disposing of the furniture, fixtures, equipment and drugs. Yet another time I took over a gun store filled with weapons and ammo. I have never fired a gun in my life and being in that place scarred me. I found a buyer with the proper license to take all of the inventory and we were out of the gun business in a hurry. All of this leads up to a new Key West listing of another key west real estate company. The property in question is located at 325 Julia Street in the Bahama Village area of Key West.

The listing Realtor says

"Presently licensed for use as Evergreen Mortuary and Conch Conquering Lion Construction. Second story has one bedroom residential unit."

I started to howl when I read that line. But then I looked at the pics of the listing including the viewing parlor, the embalming room, and that special room with the big table saw, I doubled over in laughter. CLICK HERE to checkout the mls listing info.

325 Julia Street back in the day. Now Bank Owned!

The Parlor at 325 Julia Street

The Embalming Room I guess

The room with the table saw! I hope we never see this place on America's Most Wanted

A few weeks ago I was showing property near the Key West Cemetery. We were in my car driving on Windsor Lane where I intended to go south to my next appointment. I had to hold-up a bit as there was a funeral procession (march) making its way slowly down Windsor Lane toward the cemetery. (Just like the one in the black and white photo taken in Key West in 1934,) When we managed to reach Galveston Lane I took a sharp right and made my getaway. We don't have that many funerals in Key West because Key West isn't all that big a town. I understand that there are few if any remaining unsold burial plots at the cemetery. I kinda fear being taken to anyplace else in Florida. You must have seen the horror stories about Florida cemeteries and bogus burials. It is comforting to know that people in Key West still have reverence for the recently departed. I mean that in all sincerity. But since there are not a lot of burials, it is nice to know one could use the none mortuary space for other uses such as construction. The 2460 sq ft mixed use building at 325 Julia Street is offered at $489,000 or $199 per sq ft (50.25' x 79.33'). A couple of other funeral homes have been sold in Key West in the past few years. This could be a fun project for someone in need of Hmdr (Historic medium density residential) permissible zoning space. I would be happy to show this property to serious buyers. I make light of the listing because of the incongruity of use between mortuary and construction office. But let's not waste someones time for a laugh. Please call me, Gary Thomas, 305-766-2642 to schedule a showing. I am a full time Realtor at Preferred Properties Coastal Realty, Inc.

Friday the 13th as a Predictor of Successful Real Estate Location

We all know how this story will end. You know the ending within a few minutes after the movie starts - you just do not know how it will occur. There is always a pretty girl or dog or maybe an idealistic home when something suddenly happens. 

This a true story of Key West real estate. But the story could play out anywhere because the primary dynamic of real estate sales are universal and unforgiving - location. But this story is also very particular  as to Key West. 

Even though Key West a lot of very fun things to do on Sunday afternoon, watching polo matches and bowling are not among the many.  Locals and tourists seeking cheap alternatives turn to Open Houses pretending to be buyers. Seasoned locals often opine on the value of the properties demonstrating their superior knowledge of the Key West real estate market. 

I like holding open houses which sometimes lead to a sale. But they also get other Realtors to see my listing which may lead to a showing.

I remember open house I hosted in Old Town a couple of years ago. U was there more than three hours. I arrived early and closed late. The house still had two or three late arriving older couples taking self-tours. I went to the street to retrieve my Open House signs. When I arrived back at the house one of the couples was just exising. I asked them if they had any questions. We went back inside and I showed some of the things they missted. And that is when the gent said they did not come to look at my lising, They came to interview me as one of the top Realtors in Key West. (I know there was gonna be a catch.) 

The gent told me they were completing the total renovation of their house on a X street. They asked if I would be interested in listing it. I told them I knew the house and that I did not want to waste my money on a photographer nor my time hosting opnen houses and showing the house whici I said would take a couple of years. I told them of anogther neraby house on X street that was on the market for nearly three years. They looked aghast. Then she or he said they got permission to change the street from X to Y. I quickly said when buyers arrive they will know it is located on X , Virtually nobody wants to buy a house on X street I wished them well.

One by one the pretty girl, the nerd. the jock, the camp couselor, the other pretty girl, the gay boy - all go outside., do foolish things, and get killed. They could all be alive today if they had only not done something foolish. The End.

The house still has not sold.