530 Catherine Street, Key West - Transient Licensed Money Machine

 

Just listed, but not by me, 530 Catherine Street, Key West. The listing Realtor describes the property this way:

"Say hello to this TRANSIENT vacation rental just steps off Duval Street! Fully renovated from top to bottom, this low maintenance home has 2 of the 3 bedrooms on the first floor. All have ensuite baths. Beautifully furnished, this fabulous investment property is fully rented through May 2022! The home features an open floor plan with seating for 6 at the spacious kitchen island and a living area that opens to a comfortable covered lanai. Enjoy a beautiful heated pool with the convenience of an outside pool bath. The outdoor area affords plenty of space for sunning and dining. Round out this money-maker ($200K +) with a designated parking space, and you've got a winner!"

You enter the house from the new side addition instead of the front porch which is now a private sitting area for the front bedroom with en-suite bath. There is another first floor bedroom and bath located at the right rear. That bedroom opens out to the pool. The stairway leads to the third bedroom with private bath on the second floor. That bedroom is more spacious than the photo suggests.

The informal inside living area transitions to the very informal outside living area. There is a poolside bath. It is, however, the open sky and swaying palms that will captivate your paying guests.

This property has everything a buyer seeking a true money making property could wish for: a transient rental license; a new renovated house in great condition; a comfortable interior with three private bedrooms and baths; a stunning pool area with no peering views; an off street parking space; and a location near all of the hoopla of Old Town without being on top of it.

Duval Street is less than one block to the west. La Te Da is located on the corner in case you have an urge for a cocktail. South Beach is located three blocks to the south. They have cocktails there, too. Actually, there are cocktails from the Gulf of Mexico to the Atlantic Ocean and each block in between. And a lot more.

CLICK HERE to view the Key West MLS datasheet and more listing photos of 530 Catherine Street, Key West which is offered for sale at $2,600,000. Then please call or text Gary Thomas, 305-766-2642, to arrange a private showing. This property is constantly rented and showing dates and times are limited. I am a buyers agent and a full time Realtor at Preferred Properties Key West.

UPDATE JULY 25, 2021. This property sold for $2,525,0000 cash or $1,848 per sq ft. Sold in 11 days.

True Tales of Key West Real Estate in the Times of Corona Virus - Part Twelve

As always this is a true story. The names have been changed to protect me from lawyers.

It was perhaps 12 years ago that I got a phone call from a gay man I will call Herb who wanted to buy a place in Key West. He found me on my blog and learned that I was also gay. He thought, I think, it would be a good fit. He was wrong on many points. 

We began a telephone and email dialogue to find the best place for him. I can share a bit without sharing too much. He was older. He was a hair dresser. (That's what he called it.) He wanted to be near Duval Street so that he could meet people. His brother was a surgeon and would be the actual buyer. We began our search.

As I write this I remember countless phone calls from Herb who rambled on and on. I sensed, no knew, Herb had a drinking problem. I listened on end. We all know people like this.

I found Herb a well located condominium which met all of his needs. It was in good shape and was priced right. His brother flew down to Key West and took a look at the place. We accidentally bumped into each other the same night at a famous Key West restaurant. The doctor told our little group how important a figure he is specialty. And he said how proud he was of his brother, the hair dresser. 

I wrote an offer which was accepted by the seller. Florida real estate contracts require payment of an initial escrow deposit within a few days of acceptance of the offer. When the surgeon failed to pay the agreed deposit on time, I contacted him stressing the importance of contract compliance. He told me in no uncertain terms that he was saving lives on a daily basis and was not to be distracted by my perceived importance of contract terms. But he sent the money nevertheless.

We closed the deal. Herb moved in and had a hot tub installed. Herb was living his best life in paradise.

At that time Herb was a middle-aged man. If you saw him on the street you would not guess anything askew. He had a receding hairline and was not particularly attractive. But he wasn't a troll. But when he turned on the gay - you knew. His normal guy facade flew away and his flamboyant wild and crazy gay persona emerged. 

Two years passed. All of a sudden I saw Herb's condominium appeared for sale in the Key West MLS. I called the listing agent who told me that Herb was too wild for the condominium complex even by Key West standards which are gosh darn low. Herb reportedly walked over to Duval Street and invited unsavory characters back to his condominium in the wee hours of the morning to continue partying in the hot tub. This happened not once, or twice, but too many times. The agent told me this was the first and only time the condominium association demanded the unit to be sold. The doctor complied. I have no idea where Herb landed. The end. 

True Tales of Key West Real Estate in the Times of Covid 19 - Part Eleven

Most of America is breathing a sigh of relief these days. We are getting back to normal after months of quarantine, face masks, social distancing, not touching other people, and so on. I actually shook hands with potential buyers yesterday afternoon. The Key West  real estate market so brisk that there are few properties to write about. Many properties go under contract within a day or two of being listed. which makes blogging nearly impossible. I was looking through my old shoebox searching for subjects to write about when I found a collection of photos I took just before, the day of, and after Hurricane Irma including the one below. The photo shows a woman talking on a telephone with cord on it standing behind a trash can while other people watched her.

I was fortunate to stay at the Marquesa Hotel 414 during the hurricane along with several other locals including some of the hotel employees and and friends of the owners including an electrician. We were without potable water, electricity, and cell phone service for several days after the hurricane. I learned later that the news media incorrectly reported that much of Key West was severely damaged during Irma. We lost trees, but not buildings, and more importantly no lives at that time.

The hurricane lingered over the Island of Key West for several hours. I stood on the balcony for long periods of time. The winds were persistent but not intense - at least from where I was located. I ventured out to the street in early afternoon to survey the damage. I was shocked to see so many trees had fallen. This was not normal. It was devastating. I walked for blocks and blocks taking photos. Locals came out and wandered the streets eyeing the damage. We traded information on what had happened and where the worst damage was. It was like survivors of a zombie attach or something like that.

The next day the sun came out. The sky was cloudless. All the weather got blown to the north. Noting but sunshine, blue sky, and hot temperatures. And no phone service. The electrician who stayed at the hotel climbed the old telephone pole and dropped a phone line to which he attached an old wall mounted princess telephone. Within a couple of days word spread that there was phone service to the world and people showed up seeking a turn to call their loved ones.

I took the above photo during the renovation of the Marquesa 414 property added the location of the drop line for the phone. CLICK HERE to view the before and aftermath of Hurricane Irma in Key West. 

Key West bounced back from the hurricane and recovered from the pandemic. It is a great place to live. If you can find a place to rent or buy.

 

Key West Real Estate Throwback Thursday - No. 25

from August 15, 2009

How Gay Was My Villa?

 

 It's a free world (at least it is here in Key West) where people can and do just about anything and everything they want. We all seem to get along. And except for some do-gooders that sit on some public commissions, we all try to stay out of each others "business". One of the really great things about my job is that I get to see inside so many Key West homes. Some places amaze me. I go home and start to clean, or paint, or redecorate. Others make me feel pity for the sad souls that live in helpless hovels. I have been inside more than enough places that reek of urine but that are inhabited by human beings. I have had to move sideways through rooms filled with years of accumulated trash. And I wonder what in the world is wrong with the people that live there.

I have been in multi-million dollar properties that exude an ambiance most of us can only dream of. But more regularly I get to see some really nice homes that are comfortably decorated with Key West flair. You can't by flair in a store, but you know it when you see it. Many of the chicest of homes are gay owned have the look and style buyers want. But then the buyers get the drama of trying to negotiate with royalty. And there have been a few occasions I have shown houses that are just a gay as gay can get. The most memorable gay house was located in the Meadows area. I showed that house several times a few years back. It had the obligatory statue of David near the pool. There were statuettes, oil paintings, charcoal prints,and etchings of nude and semi-nude males throughout the house and garden. Every square foot had some form of art that paid homage to the naked male figure. After months of not being able to sell the house, the listing Realtor finally persuaded the owner to store some of the artwork off property. A few years later when that same house was for sale again I actually noticed what terrible shape it was in. The naughty artwork from before had distracted my attention from the condition of the property itself. But it did the same thing to my potential buyers because nobody was ever interested in seeing that place a second time. 

One gay man asked me to look at his house to discuss listing it. Key West was in the height of the real estate boom.I might have got the listing had I not told him to take down the huge and virtually nude portrait of himself that hung above French doors leading to the back yard. There was also that time I was in a really nice home located at the dead end of a Key West lane to discuss listing the house. The owner and I were standing in one of two master baths discussing the features of the house when I spotted it. The DILDO! I lost my voice and the ability to put words together. Decorating with dildos is a no-no. I have seen enough mannequins dressed in drag or adorned in leather posed in the corner of a room or next to a window that I don't even take a second look anymore. But my buyers do. 

Mannequins are one thing. Slings are another. I wrote in my blog about "The War of the Roses" house. I showed it several times. The name I gave the property was derived from the ordeal the two gay owners were going through in the split of their personal lives and their real estate investments. But I had to laugh at the extra bedroom that was set up as a dungeon complete with sling. Most of my buyers did find that room very interesting. A few weeks ago I showed a house I had written about in my blog. The owners have left town and the place now has a long term tenant that has turned the place into his own comfortable gay love nest. I say that kindly. The tenant is as sweet as he can be. The place is immaculate. Let's just say the walls of the master bedroom and master bath are decorated primarily with photos of naked gay porn stars. I think it would be very difficult for a normal straight couple to imagine living in this house because of the huge collection of gay porn photos and other gay decorations throughout the house and near the pool. God, I must sound like some prude! Call me old fashioned. I grew up in the 1950s when gay decorating was -- different. But what the heck. This is Key West. It is okay to be gay here, and it is okay to decorate your home or garden anyway you want. If you are thinking of buying a place in Key West and are looking for a gay Realtor, call me, Gary Thomas, 305-766-2642 or contact my by e-mail at kw1101v@aol.com. I am a full time Realtor at Preferred Properties Coastal Realty, Inc. Living life in Key West is just great. I could care less how you decorate your villa as long as you are happy. However, sometimes it might be a little easier to sell the place if you hide your porn and stow away the dildos. lol

 

401 South Street, Key West - Landmark Property For Sale

"Through the crystal-clear air Lori could hear the ringing of the agent's bell...that had begun when the package had first been sighted, carefully picking it's way past the outer reefs toward the lighthouse at Whitehead's Point."          - Thelma Strabel, Reap the Wild Wind

Preferred Properties Key West just listed 401 South Street, Key West. This home sits opposite what was once called Whitehead's Point. Tourists from all over the world come here to take photos as a remembrance of the best vacation of their lives. Were you to buy this one-of-a-kind home I would suggest that you must really like people because people will stand across the street from your home every day to take photos of themselves for as long as you own the property.

But at night when the tourists have moved down to Mallory Square to view the amazing Key West sunset, you will have the view of the old Whitehead's Point to yourself.  You can watch the nightly sunset from your main level or second floor balcony with a view nobody in Key West can ever have. The balmy breezes from the Atlantic Ocean will brush the palms that flank this corner property.  At night after the tourists are gone you will hear the sound of tiny waves as they lap the coral rock where South Street and Whitehead Street meet at the place now called the Southernmost Point. This is the yin and yang of this property.  

The original house is constructed of Indian Block, a man-made material similar to modern concrete block except that Indian Block has a finished decorative carved-rock aspect. Over the years the original front porch and second floor balcony were modernized as is shown in the 1965 black and white photo.   What you may not see unless you look at all the photos with care is that 401 South Street has three bays: The front bay is obscured by the enclosed front porch. The east side bay is not visible from the street whereas the west bay is quite prominent as it can be viewed by all.

The immediately above photo shows the front bay on the main floor. The house plus the rear bungalow have been divided into three legal living units. The first floor and second floor currently used as separate apartments and are pretty much carbon copies of each other as to interior layout. The original interior staircase has been removed, but a portion of the stairs still remains. Re-installation of a staircase would be fairly simple were a new owner want to restore this home back to a single family residence.  Note the extra large crown molding that wraps the front bay. The crown molding can be found in all first floor rooms. I did not take a tape measure with me when I photographed this house. My guess is that the ceiling height on the main floor is at least ten feet tall.

The above photo was taken in the dining room on the first floor. The west bay window is seen on the extreme left. The front porch is enclosed with screen. Even the screen can't diminish the view of the ocean.

The west second floor bay shows the superior condition of the Indian block construction. The next photo shows some of the original detailed stone work that is still in excellent condition. It would be interesting to see how a current day architect might reinterpret the original porches to restore some of the historic appeal of the house while retaining privacy for a new owner.

The views from the second floor deck are pretty impressive.  Imagine sipping your morning coffee from the second floor balcony before the tourists arrive.

A simple bungalow is located at the back far east side of the lot. This space is a basic Old Florida bungalow with grassy yard, palm trees, and louvers that keep the sun and rain out but that allow air and sunlight in.  Ralph Lauren would have a field day decorating this little gem. The bungalow would make the perfect guest cottage. There is plenty of room for a pool and still retain off street parking for two cars.

The main house and bungalow total 2845 sq ft of interior living space. The lot is 76' wide and 100' deep. There is room to expand the main house and bungalow. I took more photos and share historic photos I found which you may view if you CLICK HERE. 401 South Street is offered for sale by Preferred Properties Key West at $3,100,000.

CLICK HERE to view the mls datasheet on this Key West Treasure. Better than looking at photos or reading a blog, please call me, Gary Thomas, 305-766-2642 to arrange a private showing of this special home. Today's blog is an update of one I wrote in 2014 when this house was for sale then. The current owner updated the house after that purchase. But it still remains three units. It deserves more. I am a buyers agent and a full time Realtor at Preferred Properties Key West. 

 

In Honor of PRIDE MONTH - Key West Real Estate Throwback Thursday No. 24

From August 14, 2013

GAY DIVORCE COURT

Frequent Readers may know that many years ago (I started practice in 1973) I was an attorney in Arvada, Colorado which is a suburb of Denver.  I worked in a five man law firm where I handled a variety of types of cases. My first divorce case was a true learning experience. I landed a lulu. I can't recall all of the details which is good since I might get accused of breaching client confidentiality. But I do recall the lessons I learned in dealing with people who are splitting up, namely - get paid up front and make sure to charge enough money; don't get suckered into the bitterness; try to convince the client not to go crazy and end up in jail for hitting the mother-in-law or the new boyfriend (or girlfriend); charge plenty of money - yes, plenty of money. Repeat charge plenty of money. 

In that first case I represented a woman who lived in Adams County, a suburb north of Denver. My practice was in Jefferson County a suburb west of Denver. The county seat was in Golden, Colorado where Coors Beer is made.  I filed the divorce action in the Jefferson County District Court since all District Courts have statewide jurisdiction. The husband hired an attorney who accepted the venue in Jefferson County. If he had challenged we would have lost. But that's the only easy thing that happened in this case. My recollection is hazy on whether my client (the wife) or her husband got arrested for assault on the opposite party. That action landed whichever party in the Adam's County jail. I know I was there but can't recall why I was there. A couple of weeks later I appeared in the El Paso County District Court in Colorado Springs where the husband had been arrested for fighting with or inside the wife's mother's home. I was involved in three jurisdictions involving two criminal cases and one divorce case. I vowed to not let something like that happen again.

But it did. Repeatedly. Within a few months I represented a nice looking young guy in his late 20s who was a Casper Milk Toast banker type guy. Clean cut and handsome. He had a beautiful wife and a couple of really cute kids. He owned a nice suburban house. And his world was falling apart.  He stalked the wifey and found some good looking stud hanging around the house when his kids were there. My client barged in and got himself arrested for beating the other guy up. Even Casper Milk Toast guys can beat up studs if given good cause. We ended up in criminal court. The wife's attorney was a woman (which was relatively new in those days). The attorney took a genuine dislike to me which I found odd. I think I am and have always been like able. I do not now nor did I then consider myself to be sneaky or mean or anything other than professional. But that lawyer and I never did get along. Oh and my client got arrested for beating up the studly boyfriend a second time. The stud should have learned not to mess around with the wife when the kids were home. We eventually got the divorce the couple wanted. It cost the couple a lot of money. I wonder if the stud ended up with the wife. I wonder if the kids ended up marrying and divorcing and fighting with their spouses (or boyfriends or girlfriends). I am a believer that people repeat their parents' lives. 

I represented another guy who got arrested for pushing his wife's head down the toilet during the middle of the divorce. That did not look very good. I think we entered into a plea bargain on that. I don't think I would ever let something like that go to trial.

I represent a general contractor on a couple of matters. He and wife had split a few years earlier.  The divorce decree was in place as was the order for monthly child support. He was substantially in arrears.  The District Attorney filed a motion to hold my delinquent client in contempt of court for non payment of child support. This normally results in the man paying arrears rather than being found in contempt and ordered to jail. I warned my client of his pending doom if he did not pay. He hated the ex and said he would take time off work just to mess with her. The hearing was held near Christmas week. My client was found in contempt of court and taken into custody that day and spent the next week in jail.  The jail sentence purged him of contempt but did not free him of the obligation to pay the past due child support payments. The wife would have to wait a long time before she could prosecute a new contempt of court proceeding.

I stopped doing divorces and went into banking. Twenty years ago I moved to Key West. A couple of years later I got my real estate license and started to sell houses. Key West has a large gay population and every now and then gay couples decide to call their relationships 'quits'.  Since the State of Florida has never legalized same sex marriage, there is no such thing as a gay divorce. But that does not stop legal battles about property splits or spousal abuse.

I remember showing a house a few years ago where two guys were splitting up. One of the partners got to stay with the house while the other moved to another property the pair owned. The men owned a business over which they were quarreling in court. The local bank that financed that business got involved in the partnership breakup and got a receiver appointed to protect the assets of the business. Both men hired separate lawyers. The bank hired its lawyer and the receiver hired his lawyer. The four lawyers took substantial fees from the proceeds of the sale of the business and the house which had a special bedroom that was painted black and that had a sling.

A female couple called it quits a couple of years ago. They hired lawyers in the state where they lived to help adjudicate the property split. They also owned a place in Key West which had to be sold and the money sent to the home state for final distribution. They had lawyers where they lived and lawyers down in Key West just to make sure the other side did not gain a pecuniary advantage. Justice costs money. Justice makes some lawyers quite wealthy.

Several states have approved legislation that recognizes gay marriages or civil unions. There will inevitably be gay divorces. I expect gays will do divorces like they do parades - with panache.

And that caused me to envision what we might see on a TV show called GAY DIVORCE COURT. I can just envision the drama we could witness.  There would be tales straight folks could not imagine.  It might be hilarious. It might be tragic.  I can envision ribald tales over the splitting marital property and fighting over such things as the collection of clown plates painted by Red Skelton (really!) or anything the pair mutually collected.  Straight couple fight over custody of the children. Gays will inevitably fight over pets.  And since many gay couple are now parents, there will be custody disputes where the real reason for the split will be aired. A former fellow agent who split with his partner of many years told me his ex beat him up. The guy who got beat up is a big man.  I was shocked but sometimes smaller guys can really mess up bigger guys. Another former fellow agent has been arrested for domestic battery by strangulation - twice.  Women beat each other as well.  I expect nothing less than hilarity or tragedy in each episode. 

Watch for GAY DIVORCE COURT. Someone will produce it.  It ought to be a winner.

June 10, 2021 Update. Gay marriage is now legal. Gay divorces are real but there is no Gay Divorce Court TV show yet. There will be. It would be better than Drag Race.

Key West SOLDS in 2021 - The First 180 Days

 

There are a lot people out there living much of their lives on the internet viewing all manner of things that give them pleasure, er, aah that feed their minds. Some of those people monitor the Key West real estate market seeking a house or condo, a source of income, a long term investment. Some just want to find a home.  I did a quick search of the Key West single family homes that sold (closed sales) in the first 180 days of 2021. There were a whopping 283. Remember Key West is a little island one mile by four miles long with an historical long term population of about 25,000. The least expensive house was 433 Sq Ft "home" located steps from Truman Avenue and across the street from a fish restaurant parking lot. It sold for $365,000 or $863 per sq ft. The third least expensive abode located on Terry Lane in Bahama Village sold for $449,000 or $1,095 per sq ft. The highest priced home was located on Sunset Key. It sold for $6 million or $1,817 per sq ft. It's a mystery to me why the most expensive priced sale occurred at 506 Catherine Street. It sold for $2,381 per sq ft. I don't get that one.

Those numbers don't mean much other than the price of real estate is pretty steep on a per sq ft basis. The trend has been inching upward for several years. This year it leapt up and brought a lot of the market with it. We were trending toward $1,000 per sq ft ask for the past couple of years. We paused during the first few months of the pandemic and sprang into buying mode once the public was back into the Florida Keys. I wrote about this before. What I writing today is news. Of a sort. Sixty four of the 283 single family homes that sold in the first 180 days of 2021 sold over $1,000 per sq ft. That is 22% of the market. 

Then I looked at just the 64 homes that sold over $1,000 per sq ft to see if there was a pattern, an area, a type of home. Several of the houses were smaller in size and located in Bahama Village. One was a $900,000 genuine fixer located on one the canals. The Old Town core and Casa Marina area had the most sales. William Street was the priciest block. Prices surged upward on the south of Truman side of Old Town as did homes located on the east side of White Street. 

The photo at the top of today's blog is quite telling. This is a little side street located about eight blocks from Duval. I had just left a house to take photos for a customer. People were lined up outside with their agents to see the place. It does on constantly. It's like pee wee baseball. Who's gonna win?

 

 

724 Windsor Lane, Key West - Least Exspensive House in Town

During an office sales meeting earlier today I learned that my listing at 724 Windsor Lane is the lowest priced single family home for sale in Key West. I will give you some facts. It is small - just 460 Sq Ft. It has only one bedroom, but it also has a very valuable off street parking space located behind the house. Many million dollar homes in Old Town would beg to have an off street parking space.

I have stressed the value of the parking space while many potential buyers have asked if they could build a swimming pool. Of course they could. What I would do and what a new owner could do are two entirely different possibilities. CLICK HERE to view more photos.

The parking space is located behind the house on Galveston Lane  Bill Butler Park is located at the near the end of Galveston Lane - about 150 feet to the north. It's a quite little piece of Old Key West.  It's a place for grand kids, nieces and nephews, and puppies.

The highest place in Key West is located about 150 feet or so to the west at the corner of Windsor Lane at Elizabeth Street. Duval Street is just two blocks to the west. 

St Mary's Basilica is located two blocks south at the corner of Windsor Lane  at Truman Avenue. I like to tell people they can sin on Duval and be forgiven on Truman - two blocks in either direction. It's true. Although with all that the politicians are doing in Tallahassee and Washington, I am not sure what we do in Key West is worthy of a Dislike let alone condemnation.

CLICK HERE to view the Key West MLS datasheet on 724 Windsor Lane offered for sale at $599,000. Then call me, Gary Thomas, 305-766-2642 to schedule a private showing to see the least expensive single family home in Key West. 

Typical Key West Buyer: The Floor Tilts

A couple of weeks ago I was showing an old Key West house to a couple of potential buyers. They commented on the uneven floor in the 130+ year old house.  It wasn't quite as glaring as the photo above. In fact it looked pretty good compared to a lot of properties I have shown over the years. 

I took them outside and showed the newer concrete piers added to replace some of original coral rock piers still in place. Buyers like to use old piers and uneven floors as a bargaining chip when negotiating the price they are willing to pay for an old house. I told them of a trip we made to the Cotswold's several years ago. I had read about The Lygon Arms in a travel magazine. It is located in Broadway, England and has roots dating back to the 1300s. We arrived without reservation in early May. We went inside and asked about room availability and rates. They showed us a modern room at an addition in a building to the rear and also one on the second floor of the front building. That room we were told is where Oliver Cromwell slept the night before the Battle of Worcester in 1651. We chose that room.

My heart sank when we walked inside. It was so incredibly English! There was a fireplace, vaulted beamed ceiling, and sagging floors. The above photo shows either a rug or carpet covering most of the floor. I remember a smaller carpet surrounded by old wood floors with centuries old patina. I laughed at the sagging. Who cared. I won't bore you with tales of our visit. Go see for yourself. It is worth every thousand dollars you spend. And more!

My potential buyers said they had been coming to Key West for years and finally decided it was time to buy. They said they had worked with a former Key West real estate superstar Rudy Molinet. They said they should have bought from him years ago. I quickly agreed. They should have. I told them something Rudy told me he would tell to his customers when they started harping on old floors. It went something like this: "It's a hundred years old house. What do you expect?"