816 Ashe Street, Key West - Just Listed

Just Listed:  816 Ashe Street, Key West, Florida.  Frequent visitors and even many locals may not know about this three block long street which runs paralegal between White Street to the east and Frances Street on the west between Southard Street to the north and Olivia Street to the south.

816 Ashe Street in 1965

 According to the listing Realtor "This historic gem has been in the same family since being built in 1923. Featuring Dade County Pine, heart pine floors, first floor master bedroom, & attached laundry room/workshop. Two spacious front porches provide the perfect setting to relax and enjoy the quiet pace of Old Town Key West life. Off street parking & flood zone X. A perfect historic renovation project."
 

814 Ashe Street in 1965

As I prepared to write today's blog I looked around in the old shoebox and found photos of 816 Ashe Street and its former neighbor to the north at 814 Ashe Street. I remember showing 814 Ashe Street more than a decade ago. I remember thinking it was way over-priced for the market back then. I was surprised when 814 Ashe and a wide double lot behind 814 and 816 Ashe was acquired. The house at 814 Ashe was razed and three new houses each with pools were erected. The two houses in the rear were given street addresses of Williams Lane.  

As I walked through this home I remembered my grandmother's house, not like this house looked anything like her house. But it had the feel of a house more than fifty years outside its element. I don't write that in a negative tone. Too many houses today, including many renovated houses in Old Town, have become so fancy and glitzy that they have lost their sense of purpose They are designer homes instead of homes designed for living. Unless you are someone really special, you may relate to the simple style of this old home. Things work. Not everything you see has outlived its purpose. Yes the kitchen and baths are dated, but they still work. 

The house has 1568 square feet of living space and sits on a 35' X 60.39' lot.  There are three bedrooms and one bath as the house stands today. The living room is extra large. There is an very large formal dining room and a rarity for modern living - an eat-in kitchen. The first floor bedroom was probably the original master bedroom as it is located adjacent to and has a door entry into the one and only bath. A second door opens near the stairway to the second floor where two additional guest bedrooms are located. Both bedrooms have closets and there is a small hall closet as well. The great existing feature of this floor is the front porch that spans the width of the house.  There is a small addition at the rear which provides storage now and which would make a great laundry room.

The photo two above shows the rear of the house with the addition to the side. I am confident a new owner could get permission to add a second story over the existing dining room and kitchen. If that were done, a new owner might remove the rear addition and seek permission to add a pool. It looks to me that the adjacent lots are similarly small and were given permission to add pool and parking. I can't promise anything, but seeking permission would certainly be worth the try. If that failed you would still have off street parking.  CLICK HERE to view more photos of the interior and exterior of this home and lot.

CLICK HERE to view the Key West MLS data sheet.  Then please call me, Gary Thomas, 305-766-2642, to schedule a private showing of 816 Ashe Street, Key West. I am a buyers agent and a full time Realtor at Preferred Properties Key West.

Old Town Busniess Opportunity - Key West

Except for the unfortunate few who run afoul of the law while spending a few days in our little island paradise, I'll bet most visitors wonder what life would or could be like if they quit their jobs and moved to Key West.

I fell in love with Key West the very first time I came here. That was along time ago before all the gentrification happened.  Most of the houses in Old Town looked like they were ready to fall down. Conch cruisers (rusted old cars) looked to me to be the primary means of transportation. Key West seemed like a third world country back then. But in spite of all the negatives about Key West (which I now admit were positives), I pondered what I could do to earn enough money to live in this magical island. Before moving to Key West I used to be a lawyer and then a banker.  I did not want to do either in Key West - to me a place not of that other world out there - up in America. I eventually moved here, bought a business, and later go a real estate license. I work way too much, but I enjoy what I do.

Just Listed by Preferred Properties Key West is THIRSTY'S at 531 Greene Street.  Thirsty's is a convenience store in a great tourist location about 150 feet east of Sloppy Joes and one block west of the Historic Seaport. The Pier House and the Hyatt Hotel are one block  north. Thousands of tourist pass by this location daily.

Thirsty's sells made-to-order sandwiches, ice cream, cold drinks, hot coffee, beer and wine, breakfast, cigarettes, sun tan lotion, and a myriad of products tourists need.  All inventory and sales are tracked on computer making it easy for an owner to monitor sales and production any time that he or she is not in the store. There is TV system which provides the owner with multiple views on iphone at any location in the world. The is a Business Opportunity. No real estate conveys.

CLICK HERE to view the Key West MLS datasheet on Thirsty's which is offered at $260,000. Please call me, Gary Thomas, 305-766-2642, for an information package. I am a buyers agent and a full time Realtor at Preferred Properties Key West.

726 Windsor Lane, Key West - Just Listed

Just Listed, but not by me, 726 Windsor Lane in the Historic District of Key West. The small cigar maker cottage that once stood on this lot was destroyed by fire several decades ago.  I found a photo of the original house which is shown and captioned below. A new concrete block structure was built in 1975. I found a photo of the house before the stucco siding was applied.  According to the Monroe County Property Appraiser the current house is 1840 sq ft and sits on a 33' X 65' (2145 sq ft) lot. The Key West Cemetery is located about one block to the east. The top of Solaris Hill (the highest point on the island that is Key West) is located about one block to the northwest (see the night time photos).

726 Windsor Lane - Destroyed by Fire

726 Windsor Lane as it was being built in 1975

Windsor Lane at night

630 Elizabeth Street - the top of Solaris Hill as viewed from Windsor Lane

I blogged about 728 Windsor Lane the little house next door to the east in 2009 when it was offered for sale. I showed that place many times and tried my best to get someone to buy it. I extolled the potential of the would-be charmer. I didn't sell it, but somebody bought it. And today it is the final stages of renovation. Below are a couple of shots of the 728 Windsor in 2009 and a couple of the renovation in progress. You will also see a 726 Windsor (today's new listing) in these photos.

I realize not every buyer is going to want a CBS house located in the historic area. But I will be a lot of people would like a large sturdy house that they could renovate. Unlike our old wooden houses, 726 Windsor Lane could be torn down and a new wood house built on the lot. A more practical and less costly renovation might include replacing the existing concrete front porches with wood porches and adding Hardiboard siding to the sides. I would replace the metal and glass windows with wood six over six wood windows. All of a sudden the big CBS would disappear and blend into the beautifully emerging new city scape.

I doubt that a new owner would be able to get permission to add a pool to the rear yard. But there is plenty of room to add a covered porch and garden.  A new owner could add a hot tub because hot tubs are portable and do not require a building permit.

726 Windsor Lane is located across the street from the Key West Writers compound and around the corner from CHARLIES GROCERY. Charlies is the only commercial business for a couple of blocks.  Duval Street is only a five minute walk to the west. The historic seaport is a five to seven minute walk down William Street or Elizabeth Street. There are charming houses all over the place. You will figure out how to make 726 Windsor Lane your place in Paradise.

CLICK HERE to view the Key West MLS datasheet and to view listing photos of 726 Windsor Lane that is offered for sale at $975,000. 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.

1026 Von Phister St, Key West - Sophisticated Casa Marina Area Residence

Just Listed and located in the Casa Marina Area of Key West is 1026 Von Phister Street which the listing Realtor describes as:

"This one-of-a-kind Casa Marina property, combines simplicity and elegance in a fine home with tasteful architectural and furnishing flourishes in every room. A 3/3 house, on a large corner lot, this au currant residence offers marble-finish porcelain tile and brushed oak flooring, high hat LED lighting, and a state-of-the-art kitchen with top-of-the-line appliances and a stone counter top. Custom built-in cabinets, smoked glass and chrome barn doors, and a luxurious full bath and den highlight the master suite; all three bedrooms open up to private patios, and the large pool, with its sunning platform. Windows and doors are hurricane-proof glass, many with remote roll-up shades. Designer furniture pieces compliment this fully furnished home. A separate guest cottage contains a large sitting/bedroom, and bath. The beautifully landscaped grounds incorporate rare foliage. A high-end alarm, powder-coated and concrete fence, and two covered parking spots round out this palatial masterpiece."

This house sits on a large corner lot hidden from view behind tall stands of swaying palm trees and a six foot privacy fence.   While the Old Town Area of Key West is noted for its historic small cigar maker cottages which often sit on postage stamp size lots, many of the homes in the Casa Marina Area were built after World War II and were larger in size and which were built on lots sized at 5,000 sq ft and larger. This home blends into the Casa area but ticks-up the quality of finish. Several other homes in a two block radius have just undergone substantial renovations and are pushing up the quality of home finishes and prices.

At the outset of the renovation process the owners called upon landscape architect Craig Reynolds to design the exterior so that the completed gardens seamlessly integrate the hardscape and softscape, making them look as if they were always there. Craig designed everything from the 'doors out' including overall planting design, including the pool, spa, trellis and arbors, patios and decks, fountains and landscape lighting all of which is set within a framework of native plants and indigenous materials to complete the experience.

The original house was raised from its original foundation, interiors were relocated, walls and uses changed or re-purpose.  The house is basically new throughout. When I entered the house for the first time several months ago when construction was still underway I tried to remember what was where from the former house. As I walked into the new new master suite wing (yes "wing") I was awed by the attention to detail in each space. There is a sitting room, huge walk in closet with loads of built-ins, a decadent bath, and a seductive master suite with door opening out to the private lounge area or out to the pool.

The living area is bifurcated into two separated areas. The informal area opens into the new kitchen and dining area and out to the pool.

The house and guest cottage offer a total of 2,693 sq ft of living space under air plus additional cover spaces on the outside. There are two bedrooms in the main house (three if an owner used the sitting room (with abundant closet) in the master wind as a bedroom) plus a fourth bedroom in the poolside cottage. Most of the furnishings shown in the house are included in the sales price.

CLICK HERE to view the Key West MLS datasheet for more detailed information and also to view more photos of this home offered at $3,425,000. Then please call me, Gary Thomas, 305-766-2642, to schedule a private showing. Showing to pre-qualified buyers. I am a buyers agent and a full time Realtor at Preferred Properties Key West.