905 White Street #1 - Transient Licensed Condo - Short Sale - Key West

The listing Realtor for the just listed transient licensed one bedroom condominium at 905 White Street (Unit #1) describes the unit like this:

"This beautifully remodeled condominium is located centrally to all that Key West has to offer. Within walking distance to the galleries of White Street and just a few short blocks to Duval Street, this transient rental is perfect for your vacation home. The impeccable landscaping and small association (only 5 units here!) coupled with a fantastic property management program are key to continued rental success. This one bedroom unit has one bathroom, kitchen, washer/dryer, sleep sofa for extra guests and a rocking chair front porch for people watching. There is also a shared pool and common courtyard. The picket fence completes this Old Town classic! This is a short sale that requires lender approval."

905 White Street #1 Key West

I took the photo of the front porch last Saturday. I guess a cat burglar removed the rocking chair, but the bistro table is ready for action. What a great place to sit and watch Key West come alive right after dawn and go to sleep late at night. The unit itself is quite inviting. The large combined living and kitchen area is user friendly. Dade County Pine walls and rich new wood floors give the space a very crisp look. The bedroom is located in the middle of the unit just off the side hallway that leads to the large bathroom at the rear. The shower is beautifully tiled and large enough for doubles scrubbing to eliminate unnecessary water waste among other things.

905 White Street (photo from 1965) was built circa 1890 according to the Monroe County Property Appraiser

905 White Street in 2005

Two revival style Conch houses were renovated a few years back and later condominiumized into five units. Notice the second level "bridge" between the two houses. That bridge exists today and provides access to the upper level units. Today a white picket fence separateS the building from the sidewalk. The front gardens welcome owners and guests to the property. A bricked walkway between the buildings leads to the pool and garden area that is shared by the five units. All of the units have transient licenses and all units are actively rented. Of course owners use their units as well. That's part of the reason to buy a place like this: have a place to call your own and have others help pay for it. This unit is offered as a short sale at the asking price of $299,000. CLICK HERE to view the Key West mls database and to see more photos of this unit.

If you are looking for an affordable Key West getaway place that has a transient license an does not need any work, you may want to take a look at this great little property. Please call me, Gary Thomas, 305-766-2642. I am a buyer's agent and a full time Realtor at Preferred Properties Coastal Realty, Inc. in Key West.

Labor Day Open House - 630 Elizabeth Street - Old Town - Key West

I will be hosting a LABOR DAY OPEN HOUSE on Sunday at 630 Elizabeth Street between 12:00 to 2:00 PM. I will be providing hard hat tours of this wonderful old Key West property that is ready for renovation. This property has received HARC approval to convert this current "legal duplex" into a 2300 sq ft single family residence. CLICK HERE for more information on this renovation opportunity.

Turn this OLD HOUSE into your NEW HOUSE

1006 Southard Street - Big Price Reduction - Old Town - Key West

1006 Southard Street - Old Town - Key West

I have written about this charming house that is located on one of the very best streets in Old Town Key West for several years-yes, years. It has been listed on and off since 2007 when it was offered at $909,000. The asking price decreased a bit as listing agents changed. It wasn't the agent that prevented the house from selling. It wasn't the house that stopped it from selling. It was the price. The asking price is now $499,000. I expect it will sell within a matter of a few of days.

1006 Southard Street is a charming renovated cottage in the historic district. The cottage is secluded at the rear of a shady bricked walkway. There is a bedroom and bath downstairs and the master bedroom with en-suite bath is upstairs. French doors open from the bedroom, living room, and spacious vaulted kitchen to a decked swimming pool. This cottage home has lots of Dade County Pine and historic details, yet it has been modernized with a new roof, well-appointed kitchen and pretty baths.

(Photos from previous listing)

The house is 1188 sq ft and sits on a 2833 sq ft lot. The house sits to the rear, not the front, of Southard Street. So you cannot see the house from the street. That adds additional privacy for the homeowner. You are a five minute walk to Duval Street or the Historic Key West Seaport. And you are a two minute walk to Five Brothers Grocery and Sandwich Shop where you can get your morning con leche or a great Cuban mix, Michael's Restaurant where you can get your steak fix fixed, or Mangia-Mangia Restaurant to get your pasta fazooled. I'm a big fan of Five Brothers inexpensive fare, Michael's very expensive steaks, but I'll pass on Mangia Mangia. But that's me. Lots and lots of people like Mangia Mangia.

5 Brothers is half a block away and worth a daily visit!

Get your pasta fazooled at Mangia Mangia one block to the west

Get your steak craving fixed at Michael's also a block away

CLICK HERE for details on this little charmer and more photos as well. Note the Dade County interiors, the open and eclectic feel that this house exudes, and the utter charm of the pool and garden. You won't be spending all of your vacation time tending to fixing things and working on the yard. There is something to be said and cherished about minimalism.

Season is just around the corner. If you are looking to buy a place in Key West where you can nurse your suntan in the winter, this cool Key West cottage may be just what you are looking for. If you want to see it, please call me, Gary Thomas, 305-766-2642. It's not my listing, but I'll be glad to show you this place and others in the Old Town area so that you can see for yourself why I think this place will sell quickly at the new, lower asking price. I am a full time Realtor at Preferred Properties Coastal Realty, Inc. in Key West, Florida.

You Could've Done That - But You Didn't!

1124 Eaton Street as it appeared in July 2010 when it was Bank Owned

1124 Eaton Street in September 2011 now privately owned and renovated

I wrote about the little house located near the busy corner of White and Eaton Streets and across the street from Strunk Ace Hardware and Manley deBoer Lumber. CLICK HERE to read what I wrote about the little house when it was Bank Owned and offered for sale at just $158,400. I had several potential buyers call me or email me on this house. I told them they needed to act quickly because the price was so low that someone would grab it up right away. I remember one guy asking me how much lower he could bid to get the property. I told him it would likely sell for more than the asking price. It did. 1124 Eaton Street was on the market only 3 days and sold for $175,000 or $16,600 over the asking price.

I have been watching progress on the house and noticed that it is nearly complete. The landscaping has not been installed yet. Otherwise, the place looks just great. When I blogged about the house I suggested:

The house is bigger on the inside than it appears from the outside. Or so it seemed to me. I have no idea as to the condition of the plumbing, electrical, or anything else except I can say without equivocation the house needs tented. Termites have worked their way around this house over many years. The place needs HARC approved windows and door installed. The outside needs scraped, cleaned, and a new coat of paint applied. The roof should probably be replaced and with HARC's approval, the ugly lean-to carport replaced with something a little more suitable. I would add brick pavers and some landscaping and re do the front porch.

My suggestions were the kinds of things most owners would have done. This owner chose a simple color pallet and didn't do anything goofy. The result is understated elegance.

If you are considering buying a little place in Key West, CLICK HERE to search the Key West Association of Realtors mls database. No names, passwords, or personal information is required. If you see something you like, please consider contacting me, Gary Thomas, 305-766-2642 or by email at kw1101v@aol.com. I am a buyer's agent and a full time Realtor at Preferred Properties Coastal Realty, Inc. in Key West. Don't end up regretting the things you could've done in life but didn't.

829 Simonton Street - Key West - Historic Investment Property

I distinctly remember going inside the old building at 829 Simonton Street on Superbowl Sunday (January 25, 1987). The place was a sandwich shop called "La Bodega". I had spent the afternoon at Atlantic Shores and wanted to grab a sandwich. The place was near and the food was good. My needs were met. Fast forward 24 years and the building looks pretty much the same.

The unpainted facade looks pretty much today like it did when the two photos below were taken.

829 Simonton Street Key West May 2011

The building was called The Square Deal Market when the photo above was taken in 1965 by the Monroe County Property Appraiser. The appraiser says the building was built circa 1974. The sign at the street advertises "STEAK 89 cents lb." and "Homo Milk".

The pic above was taken in 1970 before Key West got gentrified.

The 4662 square foot building (listing agent provided) which is located on a 51' x 106' (5353 sq ft) lot near the top of Solares Hill and just one block south of Truman Avenue. The listing Realtor describes this investment property this way:

Exquisite mixed use piece of property- Historically renovated with exceptional eye to detail. The downstairs of this property consists of two commercial bays each with about 998 square feet. The upstairs is made up of two residential units. One unit is a 2br/2ba with 1678 square feet. The other is a 1br/1ba affordable housing unit with 463 square feet.It features 7 off-street parking spots."

The property has been renovated a couple of times in the past ten years. The most recent renovation converted the front downstairs space into offices which are now used as a real estate office. The photo above was taken from the large parking lot located on Olivia Street. Listing agent says there is parking for seven vehicles. Note the beautiful Royal Poinciana Tree that frames the lot.

The asking price on the investment property at 829 Simonton Street was just reduced from $1,600,000 to $1,200,000. If you are interested in this property, please contact me, Gary Thomas, 305-766-2642 or send me an email at kw1101v@aol.com. This is not my listing. I am a buyer's agent and a full time Realtor at Preferred Properties Coastal Realty, Inc. in Key West.

1208 Florida Street - Bank Owned - Key West

1208 Florida Street - Key West

The listing Realtor describes the newly listed Bank Owned property at 1208 Florida Street in Key West this way:

"Bank Owned property. Great Mid Town location close to the beach, Faustos on White Street, several coffee shops, restaurants, art galleries and retail establishments. 3Br/2Bth, two story home with off street parking for two cars. Just about everything is within bicycling distance from this unit. First floor has kitchen dining room, living room and bathroom. Second floor has three bedrooms, landing and bathroom. Second Floor balcony accessible from 2 bedrooms. Could use a facelift but is clean and livable."

Kitchen

I showed the property this past weekend. It was a rainy day (same day as the east coast was being brutalized by Hurricane Irene). My buyers decided they needed more room than this property provides. The house has 948 sq ft of living space divided between two levels. The downstairs consists two living areas plus the kitchen and a full bathroom. Upstairs you will find two good sized bedrooms both of which have individual access to the second floor balcony. There is a small third bedroom and a very small second floor bath. That bath needs a lot of work in my opinion. CLICK HERE to view the Key West mls datasheet on 1208 Florida Street.

I took more photos which you can see if you CLICK HERE. This Bank Owned property is listed at $289,000 or $304 per sq ft. The second floor ceilings are low. The bathroom on that floor needs redone. Some of the interior space could be reconfigured to make the space more usable. The backyard has huge rear stairway that could be removed along with a nasty old tree. The removal of both could create a nice backyard space. This is a project house for someone with imagination and carpentry skills.

If you would like to see 1208 Florida Street or any other property in Key West, please call me, Gary Thomas, 305-766-2642. I am a buyer's agent and a full time Realtor at Preferred Properties Coastal Realty, Inc. in Key West, Florida.

400 Simonton Street - Key West Investment Property

400 Simonton Street as it appeared in 1965

400 Simonton Street as it appears in August 2011

Just listed, but not be me, 400 Simonton Street in Old Town Key West. According to the Monroe County Appraiser this landmark building was built circa 1889. See the black and white photo which shows how this property looked back in 1965. That's nearly half a century ago. My God, I graduated from high school that year. Compare it to the color photo below. The property has had various uses over the years. And now it is offered for sale. The listing broker describes this property like this:

"High curb appeal, landmark architecture located on the prominent and convenient corner of Simonton and Eaton Streets in downtown Key West, FL (only 1 block from Duval St.) 1920's design, 3 stories with commanding porches, Dade County Pine, 12 ft ceilings, grand interior staircase, fire monitoring system, balconies, lovely bricked courtyard, iron entry gate, fountain & tropical landscaping. 6 residential, non-transient units, 6 electric meters with onsite manager. Zoned Mixed Use. Formerly Meyer's Place of Key West and also a restaurant. See MLS supplement for unit configurations, rental amounts, and other pertinent information. This historic Old Town Key West investment property has much to offer and has been well maintained."

I considered buying this property and The Artist House (located next door at 534 Eaton Street) when the owner at that time was tinkering with the idea of selling both. That owner had been renting rooms at 400 Simonton Street as part of the guest house. I don't know if he ever got caught because that is not permitted. That owner sold both properties to different people and The Artist House has sold at least twice since then. Today the property at 400 Simonton Street is licensed to rent six non-transient long term rentals.

I took a couple of not-so-good photos of the bricked courtyard and was reminded that the area was previously used as a small cafe. I think that space is quite lovely but very under utilized today.

The bricked courtyard

I did a Google search which resulted in an ad in The New Yorker in 1982. A real estate company had its office at that location back then.

Commanding presence at a key location

The building itself looks to be in very good shape. Compare the way the building looked in 1965 to its appearance in 2011. It is virtually the same. Even the exterior stairs between the floors is visible. According to the mls listing this building has 4078 sq ft of living space located on a 4200 sq ft lot (42'x100') at the corner of Eaton Street and Simonton Street


400 Simonton Street is offered at $1,699,000 or $417 per sq ft. CLICK HERE to view the Key West mls datasheet and to view listing photos. This property is zoned HNC-1 which is short for Historic Neighborhood Commercial-1. Uses for this zoning include include residential (including single family, duplex, and multi-family) and limited commercial including professional offices, banking and financial services, personal service shops, specialty shops, limited retail, transient accommodations and guest cottages. Rather than rely on what I write, do your own investigation to determine suitability for the use you intend. CLICK HERE to read the City of Key West zoning ordinances and consult with your own attorney. Just because some use may be permissible does not mean you will necessarily be able to do what you want.

If you would like to see 400 Simonton Street or any other property in Key West, please contact me, Gary Thomas, 305-766-2642. I am a buyer's agent and a full time Realtor at Preferred Properties Coastal Realty, Inc. in Key West.