323 Fleming Street, Key West - Investment Property

The Case for Buying a Law Office Biding in Key West

 

The listing Broker aptly describes the office building located at 323 Fleming Street in Key West as

"Spectacular, Historic two-story concrete block building in the heart of Old Town. Additional lot provides off street parking for 4 cars and serves the offices currently in use here. Directly across the street from City offices and the Courthouse and adjacent to the US Post Office on beautiful Fleming Street. Separate offices upstairs and down, wrap-around covered porches overlooking Street on both floors, tall ceilings inside with lots of wood floors, elaborate wood trim, private offices, reception areas, updated bathrooms and storage. Building is in great condition. This is a beautiful building."

 I dug around in my old shoebox and found an aerial photo of this part of town which was taken in the 1930s. I added an arrow to point out the location of 323 Fleming Street. The larger white building in front is the old Monroe County Courthouse. The court house was built in 1890 and it originally was painted white. That block changed immensely in the 90 years since the black and white photo was taken. The old courthouse was remodeled into county office buildings. The court house annex to the north was added in 1965. A large administrative building was added at the southwest corner as well. The large white building to the left rear of 323 Fleming is the former Cosmopolitan Hotel which was located on Caroline and Front Street (razed).

The above photo was taken in the 1920s and shows the old courthouse, the old county jail, and courthouse grounds. 323 Fleming Street is noted on this photo. Take note of the group of buildings opposite of the courthouse in the 500 block of Whitehead Street. Most of those buildings still exist today and all are either law offices or offices and a combination of some residential housing except for one guesthouse. Two of the buildings at the corner of Southard were razed and are now tourist related commercial. Several of the larger buildings in the 600 block of Whitehead are law offices with a couple of small guest houses thrown in. The small cottages in the foreground were razed. That block is now a county parking lot.

I understand 323 Fleming was originally built for the US Government. I believe the use was related to the military as was most of the ground in what is now Truman Annex. This building was sold by the US Post Office to a private party in 2000. The deed restricts the purchaser, successors, and assigns to comply with the Secretary of the Interior's Standards of Rehabilitation. That essentially means a subsequent owner will have a really tough time altering the historical architecture of this building. Today this 2408 sq ft building is used as legal offices. The building and adjacent parking lot sit on two adjacent parcels totaling 4611 sq ft lot. As you look at the photos which follow and read the comments I write, remember that this building was built by the United States Government. That says a lot because the government does not build cheap. It builds substantial, and it builds to last. It does not cut corners to save a buck. As a prospective buyer your long term building maintenance costs should be less as compared to a stick built building.

The above photos demonstrate the pure aesthetic beauty of this old building, and suggest the rationale for buying a law office located just steps from the courthouse. I am not a building inspector but I have a lot of experience in showing houses and buildings in Key West. I did not see any deferred maintenance. The concrete block is solid and well maintained. The metal roof was replaced in 2007 as was the HVAC and other interior features. There is no better location than this for a law firm or a building with individual offices rented to solo practitioners. Accountants or other professionals who deal with the county on a routine basis might also find the location a substantial benefit.

The main floor offices could function very well for a small firm or a group of solo practitioners. There is a central reception area and administrative assistant area. There are four offices on this floor one of which is so large it could be divided to create two smaller offices. Another office (immediately above) is so special that it could serve as a conference room as opposed to law office.

The second floor offices offer several different scenarios to an investor including rental of individual offices to solo practitioners with shared secretarial, document processing, and conference room use. This floor has three offices, conference room, substantial file storage space, and bathroom in addition to that magnificent wrap-around second floor deck. One very simple reason a lawyer would prefer to be located near the courthouse is the probability he or she is a litigator or that a large part of his practice involves court appearances. Remember the parking spaces, a lot of the law offices I mentioned on Whitehead Street do not have parking for clients. So while the offices may be close to the courthouse, they do not provide client parking.  Some share the building with apartments where clients may get to smell what's for dinner or hear dogs barking. While the excuse "This is Key West" works for some folks, clients who are paying huge legal fees expect and deserve better.

Finally, look back up at the black and white aerial photos and consider both this building and this location from the standpoint of scarcity. You will see this area of town has a limited number of buildings which currently exist and fewer buildings which could be razed or even renovated to create new office buildings. The city will not allow an existing residential use to be eliminated to create a new business use even in a area zoned for the specific business use. I think as the years pass by, this particular property will appreciate in value to a greater extent than the multi-purpose buildings on Whitehead and nearby streets. As our society becomes more litigious, there will be a greater demand for lawyers and law offices. 

CLICK HERE to view the Key West mls datasheet on 323 Fleming Street which is offered for sale at $1,275,000. 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.

611 Southard Street #5, Key West - Transient Licensed Condo in Old Town

Just Listed 611 Southard Street Unit #5, Key West, Florida. A total of eight unique units make up the historic Hollinshed House Condominiums located at the tip-top of Solaris Hill in Key West. This 577 sq ft third floor garret is one of five units in this building. There are three additional units located next door at 609 Southard Street. The historic building was built circa 1874.  The unit is an unpretentious one bedroom with lots of space for relaxed living. It has all of the modern amenities but retains the charm of the historic house.  And it has a very valuable asset that few condominiums on Old Town have - a transient rental license which allows an owner to rent the unit on a daily every day of the year.

611 Southard St as it appeared in 1965

The listing Realtor describes this property thus:

"Great opportunity to own an Old Town well established transient licensed apartment. The Hollinsed House (circa 1880's) was converted to 8 condominiums many years ago and has been well maintained and managed since then. Unit #5 is a large one bedroom unit on the third floor of the property. It has a queen bed, sleeper sofa, dining area, and private porch. Hollinsed House has a heated pool and lovely patio area and is conveniently located near the corner of Southard and Simonton St."

If you take a couple of moments to study the photos above you'll soon discover that the building is a Key West eyebrow house. Look back at the top photo of today's blog. See the multiple sets of windows located above the French doors on the second floor front porch. Those windows permitted the occupants of the historic house to have ventilation in the days way before air conditioning and probably before electric ceiling fans were invented. The covered porch allowed air to move about while still keeping water from getting inside the space. They also shaded the interior which otherwise might get warm.

Notice also the Dade County Pine walls and ceiling. So many places today have been gussied up so much with drywall, crown moldings, and engineered floors that we forget how quaint the old houses really are. Their simple beauty is what attracts many returning guests to come back to Key West year after year. I know a lot of people like the amenities offered at luxury hotels, but there are those other travelers who prefer to stay in a place that is unapologeticaly simple. This unit is for that owner or that traveler.

The bedroom is located in the rear addition of the building.  Skylights were added to bring light into this space. The guest closet is located at the side rear and the owner's lockout closet is at the far rear.

The living room has a little niche off to the left where French doors open out to the rear "deck". This is the emergency exit but it is also a really private space for gathering one's thoughts.

CLICK HERE to view more photos that I took of this unit and the grounds.  The bricked courtyard includes a small semi-covered area with a bar-b-que, access to the laundry, plus two first come first served off street parking spaces.

611 Southard Street #5 is offered for sale at $525,000. CLICK HERE to view the Key West mls datasheet and listing photos. Then please call me, Gary Thomas, 305-766-2642, to set up a private showing of this transiently licensed condo located near everything. You just cannot ask for a more convenient location. I am a buyers agent and a full time Realtor at Preferred Properties Key West.

734 Amelia Street, Key West - Price Reduction!

The new lower price on 734 Amelia Street really is something to shout about, because it makes the newly constructed home an even better value.  Few vacation visitors and locals probably don't recognize this location. This stretch of Amelia Street runs east from Simonton St to Windsor Lane. It was omitted in the Historic Historic Sanborn Fire Maps from 1889 through 1912. St. Mary's convent school yard was and still is located across the street where a tall stone wall insulates the school yard from public view. The convent burned years ago and much of the yard remains open today.  One of the maps referred to the entire area as "tropical gardens". I found the black and white aerial photo below taken in 1960. I added a notation to show the location of the home that was located at 734 Amelia at that time. I also found a photo of the former house that was razed. The lot sat vacant for as many years as I can recall. The vacant lot explains how the current owner obtained permission to build a new house in a town where old homes are treasured.

The original house was razed many years ago.

The listing Realtor describes 734 Amelia Street this way:

Historic design w/modern, new construction amenities. 2,100sqft home & 3,939sqft property features 3 large, en-suite bedrooms, including 2 masters, one on the 1st floor. Rooms designed for maximum privacy & high-end living. 2nd floor master boasts double closets & private balcony. The 2nd bedroom also has a balcony. The 3.5 bathrooms are equipped w/shower wands & Bluetooth audio. Main floor designed for perfect indoor-outdoor living & entertaining. Open floor plan flows onto the Trex composite deck w/ its wrap-around, covered entertainment area near the spa that tumbles into the pool. Hand-scraped, engineered oak flooring leads into chef's kitchen featuring quartz counter tops, an induction cook top, built-in microwave drawer, a high-power, ultra-quiet dishwasher & extra-large 34-cubic foot refrigerator. Entertainment center & outdoor kitchen w/ a commercial-grade ice maker. X Flood Zone & w/ no-maintenance Hardie siding, built to withstand 180 mph winds. Gated, off-street parking.

The first things I noticed were the handsome wood floors and the stylish  staircase that leads to the second floor. My eyes were then drawn to the rear of the home where the great room is located. This  area is bright and welcoming. Two sets of impact glass doors open out to the partially covered rear deck. Another door opens to the east side deck. Windows on either side provide garden views. The entire living area is bright and cheerful. I had to touch the quartz counter-tops which are impregnated with just a touch of color. What I thought was a simple French door refrigerator is actually a large refrigerator with normal cold food storage on top and frozen fools on the bottom. The built-in breakfast bar will keep the chef a part of whatever is going on inside this area. The guest powder room is located off the kitchen. Note the crown molding, extra large baseboards, handsome real wood doors.

Interior furnishings provided by Ben Teague Design, Key West. Ben is a talented young designer with a great sense of style. And he has a real gift for selecting the right colors and fabrics to change ordinary into extraordinary. 

The covered deck, pool, and garden area will probably be an integral part of the living which occurs in this home. The covered deck wraps around the rear of the house. The mini-bar is on the east side. It has a built in refrigerator, ice machine, storage, and bar sink. Of course there's a grill as well. The pool side deck.  There is a built-in automatically elevated television system where the TV will rise out above the cut stone base. Recessed lights and classy Trex deck systems add to the ambiance of this outdoor living area. Note also the old school design of the new fangeled impact windows and doors. These doors and windows not only sound proof the house, but also greatly reduce the wind insurance premium year after year after year. Remember also this home is located in the X zone for flood insurance purposes. That means a lender will not require flood insurance here. 

There is a built-in automatically elevated television system where the TV will rise out above the cut stone base. Imagine sitting on the deck at night watching TV and taking a quick dip in the pool or sitting in the spa..

There is a first floor bedroom which is large enough to serve as a master bedroom in later years when climbing the stairs may become a challenge. Windows on two walls allow generous light to enter this space. The en-suite bath is large and comfortable. Each bathroom is unique as to vanities, shower enclosures, and tiles. All have select porcelain floors.There are two very large guest bedrooms with ensuite baths on the second floor. The master bedroom has a deck which over looks the pool below. The front guest bedroom has a covered front porch with views of St. Mary's Basilica through the church grounds.

CLICK HERE to view the Key West mls datasheet and more listing photos of 734 Amelia Street that is now offered at $1,595,000.  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.