Good Neighbor Pam - Keeping an Eye on You in Key West

 Another true tale of Key West. Only the names have been changed to keep me from getting sued.

I learn a lot about Key West real estate by going on Realtor caravan. Twice monthly local agents tour new listings in the Key West area. Most of us take bus but some drive their own cars. Buses are better as you sometimes get to hear good gossip and learn what agents really think about those not on the bus.

On a recent caravan we stopped next door to a home I sold a few years ago. That owner had  contacted me a few months ago to discuss the possibility of selling. Nothing happened then, but I know that circumstances change and that owning real estate in Key West is not a forever thing for anybody.

After I finished looking at the house on the caravan, I went onto the back porch and snapped a couple of photos of the house I once sold just on the off-chance my "owner" may call upon me to list it sometime in the future. I thought having a photo from a different view might come in useful.  Later I emailed the photo to my customer.

The next day I received the email response from my former customer discussing the photo:

The husband told "Chester" (made up name) they were not pleased it had not sold. His wife "Pam" (made up name), who is a Conch and has known "Sylvia" (made up Realtor name) from days gone by, is not happy with her. Other homes in the area have been selling---maybe they are just a bit high.  She has a daughter in Miami, but they want to move up to the panhandle. They want better medical facilities than KW-- He was station there once.  Did you see the new one going up at the end of the street? Chester said it is very very big.

Chester is going down on the 1st. He has been down a few times. Thank you for the Christmas card.

One day last spring, after he closed up, Chester's flight going to Atlanta was canceled so he went back to the house for the night. All the storm shutters were up and every thing was put away for the summer. So he sat in the house watching TV. He fell asleep with the TV on and some lights on. The neighbors thought he had left for the summer. He was awakened by a voice he did not recognize
at about 2 AM asking him for his ID and to keep his hands were they could see them. It was a woman's voice and he was coming out of his deep sleep--It took him a bit to get his brain moving. He reached in to his pocket to get his ID when the voice, in a stronger mode and louder, told him to keep his hands out of his pockets! Two female cops with flash lights on and guns drawn and pointed at him. His brain was now working! He told them his flight was canceled and he went back home to sleep and his ID was in his wallet in his pants.

When all was done they told him to lock the front door (which he had left unlocked and closed the street gate) as it was a rough neighborhood!!! I ask who was watching out for the house, I wanted to thank them. It was my next door neighbor Pam. There was also a third cop, a male, just out side the door ready to shoot if one got by the two female cops in side.

I hope they do not sell --We never had such great protection. The neighbors knew I was leaving
and with the shutters closed and little slivers of light coming out they called. They had also called before when some one was in the yard, could have been the pool man?

11 Nassau Lane, Key West - Weekend Open House

With only three shopping days to Christmas, I thought I would host a Pop-Up Open House at

11 Nassau Lane 

Saturday and Sunday (December 22 and 23)

12:00 to 2:00 PM

 If you are speeding on a scooter, slow down. If you are riding on a bike or walking, turn south and walk down one of the sweetest slow lanes in Key West. 11 Nassau Lane is located mid-way up this dead end lane.  You're in for a treat!

I have written several blogs about 11 Nassau Lane, Key West.  I sold it to the previous owners about seventeen years ago who fell in love with this little house even before we made it to the inside. This was the first and only house these buyers looked at. It was love at first sight.  It is now available for purchase.

The owners believe this home was built circa 1860 just before the start of the Civil War. Although this home has been updated and expanded, the Dade County Pine walls in the living room and kitchen are extra wide boards which are indicative of very old growth wood. A previous owner replaced the original floors, remodeled the kitchen and bath, added French doors to the side and rear bedroom.

The current owners converted the main floor bedroom at the rear into a den and added a Murphy Bed (not shown in these photos.) The garden view is joyous.

Several years ago the owners added a second floor bedroom and bathroom plus covered rear porch and and created a love nest in the process. Who wouldn't fall in love with a treetop space this precious?  The vaulted ceiling with skylights, sharp repetitive angles, plus contrasting natural and painted woods are juxtaposed to the expansive open views of the surrounding trees and blue sky. As the photographer was snapping photos of this space, I noticed strands of shells suspended on the porch. They shimmered like gems. Yes. They shimmered like gems. Precious gems.

CLICK HERE to view more photos of 11 Nassau Lane in Key West. All furniture conveys with the purchase or may be given to charity. The bricked gardens and walkways are lighted and irrigated and contain numerous varieties of tropical trees and foliage, bromides, and orchids.

CLICK HERE to view the Key West MLS datasheet and view more photos on 11 Nassau Lane, Key West offered at $899,000 by Gary Thomas at Preferred Properties Key West.

107 Front St #217, Key West - Harbour Place Condominium - Waterfront Luxury

The above photo shows the "Outer Mole" in Key West, historically the area where Navy vessels were moored while in port. I added an Arrow to show the location of 107 Front Street #217 at Harbour Place Condominium. Today the mole is where huge passenger ships park while thousands of day visitors come ashore to tour the Isle of Key West. Later in the day the ships depart to motor to their next port of call.

The Sunset Key Pier is located at the north edge of the mole where the Sunset Key motor launch and pleasure craft move in and out of port. At sunset private and commercial sailing boats chase the sunset. On some nights the views are quite spectacular. But even on gray days and in storms the views will always be interesting.

I got the opportunity to see this Harbour Place waterfront penthouse last week. I walked in near sunset and was just awed by the views of the Outer Mole. I have seen the Mole many times over the years from several different units at Harbour Place. But I was never there at sunset.There are two separate front decks. I went out onto each. Both had different angular views of the mole. There are also decks on the back side of the unit where the three of the bedrooms are located.

The ocean facing bedroom has a mighty spectacular view. Of that I am sure you would agree.

 This 2420 square foot unit has four bedrooms and four bathrooms plus private terraces and four parking spaces.  CLICK HERE to view the Key West MLS datasheet and listing photos of this very special property offered for sale at $3,295,000. Then please call me, Gary Thomas, 305-766-2642, to show you this unit and the other two now offered for sale in Harbour Place. You are going to fall in love with one or maybe all. I m a buyers agent and a full time Realtor at Preferred Properties Key West.

1517 Washington Street, Key West - Past Made Present Perfect

I have been to the home at 1517 Washington Street in Key West several times over the years, but it was just yesterday that I returned for a visit on Realtor Caravan.  This home is owned by a fellow Realtor and his partner, a local architect. They bought the house in 2011 and totally reinvented the space while saving and preserving the very essence of this Mid Century Classic.  Millions of similar homes were built across America in the early 1950s. How many of those homest of the past looks so perfect today?

The top photo was taken in 2011 when the house was listed for sale. The previous owners had raised their family in this three bedroom home. They had updated it a bit over the years, replaced the kitchen, and screened in the back porch. The home sat on a 4698 sq ft lot with a 50.25' frontage with 93.5' in length. The house had been very well maintained over the years and the yard had what Realtors call "potential". The second photo shows the soon after the renovation was completed. The last photo shows the front today with matured but minimal landscaping.

The twilight view sets the stage for today's discussion of this home. There are several items to consider. Not the round ceramic tile under the light fixture. The Historic Florida Keys Foundation awarded the owners  the 2012 Historic Preservation Award. (Consider this: I was five years old when this house was built in 1952. Houses younger than I are considered historic. I have another birthday coming up in a week. Dang.)

Large tiles lead across the low maintenance enclosed yard. The new wind impact windows and doors are trimmed in dark metal creating a subtle department from Home Depot aluminum products. It is, however, the cleanness of design that lets us know we are ready for a treat.

The owners transformed the former semi-enclosed front porch into a home office. The original Cuban Tile floors were professionally restored. They are stunning. (I was in Paris in September and went to several home resource stores. Cuban tiles are being used there in new projects. Don't assume something "old" has no use in modern design. )

The original house had the same basic room layout and configuration but it did not look like this update. The Florida red cypress ceilings add texture to the clean white walls and contrast to the bluish-gray Cuban tile floors. It works well.

The master bedroom and bath is stunning in its simplicity. The custom teak bed and closet "Wow" visitors when they enter the room. A new bath was added off the bedroom where daytime light makes showering seem like being outside. There is, however, an outdoor shower as well.  We Key Westers love our outdoor showers.

The design features from the front and interior follow out to the updated rear where the old screened in porch has become an open extension of the living area. We spend so much time outside that it is important to make that space as equally inviting as the inside. They did that right!  There is room for a pool and drawings exist to show a new owner exactly what can be built.

CLICK HERE to view the Key West MLS datasheet and listing photos of 1517 Washington Street Key West offered at $1,075,000. Then please call me, Gary Thomas, 305-766-2642, to show you this lovely home. I am a buyers agent and a full time Realtor at Preferred Properties Key West. What a Christmas present this could be. Past made Perfect!