907 Frances Street, Key West

The above is Ronny Bailey's folk art depiction of how 900 Frances Street used to look like back in the day. I took a photo of the current building yesterday which is located just below along with a photo taken outside the gate of 907 Frances Street Key West about which you are to read further. (That building has been renovated. It looks decrepit on purpose.)  Living in and among Key West's historic structures is what makes our little town out in the middle of the ocean so different than all the rest of Florida. It's hard to get here and even harder to leave.

I rummaged thru my old shoebox and found a photo dated 1965 of 907 Frances Street. Compare it to the current day color photo. This lovely Conch Cottage was built around 1884. I found it on the 1889 Sanborn Fire Map when it was then identified as 106 Frances Street. Many of our historic houses have had house numbers changed. Many of the other smaller cigar maker cottages located on Frances Street, Havana Lane, Pohlalski Lane, and Jerome Lane remain. The old Pohalski Cigar Factory is gone. Each house is different today but much of the character remains.

This house has two bedrooms and two baths one of which is in the separate guest cottage shown later. The building sketch shows the main house. The livingroom photos dhow the Dade County Pine walls and ceiling. Two of the windows face the south side yard whch allow light to flow into the room.

The main bedroom is located just off the kitchen and the bath is located on the opposite side of the kitchen. If that configuration bothers you, Key West may not be the place for you. Out old houses have been updated to give them amenities never intended. This house has all the style of a Ralph Lauren cottage going on. It is perfectly imperfect.

While the guest bedroom looks reminiscent of a cabin in the woods, locals and returning visitors know Key West has great local theater, music, arts, plus lots of bars, gyms, restaurants, and water sports of all types. We can compete with almost any destination resort. Hotels and real estate developers can make new buildings look old, but, like COKE, the real thing is best.

CLICK HERE to view the Key West MLS datasheet and more photos of 907 Frances Street, Key West offered for sale at $835,000. 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.

Key West Real Estate in Review for the 2010s Decade

I started the Key West Properties real estate blog on December 18, 2008 on the Blogger platform. Later I republished the same content on the Activerain platform. I end not engage the page counter function immediately but since I did there have been 1,763,741 page views on Blogger and 855,604 views on Activerain. I have written several thousand blog posts and had 2,230,029 page and album views on Flickr.  I have made a lot of friends and learned there are a few people who do not like me. I thought it would be interesting to look back through the blog over the past ten years to see how we got to 2020.
2010
The first ten years of the 21st Century were marked by strong buyer demand for second homes and investment properties in Key West. The early part of the decade saw fairly attractive interest rates coupled with 80/20 mortgages - some buyers essentially had no cash in the investment properties.  The high demand for real estate led to price escalations and later to the construction of several high priced town home developments. Then during the 2008 presidential campaign the US economy took a nosedive.  Many of the Key West real estate "investors" lost their properties either through foreclosure or short sales. While buyers still wanted to buy Key West real estate,  many hesitated fearing the market would crash even further. This became a self-fulling prophecy to some extent. There were courageous buyers who took the "risk" and bought properties at a deep discount to what buyers had paid just a few years earlier.

There were more bank owned sales and short sales than traditional market sales in 2010. I wrote numerous blogs about new listings and offered insight about properties I considered buying opportunities including 731 Waddell Street in the Casa Marina Area ( photo above). The house was actually offered for $3.3 million prior to construction.  A different Realtor marketed the property after construction at $2,750,000. It eventually became a short sale offered at $1,099,000 and sold for $900,000 in October 2010. That buyer re-sold the same property in December 2011 for $1,200,000. Today it would list and sell well over $2 million.

The BP Oil Spill occurred in April 2010 causing the largest marine oil spill disaster in the petroleum industry.  It was erroneously reported that tar balls from the disaster reached the Florida Keys. False "facts" became a tourism and real estate disaster for the Keys and especially Key West. One Realtor told me about a buyer who walked away from a $50,000 escrow deposit fearing he would lose even more as disaster widened. Key West real estate sales negatively impacted Key West real estate sales for the next two years. Almost all tourist related businesses had to discount their product to induce tourists to come here.
2011

The house at 630 Elizabeth Street could be the poster child of Key West real estate at the start of the decade. The historic building located at the top of Solaris Hill in Old Town has a commending view looking down Windsor Lane toward the cemetery. The building was a store on the first floor and living quarters on the second. Later the building became two apartments. It fell in disrepair. A Realtor bought it and tried to sell it for way too much to some yahoo. That failed. The building became bank owned. I represented the buyer who successfully purchased the property via online auction for $230,9000. Instead of renovating it, he put it back on the market at a higher price which annoyed the hell out of locals who missed the opportunity to buy it at the lower price. Some potential buyers argued that renovation costs would be too high and the lot size as too small to justify the asking price. My buyer re-sold that property a year later for a total of $400,000. That buyer was the victim of Hurricane- Sandy and resold the shell to the current owner who restored the building. It is a beautiful property. During the past decade many similar buildings were renovated to a lesser or greater degree. The supply of non-restored buildings is decreasing each year.
2012

The Key West Golf Club Community saw a mass exodus after the real estate crash. Many of the homes were purchased with little or no money down. I represented one buyer who purchased nine short sale or bank owned properties.  He paid about one half of what the properties previously sold for. Today the golf course homes have returned near their per-recession price point. Single family homes at The Sanctuary at the golf course remain the best bargain in Key West - many priced in the $700,000 and up range. All have covered off street parking and most have a pool. I have sold several of those homes over the years. 

In March 2012 I started a continuing series of blogs about the Projects of Key West. That has turned into a fun chore for me. I take photos of properties that are being restored and in some instances track new construction. The renovation photos should be lessons to would-be restorers as they show how difficult and costly renovations have become especially in Old Town where our Historic Architectural Review Commission (HARC) has the final say on what an owner may do with his property. HARC has created lengthy and costly process to get to approval which often restricts the creative genius some buyers want to bring to their homes. I view some of HARC rules as Arbitrary and Capricious and look forward to the day we have a state law that limits the control citizen panels like HARC. 
2013

The Mid-Town Area house at 1104 - 1106 Thompson Street, adjacent to the Horace O'Bryant School, was a buying opportunity for someone who wanted project house. It sat on a 9,397 sq ft corner lot with many beautiful palms. It eventually sold in 2014 for $405,000. The was updated and resold in one day for $540,000. Most of the houses in the Mid-Town and New-Town Areas are concrete block construction situated on a 5,000 sq ft lots. Property prices have about doubled on these homes since 2013. Most of these homes are being retrofitted with wind impact windows and doors to reduce windstorm insurance. The rising cost of wind and floor insurance have been the bane of buyers and Realtors for the past decade.
2014

715 Frances Street appeared in my blog several times over the past ten years including in 2014 where the listing agent described as "Quintessential historic Key West eyebrow house located on prestigious Frances Street". It was all of that and more. Successive owners have poured more money into this beautiful home which is why I mention it here. Most buyers who purchase very well appointed homes tend to spend additional money to make an already perfect houses more perfect. Buyers who search homes on the internet may suspect there is something wrong with houses that sell every few years. That is not the case. Key West has a small number of single family homes which get sold over and over again. Working with a seasoned Realtor will help buyers the right property.

All eight of the Meadows Town Homes appeared in my blog over the years including 1513 Pine Street. These homes were built to address the demand for high quality construction near Old Town. These homes were among the several projects started in the mid 2000s which fell victim to the 2008 Recession. All but 1513 Pine Street became short sales or bank sales. Our office listed six of the bank owned properties where I held numerous open houses over a several month period. I ultimately sold four of the homes. The biggest concern I heard from potential buyers was that they wanted a "real" old house and not a new place that looks old. I have heard the same negative comments from buyers who looked at similar projects built around the same time. The project is now twelve years old. Maybe the buyers in the 2020s will appreciate these very well built and cost saving homes more in this new decade.
2015

Read my March 2015 WHAT A BUNCH OF CLOWNS blog for a chuckle and a warning to use local professionals when selling or buying Key West real estate. Local title companies and real estate lawyers are aware of survey and boundary issues that routinely appear in certain parts of town - particularly in the Old Town area south of Truman between White and Elizabeth Street.

I wrote about and represented the buyers who ended up purchasing 1400 Virginia Street in 2015. Click the blue link to read that blog. I got a phone call in 2019 from one of the two owners who had retired and sold his primary home up north and had become a full time Key Wester. He thanked me for helping him find this perfect home. I saw them in the grocery store a few months ago and again at the Old Island Restoration Christmas House Tour this past week. You don't know how satisfying it is  to help people fulfill dreams of moving to Key West.
2016

1122 Southard Street appeared in my blog in 2016. I showed the place several times to various buyers. It was an interesting investment property with five units including a remarkable owner's unit in the rear. It was not in the best condition but it certainly was not in the worst. It eventually sold for just $850,000 which now seems like a huge bargain. Buyers who looked at this building saw only expense. The place hadn't been touched in years and was still being rented. An owner could have continued to rent the units as they existed and do repairs when necessary. While most old properties need some work or repairs, not all houses need to become shrines or to become the source of paying for some contractor's kid's college education. If the object is to buy a house or investment, concentrate on getting that accomplished. This town is full of regrets about lost loves and lost real estate properties that could have been purchased.
2017 

Hurricane IRMA was the major real estate story of 2017 and probably the defining moment of the decade. IRMA hit Key West in the early morning of September 10th. I stayed in Key West as did about half the permanent population. I wrote three blogs about the hurricane and posted many photos online. CLICK HERE to view the Flickr album. The storm toppled many of our beautiful mahogany and canopy trees.  Only one house on William Street was lost to the storm. A new home is being rebuilt on that site. However multiple homes located a few outside of Key West were severely damaged or destroyed. Key West looked like a war zone for several weeks. Locals who fled town in advance of the hurricane eventually returned. KEY WEST STRONG became the motto to the wrath of Hurricane IRMA. Key West was back open for business by Fantasy Fest in late October 2017. I took the above photograph of the 1100 block of Fleming Street a few days after Irma.  I took the photo below showing the same view on January 2, 2020. Our historic houses were built strong and endured the storm. Our locals are strong and continue to make Key West a great place to live.

 2018

The above photo is not hurricane damage removal. The new owner paid $1,175,000 cash to purchase this perfectly livable home in the Casa Marina Area only to raze it and build a new 3300 sq ft home. The house across the street sold in 2019 for $3,195,000. Author Judy Blume's former house one block south at 1100 Flagler sold in December 2019 for $4,500,000. Houses located in the Casa Marina Area priced under $2,00,000 are bargains. This is the new pricing trend.

The home at 1523 Washington Street was in perfectly livable condition as well. The new owner paid $1,034,000 only to raze that house so that a new home could be built on that 10,000 square foot lot. There is a growing trend in area just east of the Casa Marina Ares up to Tropical to buy Mid-Century homes to raze and rebuild partly because the renovation (build back) rules are both too costly and too limiting. This section of town is undergoing its separate renaissance.  
2019

The eyebrow house at 1115 Southard Street is a good way to see where Key West real estate is at the beginning of the 2020s. The historic house was renovated in the 1980s with a contemporary theme. It did not have the old house feel buyers want.  The interiors, pool, and cottage were all dated. The house was originally listed at $1,475,000. It eventually sold for $1,000,000 after numerous price reductions. The demand for historic homes is as high as ever. Most buyers expect off street parking even though there may be no place to drive where parking is available. There are few houses for sale under a million and those that are are fixers. Buying a cute house in good condition with a pool in Old Town for under a million is the challenge for 2020 and beyond.

That's a Wrap in Key West Real Estate Stories 2019

I attended the 60th Annual Old Island Restoration Foundation Christmas House Tour this past weekend where I spoke with a local interior decorator about the people attending the event. I told her that you just can't tell how wealthy some of our locals are by the way they dress. I told her I was in Aspen this past summer and that people there wear their wealth on their sleeves. In Key West most of the really rich and regular folks look and dress alike - tee shirts and shorts. However, I can tell always tell a rich lady by her hair.

Later that day I was talking with one of the docents who I will call Brit. She told me about her new neighbor who bought the very expensive and very well known house next door to her. That was over a year ago. Brit has not met the new owners and said the house has been under renovation ever since it was purchased. The house which sold for well over two million has been totally gutted. She said the noise and dust have been horrible. A couple of weeks workers were ripping out the huge pool to install a smaller one. She is afraid the work will never end. Brit recently saw a distinguished looking woman standing at the front of the property. Brit walked over and introduced herself and asked the lady if she was the owner. Oh, no, Dear. I am the Decorator. I do all of their homes, and boats, and plane. Brit asked the distinguished lady to inform the owners that they have very nice neighbors.

The day earlier one of the tour guests remembered me from the former Club Body Tech where she was a trainer fifteen years ago. We discussed the fun times we had at the old gym which later reminded of another friend from the gym. He and his partner renovated several homes in Old Town in prime locations. He told a story about his about his new next door neighbor to the west whose husband was Mr. Fancy Pants on Wall Street. The couple just purchased a major Key West home which later became the cover story in a famous home design magazine.

Another neighbor lady who lived opposite from the Fancy Pants home crossed the street to introduce herself and welcome the Fancy Pants family to the neighborhood. The nice neighbor brought flowers and invited the Fancy Pants to join them for cocktails. Mrs. Fancy pants accepted the flowers and said they have enough friends. Thank you. And shut the door.  I never met the Mrs. Fancy Pants. I am sure she had great hair. I am sure she wore her wealth on her sleeves.

The Fancy Pants divorced and both left town. For Good.

I will see you all right here next year!

OIRF Key West Christmas House Tour Dec 27 & 28

60th Annual Key West Home Tour~Friday "Holiday Style"

Friday December 27th & Saturday December 28th

3:00 PM to 7:00 PM

The annual Key West Home Tours™ are one of the oldest and longest running home tours in America, with the first tour in 1960. Old Island Restoration Foundation (OIRF) conducts the tours and they are funded in part by our generous supporters. Each tour features five lovely homes and gardens reflecting the varied tastes and originality of their owners. Homes featured include 1301 Flagler Avenue, 328 William Street, 600 Eaton Street, 724 Eaton, and 744 Windsor Lane. Tickets may be purchased before the tour at the Oldest House at 322 Duval; The Key West Woman’s Club at 319 Duval, and the Amsterdam’s Curry Mansion at 511 Caroline Street. No scheduled tours, but houses open Dec 27 & 28 3-6p.m.

You will be enchanted by exquisite restorations, creative renovations and delightful interiors featuring art collections, antiques, and much more. All proceeds from the tours stay in our local community fulfilling OIRF’s mission of “Celebrating and sustaining Key West’s unique architecture, culture and history.” Grants are provided to local home owners and non-profits to fix up their buildings in the historic district, scholarships are provided to Key West High School students and funds are used to maintain Key West Oldest House Museum and Garden.

744 Windsor Lane, Key West pictured above and below is among the five homes on the 2019 Christmas Tour.

Visitors will be able to tour the gathering room, the formal and informal living areas, the chef's dream kitchen, the multiple decks, and take in the grandeur of one of the largest heated pools on the island. Landscape Craig Reynolds recently completely renovated the front and rear gardens. This is a must see home for the holidays. I will be at the home to say hello to my Dear Readers.

I sell houses for and to people with all sizes of budgets. Every man and woman has a dream home.

Merry Christmas from Key West 2019

The Christmas Stocking Caper

Longtime Readers may have read this before.

Christmas always has been a time for reflection of times long ago. I remember my childhood with such fondness for the way things were growing up in the 1950s in a suburb west of Denver.  

My parents were barely out of their teens when my sister was born in 1930.  Five years later my big brother was born. My family lived in Omaha, Chicago, Ohio, Oklahoma, and Dallas during Depression and the War years - wherever my dad could find work. They made their way to Denver where I was born in 1947. My parents saved enough money to buy a house in the suburbs two years later. I grew up with kids whose families had also gone through the war years and who were experiencing the rebirth of America after the war. It was a very good time in our collective history.

I remember the cookies, fudge and divinity my mother made - the sprinkles and gum drops and hot chocolate too. Homemade food was the norm then. The treats were good and plentiful. Christmas trees were sold by the foot. My mother bought a Christmas tree not much taller than I was and placed it on top of our coffee table to make it appear taller. There is an old photo in a box somewhere of little me looking up at that special tree. I remember that tree so damned well because one night I pulled on an ornament and down the tree fell. My mother screamed at wee me and I thought bloody hell, I'm done for.

Our house was furnished with 1950's modern blond wood furniture the coffee and end tables and blond drop leaf dining set. On Christmas Eve day a few years after pulling over the tree incident I was helping my mother clean out the refrigerator to make room for our Christmas feast. I placed every single item from the refrigerator on top of the dining room table with one leaf fully extended.

Shortly before Christmas my dad discovered a new super-concentrated liquid coffee sold in a 24 ounce tin can. The concept was simple: add a jigger of the concentrated coffee into a cup into hot water  and whamo you have intensely rich coffee. Back then tin cans had holes punched on tops to let the contents pour. Resealable tops had not yet been invented. The last item I placed on the drop leaf table was my dad's opened quart can of concentrated liquid coffee. At first the table leaf teetered. Then it tottered. The table tilted and fell onto our brand new wall to wall carpet. My mother screamed the same way as she did when I pulled down the Christmas tree years earlier. Bloody hell - again! I thought for sure I would die on this day. I raced to the phone and called my dad begging him to come home immediately. Our uncooked Christmas dinner was all over the floor. The coffee stain remained on the dining room carpet until the day we moved away from that house.

My parents got divorced in 1959. My mother said there would be no Santa Claus that year. She said I was too big. For several years my big brother told there was no Santa. I chose not to believe him. However, I figured out something was amok the year earlier when I went shopping on Christmas Eve day with my mother and grandmother. I found the same Ave Marie 45 RPM record in my Christmas stocking that was in the shopping cart the day earlier. I reluctantly admitted to myself that my treacherous brother hadn't made this stuff up. Well, he was still being mean. I figured he had missed out on Christmases growing up without the things I had. He wanted to spoil Christmas for me. Not so fast, you big dick.  I'll teach you one last trick.

So on Christmas Eve day in 1959 I went Christmas shopping at Woolworth's where I bought some candy, small toys and a few pieces for my Lionel train set. I went back home and put candy and toys inside one of my mother's old nylon hose which I then hid in the garage.

Our house did not have a fireplace. I would always hang one of my mother's old nylons on the floor lamp in the living room and leave the front door unlocked for Santa. On Christmas Eve 1959 I made a point of going into my mother's bedroom to get one of her old nylon stockings which I then hung on the floor lamp. My mother said what I did and repeated that there would be no use. She knew not of my soon to be ruse. I went to bed, my trap had been set, now it was time to take my Christmas nap. Later that night while my mother and brother were asleep, I crept through house not to making one peep. I went to the garage, grabbed the nylon hose which I then hung on the floor lamp in the living room and went back to bed.

For every Christmas morning I could remember, I would spring from my bed by dawn's early light to see what Santa had left me that prior night. I remember one time getting out of bed and heading into the living room. My mother's bedroom door was ajar. She yelled go back to bed! On Christmas morning 1959 I stayed in bed until my mother and brother were up. I heard my mother ask by brother if he had filled the stocking. No he said, had she? How could it be, did Santa exist after all? I finally got up and headed straight to the floor lamp to retrieve my Christmas haul. Oh I got other presents but the Santa stocking was the best of all.