To quote Andrew's Idea CLICK HERE "In Alfred Hitchcock’s world, nothing is more certain than death and attempts to cover up death." The author then goes on to explain that in The Trouble With Harry Hitchcock maintains his "critique of depraved humanity throughout the film, demonstrating uncannily the truth that he who hates his neighbor is guilty of murder. " But it is this line that makes The Trouble With Harry germain to today's blog about the cute little house at 915 Angela Street that is located directly across the street from the Key West Cemetery: "Turn away from death, and it’s as if it isn’t there."You will either love 915 Angela Street or you will hate it. Oh, you'll love the house. There's nothing not to like about the house. It's the neighbors.Let me tell you about the neighb... 05/14/2010

1318 Petronia Street - The Meadows Area of Key West The asking price on the charming home was recently reduced from $1.1 million to to $885,000. This 1385 sq ft home has two bedrooms, two baths, and an office. French doors open from the living room & master bedroom to the heated pool, deck, and separate pool house. The listing Realtor describes this charmer thus: "Recently renovated home on a corner lot in the Meadows. There are 2 bedrooms and 2 baths in the main house plus a separate office, and a detached guest house with 1/2 bath and out door shower. The cheerful home has many top of the line features and appointments as well as a heated pool, deck, outdoor kitchen, and off street parking. The fenced garden is full of colorful flowers and maturing trees." Bricked off street parking ... 05/13/2010

Living in Key West is a one of a kind experience. People from all walks of life call the area home and diversity is one of the things which makes this such a great place to live. Even our cuisine is a melting pot of ethnic flavors. While Key West may not have Farmer's Markets showing off local wares, you can still find some great organic foods! Help Yourself is one such local establishment. Here you can get food that is good and good for you! All ingredients are organic. They can also accommodate almost any culinary lifestyle: vegan, gluten free, raw food diets and carnivores too! The philosophy, "green inside and out", covers everything from how a food is grown to how they treat food waste. If you want a tasty treat that is good for you and helps the environment, stop on in for a smoot... 05/13/2010

1419 Eliza Street - Key West - Short Sale Almost every second home buyer dreams of having a second home in Key West wants the potential place to be located in Old Town. The reality is that Old Town does not have that many houses and it really doesn't have that many houses in the price range most potential second home owners want to pay. I always ask new buyers to tell me what they want in their dream home and what they expect to pay. When I show them what is available in the price range, most shrug their shoulders and accept they may have to accept less or pay more.There is an alternative and that is to look for a new place that is nearby and that either has or could have most of the features the buyer wants. The listing a 1419 Eliza Street in the arts district just south and east of O... 05/10/2010

New listing last week and it will not last long: 1226 Seminary Street, Key West. This is how the listing Realtor describes this really sharp "condo": "Bank Owned. Conch Style Cottage In Compound Setting. Tropical Landscape, Pool, Decked Yard. Open Floor Plan Updated Bathroom. One Block From White Street. Close To Old Town. Seller Will Credit Buyer Up To A Maximum 3% Of Sales Price Towards Closing Costs If Negotiated In Final Signed Counter Offer." This cottage and the adjacent cottage directly behind share a common front yard entry, a common area in the rear and a pool. It's a mini-compound of sorts. The price is down right affordable at just $167,400 or $191 per sq ft. The house has vaulted ceilings, interesting architectural features throughout, upgraded fixtures, and a very serene lo... 05/09/2010

There is a reason why people dream of living in a home on the open water! Looking out the door of your Lower Florida Keys home and seeing the beauty of the ocean stretched out before you is an experience like no other.   What some may not realize is there is even a better reason to buy that oceanfront home: it is a good investment. Beachfront properties are some of the most sought after real estate in the world. They can be a big investment but the payoffs are big too. Very few other types of properties will hold their value as well. While they may not be immune to an economic downturn, oceanfront homes are normally some of the first to recover their value. This adds to the investment value of the property. Another value to these homes comes in the form of vacation homes. First and fore... 05/08/2010

I have written several times about the house at 916 Fleming Street on Millionaire's Row in Old Town Key West. I wrote about this house before when it was offered pre-foreclosure at the original asking price of $3.4 million. This property is now Bank Owned. The local "bank" is in fact a local credit union that is itself in a "Conservatorship". The bank must sell this REO asset quickly. This property was reduced to just $1,550,000 on Friday. That is not a typo. That is why I say this is the Best Buy in Old Town.This is how the listing Broker describes this truly beautiful Old Town renovation: "Bank owned & Drastically reduced! Designer Old Town Home with 4 bedrooms plus an office and 4 full bathrooms & 2 half baths. State of the art amenities include beautiful coffered ceilings, wood wall... 05/07/2010

  712 Southard Street - Old Town - Key West 712 Southard Street is the kind of property so many would-be buyers want. Now it is priced to sell. The asking price has been reduced to $699,000.I have been selling houses in Key West since late 1996. Almost every buyer I have met with or corresponded with says the same thing "I want a place that I can eventually retire to. In the meantime, I would like to be able to rent the house and have it help pay for itself." Most potential buyers are realistic enough to realize that most properties will not totally cash flow and make them money. They just don't want the drain to be excessive.The house at 712 Southard Street has been recently updated. The house has 1026 sq ft of living space which includes two bedrooms, two baths, a new kitchen in the s... 05/07/2010

Heaven can be found in Key West, well Blue Heaven can be anyway! Located at 729 Thomas Street, this restaurant is a local favorite. Everything about this little slice of heaven reflects life in Key West. A colorful history and laid back atmosphere might make you do a double take at the wonderful foods that exit the kitchen. Having been everything from a bordello to an ice cream parlor, you can still see hints of Old Key West. In the upstairs Bordello Gallery you can still see the peep holes in the walls. The courtyard still boasts the slate pool table tops from days gone by. It is said Ernest Hemingway officiated a boxing match or two on the property as well. If the rich Key West history doesn't pique your interest, the food will. Breakfast is a leisurely affair running from 8 am until ... 05/05/2010

1305 Reynolds Street in the Casa Marina Area of Key West I have written before about the house at 1305 Reynolds Street in the Casa Marina Area of Key West. I have shown the house several times. The property is now being offered as a short sale and the new asking price is $649,000 or $382 per sq ft. The new asking price seems like a bit of a deal to me. Read on.The listing Realtor describes this house this way: "Very spacious 2 story home located in one of the most desirable neighborhoods in Key West - the Casa Marina. The open floor plan of this home includes an entrance foyer, very spacious living/dining room with french doors to a large covered porch, a galley style kitchen, half bath and a laundry room. Originally the second floor was three bedrooms and two baths but is currently a ... 05/05/2010

Southpark Condominiums pool is shared by just 16 owners The super sweet one bedroom condo at 808 South Street in the Casa Marina area of Key West is affordable, adorable, and doable. It is not a distress sale, not a foreclosure, nor is it bank owned. It is however priced to sell: the condo is priced to sell quickly at $349,000. The listing broker describes Unit 201 this way: " This beautiful Southpark condo has been totally renovated with all new kitchen, gorgeous cabinets and countertops, all new wood/tile floors, a lovely bathroom, cedar closet and 3 ductless AC/heat units. Off Street parking. Rarely available." Beautiful new floors throughout the unit CLICK HERE to locate the Southpark Condos on the Map. You will soon see that the condo is located just a short walk or bike ride to b... 05/04/2010

  1012 Southard Street - Old Town - Key West 1012 Southard Street - Old Town - Key West Preferred Properties Coastal Realty, Inc. (that's where I work) just listed 1012 Southard Street in Old Town Key West. We all know the Golden Rule of Real Estate: "Location, Location, Location". The home at 1012 Southard Street has a premier location. This particular block has several architecturally or historically significant homes. The house next door CLICK HERE for example was the feature home in an Architectural Digest issue a few years back. And just about everybody recognizes the Gingerbread Man House CLICK HERE house two doors to the east. The simple yet majestic home across the street CLICK HERE dominates the smaller somewhat smaller houses on the rest of the block. If you haven't been to Ke... 05/02/2010

Don't get left behind wondering "If" April did not bring Key West many showers but it did bring lots of sales to cheer the Realtors and Buyers who took the plunge to buy Key West properties once again.You may have noticed I have written my blog very much this past month. There is good reason: I have been swamped with work. And every Realtor I know is equally busy. April has been an extremely good month for real estate sales in Key West. I am posting raw results that I culled from our mls data base. More sales will likely get posted by other Realtors that occurred in April but that did not get posted by yesterday.There were 26 single family home sales in Key West for the month of April. Three were bank owned properties and seven were shown as "short sales" although I am convinced more w... 05/01/2010

Although the number of distressed sales nation wide are at 29%; there are some areas where the percentages are higher. Certain locations like California, Nevada and South Florida have higher rates. On checking the residential sold properties for the last 6 months in the Key West MLS there were 231 sales, 114 (49%) were distressed sales (short sale or lender owned).  Looking at how those sales break down, the short sales are on the market much longer then the bank owned properties and sell for a lower percentage of list price. Although there is legislation to make the short sales go faster they are still taking quite long.  The Key West MLS currently has 193 pending sales; 139 of them are short sales. In these cases the seller has found a buyer and is waiting for the bank's decision to a... 04/28/2010

One of Two Pools at Key West Beach Club Key West Beach Club at Sunrise This is one of those Just Listed but not by me blogs. The newly listed property is Unit # 107 at Key West Beach Club Condominiums located at 1500 Atlantic Avenue in Key West. For the uninitiated the Beach Club Condominiums are unlike any other condo development in Key West. The condos are located right at the beach front. If you had legs long enough, you could dangle them over the edge of the balcony and wiggle your toes int the the sand. The coral reefs protect the Keys from roaring waves. Instead of hearing roaring tides crash ashore you will only hear the gentle lapping of the waves. Wouldn't that be a nice sound to put you to sleep by every night.Unit #107 is located on the first level of the western building at... 04/27/2010

When you move into a new home, wouldn't it be great to have assurance that everything will be right?  Even though you have had your home inspected, appliances and systems can surprise you with sudden outages.  Home warranties can be very beneficial to buyers who are looking at purchasing a pre-owned home in Key West. A warranty protects you as the buyer by paying for covered repairs or replacement of major appliances and systems in the home if they should break during the time frame covered of the policy. Even sellers can benefit from a home warranty by purchasing a policy to cover the home during the listing period.  The coverage can then be transferred to the buyer when the house is sold. Even if the seller does not have a policy in place, the buyer can purchase a policy of their own ... 04/27/2010

I was driving down College Rd today and an Iguana began to run across the street. He was about ½ way, saw another automobile coming towards us and turned around running back in front of my car! I slammed on the breaks. As I calmed down and headed back to my office I wondered about this. I would die if I ever hit a cat, a dog, a chicken or raccoon but I realized I would not mind too much if I ran over an Iguana. I would not try to run over one, but I think that they are pretty high on the list of desirable road kill. I had nothing against these reptiles until they took over South Florida and the Lower Keys. It's like cruise ships; some are ok, but you don't want the harbor thick with them. Iguanas are more fun to look at in a zoo then lounging at my pool in between servings of Hibiscus ... 04/26/2010

611 Southard Street Unit # 3 offered at $434,900 Everybody knows what a New York Minute is, right? I checked the URBAN DICTIONARY for a readily understandable definition and read this: Approximately 36 seconds, as opposed to the normal 60 seconds in a minute "So would you do her?" "In a new york minute." When I first saw the new Hollingshed House listing at 611 Southard Street Unit #3 I knew instantly that it would sell in a New York Minute. This is how the listing agent describes this property: "Wonderful property with EXCELLENT rental record. Transient License included! One block from Duval. Totally renovated in 2008. Wood floors, new Kitchen and bath. Professionally decorated." This very same Hollingshed House unit was listed for sale on December 12, 2006 and sold (closed) 39 days l... 04/23/2010

The Wall Street Journal ran a piece today on Queenly Restorations and chose a house in Key West for inclusion. CLICK HERE to see the house as shown in the Wall Street Journal.The house the WSJ presented is a listing of Preferred Properties Coastal Realty, Inc. (that's where I work). I wrote at least two blogs about the particular house at 1307 Truman Avenue. CLICK HERE to view the mls listing info and to view more photos of the property. This house is a short sale and it is under contract at this time.They (whoever they are) don't make houses like this anymore. It is a grand old dame, that is for sure. It has high ceilings, large rooms, a stately presence on Truman Avenue across from Bayview Park. The house was totally and tastefully renovated. The 4426 sq ft home was offered for sale a... 04/23/2010

The listing Realtor for the Pelican Landing Penthouse unit said it all when he wrote "Current owner's loss is your gain! Here is your chance to buy a 4 bedroom waterfront income property on the edge of Old Town. This is a very large penthouse unit in a newly renovated building. Access to boat slips included! This is a potential short sale transaction that may be subject to third party approval." The current owner purchased this property at the height of the real estate boom and paid $1,250,000 for the property. The market turned down and at about the same time the building underwent a major renovation (with jackhammers). Revenues were down and vacancies were up. That renovation was only recently completed.