Holiday Time in the Island City
November 29, 2024
It’s time to give thanks for a great 25th anniversary year here at Bascom Grooms Real Estate. Key West has had a year-long calendar of exciting special events, some thrilling weather, and a steady stream of visitors arriving for it all. Now we welcome a warm, colorful Christmas and Happy New Year to the island.
Key West Comes Alight
The Lobster Trap Tree is alight, the Key West Harbor Walk of Lights is open, and the Key West winter holidays are officially underway. The festive season came ashore at the Key West Historic Seaport on the evening before Thanksgiving with two iconic Key West tree lightings: the Fishing Buoy Tree at the harbor-front plaza on the corner of Green and Elizabeth Streets, and the classic Lobster Trap Tree at the Margaret Street Plaza.
The two displays anchor the Key West Harbor Walk of Lights, a fantastic display of thousands of holidays lights and creative displays that honor Key West’s maritime history. The display will be up through New Year’s Eve, so be sure to make time to enjoy an evening walk along the waterfront of the Historic Seaport and the Key West Bight.
Next up, at 6:30pm on December 7, the Key West Annual Holiday Parade will get everyone in the spirit of the season with a classic small-town Christmas parade marching west on Truman Ave to Duval Street, then up to Eaton Street. Then, at 8pm on December 14, it is back to the seaport area and the adjacent waterfront restaurants and bars; this is the epicenter of action for the amazing Key West Lighted Boat Parade . Definitely mark your calendar for that evening if you are going to be in town.
The Key West Waterfront Winter Wonderland is a new holiday special event that proved very popular when it debuted last December. The Coffee Butler Amphitheater at Truman Waterfront Park turns into winter-holiday themed playground with festive fun for the whole family. Ice skating, Santa visits, a Christmas Train, amusement rides, lights, music, food, shopping and more will make for some great evenings of fun December 13–28, 4pm–10pm daily.
All Aboard for Paradise
Passenger numbers from Key West International Airport (EYW) indicate a busy Christmas season ahead if the trend that has been running all year stays on track for the final month of 2024. This past month of October, 92,051 travelers used the airport, setting a record for the highest monthly passenger count ever. Nearly 1.2 million travelers have passed through Key West International this year, making for a 10% year-to-date increase over this time in 2023.
To follow on a record-breaking year overall at EYW, spring of 2025 is set for the on-schedule completion of a $114 million concourse expansion project that will support growing passenger numbers with greater comfort and convenience. It is true that crossing the open tarmac when deplaning and boarding flights was somewhat in keeping with an exotic tropical island vibe. However, the seven air-conditioned jet bridges that come with the new Concourse A will offer welcome relief in the hot season, and the over-crowded departure waiting area will be a thing of the past. New food and drink options and plenty of room to relax will make for a more pleasant departure experience.
More airport upgrades on tap for 2026 include expanded security checkpoint lines and a new baggage claim area. With more airlines offering direct flights and running larger-capacity aircraft on their Key West routes, it is clear that Key West and the Lower Keys are continuing to rise as the place to be for visitors, snow birds, and a new breed of remote workers from cities in the Northeast and beyond.
Closing Out the Year in Key West Real Estate
It has been a banner year in the Key West real estate market, and here at Bascom Grooms Real Estate, we are set to post 25th anniversary end-of-year closing numbers that will most likely eclipse our 2023 figure of $57 million. As we close out the year, there are shifting trends in play in the Key West property market, perhaps in response to uncertainty around the direction of interest rates and the possibilities associated with changing political winds in the country.
Average Key West listing price in October 2024 was up by 4.98% at approximately $1.91 million, while average sale price decreased by 8%. This might indicate more willingness to negotiate on the part of sellers, and more confidence on the part of buyers to drive a harder bargain. There has also been a minor year-over-year decline in total sales from 127 in 2023 to 113 as of this October. Most of the decline centers on the high-end luxury market, with a decrease of only 1.6% in median sales price indicating more price stability in mid-range properties.
Overall inventory is up, with 332 more homes listed than at this time last year, and days on the market have increased by a little over 11% to average about 89 days. With inventory relatively high compared to the past couple of years, the market may be shifting slightly in favor of buyers, who have more opportunity to shop around, and may also tend to be more cautious in a high-interest-rate environment. Note that average price per square foot is still headed up—$650 as compared to $600 in 2023—so the overall value of Key West real estate is remaining steady.
The natural attributes of properties in Key West and the Lower Keys combined with factors such as the growing tendency of home seekers to prioritize lifestyle considerations, the expansion of remote work possibilities, and the increased ease of air travel to and from Key West ensure that demand will remain strong and the Key West property market will be insulated to some degree from the effects of interest rate fluctuations and other factors that might have significant impacts in less-specialized markets.
Find Your Place in the Winter Sun
In a rank of the highest-producing independent real estate firms in Key West, Bascom Grooms Real Estate places in the top 3. And Bascom has held down the Keys Weekly Key West People’s Choice Award for Best Key West Realtor every year since 2014 when the first awards were presented.
Firmly established as a stalwart among Key West home-grown businesses and well-known as a boutique firm that offers a personalized, superlative client experience, Bascom Grooms Real Estate will no doubt add decades more to its 25-year track record of success in one of America’s most unique property markets.
Why not let us be your guides to one of America’s most unique property markets? Buyers can browse through some of the inviting island homes that make life in Key West and along the Lower Keys so special. Sellers can tap into a deep bench of real estate professionals with decades of experience in the local market. Contact us anytime and make Bascom Grooms Real Estate your local Key West real estate resource.
Bascom Grooms Real Estate—1110 Truman Avenue, Key West Florida—(305) 295-7511—info@bascomgrooms.com
