Between September 18 and November 13, 2009 there were 5 sales of homes in Natoma Manors, the north Coconut Grove community between SW 17th Avenue and Bay Heights. Two of these sales were handled by EWM Realtors representing both the sellers and buyers in transactions that were never even shown as available to the public, perfect examples of Realtors networking among themselves.
When Gwen Taylor in my office asked if I knew of any unlisted property in Natoma Manors that might be available for her buyer, I had heard of something that might work for her. Five days later seller and buyer had come to an agreement, and the property at 1600 Tigertail Avenue closed on October 30, 2009. Diane Troy successfully sold 2610 Hilola Street on September 18, 2009 in the same manner.
The other three sales at 1672 Micanopy Avenue, 1645 Tigertail Avenue and 2727 Hilola Street also involved fellow EWM Realtors! The sales ranged from a low price per square foot of $265 at 2610 Hilola St, which sold for $487,000 to the highest ppsf of $330 at 1672 Micanopy Avenue, closed for $1,435,000.
The breakdown is as follows:
| ADDRESS | CLOSE DATE | $PPSF | SALE PRICE |
| 2610 Hilola Street | 9/18/2009 | 265 | $487,000 |
| 1645 Tigertail Av | 10/1/2009 | 304 | $1,100,000 |
| 1672 Micanopy Av | 10/16/2009 | 330 | $1,435,000 |
| 1600 Tigertail Av | 10/30/2009 | 286 | $665,000 |
| 2727 Hilola Street | 11/13/2009 | 326 | $1,135,000 |
Natoma Manors was created by W. T. Carter and his brother E .J. in 1925 when they were finally able to convince the Brickell family to sell them the 35 acres of mostly virgin forest just outside the walled growing fields of Viscaya which became Bay Heights. After the land was cleared the plot was subdivided into 177 lots, mostly 50 feet wide. Roads and sidewalks were built, coconut palms and shrubbery planted, water lines and underground utilities were laid out throught the center of each street. These impressive improvements added more than $1000 the original cost of each lot!
Over half of the lots were sold in 1925 at the then prevailing boom prices, practically all of which were voluntarily deeded back to the company formed by the brothers, Carter Realty Company. In 1938 the area was re-subdivided into 138 larger lots, 70 foot frontages being the minimum.
It is a tribute to E. J. Carter that he held to his vision of Natoma Manors as a homesite for quality homes, and didn’t encumber it with liens or mortgages during the years he held onto it intact, even at considerable personal financial sacrifice.
I have an article from the Miami Daily News dated December 17, 1938 in front of me now. It shows a picture of 1601 Tigertail Avenue, and begins by stating that the home, built for Mr. and Mrs. W. T. Etzel will be completed by Christmas. It was designed by architect Lloyd F. Vann and constructed by Deigaard Preston. “ The cost of construction is approximately $16,000″ the article states.
1601 Tigertail Avenue Today. To put that into perspective, I sold the home for the second owners in 2003 for $720,000! To the right is a picture of the home today. The new owners updated the kitchen beautifully in 2005, and preserved the character of this unique and original Natoma Manors home.