By CRAIG D. SCHENCK/Sentinel staff
OCEAN CITY — Forget boring drywall, 8-foot ceilings and linoleum flooring — those have all been relegated to the past.
The second-floor condominium at 3834 Asbury Ave., in the city’s tranquil Southend, has been upgraded to meet the demands of today’s most discerning homebuyers, now featuring shiplap and stacked stone wall coverings, a lofty vaulted ceiling and custom tile and hardwood flooring.
“This is one of the most gorgeous and well-maintained homes in Ocean City,” real estate agent Mike Contino said, noting it was completely updated in 2020. “This second-floor beauty is loaded with upgrades.”
Located midway between 38th and 39th streets, the home is in a highly residential area of the city but just a couple of blocks away from the 34th Street business district. More importantly, it is just a couple of blocks from the city’s pristine white-sand beaches. A little farther away is the city’s world-famous boardwalk filled with hundreds of shopping, dining and entertainment venues.
The home has three bedrooms and two bathrooms, as well as a great room with a cozy living room, well-lit dining area and gourmet kitchen.
Built 1997, the 1,200-square-foot home is the ultimate in low-maintenance living. It has a gravel yard, so no mowing is necessary, and vinyl siding. A mulched flowerbed with a brick border that is bursting with colorful hydrangeas and other shrubs lines the front of the home. A concrete walk leads down the left to the sheltered staircase leading up to each of the two units.
Atop the stairs, the door opens off a small landing into the great room. The first impression is of a spacious, open area filled with multiple textures, plenty of light and ready for a crowd.
Engineered hardwood flooring is found throughout the main level, beneath the 15-foot-high cathedral ceiling from which a wood plane propeller ceiling fan hangs.
The living room takes up the right half of the space, while the dining area and kitchen take up the left. The dark hardwood contrasts nicely with the white shadow-box wainscoting and light gray paint above.
A gas fireplace with a stacked-stone surround reaching from floor to ceiling is the focal point of the living room. A sofa and loveseat are situated across from the fireplace, where a flat-screen television hangs in the middle and shiplap planks cover the walls on either side.
In the front corner, two cushy armchairs are nestled into a three-window alcove.
Straight ahead, the kitchen has a large charcoal gray fabuwood center island with soft-close, self-close doors and drawers and a Sharp undercounter microwave drawer, a quartz top and room for four barstools. More white fabuwood cabinets with quartz tops are located along two walls in an L shape.
High-end stainless-steel appliances include an XO beverage cooler, an LG five-burner gas range/oven with down-draft exhaust and a hood, a GW dishwasher to the right of the stainless-steel sink and an LG two-door refrigerator with bottom freezer drawer. The backsplash is glass tile.
Just steps away, the dining area features a long wood table with eight wicker chairs beneath a sphere-like hanging lamp. A sliding glass door off the dining area opens on the front porch, where a retractable awning provides shade when desired. A transom over the slider and a half-circle above the center window in the alcove add to the abundant natural light flowing into the home.
Up a short flight of stairs is a long hallway with hardwood flooring stretching back to the bedrooms.
The first of the two bathrooms is just to the right. It has hexagon tile flooring, an elevated, granite-topped Bertch USA vanity with soft-close, self-close drawers and a combination tub/shower with subway tile to the ceiling.
Across the hall, the first bedroom has wall-to-wall carpeting and double-wide bunk beds that sleep four children.
Back on the right, the laundry is hidden artfully behind double swinging doors that open to reveal a full-size washer and dryer and wire rack shelving.
The final two bedrooms are in the rear.
On the left, the room has carpeting with a queen-size bed. A double window overlooks the back of the home.
The master bedroom, which has an en suite bath, is on the right. Like the others, it has carpeting. Unlike the others, it has a compete wall covered in horizontal shiplap planks. There’s a queen-size bed and wall-mounted adjustable lights on either side for reading. A sliding glass door opens onto a private deck — a great place for enjoying a late-night cigar.
The master bathroom has a tile floor, granite-topped Bertch vanity and a shower tiled to the ceiling with a swinging glass door. The wall behind the vanity also is tiled to the ceiling, adding a nice visual element to the room.
Out back, there is room for two cars — one underneath the home and another in the gravel parking pad off the alley out back. There’s also a storage area under the house.
Extra amenities include all new recessed lighting and fixtures, Anderson windows and sliders, new Hunter Douglas window treatments, new doors and hardware, a new awning and more, according to Contino.
Ocean City is one of the most popular shore resorts on the East Coast, featuring a 2.5-mile-long oceanfront boardwalk filled with hundreds of shopping, dining and entertainment venues, as well as miles and miles of pristine beaches. There also is an award-winning downtown business district centered on Asbury Avenue and a watersports district on Bay Avenue between Second and Fourth streets.
A great location doesn’t only mean beachfront or bayfront on this 8-mile-long island — there are 10 distinct neighborhoods, each with its own characteristics. The Gardens is popular with many for its slow pace, huge beaches and winding, pedestrian-friendly streets. The Riviera is a boater’s paradise with many Mediterranean-style homes set right on inland lagoons. The Central neighborhood is bustling with business both downtown and on the boardwalk, while the Southend is narrow with fewer homes and room to stretch out. The Northend contains many of the island’s historic homes and Merion Park, in the south, features wetlands and wildlife along with wonderful sunset views.
The property is listed for $899,500 with Mike Contino of Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices, Fox & Roach Realtors. Call (609) 335-9100 or email contino@aol.com for more information or to set up an appointment to see this wonderful home.