Braden Castle is unique. It’s a perfectly preserved and functioning bungalow colony from the 1920s, the sort of place your grandparents used to vacation in. Little houses stand on tiny plots of land, just feet from each other, everything within walking distance – exactly what Seaside and the New Urbanism are trying to recapture. Only this is the real thing.

The ruins of Braden Castle.

Today Braden Castle is an over-55 community, and its residents are mostly retired Midwesterners who drive down for the winter. But some locals live there year round; I met a guy who works for the Sheriff’s office. I would live there in a heartbeat except for the fact that they don’t take pets.

 The $65,000 house at 6 Oak St., Braden Castle; call  Re/Max realtor Jill Berg at 954-5454 for more information.

But keep in mind it’s less than 600 square feet. Braden Castle homes are tiny vacation homes from the 1920s, don’t forget – charming but very small in scale. Even the amenities are in keeping with the place’s character – there’s a clubhouse, a great old fishing pier, shuffleboard courts, and my favorite (pictured below), the library.

Braden Castle's charming library.

 The amazing thing is that it has lasted so long. I guess that’s because the residents own it and have no intention of selling it to a developer. There is an equally picturesque trailer park called Two Rivers which adjoins it; its future is a little less secure.