Daily Archives: April 2, 2014

L.A.’s ‘Unsellable’ Fleur de Lys Just Sold for $102M… in Cash | South Salem Real Estate

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Nobody freak out, but it seems that Los Angeles’ Fleur de Lys, the estate that broke records when it hit the market in 2007 for $125M and, despite years of floundering, stuck stubbornly to its exorbitant ask, has sold for $102M, a record for L.A. county. What’s more, the “trophy estate,” as the L.A. Times dubs it, apparently sold amid a bidding war that engaged three billionaires, with the winner (previously reported to be businessman and “junk bond king” Michael Milken) agreeing to pay all cash for this 100-room mansion, as well as its rare Louis XIV and Louis XV antiques.

Designed by Richard Robertson III and completed 2002, Fleur de Lys comes with 35,000 square feet of marble walls and spindly furnishings, all spread across 12 bedrooms, 15 bathrooms, accommodations for a 10-person staff, a 50-seat screening room, and a three-bedroom caretaker’s house. As the Los Angeles Times writes, “The 3,000-square-foot wine cellar and tasting room is larger than most American houses, as is the manager’s house.” The jumbomanse was built for billionaire David Saperstein and his then-wife, Suzanne. After David’s much-publicized affair with their Swedish nanny, the two went through a much-publicized divorce that left his ex with the palace. This, of course, all went through in 2007, when a recession made it extremely difficult to sell megalomansions.

Much like the largest private residence in the country, Fleur de Lys took inspiration from Versailles—practically a requirement for homes of this stature, apparently. The property first hit the market in 2007, slinked off the market in October 2009, and again listed for its original ask—a staggering $125M—in July 2011.

Thought it was once rumored to have sold to Formula One heiress Tamara Ecclestone, it seems Fleur de Lys actually went to Milken, a businessman/philanthropist and onetime so-called “junk bond king.” The buyer was initially identified as an anonymous French billionaire, but the paper has since uncovered that “taxes will be mailed to the Milken Institute in Santa Monica.”

 

 

http://curbed.com/archives/2014/03/31/las-unsellable-fleur-de-lys-just-sold-for-102m-in-cash.php

Sandy Weill Asks $14M For One of His Two Conn. Manses | Katonah Real Estate

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Location: Greenwich, Conn. Price: $14,000,000 The Skinny: Former Citigroup CEO and Extremely Rich Person Sandy Weill has listed one of his Greenwich, Conn., homes for $14M, reports the WSJ, which also notes that he’s keeping his other homes in Sonoma County, the Adironacks, New York City (a unit a few floors down from the 15 Central Park West penthouse he sold in Dec. 2011 for a record-setting $88M), the Bahamas, and his second Connecticut manse (which is right next door to this one). So don’t worry about Sandy Weill going homeless! Somehow he’ll muddle through with just the five remaining homes. The story behind the home is instructive: Weill gave the land to his son, who built a house, and then sold the house back to his dad for $11M, who then briefly listed it for $13M back in 2009. Turns out though, that someone had broken the economy, and suddenly “it was a very bad market,” so Weill pulled the listing…until now. The mansion, which was designed by Ira Grandberg, is described by the brokerabble as having “the noble character, elegance, and grandeur of England’s prestigious country estates,” which, translated, means that it’s “misshapen and top-heavy”. Inside the 16,000-square-foot manse there are six bedrooms, nine bathrooms, a billiards room, and a cupola with views of Long Island Sound.

 

 

http://curbed.com/archives/2014/04/01/sandy-weill-lists-one-of-his-two-greenwich-mansion-for-14m.php

Abandoned NY Island Has Lighthouse, B&B + Ghostly Rumors | Bedford Hills Real Estate

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Execution%20Rocks.jpg [Photo via Scouting NY.]

Nick Carr, film location scout extraordinaire, was exploring islands in New York’s waterways when he spotted a lighthouse and its adjacent brick house (for the keeper) perched atop a rocky outcropping. Upon further digging, he learned that the lighthouse on Execution Rocks, located in the Long Island Sound between New Rochelle and the North Shore, was built in 1849 and had a quirky history (and roster of keepers) until it was automated in 1979. After a federal call for help in 2007, a Philadelphia couple stepped up and formed a nonprofit to maintain and restore the petite island’s structures. On the long road to raising $1.2 million, they’re banking on New Yorkers’ sense of adventure and penchant for history, creating three no-frills double rooms and charging guests $150 per person per night to stay there

 

 

 

http://ny.curbed.com/archives/2014/04/01/abandoned_ny_island_has_lighthouse_bb_ghostly_rumors.php

Social Media Marketing Secrets of Smart Savvy Bloggers | Bedford Realtor

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The success of a blog can be judged on different aspects, but engagement will  be a dominant factor in achieving the desired outcome. Using social media  marketing to promote your blog can be highly effective, and your ‘followers’ or ‘likes’ should be considered as important metrics.

However, ensuring that you truly engage with these people, across all  platforms, is equally important and often overlooked.

Seth Godin is widely viewed as an arbiter on marketing issues, he has  repeatedly referenced Kevin Kelly’s ‘1000 True Fans’ article. Kelly’s principal message is that  a ‘true’ fan is of greater value than a lesser fan, and that engagement helps  nurture ‘true’ fans. He states that:

‘The genius of the True Fan model is that the  fans are able to move an artist away from the edges of the long tail to a degree  larger than their numbers indicate.’

His article focuses on upcoming artists aiming to sustain a living, but the  methods can be applied to the development of any blog. If you’re dealing with  larger numbers, or are representing a corporation, then you should still pay  heed to these core values with the same sincerity.

1. Unique & varied social media content

Using Facebook or twitter to post links to your own articles will help drive  traffic towards your site, no doubt. However, if this is your only social media  activity then you have to question how original and engaging the page is.  Readers may initially ‘like’ or ‘follow’ you, but if your page is essentially a  glorified RSS feed then you may drive these same people away at a later date.  Also remember that engagement leads to more followers/likes.

A good example of a successful commercial Facebook page is Oreo; unique video, images, and campaigns  solely for their Facebook page present the user with a fresh experience. The  user’s engagement and sharing of the content, will in turn increase the traffic  to both your Facebook page and your blog. If you are representing a brand, don’t  be afraid to show intelligence – ‘dumbing down’ to your audience can be  portrayed as a ‘dumbing down’ of your brand. This is where Oreo excels; it  doesn’t offer generic competitions, instead choosing to post relevant and  humorous content.

If you run a personal blog you may not have the resources for a campaign on  this scale, but at least adopt the principles and ensure you have some unique  content.

Read more at http://www.jeffbullas.com/2014/04/02/the-social-media-marketing-secrets-of-smart-savvy-bloggers/#YJuH5J5gkgCsdYrK.99

This Is What A Totally Green, Sustainable NYC Could Look Like | Pound Ridge Homes

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New York City is many things, but sustainable it is not.

The people of New York City require some 4 million acres of food-producing land — roughly the size of the entire state of Connecticut — just to produce all the food they eat annually, according to Terreform Research Group, a sustainable architecture firm. That’s a problem, especially since the energy used to transport foods from around the globe to American dinner plate is a significant contributor to climate change.

Even food grown within North America travels more than 1,200 miles on average from where it was grown. Those so-called “food-miles” are why researchers at Terreform set out to determine what the biggest city in the U.S. would look like if it could produce all the food and energy needed to power itself.

And in a city with so little available space, it’s no surprise that figuring out how to pack all that food production within the city limits proved quite a challenge.

What they developed was the New York (Steady) State project, a self-described “thought-experiment” that envisions a wholly self-sufficient New York.  In this dream scenario, the city meets the needs of its citizens by repurposing structures into food-producing towers.

Their architectural renderings reflect a New York that produces all that food within the five boroughs using a “cradle-to-cradle” system with minimal pollution. (The team assumed that New York’s 8.5 million residents each require 2,500 calories per day.)

For now, the tremendously ambitious plan remains a pipe dream. But the design firm’s president, Michael Sorkin, said it provides the city with an “encyclopedic” roadmap to a more sustainable future.

 

 

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/03/24/sustainable-nyc_n_4886443.html?1395675104&ncid=tweetlnkushpmg00000067

Neighborhood preferences are changing | Bedford Corners Real Estate

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Home buyers in 2014 are changing their priorities when selecting neighborhoods for their new homes. Instead of size and special amenities, buyers want conveniences within walking distance and shorter commuting time.

Home buyers are increasingly showing their desires for walkable neighborhoods that combine a mix of homes and stores. In fact, a survey shows that the least popular neighborhood is a suburban one with just houses in it.

Sixty percent of Americans surveyed say they favor neighborhoods with a mix of houses and stores and other businesses that are easy to walk to, rather than neighborhoods that require more driving between home, work and recreation,” according to the National Association of Realtors’ Community Preference Survey of 1,500 Americans.

“Although there is no one-size-fits-all approach, smart growth is typically characterized by mixed-use development, higher densities, and pedestrian-friendly streets that accommodate a wide diversity of transportation modes,” said the NAR president.

“Growth patterns, economic development, and quality-of-life issues are inextricably linked to the success of communities and residents.”

Home buyers say they’re willing to sacrifice the size of the home and lot in order to live in a neighborhood with walkable features and a shorter commute.

For example, 78 percent of respondents said that the neighborhood is more important to them than the size of the home. Fifty-seven percent said they’d give up a home with a larger yard if they could have a shorter commute. Fifty-five percent said they’d give up a home with a larger yard if it meant they could live within walking distance to schools, stores and restaurants.

 

 

http://siouxcityjournal.com/advertorial/siouxland_homes/neighborhood-preferences-are-changing/article_4cb285e8-d0d5-5d77-87ed-fd9454f9943b.html