Luxury Real Estate News and Trends

The International Herald Tribune reports that “Investor buys majority stake in NY’s Flatiron building.” Only 7 months later than we reported exactly the same thing – More Manhattan real estate sold to foreign buyer. Oh, well, you can’t be on top of everything all the time. They suspect, as did we seven months ago, that there are plans for a luxury hotel. Although, things have changed in the interim and it may be decided that what New York doesn’t need is another up-market hotel condominium complex. We shall see.

Speaking of upmarket hotel condominium complexes in New York, Riverbank West did manage to secure another $94 million in refinancing recently. Riverbank West is apparently a “Luxury multifamily development,” whatever that means.

Perhaps the agents who secured the funding could have a talk to Forest City Ratner, the developers of the struggling $4 billion “Atlantic Yards,” project which was announced as “The biggest project in Brooklyn,” which keeps shrinking. The original architect,  Frank Gehry laid off more than two dozen staffers in late November after Forest City Ratner ordered the architect to put down his pencils. The developers have since been scrambling around for an alternative and juggling basketballs to keep the loans afloat.

Both the New York Post and Curbed NY have come up with scaled down renditions of alternative plans.

I think I prefer the open plan feel of Curbed’s myself.

More scandals from the financial sector abound as it comes to light that disgraced chief executive of Lehman Brothers, Richard Fuld transferred ownership of a $14 million Florida mansion to his wife for $100 in a possible attempt to move assets beyond the reach of infuriated investors of the collapsed bank.The 3.3-acre property is one of five luxury homes owned by the Fulds, who spend most of their time at their eight-bedroom mansion in Greenwich, Connecticut. Mr Fuld has been named in at least one lawsuit filed by San Mateo County, who lost $150 million when the bank collapsed.

The backlash against the financial services sector continues and in India, police have arrested Satyam’s two Pricewaterhouse auditors S Gopal Krishnan and Srinivas Talluri in connection with the fraud perpetrated recently. Pricewaterhousecoopers declined to comment, and I suspect we will see quite a few scapegoats thrown to the wolves as more comes to light. This is a slightly more appropriate punishment than the toilet papering given to Bernie Madoff’s Palm Beach Mansion by a few teenage trust-funders. Although, I guess they are not trust-funders any more……

The luxury real estate market is in a state of flux, along with the financial services industry, and while I don’t see any bailouts forthcoming one thing is clear – we need to change along with it. On that note – the Luxury Conclave” which should have started today at the Fairmont Turnberry was cancelled recently, in favor of an online version. Any luxury real estate agents wishing to take part in their “luxury conclave survey,” can do so here – Luxury conclave survey.

On a more positive note, sales of luxury real estate in Denver are starting to creep up as prices become more realistic. According to Coldwell Banker, more luxury homes in the Denver metro area sold during December than November, but median prices of $1 million-plus houses declined. 48 residential properties sold for more than $1 million, an increase from the 35 sold in November, but still down from 73 sold the year before. The most expensive residential property sold in December was a $3.75 million, four-bedroom, five-bathroom, 8,138-square-foot home in Boulder