Island Cottage: Luxury Home in Maryland
November 2, 2007
Island Cottage Luxury Home
They call this one the Island Cottage because it sits on a four-acre point of land on Island Creek in Trappe, Maryland. The home is on a private tree-lined drive and has a very private feel. The four-bedroom country home is surrounded by trees with views of water, wildlife and waterfowl. it was built in 2004 and has an exterior is of brick and cedar with a roof of cedar shake and standing seam copper with antique chestnut wood which was re-milled in Pennsylvania used in the interior. The home includes a living room, a formal dining room with fireplace and lighted display cases, library and family room. There is also a cabana with a service kitchen and space for a wine room. Outside there is a pool. The overall feel is one of relaxed elegance, a family home on a slightly grand scale. This home is listed at $4.9 million.
An Eastern Shore Waterfront Estate ~ Exactly Right In Every Detail. THE SITE: Approached by a private tree-lined drive, “Island Cottage” is sited on a 4+ acre point of land with approximately 472’ of protected shoreline on Island Creek. The design of this country home focused on the unique setting and magnificent views, while preserving the unique array of specimen trees planted many years ago. Carefully planned gardens surrounding the house enhance the bucolic setting. The dappled light and ever changing views of water, wildlife and waterfowl that abound make this a truly special place to come home to! THE HOUSE: Although the site was originally developed some thirty years ago, “Island Cottage” is a new home, built by Will Shannahan, one of the finest contractors on the Eastern Shore. Completed in 2004, the home is constructed of the highest quality materials. The exterior is of brick and cedar, roof of cedar shake and standing seam copper. Loewen windows and doors have been used throughout. Antique chestnut was re-milled in Pennsylvania and installed in the primary living areas of the home including living and dining rooms, library, kitchen foyer and bedrooms. Ceilings measuring 9’4” are found in the formal living areas of the main level. Entering the house, the foyer flows graciously into the living room where floor to ceiling windows and a wood-burning fireplace welcome you. Adjacent to the living room is the formal dining room with fireplace and lighted display cases bordering the entrance to the nearby library. A generously proportioned family or gathering room just off the kitchen offers unsurpassed views of the water. Located in this room is a custom entertainment center, home to the 52” plasma television, surround sound and distributed audio equipment. The cabana area includes a service kitchen and full bath plus laundry area with stacking washer and dryer, all convenient to the outdoor living spaces and pool. Close by is a storage room, perfect for pantry /wine room.
Lighthouse View Hill in Pescadero, California
October 29, 2007
This home on Lighthouse View Hill in Pescadero, California has a view of what else, a lighthouse, the Pigeon Point Lighthouse. The secluded vista is located halfway between San Francisco and Carmel on 30 acres. The estate includes two buildings, the main house and an auxiliary building of approximately 2500 square feet. The main house has redwood siding and plenty of custom woodwork. The home’s large Siematic kitchen has limestone cabinets and a wood-burning fireplace. The living/dining room offers ocean views and a skylight brings in natural light. The front door is fabricated from a 2600 year old redwood felled in Kings Canyon 25 years ago. Solid bronze hardware and sidelights compliment this unique doorway. There are three bedrooms total including a master bedroom which is not renovated yet. The home comes with approved plans for adding on an additional 1500 square feet of space. Other features include garages for five cars, an old growth redwood hot tub and an emergency generator. This home is listed at $5.75 million.
Boldwater Estate Blue Hill Bay
October 23, 2007
What to make of Boldwater, a four-season resort in Brooklin, Maine? The 38 acres is well-situated with 1400 feet of shore frontage on Blue Hill Bay. The land includes a massive 15,084+/- sq.ft. main house and three additional houses. The main house which appears to have been built in 1980 according to the MLS listing seems rather hotel-like. I do not know if it was used as a resort or if it is just the lack of furnishings that make the home seem so massive. There are six-bedrooms total, a restaurant-sized, colorfully tiled kitchen, formal dining room, two living rooms, a family room, billiards room, Jacuzzi room, wine room and more. The home is also bedecked with some rather faded-looking murals. The land also includes three other homes, a pool and a long pier. The home is listed at $7.5 million but it looks like it was at $8.8 million last year. We are looking at some beautiful land here but the home needs a bit of updating so I would guess that the sale price might be a bit lower.
North Bend Real Estate Home
October 22, 2007
I seem to be in love with newer homes that look older lately. Continuing our trend of stately manors on acreage is this scenic beauty in North Bend, Washington. This home was built in 2003 but has the feel of an older equestrian estate complete with an oak stable with a fireplace. The home is on 23 acres and has 800 feet of South Fork riverfront. The six-bedroom home has a beautiful home theater, an outdoor entertaining area, a library and a gourmet kitchen. The land also includes an art studio, a tree house and your own 500-foot glider zip line when you need a little whoosh in your day. The home is listed at $6.8 million. Zillow has their zestimate at $2,771,343 but I think they are underestimating this one.
America’s Most Pet-Friendly Cities
October 19, 2007
Americans love their pets, shelling out more for food, supplies and veterinary care than they do on consumer staples like beer, ice cream, cosmetics and golf–some $36 billion annually.
The combined total of cats and dogs in the U.S. is estimated at 163 million, or more than one for every two people.
But how many owners factor in Fido’s or Fluffy’s happiness when it comes to choosing a place to live?
For those who do, some cities measure up better than others. And Colorado Springs, Colo., tops our list of America’s Most Pet-Friendly Cities.
Generous public space, ample veterinary care and wealth of pet-friendly retailers all added up to heaven on earth for this small metropolis of just under 400,000 people and their estimated 61,000 dogs and 54,000 cats.
To find out where pets and their owners are most welcome, we measured the country’s 50 largest cites to see which had the most public park acreage, including those parks tailored specifically for dogs (the second most common pet after cats and the ones that require the most outdoor facilities), the most pet supply and service businesses, and the most veterinary facilities.
We also looked at which cities typically charge the least for veterinary care. We measured the statistics on both a per capita basis, or against each city’s human population, and on a “pet capita” basis–against the city’s estimated pet population.
Those cities with the most vets, public parks, dog parks and pet businesses, both per person and per animal, shot to the top of the list.
Colorado Springs ranked in the top 20 in all the categories. The city has more than 10,000 acres of public park space, or almost a tenth of an acre for every pet. It also features seven dog parks and 113 veterinarians.
Colorado Springs fits a profile common to the top 10, a list of small- to medium-sized cites with a median population of 507,000 people.
The list includes Portland, Ore., Albuquerque, N.M. and Charlotte, N.C., cities with a sought after sweet spot: They’re large enough to draw lots of pet shops, vets and public parks, but small enough not to drown out such amenities with overly dense populations.
While large cities like New York and Los Angeles rank very high in total park space, for example, both are near the bottom on a per capita (and “pet capita”) basis.
New York is also the most expensive city in which to care for a pet, followed by major metros Boston and San Francisco.
The most pet-friendly among cities with populations of over a million is San Diego, which ranks 13th overall and sixth in public park space per capita/pet capita.
One factor that was considered but ultimately not included in the rankings was air quality. While cleaner air would seem inherently healthier for cats, dogs and birds, their relatively short life spans and their ability to make do in most any climate makes the issue moot, according to experts.
“Animals can generally adapt to anything humans can,” says New York City veterinarian Richard Green.
And while no official statistics exist that track the number of pet-friendly rental dwellings in various cities, those in the apartment business say the trend is going the pet owners’ way. The roots go back to the last real estate slump of the early 1990s, when building owners fought off low occupancy rates by allowing pets.
“People were almost desperate to fill their apartments, so they decided to either take pets or to relax their restrictions somewhat,” says Lisa Trosien of Apartmentexpert.com.
No doubt, the relative lack of high-rise buildings in smaller cities also plays to pet owners wishes, since smaller, lower-to-the-ground units usually have more lenient rules. Throw in a nearby park and a pet store on the corner, and life is good for small city pet lovers and their furry friends.
World’s Most Expensive Island Resort for Sale
October 19, 2007
Here is a fabulous chance for the super-rich to get hold of the world’s most expensive island resort. Located just off the coast of Belize City, the Caye Chapel Island Resort is 265 acres, 2.5 miles long, and half a mile wide, with over 13,000 feet of beachfront property, and nearly 12,000 feet of concrete and vinyl seawall protection. Touting an excellent infrastructure, the resort is painstakingly maintained and has an enormous 600,000 gallon water desalinization plant and all-inclusive power plant. In case you are a rich golfer, the island offers a 18 hole championship golf course (USGA rated), 12-slip marina, private airstrip, spectacular seaside villas, splendid bar & restaurant, conference facilities, large swimming pool complex with bar, and long sandy beaches.
Best Places For Real Estate Deals
October 9, 2007
Home sales have sunk to their lowest levels since 2001. Investors are jumping ship, foreclosures are mounting and lenders are exercising caution.
Still, there are areas of the county where it makes sense for some to buy. That’s because, in a market slump, sellers eager to unload their homes often accept less money from buyers. New construction also slows. Both bode well for those hoping to score a deal–if the market in which they are buying is expected to experience increased sales.
To find such places, we paired with Moody’s Economy.com to research current home sales patterns and sales projections in the country’s 40 biggest real estate markets. Based on models that estimated 2008 housing inventory, sales rates and turnover, we arrived at a list of markets that are experiencing price stalls or declines, but where over the coming year are expected to provide deals for buyers.
In Pictures: Best Places For Real Estate Deals
A buyers’ market in the purest sense is one where there are far more sellers than buyers, creating a supply and demand dynamic that benefits those looking to invest in a home. However, by that definition, a floundering market like Detroit is a good buyers’ market because prices are dropping and inventory is high.
Best Markets For Landlords
“A market with declining prices and few sales is a strong buyers’ market,” says Anthony Sanders, professor of real estate finance at Arizona State University. “But it is also a risky market given that prices could decline further.”
With that in mind, we required the slumping or neutral markets on our list to have expected volume and turnover increases, based on sales and inventory models run by Moody’s Economy.com.
The results turn out three types of markets and three types of deals.
Attractive Arrangements
The first are undervalued, affordable markets like Fort Worth, Texas, which haven’t felt huge, post-boom price corrections, but where there is an expected acceleration in sales volume, making now the time to buy.
Second are markets like Long Island, N.Y., and Washington D.C. These are traditionally strong areas that are recovering from speculation, especially in the D.C. condo market and by Long Island’s second-home buyers. Once these areas stabilize, the market as a whole should return to health.
“Long Island is continuing to slip, but a modest amount,” says Jonathan Miller, president of Miller Samuel, a New York-based real estate appraisal and consultancy firm. “In [Long Island] the upper-end market was the market of choice for speculation and tear downs.”
Third are riskier markets such as Las Vegas or Orlando, Fla., which are experiencing lending and inventory problems but relative to regional markets–in Las Vegas’ case, Los Angeles and in Orlando’s case Tampa and Miami–are expecting to see significant pickups in sales activity, according to Moody’s, and therefore become better buyers’ markets because of a relatively lower risk.
But economists caution that while over the next year the dust may settle in these 10 spots, buyers should be prepared for future swings. This is especially true in the case of riskier markets like Orlando and Las Vegas, where the expected increase in sales volume and housing turnover doesn’t necessarily mean that the price trough is imminent.
“Housing market activity revives when house prices decline sufficiently to restore housing affordability and entice buyers to step up and make a purchase,” says Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody’s Economy.com. “Some markets are already approaching those price points, in many others prices will have to decline much more to get to that point.”
Green Business Travel - Luxury Travel
October 2, 2007
The environmental protesters who camped out near London’s Heathrow Airport last week and demonstrated noisily over the weekend had what most business travelers consider a radical agenda: A long-term reduction in flights to offset the carbon footprint of the world’s airlines.
I think my green credentials are pretty good; the perennially threatened Hudson River is literally at the edge of my backyard, so I have an up close and personal view of how humans mistreat nature. But I’ve never thought much about frequent travel and the environment. As much as I condemn their business practices and financial models, I’ve never thought of airlines as big, bad polluters. Nor have I paid much attention to my own actions on the road and how they might affect the environment.
But I think I get it now. We might want to continue to fly globally, but there’s no reason not to act locally to reduce business travel’s impact on the planet.
I’m going to leave the metaphoric elephant in the room—airlines’ carbon emissions—to the experts for now. But here are some small steps we can all take to become greener business travelers.
Soft Goods, Hard Impact
Partially for environmental reasons and partially because it reduces their overhead costs, hotels around the world have instituted in-room conservation efforts. They want you to use your bathroom towels more than once, and they would be thrilled if you took a pass on the daily change of bed linens.
“In the 30,000 hotels in the United States, there are more than 2 billion sheets washed every year and almost the same number of towels,” says luxury-hotel consultant Michael Matthews. “And 99 percent of the water used to do all that washing doesn’t get recycled.”
I’m like most business travelers. I think there’s something sybaritic about getting crisp new linens each day and having towels changed after every shower. But this sort of profligate use of soft goods is nothing short of ecological suicide. We don’t do it at home, so why do on the road?
There is an easy fix. If your hotel has an in-room conservation program—usually explained on a tent card or placard asking you to place your towels back on the towel bars if you’re willing to reuse them—make sure you play along. If the hotel doesn’t, call the front desk and tell them that you don’t need a daily change of your bed linens and will happily reuse your towels during your stay.
The Plans For Europe’s Largest Residential Tower
October 1, 2007
It looks like the plans to develop Europe’s tallest residential building are set to for forward. The Inacity Tower will be a 60-story tower located next to Manchester Piccadilly station in England. Ballymore, and international property development and investment group, has now taken a 95% interest in what is also being called the Piccadilly Tower project.
The tower will have 430 residential units in phase one and the second phase will add an additional 267 residential units added and a luxury hotel. Construction is set to start early next year. No completion date or potential pricing has been released yet.
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