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Well, as we know, Hamptons and Manhattan real estate lag in a downturn and lead in a recovery, so if Lampert is betting big on the recovery (not that he’s done so well with Sears), then that’s a cue…
Lampert Puts Money
On Housing Rebound
Stakes Being Taken
In Battered Builders,
Lenders and Retailer
In Battered Builders,
Lenders and Retailer
By GARY MCWILLIAMS
June 12, 2008; Page C4
June 12, 2008; Page C4
Billionaire hedge-fund manager Edward S. Lampert is placing new bets on a U.S. housing recovery, buying stakes in beaten-up home builders, mortgage lenders and a home-improvement retailer.
Mr. Lampert’s ESL Investments Inc., which owns half of department-store giant Sears Holdings Corp. and 40% of car retailer AutoNation Inc., has previously focused with mixed success on retail and bank stocks.
![[photo]](http://s.wsj.net/public/resources/images/MI-AQ840_LAMPER_20080611191256.gif)
Recently, the Greenwich, Conn., hedge fund, which controls investments it valued at about $11.6 billion in its most recent government financial report, began picking up shares in hard-hit housing-related stocks. ESL acquired small stakes in U.S. home builders Centex Corp. and KB Home, according to its latest Securities and Exchange Commission filings. At recent prices, the stakes in the two home builders are valued at $10.4 million and $10.8 million, respectively.
ESL also is tip-toeing into mortgage origination and servicing, acquiring about four million shares of CIT Group Inc., a struggling subprime home and commercial lender, as well as 1.4 million shares of PHH Corp., a mortgage originator and mortgage-service company. The shares are valued currently at about $35.5 million and $25.2 million, respectively. ESL spokesman Steve Lipin declined to comment on the investments.
Mr. Lampert’s purchases come as some analysts think the housing market’s decline may be nearing an end.
In another bet on a housing turnaround, Mr. Lampert this spring increased his stake in Atlanta-based home-improvement retailer Home Depot Inc. ESL now holds about 22.7 million shares valued at $590 million, up from 16.7 million shares last year.
Write to Gary McWilliams at gary.mcwilliams@wsj.com
I was flattered when Jenn Henn, from the Southampton Press asked me to do a “Lunch With…” interview. I had lunch with writer, Brian Bossetta, last week.md
Publication: The East Hampton Press & The Southampton Press
Lunch With … Michael Daly
Jun 10, 08 11:28 AM
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For the last decade, Michael Daly has been one of the top real estate brokers on the East End.
In 1998, he started True North Realty Associates to offer what he calls straightforward, no-nonsense service. Now, Mr. Daly does business as Beach Properties of the Hamptons, having opened the first of three offices in Southampton in 2006. Though focused on Hamptons real estate, the North Haven resident has contacts with other Realtors in Manhattan, across the tri-state area, and in coastal Florida, the Caribbean, Costa Rica and 65 countries around the globe.
He also operates the Hamptons Real Estate Blog, which is dedicated to the Hamptons real estate market.
Mr. Daly recently talked about the real estate market, his blog, and a few other things, over lunch at Silver’s restaurant on Main Street in Southampton Village.
Q:
How did you come to know the Hamptons? Did you grow up here?
A:
I’m from the city, but I’ve been a summer kid out here since 1960. My family had a summer cottage in Westhampton where all the kids and moms would come out. I’d leave school as soon as it let out and stay the entire summer. I was one of the luckiest kids in my school.
Q:
Since coming out here as a kid, have you noticed over the years that the Hamptons have become more of a year-round community and not just a seasonal community?
A:
Oh, absolutely. I still remember “Tumbleweed Tuesday,” which is what we used to call the Tuesday after Labor Day, because it was said you could see the tumbleweeds blowing down the main streets in the Hamptons because everyone was gone. So much is changing. I think one factor is that with telecommunications as they are today, people have more flexibility with work, which allows more people to stay out here year round.
Q:
So, tell me a little about your real estate blog.
A:
Well, I started it in November 2006, and I’ve had more than 62,000 hits. For me, it just became a way of communicating. I looked and saw a lot of blogs coming up, and I didn’t see anything about Hamptons real estate. I’ve had visitors from all over the world. But mostly it’s a way to express myself and to pass on to colleagues and clients what I think is important about Hamptons real estate. And also to be a resource for where to stay or where to go and eat.
Q:
Do you enjoy it?
A:
I have fun sometimes, but other times it’s a labor of love. Often, it depends on my time. I’ve tried very hard not to make it a gossip blog, because I think we already have enough of those. And I think gossip can be destructive. So I’ve tried to keep it informative and about real estate.
Q:
Well, speaking of, there’s been a lot of talk about the slowing down of the housing market. What, if anything, have you noticed?
A:
Well, I definitely see a change in the market just from the stats alone. The market was down some 40 percent for single-family homes in the first quarter, and a recent report for single-family homes after April indicate they are down 30 percent. That’s for the townships of East Hampton and Southampton, which in my view comprise the Hamptons. But this is definitely the biggest downturn that I’ve seen.
Q:
Is there any particular dropoff ?point where you’ve noticed homes going down the most, or staying the same?
A:
I don’t have the exact numbers, except the 30-percent drop in the number of sales. But I think the biggest hit has been on sales between $3 million and $5 million. However, the average sale price is up over $2 million. But that’s due, in part, because we’re still having quite a number of big sales—$10 million, $15 million, $20 million, $25 million sales—and a lesser number of $5 million-and-under sales. So when those smaller sales drop, these bigger ones bring up the average.
Q:
When you get up into those high figures—$20 million, $25 million sales—are those people pretty much immune to what’s going on in the market?
A:
I think so. I think that echelon is immune to everything—gas prices, food prices, as well as real estate prices.
Q:
Do you see the market picking up again anytime soon?
A:
Well, I’m bullish on the real estate market. I think there are some really terrific values out there right now. I think it’s coming to the point where people are not going to be able to resist getting back in because of the quality of the deals that are available.
Q:
So there’s an upside to the slowing market?
A:
Yes. Traditionally, values in the Hamptons don’t drop. They’ll stay flat for a period of time.
Q:
Speaking of affordability, I wanted to ask you about affordable housing. As you know, this is a huge issue in town, how to keep much needed middle-income workers in town when the cost of real estate out here is so high. As a Realtor, how do you see affordable housing playing into the real estate market?
A:
I like what’s happening with the whole topic of affordable housing. It’s evolving into workforce housing. I think affordable housing has gotten a bad rap. Especially by “NIMBYism.”
Q:
“
Not in my backyard”?
A:
Yes. Because it often gets attached with the idea of bad neighborhoods, or people who really can’t afford to live there being given handouts, and that sort of thing. But that’s not what the issue is here. It’s about creating an environment for the people who work here to be able to live here, which creates a healthier balance.
I think the community is coming closer to finding answers. I think one of the most practical solutions is to allow for accessory apartments, both commercial and residential mixed use, allowing for some of the office spaces in the villages to be turned into apartments. Sag Harbor, for instance, has a pretty nice balance of commercial spaces downstairs and apartments upstairs.
I think there are a lot of available spaces that could be converted into rental units. And that also helps other people to afford to stay in their homes because that can supplement their mortgage or serve as additional income. Because it’s a real bummer for people who work here to have to commute from far away and sit in traffic. The trade parade as they call it. And if we don’t solve affordable housing, you end up with a community of “haves and have-nots.”
Q:
What do you think more affordable housing units would do to the real estate market in general? From a real estate perspective, do you think it would lessen the values of homes in the area?
A:
No, I don’t think it would. I think that’s a knee-jerk reaction—that if you put something up that’s “affordable housing” next to me then my property is going to lose value. If done properly, I think it would actually enhance values. I mean, if you can’t find needed workers, or live in a community where teachers, cops, nurses, assistants can’t afford to live, then, in the end, you’re only hurting your own property values. We need to find a balance.
Q:
Have you noticed anything in particular with vacant land sales?
A: It’s interesting. It used to be that land was just land. You’d buy a lot and build a house. But, over the last 10 years, land has become a huge commodity. And there’s less of it. For example, the Community Preservation Fund has greatly reduced the amount of land available to purchase.
Q:
Are you a fan of the Community Preservation Fund?
A:
Absolutely.
Q:
If there’s less land available, does that at all cut into potential sales that Realtors can represent?
A:
No, because preserving land increases the value of the land that is available. It drives values. And, the thing is, we live here too. I live on a 50-acre reserve. I don’t want to see this place paved over.
You know, I resented for a long ?time the notion held by some that ?Realtors are all just money hungry and want to just sell everything. I fought hard to build a relationship between Corcoran and the Peconic Land Trust. We all want to maintain the beauty and the value of where we live. We have more commonalities than we have differences.
I’ve always liked the idea of “doing well by doing good.” Doing good things brings good karma and brings success. I sit on the board of HANFRA, which is the Hamptons North Fork Realtors Association, and we recently gave a Leadership in Conservation Award to Timothy Caufield, the vice president of the Peconic Land Trust, for his efforts to maintain the face of the East End through preservation. They’re a wonderful organization.
Q:
What do you enjoy most about real estate?
A:
Well, besides truly enjoying the “art of the deal,” my passion is in working with new and experienced agents in developing their businesses. I teach agents about the four “C’s”: Confidence, Commitment, Contacts, and Closing Skills. I’ve worked with agents who have all the four C’s, but it’s taken them a year or more to make money. Nothing, nothing, nothing, then, boom! It all kicks in and they do fine. That’s a beautiful thing to see and very rewarding.
According to our fav real estate gossip guy, Braden Keil of the NYPost, North Haven recently experienced a bidding war on a waterfront property. Check it out:
Warner Music Group chairman Lyor Cohen is spending $6.8 million for a teardown in the Hamptons. Sources say Cohen has just closed on the property in North Haven after a bidding war erupted for the bayfront home, which was listed at $5.5 million.
“Lyor was actually the second-highest bidder,” says a source, “but the guy with the highest offer couldn’t come up with the $7.2 million - and he also lost his $720,000 deposit.”
While the four-bedroom Contemporary is nothing to crow about, the stunning 2.5-acre property has 170 feet of waterfront. Meanwhile, Cohen has taken his Bridgehampton estate with a $9.5 million price tag off the market in anticipation of his lengthy construction project.
see the article here
Please note: these are for Single Family residences only and do not include vacant land, commercial properties, multi-family homes and agricultural purchases.
2008 vs 2007
Median Price -3.9%
Unit Sales -30.6%
Dollar Volume -15.8%
Avg Trade Price $2,043,768 +21.2%
The story:
Foreign buyers snap up U.S. real estate
By Stephanie Armour, USA TODAY
My take:
Are there foreigners out there buying? Of course there are - there always have been! Foreigners are also leary about buying in this market because of all the negative publicity. No one wants to buy in a sinking market.
And while people like to lament that “eveyone’s a real estate agent”, I find that “everyone’s a writer” (including some ex-real estate agents). With the ease of publishing today, anyone can write a story and, using the right buzzwords, get it picked up. It’s amazing to me how many non-relevent stories get picked up by my Google Alerts where writers insert the work Hamptons in there, just to get the piece picked up by SEO.
That’s why, in my opinion, so many of these dramatic, “the world is ending” and Foreigners Gone Wild for US Real Estate” stories get picked up. Editors and publishers are looking for eyeballs and writers who deliver that get kudos -the integrity of our media has gone down the toilet, just like a lot of other things in the digital world.
As my friend Dave’s mom said to him and I when we were both getting divorced; ‘Well boys, now you did it, and now you’ve got to live with it”.
I’m livin’ with it…
I just got my “PLATINUM EDITION” of THE HAMPTONS DICTIONARY, by Miles Jaffe.
Miles (by the way, the name i wanted to change mine to when I was a kid, but my mother told me I wasn’t allowed because tere was no “Saint Miles”. Oh well…) Jaffe takes all the loathing and cynicism that any local can muster and puts it into this great little package. The book is also timely, due to “the new frugality” although THD will set you back 17.95us, 21.95can and 9.99uk.
todays definition: spec house n.
A house designed and built for maximum profit
without concern for function, quality, durability,
ease of maintainence, etc. See McMansion.
get your own copy at: www.hamptonsdictionary.com
Loreto Mexico is located approximately 400 km North of the tip of the Baja Peninsula between the Sea of Cortez and the Sierra de la Giganta Mountains. The stunning and diverse terrain is like no other in the Baja. There is much biological diversity and varied geological points of interest. The Sea of Cortez coastline at Loreto is home to reefs, mountains, caverns, bays, islands and coves. This natural paradise has been protected as a National Maritime Park since 2000 and is home to many aquatic wonders such as: starfish, sea urchins, killer whales, fan coral, mother-of-pearl, blue whales, dolphins and sea lions.
see the rest of the blogpost here
Did you know that the average listing price for the Top 100 listings in the Hamptons is nearly $20,000,000?
That’s pretty amazing. Here’s a look at the Top Listings:
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One of the Hamptons last great properties. |
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Situated on over 60 acres of rolling farmland, this remarkable waterfront compound has been designed and built with a commitment to excellence. A magnificent collaboration between three brilliant architects, each a master of his field. The architect of record, Allan Greenberg, L.L.D., is regarded as one of the prime interpreters of classicism who has worked on The White House, Princeton University, and Rockefeller Center. The Golf Course (U.S.G.A. rated 18 hole) was designed by renowned golf-course architect Rees Jones, designer of many of the highly-rated courses including Atlantic Golf Club and The Bridge. Landscape architect Edmund D. Hollander, P.C., is among the foremost designers in his field. His inspired transformation of the terrain of this unique property is already legendary. The Gardens, 14 in all, include a traditional English cottage garden, a crabapple allee, a lily walk, a potager (French for vegetable gardens) as well as hydrangea, butterfly and world class rose gardens. Green carpeted grounds are punctuated by three pristine ponds and dock all stocked with bass, perch and pickerel. The 75 ft. flush edge pool with its own pavilion and the grass tennis court and are the definition of leisurely living. Hamptons-based Breitenbach Builders was responsible for executing the plans. The firm incorporated the highest caliber of materials, craftsmanship and unsurpassable quality in this prestigious project. Internationally acclaimed interior designer Michael Christiano added a master’s finesse. Outbuildings include a beautiful guest cottage on 4 acres, pool house, storage silo, barns, pro shop and a unique fish house and Orangerie. |
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Westerly is one of the largest and most celebrated estates on the eastern end of Long Island. Ideally situated in the Estate Section of Southampton, this equisite estate represents the essence of luxury living for the most discerning. Built in 1929 and designed by the firm Hiss & Weekes, this exquisite, 25-room mansion sits on 13.6 acres of vast meadows, formal gardens and specimen trees set behind privacy gates and hedges. Constructed of red antique brick and slate roof, the estate is a classic tale of lavish living inside and out. Beautiful brick terraces, pool pavilion and tennis court cater to privileged summers by the ocean, while grand interior spaces with restored original details and fireplaces are ideal for the most extravagant entertaining. Exclusive. |
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This Extraordinary 12,000 square feet estate is brand new and under construction. This mansion sits on over two acres and has exceptional pondfront views. Includes nine bedrooms, eight fireplaces, magnificent master bedroom, full basement, pool/guest house and much more. |
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Celebrated for its beauty, this expansive waterfront estate is distinctively refined. Majestically overlooking the pristine waters of Quantuck Bay in Westhampton Beach stands a spectacular residence whose sense of elegance and luxury is so impressive that it is truly one of the grandest ever built on the east end of Long Island. The Shingle Style manor house, on 10.37 acres with 1,000′ of water frontage, was built in 1903 for William C. Atwater, a coal baron. He commissioned the architect Henry Bacon, formerly of McKim, Mead & White and best known for his design for the Lincoln Memorial in Washington DC. The main house comprises c. 16,000 square-feet on three floors, with 24 rooms, 6 fireplaces, nine bedrooms, nine full and two half-baths. Exquisite architectural detail, restored original millwork and generously proportioned rooms afford elegant formal entertainment as well as comfortable family relaxation. Superior craftsmanship has been meticulously maintained and adds to the uniquely gracious atmosphere of this historic treasure. From a graceful entry with a sweeping, three-story staircase, a welcoming reception area proceeds to a splendid living room with fireplace and a banquet-sized formal dining room with hand-painted murals and fireplace. A large gourmet kitchen with a waterside casual dining area, an inviting billiards room, sunroom, second-floor office and sitting room and a third-floor living room provide the ultimate in luxurious living spaces. Panoramic water views abound from nearly every room. Offering further accommodations are the poolside original carriage house, covered with century-old grape vines, a guest cottage and the two-story gardener’s house, with a separate driveway, three bedrooms, two baths and living room with fireplace. True to its magnificent setting, the grounds are without peer. Sixty-four century-old catalpa trees line the estate and the main driveway, while sumptuous formal gardens, manicured lawns, a Lord & Burnham greenhouse, Har-Tru tennis court and a 56 gunite pool with spa provide a wonderfully tranquil lifestyle. Excellent boating on the bay is accessed from a deep-water dock, with yacht clubs, ocean beaches and the open Atlantic just a short sail, kayak or motor away. A Brown Harris Stevens Exclusive Offering. Please contact us for more details. |
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Important oceanfront estate on 2.5 acres with 220± ft directly on the beach in the most sought-after prime estate location in East Hampton. Updated 5,500± sq ft traditional house originally built in 1914 with ground floor ocean views, 8 bedrooms, living room, dining room, skylit studio, oceanside pool and pool house. Generous building envelope would permit construction of a 12,000 sq ft residence and tennis court. |
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Set on over 35 acres between the Atlantic Ocean, a freshwater pond and fields and meadows, with 400 feet of ocean frontage, this extraordinary residence is the ultimate retreat. The 7000 square contemporary residence was built to the highest standards, with such featurees as a tiled roof and 3500 square feet of mahagony decking. On 3 levels there are 5 bedrooms, including a sumptuous master suite and 5 baths, stunning living and dining rooms with 16 foot ceilings and walls of glass overlooking the ocean and grounds. There’s a a chef’s kitchen, breakfast room, office and impressive screening room with state of the art JBL system and Creston control. The grounds are spectacular bordered by sagebrush with fragrant white blossoms in the spring, blazing scarlet foliage in the fall and an idyllic flower lined grassy path that leads through private gates to the beach. This is truly the ultimate retreat, a true oceanfront oasis. |
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First offering of published residential compound perched on 4 acres (subdivided to two 2-acre lots) above the shoreline with spectacular ocean views and 315 ft directly on a wide sandy beach. Custom built to the highest standards with 7500 sq ft main house plus 2500 sq ft separate guest house. State-of-the art screening room, high-tech gym, luxurious natural materials throughout, infinity edge pool, hot tub. Private path to beach. |
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Bridgehampton. Originally built in 1898 by local nobility Dr. John Gardiner and named Dulce Domum, this country residence was set upon a twenty-acre parcel two hundred feet above sea level. The soaring vistas viewed southerly across the farm fields to the ocean and north to the Connecticut shore from the 50 ft. observation tower are breathtaking. 475 tons of local rock was used for the base foundation of this twelve bedroom compound, which consists of the considerable main house with multi-level stone terraces, a substantial guest house with a greenhouse conservatory overlooking a botanical nursery and a palatial gunite pool, a substantial barn artist studio with gym, living quarters with a four car heated garage. Lovingly restored and renovated in 1998 accommodating every modern amenity conceivable for a first class life stye. This dignified gated property consists of three single and separate parcels all organic, which consummates rolling distinguished lawns, walking paths, gardens and tennis retreat with basketball court and playground. A most exclusive safe haven of luxuriousness! |
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