Friday Real Estate Porn: A Mansion Grows in Riverdale

For the past several weeks now, New York magazine has featured this mansion in their Elegant Environs showcase.  This mansion is in Riverdale which sounds like the place that Archie, Betty and Veronica grew up. Actually it's the posh section of the Bronx,or the Uber Bronx, as I like to call it.  People who live in Riverdale like to pretend that they don't live in the Bronx, that they actually live in Westchester. It used to be easier to do when Riverdale had a 212 area code, but since the 90's they've had to make do with 718 like the rest of the Bronx.  There are 3 really good but expensive private schools in the area, Fieldston, Riverdale Country and Horace Mann, schools that actually have campuses unlike the private schools in Manhattan.

According to the Prudential Elliman site, this mansion which is a steal at $13.6M has 7 bedrooms which doesn't sound like a lot.  Here's the description from Elliman:

"European elegance & American craftsmanship abound in this circa 1928 mansion situated on approx. 2.5 acres on the highest point in Riverdale. This majestic mansion comprises approx. 14,000 sq. ft. contained in 3 stories + an above-ground basement & a 4th floor windowed attic. The main floor comprises a grand foyer, living room, dining room, library & billiards rooms, each with wood-burning fireplaces, music room, gourmet kitchen, guest bathroom, wet bar & conservatory. A sweeping staircase leads to the 2nd floor comprising 2 master bedrooms, each with wood-burning fireplaces & each with en-suite master bathrooms. There is a 3rd bedroom with en-suite bathroom & a gym/4th bedroom with en-suite bathroom & sauna. The 3rd floor comprises 2 bedrooms & 1 bathroom. There are 7 heating & AC zones. Taxes are $45,000 p.a. Offered for sale under a long-term land lease + options for another 99 years"

If say I won Powerball ($112 million this week), I might buy this place and turn it into a writer's colony like Yaddo near Saratoga.  Invite say 7 writers of historical and romance fiction to come and stay for a week or two.  Can you imagine the meals at that dining table?

Or hanging out in the conservatory afterwards, playing Trivial Pursuit, or hanging out in the in-house bar area?

The gorgeous front hall. Lookat that magnificent staircase! Can you imagine sliding down the banister? Seriously I would open this house for photo shoots and films. 

The house from the back seen at night.

Friday Real Estate Porn - The Houses of the Duke of Buccleuch and Queensbury

On Wednesday, I had the privilege of attending a dinner held at the Metropolitan Club here in New York by the National Trust of Scotland. The guest of honor was the 10th Duke of Buccleuch who is also the 12th Duke of Queensbury, and the head of Clan Scott (Sir Walter Scott was a distant relative). Yes, he is a double duke (There are only a few dukes who are double Duke's, they include The Duke of Hamilton and Brandon, The Duke of Atholl, and the Duke of Richmond, Gordon and Lennox). Despite the plethora of Dukes in romantic fiction, currently there are only 26 non-royal dukes in the UK. The Duke of Buccleuch is the largest private landowner in the UK (after the Queen), he owns 4 houses, 3 in Scotland and 1 in England. He also has a pretty sizeable art collection including a Da Vinci valued at 30 million pounds that was stolen a few years ago and recently returned.

According to Wikipedia, he's descended from Charles II's son The Duke of Monmouth who married the daughter of the Earl of Buccleuch.  The King made Monmouth, Duke of Buccleuch and also made his wife Duchess in her own right. For some reason, probably because he died in the rebellion after Charles II's death, I assumed that he died without issue, but he and his wife had 8 children. The Dukedom of Queensbury was added when one of the Duke's married the daughter of the Duke of Queensbury.  For those who are interested, the current Duke has a son, his heir, the Earl of Dalkeith who is 25 and single.

Bowhill

Boughton House

Drumlanrig Castle

This is the Duke's principal seat. 3 Nights at the castle went for something like $12,000 at the silent auction

This is Dalkeith, just outside of Edinburgh, which is let to the University of Wisonsin, for their study aborad program. Yes, 60-70 students get to live in a ducal estate while they study.

Friday Real Estate Porn: Gerard Butler's Chelsea Loft

Since it's Tartan Week, and I adore Gerard Butler, he's this week's Real Estate Porn. Or at least his Chelsea Loft is. If I wasn't madly in lust with the man before, seeing his New York apartment in the May issue of Architectural Digest sealed the deal. This apartment is amazing. You can check out the slideshow here. Pay particular attention to the kitchen. It's the stuff that Harlequin Blaze and Presents are made of. Not only did I have dreams of the fantastic meals I could cook there, but also many lascivious things that he could do to me in the kitchen, particularly on the island thingie in the middle. Not to mention the gorgeous hardwood dining room table or the gothic bedroom with the giant fourposter bed.

Hold on while I take a cold drink of water.

On a lightly less lustful note, Architectural Digest is a great magazine if you are looking for interiors for your tycoon hero or wealthy heroine in a contemporary romance.  Also in this issue is Sting and Trudy Styler's London home (which in my humble opinion, they've ruined by redoing the interior and making it modern), a country house hotel on the Hudson in Upstate New York once owned by the Goelet family and Robert Zemeckis' villa in Tuscany.

Check it out.  The cost of the magazine is $5.99 which is not cheap but worth it.

Friday Real Estate Porn - LaLaurie House

Just read on Luxist that one of the houses that Nicolas Cage owned in New Orleans is for sale again. The LaLaurie house is at 1100 Royal Street in the Quarter and it has quite the Scandalous past which I will probably write about over at my other blog Scandalous Women. Delphine LaLaurie, who owned it, was found to have kept her slaves chained in her attic in wretched conditions. It wasn't discovered until there was a fire in the house. A mob demanded vengeance but the LaLaurie's just moved to Mandeville where Delphine died in 1842. The house is considered to be haunted. It's on the market again for $.2.9M but I would suggest that you have someone come in and burn some sage or a seance or something before moving in just in case.

You can read more abou tthe house here.

Friday Real Estate Porn: San Francisco Victorians

I love old Victorian houses and luckily New York still has a few of them in Brooklyn and Queens. But some of the loveliest are in San Franciso. Check out this beauty on Steiner Street. According to Bonnie Spindler, The Victorian Specialist's website:

RARELY AVAILABLE! Built in 1892, 722 Steiner is known worldwide as the anchor of the Painted Ladies of Postcard Row. Featured in over 70 movies, TV shows & ads, including the 1980's series Full House. Elegantly restored by current owners, the home is 4 levels, including an in-law with private entrance on the ground floor and an attic suite, with full bath. Stained glass windows, hi-ceilings, Bradbury wallpaper, moldings, medallions, wainscoting, 4 fps & Views! Once in a lifetime opportunity!

Rumor had it that this was the house that was featured in the opening credits of Full House but real estate blog Zillow.com disputes that and claims it was another house entirely. The house is listed on Spindler's web-site for $4M which is really a bargain because the house is in mint-condition and has a stained glass window to die for.

Friday Real Estate Porn - Chateau Lyon

Isn't it a lovely French chateau? Well, it may look like a French chateau but it is actually located here in the States, in Lake Norman, North Carolina. Thanks to Luxist for bringing this lovely property to my attention. Apparently the owners want $15 million for it. Seriously if you have that kind of money, why not just buy a real French chateau in France? Unless of course, you don't like the French!

Here's the description from the Sotheby's web-site: "Introducing......Chateau Lyon. Ancient craftmanship in a modern masterpiece. Incredibly ornate details, from the Biblical Stone in the Grand Foyer to the imported French Limestone walls. Hand carved Mexican pinon stone surround all exterior windows/doors. Pecky Cypress eaves and ceiling on the Loggia and Grand Salon, Palm Court, kitchen, master bath and morning room. Upper level flooring is of 250 year old heart pine. Antique European Roof Tiles. Centuries-old hand carved restored doors. French Boisiere style adorns this magnificiant estate. Italian chandelier in the Palm Court, zinc coated copper roof flashing, hand forged Mar-a-Lago balcony, hand cut Texas Limestone foundation walls, original iron balcony grill from the 1880's, all compliment this 5 bedroom 6 bath work of art. Timeless in design, but completely modern in terms of efficiency and upgrades, as there are 13 heating/cooling zones, Generac generator, and equiped with Creston Home Control and Automation Solutions."

It's lovely and the Luxist site has many more pretty pictures of the inside of the chateau. Apparently the owners traveled all over Europe to find bits and pieces to decorate their chateau.  I'd still rather have the real thing, a chateau in France!

Friday Real Estate Porn: The Apthorp

Anyone who lives on the Upper West Side has passed the Apthorp. It has been standing on the corner of 79th and Broadway since 1908 (see the photo above when the Upper West Side really was like living in the middle of nowhere.)  For the longest time, the building was under rent control, meaning that the landlords could only raise the rents so much. In 2008 the building, which had been rental, became a condominium. The asking prices, nearly $3,000 a square foot, or an average of $6.5 million per apartment, make it "one of the most expensive condominium conversion projects" ever, according to the New York Times.

Notable residents have included Nora Ephron, Al Pacino, Gelsey Kirkland, Conan O’Brien, Cyndi Lauper, Rosie O’Donnell, 60 Minutes’ Steve Kroft, Rita Moreno from West Side Story, Barry Farber of talk radio fame, and newsman Roger Grimsby.

Take a look here at their fabulous web-site. The Apthorp is one of the premiere luxury apartment buildings on the Upper West Side along with the Dakota, the Belnord and the Ansonia. It's also one of the few to occupy a whole block. According to the brochure: "The Apthorp was modeled after The Pitti Palace in Florence and brought to vibrant life by William Waldorf Astor, with his architects, Clinton and Russell. All the grandeur of New York’s Gilded Age is expressed in this exquisite building. The Apthorp was one of Manhattan’s first grand apartment houses, the world’s largest residential building at its creation. The same creativity continues with the current restoration that reinstates the building’s original splendor."

Wow! Seriously if I won mega-millions I would be happy to live in the apartment that only has 3.5 rooms let alone be greedy enough to own a 6 room apartment in this building. You are not only living in a fabulous building, you are living in a piece of NY history.

Friday Real Estate Porn: French Chateau

While trolling through the property listings on the Country Life magazine web-site, I saw this little beauty. A genuine French chateau near Toulouse.  Here are the deets from the estate agency web-site:

"For sale Auvergne Puy de Dome historical Relais Château Hotel, Situated in the heart of the dramatic volcanic landscape. Built in the 12th century as a lookout tower the Castle was enlarged in the 15th century and since then it became the residence of French noble families. The property is decorated in the Haute Epoque style with Trompe L’Oeil l fresco’s in the bedrooms. The three storey Castle has elevations of stone under a pitched roof with 3 turrets and 2 towers and a cellar. Outside there is a 2 bedroom and 2 bathroom cottage overlooking the Castle and an additional building for receptions positioned by the swimming pool. In total there are 19 bedrooms in the main building comprising 15 rooms and 5 suites. For sale and currently operated as a luxury Relais Chateau Hotel with gastronomic restaurant (1 Michelin star). Externally there is a helipad area with the capacity for 5 helicopters, a swimming pool and a tennis court. The property is on a plot of 7 hectares. Sale price €6 500 000."

You can see more pictures at the Jonathan Charles web-site. I'm thinkin gthat the cost is over 6 million Euros, which comes out to be like $8 million dollars at the current exchange rate. And look it's a hotel, which you can keep it as. Who wouldn't love to own their own French hotel with a 1 star Michelin restaurant? Now if I could only get a Top Chef to run it. I wonder what Sam Talbott is doing these days?

Friday Real Estate Porn: 455 Central Park West

Have you ever wanted to live in a castle? I know that I do, unfortunately castles in New York are rather thin on the ground. So, I was intrigued a few years ago during the transit strike when I was walking down Central Park West in the freezing cold and I saw this building. "Where have you been all my life?" I thought. A few weeks later when I was browsing through real estate listings, I saw one for this building. 455 Central Park West. The apartments are mucho expensive, the only two that are still available cost between $4-6MM and the maintenance plus the taxes are a whopping $4,000 a month.

The building was featured in Linda Fairstein's lastest legal thriller. A dealer in rare maps lives here. Apparently the building used to be the New York Cancer hospital before someone bought it and decided to turn it into condos. The interiors from the web-site 455CPW are stunning. Most of the apartments have walk-in closets, bathrooms that you could spend all day in, and views of Central Park. Of course, if I won mega-millions and I bought a place here, I would want to be in the old part of the building and not the new addition that they added on.

Of course, the building has a health club with an olympic size swimming pool, as well as saunas, and the usual accoutrement. Plus, it also has a private garden where residents can hang out, if they don't want to cross the Street to the Park. The only problem is that the nearest subway stops are not close and 103rd Street is not the greatest part of Central Park West, so the prices are a little high compared to the rest of the neighborhood. Not that would stop me from living here if I could only afford it.

Friday Real Estate Porn - International Edition

I found this delightful little property on The Country Life magazine web-site. It's in Cheshire, and selling for 2.4 million pounds (translates to about $5M), which when you think about is quit the steal. Particularly when you consider that two bedroom apartments go for more than in New York! The web-site describes it as "An exceptional country house in extensive private grounds on the outskirts of Chester. There is also an excellent converted Coach House and a range of traditional outbuildings available in addition."

The house has 8 bedrooms, and 3 bathrooms, plus 3 reception rooms. From the pictures on the web-site the kitchen is gorgeous but small. There aren't a lot of pictures, mainly of two of the reception rooms. Apparently, the original part of the Field House is believed to have been built by the Earl of Shrewsbury in the first half of the 17th Century, so this house is pretty old. In the 1890's it was redeveloped by a renowned Victorian architect John Douglas.

I could easily see living in this house with say, my new husband, James Purefoy (I bet you thought I was going to say Richard Armitage!). He can take some of that money he made on Rome to buy the house. We would, of course, only there on the weekends, keeping our house in London. I would have a lovely writing room on the second floor, where I would write meticulously researched romance novels about the American "Dollar Princesses" who married into the English aristocracy, while hubby swanned off to make movies and television series.

Perhaps we would even develop one about Beau Brummel as a detective based on the series of novels. After all this is a fantasy right? Or I would adapt one of Georgette Heyer's books so that he could star (anything to get him into those Regency tight pants), since all of the Jane Austen novels have been adapted for television.

Sigh, I so need to win Mega Millions!