Wednesday, July 14, 2021
House Porn
Posted By Babs De Lay on July 14, 2021, 4:00 AM
I didn't have television for years. Then my clients started talking about this "HGTV" and all these programs about flipping houses and million dollar listings. So, I signed up for cable and of course, like many of you, my brain has turned to mush. I have not, however, gotten addicted to house porn—watching all the home shows, and cruising various websites to view dream houses I could never buy in Manhattan, Hawaii, Mexico, etc. Why? Because I live and breathe looking at homes seven days a week! I do have agent friends all over the country, and I love talking to them about their markets and sales prices and the crazy stories that often go with multi-million dollar properties.
New York City is all abuzz this past month after the biggest transaction so far this year closed at 220 Central Park South. The buyer purchased two floors in the building for a mere $157.5 million. It is right in the center of what is known as "Billionaires' Row," where insanely high glass residential towers have been erected on and around Central Park. And on the West Coast—where my granddaughter is now apprenticing at a real estate firm in Los Angeles—some multi-million dollar mansions have traded hands. Barron Hilton's (as in hotels, and now deceased) Bel-Air estate closed escrow for $61.5 million. It was designed by an architect who worked for Frank Sinatra and Lucille Ball, and had 13,000 square feet, 13 bedrooms, 17 bathrooms and was known for its famous Moderne-inspired swimming pool with a blue, gold and yellow tiled pool depicting the 12 signs of the Zodiac.
The highest sale reported so far this year by the Wasatch Front Regional MLS was in Park City in the Colony Project at White Pine. This subdivision is the most expensive place to live in Utah. The buyer paid $14.1 million for a three-level (9,282 square feet per floor) 14 bedroom, 21 bath home with an 18-car garage on just over five acres. And of course, the luxury home has all the bells and whistles you'd expect in a millionaire's residence: multiple bars, a movie theater, sauna, spa, gym and a 3,000-bottle wine cellar. The highest listed home on our MLS is the $69.2 million Deer Hollow Ranch in New Harmony, Utah. The mansion sits on 800 acres and touts a dozen reservoirs of water and plenty of water rights. The Tudor style home was built in 1985 with 11 bedrooms and 13 bathrooms.
Now that you've picked your jaw off your chest, the flip side of this is my poor buyer who wants to purchase their first home and doesn't bring home a lot of money each month. Right now, the WFRMLS reports only two homes listed under $250,000 in the entire Salt Lake County area, and eight homes listed between $251,000 and $300,000. Given that home prices have gone up a minimum of 20% over the last year, I'm afraid if we don't find something soon he will be priced out of the market...forever!
About The Author
Babs De Lay
A full-time broker/owner of Urban Utah Homes and Estates, Babs De Lay serves on the Salt Lake City Historic Landmark Commission. A writer and golfer, you'll find them working as a staff guardian at the Temple at Burning Man each year.
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