Restoration Hardware CEO Selling Catalog-Worthy Spread in Napa

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In perfect alignment with Restoration Hardware’s monochromatic hues (think grays, tans, and creamy whites) is a modern Napa Valley estate owned by company CEO Gary Friedman.

For fans of the luxe décor brand, his home is a dream come true. The entire spread, called “Eight Palms,” is being offered fully furnished by Restoration Hardware’s design team—and stocked with the brand’s products (yep, even the flatware).

Listed for $8.5 million with Ginger Martin at Ginger Martin & Co., the 5,770-square-foot estate on a 1-acre lot in Saint Helena has six bedrooms and six baths.

The kitchen includes a wine vault.

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The open-concept dining and living room is ideally suited for entertaining.

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Friedman paid $5.9 million for the property in 2013. Oenophiles will love the floor-to-ceiling wine vault in the kitchen. It appears to hold more bottles than most restaurants.

Ideal for entertaining, the light and airy dining room can comfortably seat 12. The four love seats adjacent to the dining table are the perfect spot for a glass of dessert wine. Just be mindful of the white slipcovers!

Bathroom with twin vanities

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Matching walk-in, glass-walled showers

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Alfresco massage? Yes, please!

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There’s an in-home gym and a massage room with a view. The bathrooms are nothing short of luxurious; one features matching vanities and showers, which would make any power couple feel on top of the world during a postworkout rinse.

The guesthouse

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Outdoor shower

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The outdoor living space includes two seating and dining areas off the main house. They have just the right amount of sun, but not too much.

The guesthouse features four chaise loungers in the front. Another rare perk, even in luxury abodes, is the outdoor shower, where fluffy white towels are neatly folded on top of a faux tree stump.

Pool and spa

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Stocked by Renovation Hardware’s design team, the home comes fully furnished and move-in ready.

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Homeowners Are Again Pocketing Cash as They Refinance Properties

Associated Press

Americans refinancing their mortgages are taking cash out in the process at levels not seen since the financial crisis.

Nearly half of borrowers who refinanced their homes in the first quarter chose the cash-out option, according to data released this week by Freddie Mac. That is the highest level since the fourth quarter of 2008.

The cash-out level is still well below the almost 90% peak hit in the run-up to the housing meltdown. But it is up sharply from the post-crisis nadir of 12% in the second quarter of 2012.

In a cash-out refi, a borrower refinances an existing mortgage with a new one, typically at a lower borrowing cost, that has a higher principal balance than the existing one. This allows the homeowner to pay off the old mortgage and still have cash left over for other uses.

The growing popularity of cash-out refis has helped buoy refinance activity. After booming for several years, demand for refinance mortgages had begun to slow as the Federal Reserve began increasing short-term interest rates and longer-term bond yields moved higher.

Mortgage rates remain low by historical standards, though. The average rate for a fixed, 30-year mortgage was 3.95%, Freddie Mac reported this week.

Meanwhile, rising home prices have helped increase the equity homeowners have in their houses. This allows more people to refinance to capture the benefit of lower mortgage rates.

And borrowers whose homes are rising in value are often more likely to be interested in refinancing for cash. For example, in Denver and Dallas, where home prices have jumped, more than half of refinancers opted for cash last year, according to Freddie Mac.

To some housing-market observers, the fact that more homeowners are tapping their homes for cash represents a healthy confidence in the economy. It comes against a backdrop of continued gains in employment.

At the same time, the increasing use of cash-out refis causes some concern since, in the run-up to the financial crisis, borrowers used their homes like veritable ATMs.

Len Kiefer, Freddie Mac’s deputy chief economist, says this time has been different. Borrowers now are subject to stricter standards when they get a loan or refinance a mortgage. There is also less money at stake now than a decade ago.

Cash-out refis in the first quarter represented about $14 billion in net home equity compared with more than $80 billion in each of three straight quarters in 2006. On an annual basis, total home equity cashed out in 2016 was $61 billion, according to Freddie Mac, versus $321 billion in 2006.

And despite the recent increase in users, the proportion of refinancers opting for cash is much lower than in pre-crisis days, when it peaked at nearly 90% in mid-2006.

What’s more, consumer balance sheets are far stronger than they were a decade ago. Mortgage debt-service payments as a percentage of disposable personal income fell to 4.4% in the fourth quarter of 2016, according to Federal Reserve data. That is the lowest level since early 1980.

“People have been using cash-out for years,” Mr. Kiefer said. “From a personal-finance standpoint, it can make a lot of sense.”

One example is a borrower using the cash from a refinance to consolidate credit-card debt that has far higher yields. That in many cases can produce a big savings in debt-servicing costs by replacing debt that has double-digit interest rates with a loan that has a rate in the low single digits.

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How Obama Is Reviving Chicago Real Estate: Hills, Grills, and a Library Like No Other

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Now that we’ve gotten a peek at Barack Obama‘s presidential library, to be built on Chicago’s South Side, we have to say: What a place it will be! After unveiling sketches of the Obama Presidential Center (as it’s formally known) to a Chicago crowd this month, the former commander in chief pointed out that the glass-and-steel structure will be flanked by a sledding hill (since Michelle grew up in the neighborhood and missed out because of the flat terrain), a community garden, and maybe even food trucks and barbecue grills.

“We don’t have any folks who grill here?” Obama asked when that last feature prompted chuckles in the audience. “I thought this was the South Side of Chicago!”

OK, so maybe the grills were just a joke. But Obama does seem committed to shedding the stodgy vibe that’s plagued older presidential libraries. As he explained, “We don’t want to see some big building that’s dead, and kids are getting dragged to it for a field trip. … What we wanted was something that was alive, and that was a hub for the community.”

Speaking of community, what effects could this presidential center have on local real estate?

How a library can quietly change real estate A rendering of the proposed Obama Presidential Center

Scott Olson/Getty Images

Although the Obama Presidential Center isn’t expected to be completed for four years, home prices in the area are already picking up. According to real estate agents cited in a recent Chicago Sun-Times article on the center’s local impact, the average sales price of homes in the area has risen from about $226,000 last July to $255,000 today—an 11% increase. And agents we spoke to anticipate that this upward trend will continue.

“I do think that real estate prices in South Shore will increase by about 10% to 15%,” Sheila Dantzler, a veteran broker with Chicago-based Related Realty, tells realtor.com®. Her reason: “An attraction like the Obama library will draw people who live in Chicago who may have never even been to South Shore or south of Hyde Park. They will see it is a lovely lakefront community. People who would have never considered living on the South Side may now have a positive perspective and realize how much more they can get for the money.”

And real estate agents are already using the presidential center as a selling point. For instance, when Baird & Warner broker Diane Freeman shows buyers 12th-story apartments in Jackson Towers—four blocks north of the proposed construction site—she tells them, “You’ll be able to see the library.”

Meanwhile, agent Hasani Steele has invoked the center to convince buyers who were on the fence about the South Side’s sketchy, crime-ridden past. “A year ago, [buyers] would have questioned it—the location,” Steele told the Sun-Times. “I talked about the Obama library, and that sealed it for them. It gives people confidence.”

In other words, if you’ve been thinking of purchasing property in this section of Chicago’s South Side, you’d better act soon! As Freeman tells realtor.com, “Since interest will only build, my advice to buyers is to make an investment now.”

How many jobs (and money) can one library make? A view of Jackson Park, facing north

Obama Foundation

How can one library, even with a presidential pedigree, persuade people to put down roots nearby? For one, the impact could stretch far beyond the building itself.

According to a study by the University of Chicago and Anderson Economic Group, Obama’s center will create, for starters, almost 3,300 construction jobs. And once it is built, the study estimates that it will attract 100,000 people per year who would otherwise not bother to visit the area, resulting in 30 new restaurants, 11 new stores, and an annual economic impact of $220 million and 1,900 new jobs.

And let’s not forget about infrastructure.

“Infrastructure improvements like new roads and beautiful landscaping are always good things for a neighborhood, especially in some South Side communities where these things are often neglected,” points out Dantzler.

Designs of the Obama Presidential Center

JOSHUA LOTT/AFP/Getty Images

For another perspective on the impact of a presidential library on local real estate, Obama could look south, to Texas.

“I live in the community where George H.W. Bush‘s presidential library is located,” says Wendy Flynn, a Realtor® in College Station, TX. “Since this library is located on a large parcel of land not adjacent to any residential areas, I don’t think that we can make a direct correlation to real estate prices. However, the library does drive tourism dollars to our community, and has been a great part of the overall growth and development of the university—which, in turn, has increased enrollment and created a tremendous real estate boom in our area.”

Joseph Cahoon, director of the Folsom Institute for Real Estate at the Cox School of Business, Southern Methodist University, agrees that these libraries need to be situated within residential areas to truly change a neighborhood.

The Bush library “is a valued treasure to the City of Dallas and to the SMU Campus, as we would all agree, but I cannot reasonably assume that its location would have a positive effect on neighboring home prices, as it is truly a destination for visitors rather than an integrated community center,” Cahoon says.

Hear that, President Obama? Just make sure your library isn’t just a tourist trap, but a place where locals can really hang out (maybe those grills weren’t such a bad idea after all).

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Artist Chuck Close Picks Up Picturesque Miami Condo for $3.4M

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Famed artist Chuck Close closed on an upscale beachfront condo in Miami Beach, FL, where he spends the winter as a New York snowbird.

Early in his career, Close was known for making photorealistic portraits so detailed it was hard to tell if they were photographs or not. Later, after a medical condition left him largely paralyzed, his artwork transitioned into large portraits using unconventional media.

In January, he purchased a 1,316-square-foot, two-bedroom, two-bath condo in Miami for $3.4 million. He’s a big fan of the building—it’s the second unit he’s purchased there so far, listing agent Lourdes Gutierrez said.

The apartment is located at the Setai Miami, an upscale, 40-story building completed in 2004. It operates as a full-service condo hotel, where buyers can place their units into a hotel rental pool (and generate income when they’re not around) or keep them exclusively for themselves.

Living room

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Balcony

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Close’s 25th-floor unit features floor-to-ceiling windows in each room, offering amazing views of Miami Beach’s golden sand, palm trees, and azure waters. A balcony with glass railing runs the length of the unit.

The unit was recently renovated and upgraded to one of the Setai’s top interior design packages. The kitchen has custom cabinets, stainless-steel appliances, and dark countertops. The master bedroom has a floor-to-ceiling headboard with built-in lighting. Both bathrooms have dark-tiled walk-in showers. The master bath has a separate soaking tub.

Kitchen

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Master bedroom

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The apartment was listed in mid-January for $4.2 million, which means Close picked it up for $800,000 less than the asking price.

The post Artist Chuck Close Picks Up Picturesque Miami Condo for $3.4M appeared first on Real Estate News & Insights | realtor.com®.

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Pending-Home Sales Decline Again, Deepening Housing Market Funk

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A gauge of home purchase contract signings slumped for a second month in April, another sign the housing market is still struggling for a balance between supply and demand.

The pending home sales index from the National Association of Realtors fell 1.3% to a level of 109.8 from a downwardly-revised March reading. The index was 3.3% lower than a year ago in April, marking the first yearly decline since December. Economists had forecast a 0.5% increase in April.

The index forecasts future sales by tracking real estate transactions in which a contract has been signed, but the deal has not yet closed.

Housing inventory is tightening and affordability declining, nudging contract activity down. Homes are coming off the market much more quickly than new listings are being added, NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun noted in a release.

The Realtors forecast 5.64 million previously-owned home sales in 2017, up 3.5% from 2016 and marking the best year for sales since the housing slump started in 2006.

In April, the pending-home sales index for the Northeast dipped 1.7%, and the index for the Midwest fell 4.7%. In the South, the index was down 2.7%. The West was the only region to notch an increase in April, with a 5.8% rise – although it’s still lower than a year ago.

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Albany-area home prices increasing as inventory shrinks

Home sale prices are rising in the Albany, New York, area as a shrinking supply of new and existing homes is creating an extremely competitive market for buyers. The median price in April increased 6 percent, to $195,000, and the average price went up 2 percent, to $219,662, compared to a year ago, according to preliminary data released today by the Greater Capital Association of Realtors. The inventory of homes fell 24 percent to 4,963 units. If no other homes were listed, the inventory would…

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America’s Most—and Least—Affordable Beach Towns, 2017 Edition

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It’s the American summertime real estate fantasy.

When the mercury starts rising again from coast to coast, we start dreaming about having a home right by the beach—close enough to enjoy a morning walk by the water and to hear the waves crashing at night. Epic sandcastles. Cookouts on the beach. Second-degree sunburn. What’s not to love?

Well, the down payment, for one. And the mortgage, for another. But let’s keep the dream alive! Even if you have trouble swinging the cost of a beachfront home in the Hamptons, South Beach, or Malibu, it doesn’t mean owning a place with a soul-soothing view of clear, blue waters is off the table.

The United States’ 95,471 miles of shoreline offer a diverse array of sun-and-sand options, many of which might be well within financial reach. So to help you turn your sun-baked dreams into reality, we’re revisiting our ranking of America’s top 10 budget-friendly beach towns.

To narrow the selection, the realtor.com® data team donned water wings and took a dip into median home prices in beach towns with 1,000 to 100,000 residents and that have at least 30 properties on the market. We limited the list to two towns per state, separated by at least 30 miles, to provide some geographic diversity.

Some of our top picks won’t ring a bell, but that’s a good thing—they’re less likely to be clogged with tourists, hoity-toity neighbors, and overpriced artisanal ice cream cones. In other words, you’re practically guaranteed a peaceful seaside getaway. Possibly one with lots of upside potential on the resale side.

Let’s dive in! And if envy is your thing, keep reading after our most affordable beach town list—for the least affordable list.

1. Atlantic City, NJ

Median home price: $117,500

The Atlantic City boardwalk

r_drewek/iStock

With towering resort hotels, beaches, and a beloved boardwalk, Atlantic City is among the most famous beach towns in America. Surprise: It’s also one of the most affordable.

The low prices are, in part, due to the shuttered casinos and high local unemployment, as the city has yet to fully recover from the recession. That’s resulted in a number of short sales and foreclosures, driving home prices way down. The already-hurting city was also walloped by Hurricane Sandy in 2012, a devastating one-two punch.

On the bright side, it has opened up a chance for people to snatch up summer houses at cheaper prices. The waterfront now has a slew of condos starting at $100,000. Plus, fewer tourists means more beach space to yourself. Low real estate prices have also attracted investors who are betting on the city’s comeback.

“People aren’t coming [to Atlantic City] for the gambling; they are coming for the beach,” says real estate agent Deborah Gegeckas of Boardwalk Realty. “You’ve got the boardwalk, amusement parks, shows, a hundred five-star restaurants.” (A hundred is a bit of an exaggeration, but you get the idea.)

2. Keansburg, NJ

Median home price: $125,000

A quieter beach of Keansburg, NJ

andykazie/iStock

For a lower-key Jersey Shore experience, try Keansburg. The public beach doesn’t have lifeguards on duty, but the sand is powdery white and the sunsets are stunning. So blast some early-period Springsteen (headphones, please) and chill.

Not everything here is sleepy. Thrill-seekers and families regularly flock to the Keansburg Amusement Park for dozens of waterslides, including the notorious and frankly stomach-churning Super Slide. There are also family arcade centers and an abundance of tasty boardwalk treats—funnel cake, anyone? (Just not after the Super Slide.)

Like Atlantic City, Keansburg is also slowly recovering from Hurricane Sandy. Today, home prices are among the cheapest on the Jersey Shore—you could find a decent home a stone’s throw away from the beach for around $150,000.

And things are looking up for developments. Last year, a $65 million, mixed-use project broke ground on the waterfront. Expected to be completed by summer 2018, the complex will feature two stories of retail space, together with a collection of market-rate and affordable apartments.

3. Gulfport, MS

Median home price: $154,700

Downtown Gulfport, MS

DenisTangneyJr/iStock

On the Gulf of Mexico, the shore gives way to marshlands, gnarled oak trees, and lush palmetto groves. The 26 miles of manmade beach in Gulfport welcomes sunbathers, horseback riders, and bocce ballers. Because of the barrier islands, the waters off Gulfport are tranquil and smooth for swimmers.

Visitors and residents alike can hop on a ferry to nearby Ship Island, which has even more beaches and water activities like paddleboarding and snorkeling. Alcohol and food are allowed on the beach, so bring a picnic and a thermos full of ice-cold mojitos.

Buyers can score a place on the cheap—or splurge for the beach home of their dreams. A lovely cottage within walking distance to the beach costs less than $170,000 and boasts a raised foundation to guard against flood damage. For buyers with deeper pockets, a magazine-worthy home with a chef’s kitchen can be yours for just $600,000.

4. Deerfield Beach, FL

Median home price: $157,900

Deerfield Beach, FL

icholakov/iStock

This lazy, understated town in southern Florida is blissfully free of partiers and velvet-rope VIP rooms. Flip-flops and sundresses are the dress code of choice, and domestic beers are preferred over $20 cocktails. It other words, this place is all about the casual beach vibe.

But when it comes time to get adrenalized, you can head to the Quiet Waters Park, one of the best places to experience “cable skiing,” a form of boat-free water skiing in which you’re pulled quickly along a 2,700-foot oval course while clutching a cable. It’s more fun than it sounds.

Deerfield has a variety of waterfront homes, including estates with direct beach access and canal-front homes that come with boating docks. While those homes often command a premium, there are many affordable choices in the low $100,000 range for those willing to go a few blocks inland.

5. La Porte, TX

Median home price: $193,600

The battleship Texas, permanently docked in La Porte, TX

RobertMayne/iStock

This picturesque small town is a real slice of old Texas—and in case you have doubts, check out the battleship Texas, which is permanently anchored here. La Porte was a roaring beach resort in the 1940s, before being hit by a series of hurricanes. Over the years it transformed into a port-based bedroom community of nearby Houston. The tourists flocked elsewhere, but lately the beaches have reopened and the town is showing signs of summer life yet again.

Sylvan Beach Park is home to two sandy beaches, perfect for building sandcastles and playing beach volleyball. Its 1,100-foot fishing pier is the longest in Texas. Plus, it’s home to the 61-year-old Sylvan Beach Festival, an annual event that kicks off with a parade, followed by a carnival, cook-off, and beauty pageant. And Texas knows beauty pageants.

Within one or two blocks of the water, there is an abundance of ranch- and bungalow-style single-family homes for less than $300,000.

“La Porte is affordable, and quiet,” says Realtor® Jeanette Haas, with Keller Williams Realty. “For less than half a million, you get something really amazing that’s right on the water. You don’t get that in other places.”

6. Myrtle Beach, SC

Median home price: $199,000

Myrtle Beach, SC

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Called the Grand Strand, a 60-mile stretch of pristine beach is the most precious asset of Myrtle Beach, drawing millions of visitors every summer. Early-morning beach walkers enjoy the sunrise over the Atlantic Ocean. Late-night strollers marvel at the spectacular moonrise. Water activities abound, ranging from Jet Ski rentals to parasailing.

There’s never a dull moment on Myrtle Beach, from live entertainment, to theme parks, to—wait for it—an upside-down house called WonderWorks. Scores of restaurants and golf courses ensure that your moments of quiet reflection are kept to a bare minimum.

So why is this famous beach community so affordable? Because the city has a dark side as well. The violent crime rate in Myrtle Beach is more than four times the national average, according to the most recent FBI data. That’s brought home prices down. So do your research on the neighborhood before buying a home. There are still plenty of safe neighborhoods, including the Coventry area, Queensway Boulevard, and Holmestown Road.

7. Port Lavaca, TX

Median home price: $199,700

Located on the bay, Port Lavaca might not have posh surf shops or fancy oceanfront bars, but those on the prowl for an uncrowded getaway could find everything they’re looking for. Beach bums love spending an afternoon of leisure on the Lighthouse Beach, lying under thatch-covered cabanas.

The bay’s long coastline presents many opportunities for bargain homes. If you’re lucky, you might find beachfront homes for as low as $170,000 on Alamo Beach, which is a 17-minute drive from downtown Port Lavaca. The popular strip of beach near downtown Port Lavaca is more expensive, where a waterfront home starts around $300,000.

8. Daytona Beach, FL

Median home price: $199,900

Famed for randy spring breakers and NASCAR, Daytona Beach is otherwise wonderfully idle. It’s a great place for people watching, and giant reptile gazing. From May to October, sea turtles emerge from the surf at night to lay eggs in the dry sand. Two months later, baby turtles will crawl back to the ocean. Fun!

There are plenty of reasons Daytona Beach gets away with calling itself the “World’s Most Famous Beach.” The 23 miles of wide, hard-packed sand enables an unconventional tradition—beach driving. Cruising and parking on the beach is open to vehicles from sunrise to sunset for $10 a day. A myriad of water activities can quickly fill up your to-do list, from scuba diving to view the artificial reefs to doing paddleboard yoga on the calm waters.

“The prices just haven’t come back from the crash,” says Rose Roberts, president of Daytona Beach Area Association of Realtors. “But the market is definitely improving. So far this year, we’ve been very busy.”

Daytona Beach’s waterfront is dotted by high-rise condos overlooking the beach and the boardwalk. A premium ocean-view unit with direct beach access could cost about a half-million dollars—still way cheaper than Miami Beach. But once you go across the A1A, the main drag, prices drop dramatically. For less than $200,000, you could get a spacious single-family home that’s still within walking distance to the beach.

9. Ocean Shores, WA

Median home price: $232,500

Ocean Shores, WA

carterdayne/iStock

Ocean Shores is popular with Seattleites, who make the three-hour drive for quiet weekend sojourns. And despite its northern location, the quaint beach town has something to offer year-round.

In the summertime, whale-watching cruises are a hot ticket, while winter is fine for strolling through the gallery-filled downtown or digging for clams on the beach. Every March, the Razor Clam Festival sets off a competition among local chefs for the best chowder in the Northwest. Clamtastic!

In 1960, developers started selling lots to individuals for as low as $595. Within a few years, Ocean Shores had hundreds of homes with canal frontage. The latest wave of construction started in the 1990s, and home prices have since stayed reasonable. Buyers have a good selection of beach homes from $300,000 and inland homes from $150,000.

10. North Bend, OR

Median home price: $239,000

The Conde B. McCullough Memorial Bridge in North Bend, Oregon

Panoramic Images/Getty Images

Surrounded by thick forests, North Bend is called “Oregon’s Adventure Coast” for a reason. Along a 42-mile stretch of coast, wind-sculpted sand dunes provide numerous recreational opportunities, including hiking and horseback riding. The waves by Horsfall Beach are perfect for some serious surfing. Craving seafood? Catch a Dungeness crab, and let the folks at Fishermen’s Wharf cook it for you.

What began as a fishing village has blossomed into a vibrant community of almost 10,000 people. North Bend is accessible by highway and the Oregon coast’s only airport, which is a five-minute drive from downtown.

Perched on an ocean bay, the town boasts a variety of affordable hillside homes overlooking the bay or scenic golf courses for around $200,000. The area is particularly popular with Californians looking for vacation homes.

“Because the price of Californian beach towns is so high, they come to us for affordable second homes,” says Realtor Joann Hansen with Joann Hansen Realty. “Also because summer weather in California is hot, and Oregon is temperate—probably in the 70s at the top.”

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The beach towns you probably can’t afford

Now it’s time to look at the other side of the cabana—the fabulously expensive towns reserved for the fabulously rich.

Southern California claims America’s poshest beach postal codes in 2017. Topping the list is Malibu, where the median home price is a hefty $3.95 million. The city’s Carbon Beach, also known as “Billionaire’s Beach,” is home to A-list actors, rock stars, and power players in the entertainment biz. Just a few weeks ago, media mogul David Geffen reportedly sold his massive compound there for $85 million, setting a record as the most expensive real estate transaction in Malibu.

The coastal Northeast also makes the list: The Hamptons in New York and Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket in Massachusetts are still considered the country’s premium waterfront communities.

In Water Mill, NY, the chic heart of the chic Hamptons, you’ll drop about $3.75 million for the privilege of living on the beach near folks like Jennifer Lopez. Part of the Town of Southampton, Water Mill has strict land use regulations that limit many new houses to 5-acre lots.

Some less familiar names also pop up on the list: Tiny Sullivan’s Island, SC, is located at the mouth of Charleston Harbor, where the median home price is about $2.45 million. A pristine shoreline, paired with the exclusive location but easy access to the cultural wealth of Charleston, makes this island popular among the 1% of the low country.

The small town of Haleiwa lies in the middle of Hawaii’s world-famous North Shore. It’s not just surfers who are coming for the 40-foot-high waves—it’s also a social and artistic hub. Nowhere else on Oahu will you find quaint shops and cafes housed in plantation-era buildings right by the beach.

Housing options include cute bungalows starting at around $1 million and custom oceanfront mansions running as high as $15 million.

“There’s so little land available for development on the waterfront, that’s what makes them so expensive and desirable,” says Realtor Michael Gardner with Sotheby’s International Realty, in Malibu. Places like Malibu and the Hamptons are also “a quick drive away from the city’s epicenter of wealth, where the top 1% earners have their primary residences.”

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Ben Carson Sells His Florida Home for Way Below Asking Price: Here’s Why

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Ben Carson might be a famous former surgeon, presidential candidate, and current secretary of Housing and Urban Development, but that doesn’t mean everything he touches turns to gold. Case in point? He recently sold his house in West Palm Beach, FL, for $920,000—nearly $300,000 below the $1.2 million list price.

This had us wondering: What caused him to cave to a deal so far below what he was hoping to get?

According to our records, Carson listed the 6,155-square-foot, five-bedroom, four-bath home for $1.2 million in December 2016. The house was on the market for about six months, which isn’t long considering that similar homes in the neighborhood sit for an average of a year and a half before finding a buyer.

So why settle for so much less than list price? Here are some possible reasons to ponder that could provide some pearls of wisdom for anyone looking to sell their own home, too.

Reason No. 1: The list price was too high

Well, here’s the obvious possibility: Carson’s list price was a bit too big for its britches. That, at least, is the impression we got after talking to the home’s listing agent, Arthur Martens at Engel & Volkers.

“If Dr. and Mrs. Carson received an offer between $920,000 and $1.1 million, I told them they should take it,” he tells realtor.com®. The reason he urged them to accept a lower price was the recent sale of a comparable home down the street.

“The comp, which was about 500 square feet bigger with a brand-new roof, had recently sold for $835,000,” Martens explains. Savvy buyers catching wind of that sale would likely question why Carson’s home costs more, particularly since it has some other problems (more on that below).

Reason No. 2: A leaky roof—and mold

Making matters worse, Carson’s place had a leaky roof that led to a mold infestation, which would make many potential buyers recoil.

“It is a very serious issue that can absolutely affect a home’s value,” says Cara Ameer, a Realtor® in Northeast Florida. “Even if a home had a mold issue and it was remediated, it can be very difficult to overcome the stigma associated with it no matter how much disclosure or reports are provided by the seller.”

Luckily, the buyer of Carson’s home, Stephen Lustgarten, co-founded a company that performs commercial cleaning services.

“He wasn’t afraid of the mold,” Martens tells us.

Reason No. 3: An all-cash offer

Carson also might have been accommodating of the less-than-stellar sales price because it was an all-cash offer. This type of offer is always an attractive option for sellers because they know the deal won’t get held up if a mortgage doesn’t come through.

Reason No. 4: Too many homes to take care of

Carson has been juggling a lot of homes lately. Last year, he shelled out $4.4 million for an 8,782-square-foot mansion in Palm Beach Gardens, FL. And in February 2017, right before being confirmed as HUD secretary, Carson purchased a 6,400-square-foot house in Vienna, VA. And since he can’t enjoy all of them even some of the time, he decided to let this one go.

“We didn’t want to be carrying a bunch of properties that we weren’t utilizing,” Carson explained in a video he made to help promote the listing.

“Maintaining multiple residences, especially larger ones with pools and landscaping, can get quite pricey,” agrees Ameer.

Curious just how palatial this place is? Check out these listings photos:

Dramatic marble columns in the foyer

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Ben Carson’s West Palm Beach place doesn’t hold a candle to his boss’s Mar-a-Lago, but it’s still luxurious.

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A sun-drenched kitchen with views of the backyard

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The new owners will have no problem getting their daily vitamin D with floor-to-ceiling windows in the sitting room.

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The spacious dining room is just as light-filled as the rest of the house.

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Talk about bathing in the lap of luxury!

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The master bedroom, complete with a red velvet canopy and floral curtains

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The post Ben Carson Sells His Florida Home for Way Below Asking Price: Here’s Why appeared first on Real Estate News & Advice | realtor.com®.

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A Major Makeover: 110-Room Mansion Near Philly Requires a Revival

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America’s Gilded Age minted the country’s first multimillionaires, who bought up huge tracts of land and built country estates rivaling those of their European contemporaries. Over the years, many became museums or private homes, some were bulldozed, and an occasional few hit the market for private sale.

One mansion in search of a new magnate is in the Keystone State. Pennsylvania’s Lynnewood Hall is back on the market, now with an asking price of $17.5 million. Built in 1900 for trolley magnate Peter Widener, this 70,000-square-foot neoclassical estate features 110 rooms on 33.8 acres in Elkins Park, which is a short drive north of Philadelphia. It cost an estimated $8 million to build, or more than $200 million in today’s dollars.

In its prime, the home featured an indoor pool and squash court, a bakery, and dedicated shops for carpentry and upholstery. The family ran a 220-acre farm on the property that employed 100 people, according to the Associated Press. Widener had built an empire around public transportation, and parlayed that wealth into investments in American steel, tobacco, and other major industries.

Exterior (1933)

Library of Congress

Like many other Gilded Age families, the Wideners joined their friends on the maiden voyage of the Titanic. Widener lost his son and grandson in the disaster.

The family suffered a series of setbacks and was forced to auction off their possessions, more than 400 acres of land around Lynnewood Hall, and ultimately the home itself, for $190,000 in 1952. Subsequent owners stripped the rooms and closed the home to the outside world.

One photographer hopped the fence and dodged security to take a series of haunting photos of the home’s interior. They show stately hallways with tall ceilings, Roman archways, and marble floors. Intricate skylights illuminate rooms that otherwise sit dark and empty.

The home’s current owner is  the Rev. Dr. Richard S. Yoon, the secretive leader of the Korean Church of New York (the church has no website or working phone number). He bought the property in 1996, and in 1998 argued that Lynnewood Hall was a seminary and he shouldn’t be responsible for paying property taxes. He ultimately sued, but lost his case in 2006. For at least the past decade, Lynnewood has sat vacant.

Listing agent Frank Johnson says many articles about Lynnewood have focused more on its recent and past history, and less on its future potential, as a boutique hotel with five-star restaurants, an art museum, or an opulent private estate.

He painted a vision of Lynnewood Hall as a renovated landmark ideal for one of Philadelphia’s great families, ready to open its doors once again for conferences, weddings, and upscale events.

“The structure itself is phenomenal,” Johnson says. “Peter Widener shipped Indiana limestone to Pennsylvania—remember, he was one of the 100 wealthiest people in the country at the time—to construct a monument.”

What this monument becomes will be up to its next buyer. Johnson says a renovation of the building could cost as little as $3 million to $7 million. He disagrees with a historian who says it’ll cost $50 million to renovate.

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Growth in Home Prices Continues in March

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Home-price growth continued to accelerate in March, posing a challenge to the market, which already has seen the pace of sales slow because of rising prices and a shortage of inventory.

The S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller Indices, which covers the entire nation, rose 5.8% in the 12 months ended in March, up from a revised 5.7% year-over-year increase reported in February.

Home prices hit a record in September, and the pace of growth has accelerated since then. The national price-growth number hit a 33-month high in March.

The 10-city index gained 5.2% over the year, and the 20-city index gained 5.9%, both unchanged from February. That slightly beat the expectations of economists surveyed by The Wall Street Journal, who expected the 20-city index to rise 5.8% in March.

The accelerating gains are being driven by growing demand thanks to rising wages and a large demographic of people entering their 30s and looking to buy homes, as well as limited supply. Economists said they are concerned, however, that price growth that continues to outpace income growth isn’t sustainable.

“While prices cannot rise indefinitely, there is no way to tell when rising prices and mortgage rates will force a slowdown in housing,” said David Blitzer, managing director at S&P Dow Jones Indices.

The strong growth in prices also poses a challenge for first-time buyers trying to get into the market this year.

Still, home-price growth remains less than half of what it was during the housing bubble in the mid-2000s. Then prices grew by more than 14% for much of 2005.

Economists are concerned, however, about a handful of markets that have been seeing double-digit or near-double-digit growth. Seattle led the way in March with a 12.3% home-price increase, and Portland reported a 9.2% year-over-year gain. Dallas, which recently replaced Denver in the top three, reported a 8.6% annual increase in home prices.

Month over month, the U.S. Index rose 0.8% in March before seasonal adjustment, while the 10-city rose 0.9% and the 20-city index increased 1% from February to March.

After seasonal adjustment, the national index rose 0.3% month over month, and the 10-city and 20-city indexes rose 0.9%. After seasonal adjustment, 17 of 20 cities saw prices rise.

Overall the housing market is gaining strength, but there are signs price growth is starting to take a toll on buyer demand.

The pace of sales of existing homes fell 2.3% in April, as buyer frustration mounted over rising prices and a lack of homes for sale, the National Association of Realtors said last week. New home sales dropped 10.4% last month due to similar challenges, according to the Commerce Department.

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Tobey Maguire Scores $3.4M Modern Masterpiece in West Hollywood

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Actor Tobey Maguire has used his prodigious real estate powers to snare a cool West Hollywood, CA, contemporary for $3.4 million, according to The Real Deal.

The outlet says “an entity linked” to Maguire bought the 3,258-square-foot house designed and sold by Clive Wilkinson, the architect who designed the interior of a Google building in Silicon Valley. This was Wilkinson’s personal residence and the only single-family home he has designed.

When we spoke with listing agent Wendy Gladson about the home in April 2016, she said, “this house is a living, breathing example” of the modernist master’s work. At the time, it was on the market for $4.5 million, which means Maguire wound up with a bargain.

West Hollywood, CA

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Built in 2007, the three-bedroom, four-bath house sits on a lot that’s a little over 7,000 square feet.

“There is a raw expression of structure throughout the house,” the listing states. The downstairs boasts “one unified social space” that includes the kitchen, living and dining rooms. The master suite opens to a 48-foot saltwater pool, and upstairs contains a lounge/library and two more bedroom suites.

Earlier this year, Maguire turned a tidy profit on a Santa Monica compound he sold for $3,325,000, which was about $330,000 above list price. And in October, the “Spider-Man” franchise star paid about $13 million for a new Brentwood mansion.

Maguire, 41, starred in “Cider House Rules,” “Seabiscuit,” and “The Great Gatsby.”  When he’s not making movies or real estate deals, Maguire’s all-in as a tournament poker player.

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He ‘Earned It’: The Weeknd Purchases a $20M Hidden Hills Home

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The hills have eyes. And a new set of them just moved in.

Singer-songwriter The Weeknd recently purchased a home in the posh enclave of Hidden Hills, CA, according to TMZ. The final sale price? $20 million.

A view of the interior

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The nine-bedroom, nine-bathroom mansion is a massive 13,391 square feet and sits on a 2.94 acre lot. Once you step inside the estate, a 25-foot grand entry greets you.

The house features a wine cellar, a home theater, gym, study, and a recording studio for The Weeknd to produce a few more hits. Solid plank, French oak, and limestone floors cover the interior throughout.

Outside, the property boasts a saltwater pool with a 12-foot water feature, an outdoor kitchen, a barbecue center, an entertainment pavilion with two fire pits, and a covered patio. Also on the property is a two-bedroom, two-bathroom, 1,200-square-foot guesthouse.

And if The Weeknd ever wants to spend his weekend doing what others in his income bracket do—raise horses—then he’s got an eight-stall barn attached to his property to indulge in equine dreams.

A view of the pool

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The Weeknd joins a long list of celebrities who have called the gated community of Hidden Hills home, including Kylie Jenner, the Osbourne family, Miley Cyrus, Tyson Chandler, and Kanye West and his wife, Kim Kardashian.

A view of the backyard

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The Weeknd first rose to prominence thanks to his work on three popular mixtapes: “House of Balloons,” “Thursday,” and “Echo of Silence.” He released his most recent album—”Starboy”—in 2016. His previous albums, “Beauty Behind the Madness” and “Kiss Land,” were released in 2015 and 2013, respectively.

With two consecutive No. 1 albums to his name, The Weeknd has definitely earned his multimillion-dollar home.

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