This much rustic will cost you a pretty penny. Today's home was built in the 1990s but has a classic look with plenty of stone and rough wood. The estate is approximately 289 acres straddling the New York and Connecticut border (150 acres in Connecticut, 239 acres in New York). The beautiful views over rolling mountains and hills seems to stretch for miles. The property is home to a heated Gunite pool and spa, pool house, tennis court, barns, and trout pond. The home itself has five bedrooms, a fantasy-inducing country kitchen, beamed living room, porches and decks to take in the view, and a cozy wood-paneled library with a fireplace to hang out in during the winter months. This property is listed at $13.95 million.
I've been missing the real estate intelligence of Bob Goldsborough over at Big Time Listings after the site was unfortunately hacked. But now he's back with a vengeance, dishing out an impressive amount of celebrity scoop. One of the biggest is the listing for Regis Philbin's Greenwich, Connecticut home. Regis has been saying for a while on his show that he was selling his home but no one had dug up the listing until now. The home was built in 1980 and is on 5.68 acres that include a tennis court, pool, gazebo and gardens. The house itself was featured in 2002 in Architectural Digest, and includes a formal dining room, paneled living and media rooms, a library with a wet bar, a family room, a gourmet kitchen and a breakfast area that opens to a covered terrace. There are four bedrooms including a master suite with a sitting area, fireplace and his and hers baths. The lower level of the home includes exercise and recreation areas. Regis bought in 1992 for $2.5 million and is now asking $5.4 million for the home.
This home on 1.94 acres right on Long Island Sound offers more than a room with a view -- how about a whole house with a view? Located in Riverside, Conn. (part of tony Greenwich, where Kathie Lee Gifford and hubby Frank live) and built in 1956, this estate is offered for $12,900,000.
Sited in the gated Harbor Point Association, a peninsula of more than 500 feet of shoreline, this Contemporary Colonial offers the next owner the chance to build under current zoning for a new 11,000-plus square foot custom waterfront estate or live in the existing home, which is light-filled and recently updated with a cook's kitchen, built-in bookshelves, five tiled baths, new systems and new landscaping by a professional designer. There are two family rooms and two master suites among six bedrooms on both first and second floors. Three fireplaces and an artist's studio complete the picture.
Walk or jog to Elias Point, a sandy beach. A spectacularly landscaped enclave, historic Harbor Point is situated on the sweeping grounds of the former 49-acre Frederick T. Bonham estate, "Walhall," a legendary LI Sound private property with some of Southern Connecticut's best water views. The association's other amenities include a boat dock, boat mooring, picnicking and fishing privileges.
Gallery: Riverside, Conn., with Water Views, Estate of the Day
Bolton's home is a six-bedroom expanse located on Nash's Pond. The home is "Tuscan-inspired" and has a formal albeit bland interior design. The home is enriched with dark polished mahogany wood and Italian marble floors and ncludes a screening room, formal dining room, chef's kitchen and a master suite with a veranda. The Real Estalker Mama reports that Bolton's property is two separate lots of over an acre each and that Bolton bought the home way back in 1991 for $975,000. The smaller lot which measures 1.2 acres has a four-bedroom home that has been used as a guest house and also serves as Bolton's music studio. The grounds feature a tennis court, putting green, piazza, swimming pool, formal gardens and a dock on Nash's pond. Bolton has put this property on the market for $11 million.
We've been looking at a lot of traditional homes lately so let's mix it up with a big slice of modern. Today's home was designed by architect Rafael Vinoly in 1994. It sits on a five acre hilltop setting with long views in Ridgefield, Connecticut. The home has both indoor/outdoor pools and a glass bridge to the private tower which houses the master bedroom, penthouse office and an observation deck. The interior features lots of heavy concrete, wood ceilings and so much stainless steel, the owner probably has to employ a designated polisher. It's stunning but I wonder how easy it is to live in. It's listed at $10 million.
v Another sign of real estate drama, a house up for sealed bid auction in posh Greenwich, Connecticut of all places. The owner, Stanley Cheslock, originally put the market on the home for $31 million in the usual manner but found that the current market was a bit stagnant.
The HIllcrest Estate features 26,000-square-foot mansion designed by Gilles Le Gorrec and built in 2003 as well as two carriage houses and 12-car capacity garage on 30 acres. The home has four master suites, guest suite and a service suite. There is a large kitchen that includes a wood-burning pizza oven, top-of-the-line appliances, separate accessories kitchen and a butler's pantry with walk-in refrigeration. The massive home has not one but two cathedral-ceiling living rooms that both open onto a 2,500-sq. ft. terrace. Other details include a 100-ft. central atrium, rooftop cupola with stunning Long Island Sound views, hand-crafted stained glass windows, iron-clad elevator, seven Rumsford fireplaces, multiple laundries, handmade plaster moldings, chestnut flooring and geo-thermal heating and cooling. There is also a theatre-quality home cinema, 3,700 bottle-capacity wine room, cherry wood office/library, 50-ft. indoor lap pool with Siberian spruce sauna and granite steam room, and a fully equipped private gym. The expansive grounds adjoin The Stanwich Club, one of United States' premier golf courses, and include a large mouth bass pond, waterfalls, English gardens, and statuary by sculptor Arturo Di Modica.
The estate may be purchased in whole or in part, with the mansion and 22 acres available for a minimum reserve price beginning at $15 million. The two carriage houses and more than seven acres are available for a minimum reserve price beginning at $4 million. And of course the whole package starts at $19 million. Sealed bids must be submitted by 5 p.m. Aug. 15, along with a check for $750,000 and bank documents proving the potential buyer's ability to pay.
On Saturday, renowned French champagne house Veuve Clicquot staged the first polo match in Manhattan in 70 years. The match, between two North American Polo League (NAPL) teams - Ralph Lauren's Black Watch, captained by Polo model Nacho Figueras, and Asprey's Skeeterville, captained by Will Johnston - was played on Governor's Island, the 172-acre former Army base on Manhattan's southern tip. New York is often cited as the birthplace of American polo c.1876, and Army officers played the sport on Governor's Island until just before the onset of World War II in 1941. Black Watch bested Asprey 10 - 6 in the inaugural match of the Veuve Cliquot Manhattan Polo Classic. Veuve Clicquot has long supported polo in Europe, and since last year other parts of the U.S. as well, such as the Greenwich Polo Club in Connecticut.
On Sunday June 8 London auction house Bonhams will stage its first ever auction in conjunction with the annual Greenwich Concours d'Elegance in Connecticut. The top-priced lots are rare racing cars prized by automotive historians, such as a 1931 Maserati Tipo 8C-2800 competition two-seater, est. $600,000 - $850,000, and a 1965 McLaren-Elva M1A Sports Racer, est. $250,000- $300,000. However, there are plenty of beautiful and highly collectible cars that one can actually drive on offer as well.
Among our favorites is this perfectly-restored British made 1956 AC Ace, est. $140,000 - 180,000, in British racing green, natch. Other highlights include: a 1963 Porsche 356B 1600 Super 90 Cabriolet, est. $110,000 - 130,000; a 1972 Ferrari 365 GTC/4 Coupe, est. $110,000 - $135,000; a 1974 Jaguar Series III V-12 XK-E Roadster, est. $50,000 - $70,000; a 1971 Mercedes-Benz 280 SE 3.5 Cabriolet, est. $100,000 - $150,000; and the steal of the sale, a 1979 Rolls-Royce Silver Wraith II Saloon, est. only $25,000 - $35,000.
The Neighborhood Scout deems that the town of Madison, Connecticut is a good equivalent for Malibu, the expensive celebrity-filled beach area north of Los Angeles. Malibu has a median price of $2.93 million but Madison has a far more reasonable median price of $649.344. Madison also has a much longer history than Malibu, it was first settled in 1641. Madison is also a beach community on the Connecticut shoreline. Hammonasset State Park in Madison boasts the state's longest public beach and like Malibu it gets crazy crowded in the summer.
In Malibu, especially in the elite Carbon Beach area where it is rumored that a sale in the $65 million range recently took place, you have to be prepared to pay a lot. Also even some of the most striking homes such as one of my favorite estate of the day properties, special effects master Stan Winston's Malibu home are in tight proximity to one another. In Madison, prices are for more reasonable. Today's home has a great setting on Long Island Sound with a front yard that leads to a double tiered sandy beach. The 5000 square-foot home has been renovated and includes a great room with floor to ceiling stone fireplace, a gourmet eat-in kitchen and six bedrooms total. The master bedroom has a private balcony overlooking the water and a spacious master bath. This home is listed at $4.9 million.
This one intrigues me because it's a nice example of taking an existing building and creating a new structure. This home in the Ellsworth section of Sharon, Connecticut started with a Meeting House, built in 1812. There is a beautiful main room with original wide-plank floors, enormous windows, and a huge working fireplace. The upper portion of the Meeting House has been converted to living/guest quarters with rustic details and marble bath. In the rest of the house there is also a first floor master bedroom suite with large master bath, additional second floor master bedroom suite, large home office, pantry/utility room, radiant heated floors and a three-car attached garage. The home is on 5.69 acres with stone walls and ponds. It is listed at $2.495 million.
I was going to leave this one for the Sunday Real Estate Round-Up but I couldn't wait. Stone Hill in Greenwich, Connecticut is one of the homes belonging to Tommy Hilfiger. According to information from the NY Post the designer will be moving into the Plaza in Manhattan when his duplex is completed. Hilfiger bought this new home in 2005 for $18 million and worked his decorator magic. The 20,000-square-foot home has seven bedrooms, 13 bathrooms, a massive great room, basketball court, spa with a waterfall, theater, gym and a huge 2,000-bottle wine cellar.
I'm a little embarrassed by just how much I love the decor on this one. In general I'm not a fan of a home decorated to within an inch of its life but this one is an excellent product of the Ralph Lauren/Tommy Hilfiger luxe American style.The decorator did a great job incorporating the art and the home is luxurious without being overly formal. It's similar in style to his Further Lane property (which he recently sold for $26.5 million) right down to the use of orange accents. This one is listed at $27.9 million.
The town of Stamford Connecticut is getting new waterfront lodging. Antares Investment Partners plans to build a 115-room luxury hotel in the South End that will also include condo units. The 14-story Harbor Point Hotel is part of the Harbor Point project turning the South End area of Stamford into a destination for living, working, dining and shopping. The hotel will include a wine bar, art gallery, library, two restaurants, spa and fitness center, two meeting rooms and a roof-deck swimming pool and will have 55 condominium units on the upper floors. The hotel still needs city approval for its architectural plans.
When the Foxwoods Resort in Southern Connecticut opened in the early 1990s it was a fairly modest affair, with slots and games aimed at a mid-range clientele. Now the massive resort is working on a $55 million renovation that will include the addition of four luxury shops, the type likely to be found in the luxury casinos in Las Vegas. Foxwoods has announced Rolex, Bvlgari, Chopard and Judith Ripka storefronts.
It's part of a larger project turning Foxwoods into a draw for guests from around the world. In May, the $700 million MGM Grand at Foxwoods will open up. The new hotel will have 825 rooms, meeting space, a theater, spa casino and restaurants by celebrity chefs Tom Colicchio and Michael Schlow. The MGM Grand at Foxwoods will have its share of shops including Dunhill, Bally and an Apple store.
Modern in the 1950s and 1960s and modern now mean two entirely different things. Case in point, this home built by famed architect Edward Durell Stone in New Canaan, Connecticut in 1959. This peaked roof mid-century modern went through a major restoration in 2006/07. The 4400 square foot home now has a new Snaidero kitchen and new bathrooms with plenty of stone and those glass bowl sinks that are currently so popular. The home has four bedrooms and there are 12 pyramid skylights total. The estate also includes a reflecting pool and a home theater. My question for you is whether or not the restoration fits the home. While I think the kitchen is a match, the bathrooms seem a bit too au courant rather than classic modern. This estate is listed at $4.9 million.
To put you in a Christmas state of mind, let's visit the little town of Bethlehem. Bethlehem, Connecticut that is, for a look at Fox Hollow Farm. This adorable post and beam home is on 197 acres of woods and pastures that are probably looking pretty Christmasy right about now. The farmhouse has exposed beams, soaring ceilings and cozy stone fireplaces. The first floor includes the country kitchen, dining room with seating for 20, a large exercise room that has a sauna and a private deck with a hot tub. The listing says that it was built in 2001 but that kitchen oddly looks even older, perhaps its the color. The living room is dominated by a great stone fireplace, unfortunately blemished by the placement of a flatscreen television. There are four bedrooms total including a master suite with a brick fireplace and an office with built in desks and bookshelves. Fox Hollow Farm is also located in one of only three state towns with no zoning, meaning that the property could be used for a corporate retreat, small school, equestrian farm, Inn, restaurant, place of worship or residential development. It is listed at $5.25 million.
