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No Sale At The Watergate

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Real Estate Developments

watergate hotel

Washington D.C.'s Watergate Hotel was left high and dry on Tuesday as a public auction failed to attract a successful bid. The 10 bidders who came to the auction each with $1 million certified checks were told they would have to pay at least the $25 million floor set by the bank. No one was willing to go that high and so the lender PB Capital made a $25 million credit bid for the property. The hotel was facing foreclosure after Washington developer Monument Realty defaulted on a $70 million loan. Monument bought the hotel five years ago and it has been closed ever since. Initially the developer planned to cash in on the real estate craze by turning it into luxury co-op apartments. Last year it decided to keep it as a hotel. Lehman Brothers was also a partner and equity investor in the property. Now with the auction result, some are wondering what will happen to the 251-room hotel famous for its involvement in the scandal that led to the resignation of President Richard Nixon.

The Washington Post reports that all hope may not be lost though, there are a couple of developers interested in making offers on the hotel in a private sale. PB Capital plans to market the hotel to interested buyers. Erstwhile owner Monument Realty would still like to work with new investors to push on with the company's plan to restore the property to a five-star hotel. The Watergate still needs substantial renovations which could total as much as $100 million. Monument principal Michael Darby has indicated that one reason to keep his company involved is that Monument knows the property intimately while any new owners would be starting from scratch. The Post article also says that Virginia-based developer Robert Holland is talking with Dubai-based luxury hotel chain, Jumeirah, about operating the Watergate. It would likely take a great deal of money to bring the hotel up to Jumeirah standards.

[Thanks, C.K.]

Tags: foreclosure, washington dc, WashingtonDc, watergate hotel, WatergateHotel

Watergate Hotel Facing Foreclosure

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Real Estate Developments

Last time we checked out the Watergate hotel back in 2007 the hotel was holding a liquidation sale in advance of a major renovation. Now the Washington Post reports that the infamous Washington D.C. hotel could be the latest hotel to head for foreclosure. Washington developer Monument Realty defaulted on a $70 million loan that came due this week. Monument bought the hotel five years ago and it has been closed ever since. Initially the developer planned to cash in on the real estate craze by turning it into luxury co-op apartments. Last year it decided to keep it as a hotel. Lehman Brothers was also a partner and equity investor in the property.

Michael J. Darby, a company principal and co-founder of Monument told the Washington Post that the company is still committed to the project and thinks the Watergate can be a "great hotel in the future." Monument is working with the lender, New York-based PB Capital, to restructure the loan. The Washington Business Journal reports that PB Capital has its own problems. Back in December PB Capital moved to foreclose on the Dumont Condominium.

The last few months have seen a rash of hotel projects facing foreclosure all around the country. The Watergate is at a distinct disadvantage because it is not open like many of the other hotels so there is no revenue coming in. What it does have is name recognition courtesy of Richard Nixon but it's not clear if that name can become associated with something more than scandal.

UPDATE: The AP is reporting that the hotel may be auctioned off on July 21. Alex Cooper Auctioneers lists a property with the Watergate's address set to be sold on that date. A $1 million deposit is required.

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Tags: default, foreclosure, hotels, washington dc, WashingtonDc, watergate

Bernie Kosar In Weston, Florida, Estate of the Day

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Estates, Celebrity Shopping

Like quarterback Dan Marino, former NFL quarterback Bernie Kosar has a home in Weston, Florida for sale. But Kosar's situation is a bit more urgent. Kosar has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection with his top 20 debts clicking in at $19.5 million including around $1.5 million to his former team the Cleveland Browns. Small wonder then that his Florida home is up for sale. Kosar has not paid the property taxes on the home for the last couple of years.

Kosar's home in Weston is a 9,900 square-foot mansion on the lake which has a large backyard area with a summer kitchen, pool, spa and cabanas. It is located in the same community, Windmill Ranch Estates, that Marino lives in and the home has a similar Florida Mediterranean style. This ample residence includes an office/library, a kitchen and a separate butler's kitchen and seven bedrooms. This home is listed at $3.5 million.

Kosar's financial woes seem to stem from a number of factors including Florida's depressed real estate market and some bad investing advice. His top creditor is Florida Bank which is owed $9.7 million in real estate development foreclosures. He also owed KeyBank $3.2 million for loan guarantees and a personal line of credit and owes his ex-wife Babette Kosar $3 million from the couple's divorce settlement. Like many ex-football players, he was also in the restaurant business. His Bernie's Steakhouse, a Miami-area restaurant closed last year. Kosar is said to be optimistic about his ability to get out from under his debt and he has many supporters in Cleveland and elsewhere cheering him on.

Experience more lush living in luxury homes and mansions or see the stars living large with celebrity homes galleries at AOL Real Estate.

[via Move Trends]

Gallery: Bernie Kosar In Weston, Florida

Tags: bernie kosar, BernieKosar, cleveland browns, ClevelandBrowns, estate of the day, EstateOfTheDay, football, foreclosure

Continue reading “Bernie Kosar In Weston, Florida, Estate of the Day ”

Evander Holyfield Facing Foreclosure Again

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Estates, Celebrity Shopping

evander holyfield

Last June former heavyweight champion Evander Holyfield saw his massive 54,000 square foot home in Georgia slip into foreclosure. Now it looks like Holyfield is facing foreclosure again. The home has been listed for an auction scheduled for July 7 because Holyfield is in default on his $10 million loan.

Holyfield told The Associated Press that a settlement would be reached before the 235-acre estate is auctioned. The massive home has 109 rooms, three kitchens and a bowling alley. Holyfield has earned more than $200 million in the ring but has faced lawsuits over missed child support payments for some of his 11 children. His last fight was in December when he lost to WBA champion Nikolai Valuev.

Tags: atlanta, boxing, celebrity foreclosure, CelebrityForeclosure, evander holyfield, EvanderHolyfield, foreclosure

Historic Eklund Hotel Facing Foreclosure, Sale

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Luxury Travel & Hotels

Decreasing tourism has pushed another historic hotel into trouble. The Eklund Hotel in Clayton, New Mexico is a slice of the Old West that includes a saloon with bullet holes in its tin ceiling and a ghost named Irene. The hotel is listed in the National Register of Historic Places and was built in 1892.

It underwent a 2.3 million renovation just five years ago. An AP report highlights the impact the hotel's closing has on the small town of 2,100. The hotel has the main restaurant and bar in town. But the owners, Eklund Association, Incorporated a group of investors that has owned the hotel since 1992 have seen business shrink and are still wrestling with debt from the renovation. The owners wanted to keep the hotel open for the summer season but had to close at the end of April.

The Eklund has 26 rooms with private baths. The renovation was paid for with a $2.16 million loan from the First National Bank in Clayton that was guaranteed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Rural Development business program but it is not known how much is owed on that loan. The State Historic Preservation Office loaned an additional $200,000 for the project and there is still $147,600, plus 3 percent interest owed on that loan. The hotel isn't officially on the market yet as the bank is still in the foreclosure process. The town is hoping that a buyer who wants to be a part of this small town will come along, save the hotel and join the community.

Gallery: Hotels and Inns for Sale

Detroit Riverside Hotel

Eklund Hotel

Pioneertown

Bluecreek Retreat

Bal Harbour Beach Club

Tags: eklund, foreclosure, hotel for sale, HotelForSale, new mexico, NewMexico

Lenny Dykstra House Auction Scheduled

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Estates, Celebrity Shopping

I've got a major update on the Lenny Dykstra situation. According to legal documentation filed at the Ventura County Recorders Office, on July 9 at the Ventura County Courthouse the trustee will hold an auction on the courthouse steps for the baseball-player-turned-almost-mogul's home in the Lake Sherwood area of Westlake Village. As you may recall when this was our estate of the day, this home was originally owned by hockey god Wayne Gretzky who reportedly spent $30 million creating the home. Bidders at the auction will need to match the money the Dykstras owe Index Investors in the approximate amount of $900,000 (in certified funds naturally).

There are two other smaller lien holders who have first right of refusal to bid on the $900,000 and there is also a mortgage of around $13.1 million with Washington Mutual. If these loans are paid then the new owner would be subject to the first mortgage loan from Washington Mutual (now Chase) and unpaid property taxes of around $275,000. This way the owner might be able to avoid obtaining a new loan (no easy feat in the current lending climate which tends to frown on jumbo loans).

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Gallery: Lenny Dykstra in Thousand Oaks

Tags: foreclosure, lake sherwood, LakeSherwood, lenny dykstra, LennyDykstra, los angeles, LosAngeles

Continue reading “Lenny Dykstra House Auction Scheduled”

Stephen Baldwin Headed For Foreclosure

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Estates, Celebrity Shopping, Crimes and Misdemeanors

Actor Stephen Baldwin has been on TV braving the Costa Rican jungle and Speidi in "I'm a Celebrity - Get Me Out of Here!" but he's facing some drama on the homefront too. Baldwin's home in Upper Grandview, New York will be put up for public auction on June 24 at Rockland County Court. Baldwin and his wife, Kennya, defaulted on paying $824,488.36 to mortgage holder Bankers Trust Co.

Baldwin bought the home for $515,000 back in 1997 and restored it. He had it on the market in 2006 for $3.4 million but took it off the market when it failed to sell. At the time it was said that Baldwin put his house on the market because of his frustration with a sex shop that had opened in his neighborhood but Page Six said that the real reason the born-again Christian put the home one the market was because he was in need of cash and owed back taxes. The sex shop changed plans after facing public pressure led by Baldwin.

LoHud.com reports that Bankers Trust will receive the first $824,488.36 brought in by the auction, followed by National City and taxing agencies, according to the county foreclosure papers, which were filed in late April. Listing pics from back in 2006 are in the gallery below.

[via Perez Hilton]

UPDATE: Baldwin's rep told People that the situation will be resolved and no auction will take place.

Gallery: Stephen Baldwin In New York

Gallery: Celebrity Foreclosures

Plaxico Burress

Nicolas Cage

Jeana Keough from the Real Housewives of Orange County

Victoria Gotti

Lenny Dykstra

Tags: celebrity foreclosure, CelebrityForeclosure, foreclosure, im a celebrity get me out of here, ImACelebrityGetMeOutOfHere, stephen baldwin, StephenBaldwin

St. Regis Monarch Beach Headed For Foreclosure Auction

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Luxury Travel & Hotels

st regis monarch beach

Another luxury hotel is in financial trouble and facing foreclosure. The Los Angeles Times is reporting that the owners of the St. Regis Monarch Beach in Dana Point, California have defaulted on a $70-million loan. The Orange County resort became infamous last year for being the site of the $443,000 AIG retreat after the federal bailout.

The companies that own the resort are in default and the hotel has been scheduled for a foreclosure auction. Ongoing negotiations may prevent the auction but unless a deal is worked out the auction will take place on July 7. The St. Regis has a 400-room hotel, a golf course, a private beach club and several restaurants including Michael Mina's Stonehill Tavern. The property is current on two other mortgages totaling $230 million. The property was refinanced in 2007 amassing $300 million in debt. The five-star hotel is located near Laguna Beach, California which is also home to Ritz-Carlton and Montage luxury resorts.

The hotel is part of the Starwood Group, a company which has seen several of its W Hotels also flirt with foreclosure. Like those hotels, the St. Regis Monarch Beach remains open. It has a Father's Day brunch planned as well as barbecue events for the Fourth of July and packages to coordinate with Laguna Beach's popular Pageant of the Masters which runs from July 8 to August 31. The art event showcases "living pictures" - re-creations of classical and contemporary works of art with real people posing to look exactly like their counterparts in the original pieces. That show and several other art festivals, brings tourists to the beach town all summer long and usually keep local resorts full of guests.

Gallery: Hotels In Transition

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Columbia Gorge Hotel Gets New Owner

The Shore Club

Detroit Riverside Hotel

Hotel Monaco in Baltimore

Tags: foreclosure, hotel, monarch beach, MonarchBeach, st regis, st regis monarch beach, StRegis, StRegisMonarchBeach

W San Diego Hotel To Be Returned To Lenders

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Luxury Travel & Hotels

Another W Hotel is in trouble. We've heard of troubles facing the W in Phoenix but now the W San Diego has a battle of its own ahead. Yesterday Sunstone Hotel Investors Inc. announced that will default on the June mortgage payment for the property. The real estate investment trust cited the travel downturn as well as the opening of other luxury hotels in the area as a reason for being unable to make the payments. Sunstone had sought lower interest rates and made the decision that, like many people in the U.S., it was underwater in its mortgage. So the investors are doing the corporate version of jingle mail and returning it to the lenders. The company says that the property which it purchased for $96 million in 2006 is worth less now. Right now the hotel has a $65 million, fixed-rate commercial mortgage-backed securities loan with a 6.14 percent interest rate due at the start of the year in 2018. This works out to more than $250,000 in debt per room.

A statement from the company says that it ""maintains more than adequate liquidity to support or repay this mortgage" but believes that turning it over to the lenders is in the best interests of stockholders. Sunstone Hotel has said that it may make the same move with selected other mortgaged hotels in its portfolios. It also owns properties under the Marriott, Hilton, Hyatt and Fairmont brands. The W San Diego remains open.

Tags: foreclosure, san diego, SanDiego, sunstone hotel, SunstoneHotel, w hotel, WHotel

The Gottis Save Their Home

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Estates, Celebrity Shopping, Crimes and Misdemeanors

It turns out that Victoria Gotti and her family will be staying in their Old Westbury, New York home a bit longer. Newsday says that the reality TV star, gossip columnist and mob princess is working in a deal with the government that will keep the home from foreclosure. Gotti has said that she needed money owed to her by her ex-husband, Carmine Agnello from their divorce to pay her mortgage. and Agnello has said he needs cash to pay off a $10 million forfeiture judgment related to his racketeering conviction.

Gotti may be cutting a deal with the government that would give her title to a dozen properties that Agnello was looking to sell to raise money. Agnello's mother's name is on the deeds of three parcels that were supposed to be part of the package but lawyers for Gotti and the government said they are working toward a deal on the remaining commercial properties. Once she gets the money Gotti will have to pay off back taxes and other claims and could get enough money together to save her home. There is an outstanding $700,000 loan against the property. Gotti has claimed that Agnello secretly took out the mortgage on the mansion saying that she had given him power of attorney. The home was most recently on the market for $2.9-$3.2 million.

Gallery: Victoria Gotti In New York

Tags: foreclosure, old westbury, OldWestbury, victoria gotti, VictoriaGotti

Lenny Dykstra Facing Foreclosure

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Estates, Wings, Celebrity Shopping, Wealth

Former baseball player Lenny Dykstra has been trying to sell his Thousand Oaks, California home for a while now but apparently things are more serious than we realized. He could be facing foreclosure. Private equity firm Index Investors gave Dykstra a $850,000 bridge loan in November which was secured by the home. They have filed foreclosure papers on the home as has Washington Mutual which says Dykstra defaulted on his $12 million mortgage.

Dykstra bought the home from hockey Wayne Gretsky for $18.5 million in 2007 and put it on the market last year for $24.95 million. The six-bedroom home didn't sell and in February it showed a price reduction down to $16.5 million. All of a sudden, the list price has been pushed back up to $25 million. It is still however listed at the same rental price it was in February, $55,000 a month.

Dealbreaker also says that Dykstra's Gulfstream II was impounded on February 12. It's a dramatic turn from a year ago when the New Yorker did a profile of Dykstra and his magazine, The Players Club which was going to show professional athletes how to keep their wealth and not join the ranks of players who earn millions and wind up in financial trouble just a few years later. Since then, Dykstra has been the subject of multiple lawsuits and creditors in relation to the magazine. As investments, magazines are like restaurants, glamorous, but highly profitable only for the lucky few.

Gallery: Lenny Dykstra in Thousand Oaks

Tags: celebrity foreclosure, CelebrityForeclosure, foreclosure, lenny dykstra, LennyDykstra, thousand oaks, ThousandOaks

Will Boston's Hancock Tower Be Sold At Auction?

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Real Estate Developments

hancock tower

One of Boston's most recognizable buildings, the John Hancock tower is in deep financial trouble. The 60-story glass tower is scheduled to be sold in a foreclosure auction on March 31. The Boston Herald reports that the current owner, Broadway Partners, may file bankruptcy before then. The company bought the tower in 2006 for $1.3 billion hoping that rents in the office tower would provide income. However the economy's quick descent and the erosion of rental prices in Boston are making that purchase look like a bad investment. It is now projected that the tower is worth just $800 million. A spokesman for Broadway Partners has only said the the company continues to negotiate and hopes that "something positive will take place before the auction."

Tags: boston, foreclosure, hancock tower, HancockTower

Kirkland Winery In Foreclosure

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Wine

Sad news for the Kirkland Ranch Winery. Wines & Vines reports that the foreclosure proceedings have begun on the property. The news comes after an auction in December failed to attract a bidder to pay the $22 million minimum bid. The winery has let most employees go but remains open with management filling in.

The winery has been a custom crush facility for other wineries and other wineries have wine aging and stored at Kirkland. It's been a long road for this producer of Sangiovese, Pinot Grigio, Syrah and other wines. The winery filed Chapter 11 a couple of years ago to avoid a foreclosure auction and emerged from bankruptcy protection in 2007. The Kirkland family built the 57,000-square-foot winery ten years ago and it can process 200,000 gallons of wine annually and has the capability to produce more than twice that. The cellar has storage for 3,000 oak barrels. The winery can crush up to 2500 tons and handle 257,000 gallons in refrigerated stainless steel tanks. It is believed that the lender will be closing down the winery but the time frame is not known.

Tags: foreclosure, kirkland ranch winery, KirklandRanchWinery, wine

Stevenot Winery Restructures Amidst Foreclosure Proceedings

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Wine

Another California winery has hit trouble. The Stevenot Winery is facing foreclosure proceedings against several of its properties. Owner Jack Munari has said that the Calaveras County winery itself will not close and will soon expand according to The Record. Three Stevenot Winery properties are scheduled to be auctioned off Jan. 12 in a foreclosure sale by Bay Sierra Mortgage Fund of Santa Rosa. Munari is raising money and planning to file bankruptcy papers to keep the winery open and under his ownership. Munari bought the winery from founder Barden Stevenot in 2006 and says that the core winery business is strong and has a larger customer base than when he bought it. He plans to add a Munari wine brand and build a second winery. Stevenot offers Chardonnay and Merlot as well as more exotic wines such as Verdelho and Torrontes. There is also a Gran Reserva line and Red Rover, a slightly lower priced wine.

Tags: calaveras county, CalaverasCounty, foreclosure, stevenot, wine, winery

Big Drop Predicted For California Real Estate

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

It seems that the real estate market isn't done falling yet. Fortune magazine has released their list of the 10 worst real estate markets for 2009 and it's bad news for California. A full eight of the 10 on the list are in California starting with Los Angeles in the top slot. The 2008 median house price in Los Angeles was $375,340 but a slide of nearly 25% is predicted for next year followed by another 5% dip in 2010. The next two spots are ones which have already been slammed with foreclosures, Stockton and Riverside, California. In the fourth slot is Miami, Florida which could see another nearly 23% drop in an already plummeting market. Sacramento, Anaheim, Fresno, San Diego and Bakersfield round out the rest of the California areas in trouble. In the tenth spot is Washington D.C. which could have a drop of almost 20%. I wonder if that number takes the Obama bounce into account.

Tags: california, foreclosure, real estate, RealEstate

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