Twenty rural retreats spanning the breadth of North America and over a century of architectural and social history are featured in author and photographer Bret Morgan's stylish new book Rustic. Examples include the Ames Gate Lodge, H. H. Richardson's "sublime pile of boulders" in Massachusetts; Camp Topridge, Marjorie Merriweather Post's rustic luxe compund in the Adirondacks; the Arts and Crafts masterpiece Charles Millard Pratt House in southern California; Fortune Rock, George Howe's striking modernist home on the coast of Maine; Robert A. M. Stern's nostalgic Spruce Lodge, hidden high in the Colorado Rockies; and Ledge House, Peter Bohlin's vision of rustic modernism in the Catoctin Mountains of Maryland. All exemplify an "artfully informal aesthetic that celebrates the beauty of the natural world."

The list of the most expensive cities in the United States is now out, and unsurprisingly, New York has taken the top spot, with a cost of living that's double its closest follower. Of course, the financial crisis has put a bit of pressure on real estate prices and the cost of goods all over the country, but there are still some places that just cost a fortune.

New York: a two-bedroom luxury apartment (unfurnished) now costs a mere $4,300, off $200 from last year. And, there are other signs that the most expensive city is becoming less expensive, including the shuttering of Café des Artistes and the opening of our first J.C. Penney (ugh).

Los Angeles: this is where you go if you can afford only half the cost of living in New York. Unlike the most expensive city in the country, it makes sense to have a car out there, but get a nice one: you'll be spending a lot of time in it. LA has some of the longest commutes in the country.

Washington, D.C.: in this part of the country, take advantage of a 3.8 percent unemployment rate for the metro area. That's a hell of a lot better than the nationwide 9.8 percent (expected to break 10 percent early next year).

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The next luxury condo building in Boston is going to be closer to the ground than expected. Local windbag controversial real estate developer Don Chiofaro has been fighting a losing battle over the new building and is finally yielding to pressure from the community. The $1 billion plan involves two towers, with commercial space in the shorter sibling of the residential tower.

A decorative arch atop the residential building (which would also include a hotel) would push the building from 690 feet to 780 feet. Removing the arch and cutting the size brings it down by 155 feet – to the 625 feet that the Massachusetts Port Authority will allow. Anything higher, Massport says, would get in the way of nearby Logan International Airport's air traffic.

Chiofaro tells the Boston Globe, "I have no problem with 625 feet, if that's where [we] end up," leaving room for a small victory that would put this Icarus a touch closer to the sun. Given how scarce his friends were when he nearly lost his International Place towers a few years ago, I'm betting he isn't likely to get much above the Massport cutoff.

When the building is finally finished, residents will get fantastic views of the Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy Greenway, along with unbeatable bragging rights.

A couple of readers sent me the Boston Globe story on one of Boston's biggest properties. The Ames-Webster mansion in Boston's pricey Back Bay neighborhood is at 26,000 square feet, one impressive building. The mansion, which was built in 1872, has 50 rooms including 28 fireplaces. The property is currently owned by Reality Realty Trust and could be used as a single family home, multiple units or commercial office space. Right now it is full of office suites.

Details include a stained glass skylight by John La Farge and murals by painter Benjamin Constant and a high arches of intricately carved wood. According to the Globe article, Landvest, the real estate company with the listing, is hosting a cocktail party for brokers in town for Christie's Great Estates 2009 Annual Conference to show off the property. It is expected to sell for between $18 million to $25 million and the listing has a bid deadline of December 15.



[Thanks, Tim and Chris]

Do you love house tours? I do and so does one of our readers who has asked about great estate tours in New England. I can think of a few, which are listed below, but I'm hoping you will weigh in too with suggestions in the comments.

Hammond Castle in Gloucester, Massachusetts is a medieval style castle built in Gloucester, Massachusetts during the 1920s. This is one of those homes that only ego, imagination and unbridled wealth could create. It's open as a museum and includes displays of armor. This unique property is only open on weekends.

The Mount in Lenox, Massachusetts, is the home of Edith Wharton and offers a great look not just at a writer's home but at classic American style. The home and grounds are open for tours.

Nearby The Mount is Ventfort Hall, shown above, an Elizabethan Revival mansion that showcases Gilded Age style in Lenox, Massachusetts. Sarah, the sister of J. Pierpont Morgan, purchased the property in 1891, and hired Rotch & Tilden, prominent Boston architects, to design the house in the most lavish of styles.

Gore Place in Waltham, Massachusetts is one of the most beautiful examples of the Federal period in Massachusetts architecture. The historic house and estate of Massachusetts Governor Christopher Gore has been "the Monticello of the North" and offers tours and a variety of special programs.

In scenic Newburyport, the Cushing House Museum is open for tours from May 12, 2009 through October 31, 2009. The rooms showcase collections of silver, furniture, portraits, clocks, needlework and more. The grounds include a 19th century garden, an herb garden, fruit trees, a summer house, cobbled yard and carriage house.

This month the world spotlight will focus on Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts yet again as another U.S. President vacations there. Martha's Vineyard was a favorite vacation destination of the Clintons and the island a ferry ride away from Cape Cod has been a celebrity summer spot for years. It also has a long history, illustrated by today's home, the Fisher-Bliss house in Edgartown. This home was constructed in 1832 by master builder Thomas M. Coffin, with later alterations dating to 1924. The home was built for Captain George Lawrence who sold it to Captain Jared Fisher. It is the only three-story Greek Revival house in Edgartown's Historic District and is within walking distance of the many attractions in this picturesque island town.

The house remained in the Fisher family until 1964 and was then handed over to the Society for the Preservation of New England Antiquities, now known as Historic New England. It was never operated as a public museum but was maintained by the organization and used for summer rentals. It has 11 bedrooms and eight fireplaces and the upper stories offer harbor views. From the widow's walk you can enjoy sweeping views of the harbor and bay. Behind the house there is a one-and-a-half story barn, constructed in the mid-nineteenth century, which can be used as a garage, children's playroom or storage area. It is listed at $3.65 million.

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

Most of the homes I see in the Berkshires town of Great Barrington, Massachusetts are older elegant estates dating back from the area's long history as a summer retreat. This home however, is modern and freshly created. The home is on 120 acres stretching from a ridge to the Williams River. It is set on rock outcroppings and has views of the surrounding woods. A floating roof soars over a cool home of steel, wood and glass. Airiness is the buzzword with this one, it's got huge glass windows, open staircases and clerestory windows designed to let light flood the clean, bare space. The property includes many decks, a pergola, two-bedroom guesthouse and a twenty-five meter lap pool. It is listed at $8.5 million.
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Maybe, society has had enough. In Spokane, Washington, even non-smokers came to the defense of the cigar community when public golf courses tried to implement a ban. Other places are relying on creativity, such as tobacconist De La Concha's cigar dinners. In New Hampshire, the legislature is getting involved – a bill may legalize the sale of liquor in cigar bars.

In most places, it's tough to find a social setting where you can enjoy a cocktail and a cigar at the same time. The "live free or die" folks are looking to change that. If tobacconists are able to receive liquor licenses, the resulting store traffic could offset much of the damage being done by the financial crisis.

For Two Guys Smoke Shop in Salem, New Hampshire – where I used to go when I lived in northern Massachusetts – sales have fallen since the state banned smoking in restaurants two years ago, with particular effect in the winter. The ability to sell drinks would make the venue more enticing to customers, keep them in seats longer and likely result in an increase in sales.

There aren't many cigar venues left in New England or elsewhere in the country where you can smoke and drink at the same time. In Manhattan, we have a few spots, and Boston has Cigar Masters. Many cities have their hidden gems, but you have to find them. For the cigar smokers of New Hampshire, however, this could change. And, if you believe that Dixville Notch chooses the president every four years, expect to see similar laws pop up in other states.

Controversial Boston real estate developer Don Chiofaro is running into resistance. His plan to raise what would be two of the city's largest towers has been the subject of ire for local residence who would hate to see their views obstructed and other do-gooders who don't want to sacrifice the character of the waterfront.

In his latest round of battle, Chiofaro heard criticism that the two buildings would simply be too large for Boston. Currently, the city's tallest building is the Hancock Tower, totaling 61 stories. It's followed by the Prudential building and Chiofaro's One International Place (Two International Place is not as high).

In an unusual show of restraint, the developer has not called his opponents "pirates."

Proponents are excited not only by the prospect of 860,000 square feet of office space, a hotel and 100 condo units but also the likely 4,000 construction jobs that would result from the $900 million project.

Even if he makes it past the locals, one problem remains: money. Boston Mayor Tom Menino, who hasn't been terribly sympathetic with Chiofaro in the past, has said that he'll require that the builder prove he has the financing lined up ... if the project gets that far. Five years ago, Chiofaro almost lost his crown jewel, International Place, when Tischman Speyer (the "gang of pirates" from New York) tried to foreclose.

This fight is far from over, but I wouldn't make plans to move into those new units yet. This could take a while.

Today's home on Fisher Hill in Brookline, Massachusetts has as its claim to fame the fact that it was once featured in an article in Time Magazine on the "New American Home" (the owners talked about their dual home offices and large space for watching television). The six-bedroom home sits on over and acre and has an indoor pool and an indoor basketball court/gymnasium as well as an outdoor sport court. It is listed at $6.295 million which makes it the most expensive home on the market in Brookline.

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

The City of Boston just can't seem to make up its mind. Back in December, officials were mulling an absolute smoking ban that likely would have led to the closure of several cigar-related businesses (such as Cigar Masters on Boylston St.). Now, the city sees tobacco as a way to bring some new cash into ol' Beantown's coffers – up to $13 million annually, actually. The tax increase would cover loose tobacco, small cigars and smokeless tobacco.

Having tapped the cigarette well dry with a recent tax increase from $1 a pack to $2.51 last July, the lawmakers have had to hunt elsewhere. Officials, with bizarre logic, believe that the cigarette tax has led price-sensitive teenagers to consume other forms of tobacco. Yet, there has been no report of an outbreak hoodlums smoking White Owls at Copley.

While this measure does not affect the luxury cigar market directly, the underlying thinking may signal future legislative ambition. Cigarettes, long the preferred tobacco product to tax, will eventually lose their value as a source of tax revenue, particularly if they are taxed out of existence. While the stated ambition of the proposed Massachusetts measure is to price tobacco out of the reach of minors, it also suggests that alternative sources of tobacco tax may be necessary.

We've seen this thinking in action with the SCHIP. The states may follow.

Worried about the future of your right to enjoy cigars? Join the Cigar Rights of America.

Spring in New England often arrives with such beauty it seems calculated to make you forget all about winter. This home is on Peach's Point, a private peninsula in Marblehhead, Massachusetts . The home is on two acres facing the Atlantic Ocean and is in walking distance of a sandy beach. The brick and clapboard home was built around 1910 and has been restored and expanded into a modern retreat. There are five bedrooms, six fireplaces, a kitchen with a wood counter, sitting room, exercise room and a brick terrace that faces the ocean. It is listed at $5.9 million.

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

I love looking at properties from my home town of Centerville, Massachusetts. I can remember passing this one down a long road on my way to the beach. This 1930s Georgian Colonial is directly on the beach facing Nantucket Sound. It has a private, sandy beach and a dock. Inside it is over 5,000 sq. ft. and 13 rooms, including six bedrooms. The style is classic Cape Cod and heavy on the nautical. While the kitchen seems newer other rooms definitely need an update. It is listed at $7.495 million.

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

For a long time Boston's Beacon Hill has been its priciest area and a recent article in The Real Deal points out that while volumes of sales may have been affected by the real estate slump, prices are still up. And in fact, the more expensive homes are still selling strong simply because larger homes will always have a lure in an area where there isn't much room for expansion. But can the area handle the sale of the 10-bedroom Appleton-Parker House? The large property isn't on the Hill but is located nearby on Beacon Street opposite Boston Common. The brick structure was built in 1818 and was formerly home to the Women's City Club. The property is listed as a development opportunity for a single family user or to break up into condos. The Greek Revival building, known as the Appleton-Parker House is on the National Register of Historic Places in 1978. It is currently used as a single family residence but is broken into four condos, with gated access to three garaged parking spaces and six outdoor spaces. It's listed at $27.5 million and if it sells for anywhere close to that it would be the highest sale in Boston this year.

After my colleague Jared Paul Stern mentioned Boston's most expensive real estate listing, I thought it might be fun to check out another pricey home in the city. October always makes me long for Boston and crisp fall days. Walking up Commonwealth Avenue on a sunny cool autumn day, one can't help but admire the stately townhomes that line the grandest part of this thoroughfare. This Beaux Arts home was built in the mid 1800s and renovated and combined into one gorgeous single family home in 2005. The home is five levels and includes three private decks and an impressive five parking spaces, two in garage parking spaces which occupy the garden level and three outdoor spaces.

The home has arched glass windows and beautiful marble and stone inlaid floors. The parlor reception room has arch bay windows facing the street with 15 foot ceilings and 12 foot pocket doors and the mahogany wainscoting billiards room / library is an elegant place to enjoy cocktails and conversation after dinner. The gourmet kitchen has a 15 foot granite island and a gorgeous handmade La Cornue range. The master bedroom suite has a fireplaces and two large wallk-in closets, one which is currently in use as a gym and a huge onyx / marble bath with a Jacuzzi, steam shower, double vanity and an intricately designed floor with radiant heat. On another level, a private three bedroom suite includes a formal and an informal living room or study and full kitchen, wet bar and lounge. The den leads to a deck with a Jacuzzi. This home is listed at $11.95 million.

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