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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If only this one had been open in January when millions rushing to D.C. to witness President Obama's Inauguration were faced with sold-out hotels left and right. In what marks another milestone in the global expansion of the W Hotel brand, the W Hotel in Washington, D.C opened this past Thursday with a giant bash. It was a jam-packed party full of the town's political elite, including Presidential Aide Reggie Love and the President's personal secretary Katie Johnson, as well as celebs like Emmy Rossum who flocked to hear an intimate performance by John Legend. In an event that brought Versailles to Washington, the party was full of Marie Antoinette models sporting powdered wigs and opera glasses while guests sipped on pink cocktails and munched on cotton candy.

The new W Hotel, the 25th to open in North America, takes over the historic Hotel Washington, which opened in 1917. The new design incorporates the 1920s Beaux Arts architecture of the original building with the edgy designs of Dianna Wong whose, L.A.-based firm transformed all of the interiors. Wong gathered artwork symbolizing "old Washington," which she sprinkled among her more modern designs including a digital fireplace, crackled paint, deconstructed fixtures, and new chandeliers complimenting the original 1920s light fixtures. Her theme throughout the hotel is "pinstripes and lace," to appeal to both the masculine and feminine powers of Washington.

As the city's closest hotel to the White House, the location features unparalleled views of our nation's monuments, and can expect to attract an abundance of stately guests from around the world, and perhaps a national scandal or two.

W turned the famed rooftop, where for decades politicos have converged to drink and deliberate, into a modern cocktail lounge, with a menu provided by cocktail king Sasha Petraske of Milk & Honey and Little Branch. The cocktails can also be ordered in the Living Room, W's design of the traditional hotel lobby. Dining options include the J&G Steakhouse and Wine Bar from Chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten.The W Washington D.C. has 317 guestrooms in total, including 23 Marvelous suites. The W's interpretation of the traditional Presidential Suite, the "pinstripes and lace" Extreme WOW suite, is an exact symbol of the new design influence quickly arriving in our nation's capital.

According to property records, this Mansard-roofed home in the Georgetown area of Washington, D.C. belongs to William A Haseltine, former Harvard Medical School profession and the founder of Human Genome Sciences, Inc. He also founded the Haseltine Foundation for Medical Sciences and the Arts, a foundation that supports access to high quality health for the poor and middle class of developing countries. His home is a real Georgetown charmer, combining elegance with a certain informal warmth. It was built in 1875 with later additions. The eight-bedroom home has large public rooms and a cozy wood-paneled library and an informal dining area occupies a sunny windowed spot. The home also includes a fitness room.The exterior includes a brick terrace and a small lap pool with a fountain. This home is listed at $13.25 million.

What's that sound in the distance, could it be the distant rumblings of a real estate recovery? The economy is still in flux but there are reasons to be hopeful. U.S. News & World Report has compiled a list of cities that may escape the tremendous dip in commercial real estate and be on their way to a full scale recovery. The data comes from REIS, a real estate research firm and looks at retail and office vacancy rates in the 79 biggest metro areas factoring in projections for 2010. Some of the entries on the list might surprise you (or at least they surprised me). Washington D.C. isn't shocking but Pittsburgh, Tulsa and Louisville, Kentucky are all on the list. It seems that in the commercial real estate game the smaller cities have fared better.

Say whatever you like about Karl Rove, the man likes to read. George W. Bush's adviser has put his five-bedroom home in Washington, D.C. on the market for $1.585 million and pictures reveal plenty of books, in the living room, in the library and even in the master bedroom. One of the main rooms, the family room I believe, has been turned into an office with more books and file boxes stuffed against the fireplace. Rove has a lot less to do in Obama's Washington D.C. and so the home is up for sale as Rove moves on to his homes in Texas and Florida.

Rove's home in the Kent area of Washington was built in 1968 and has a main-floor family room, a living room with built-in bookcases, a library, a kitchen with separate breakfast room and a formal dining room. Rove bought the house in 2001 for $799,000 and has listed it for $1.585 million.

[via Washington Post and Berg Properties Big Time Listings]

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The former CEO of Fannie Mae Daniel Mudd took a lot of flack last year for chilling in his luxurious Washington, DC, home while the rest of the country reeled in mortgage turmoil. Now, as the NY Post's Gimme Shelter reports, it's Mudd's turn to test the market. Mudd is selling his Washington D.C. home and looking to buy or rent in Greenwich, Connecticut or nearby because he starts his new job at New York's Fortress Investment Group on Aug. 11.

Mudd's home which earned the nickname Mudd Manor last year is a Georgian-style estate built in 1927. It sits on an acre of land that includes a pool, gated drive and carriage house with a three-car garage. The home has a luxurious master suite, sunroom, brick fireplaces, French doors and original wood details including bookshelves and wainscoting.There is also a home theater, wine cellar and servant's quarters. It is listed at $9.5 million.

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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.]

Is the era of the boutique over? Many high-end fashion lines have been struggling with decreased sales and the small boutiques that offered expensive clothing and personal service are finding their business greatly diminished during this recession as well. The Washington Post reports that after 30 years Harriet Kassman's eponymous boutique is closing its doors. Harriet Kassman has been a Washington D.C. institution for the city's most influential and wealthy women. Kassman's boutique offered more than just beautiful clothing, her boutique is famous for personal service and the relationships cultivated over years of buying. Kassman's specialties lay in expensive suits for those who work on Capitol Hill as well as gowns suitable for Washington D.C.'s many galas and formal events. But as budgets have gotten smaller, galas are less frequent and the need for a new gown for each one has become an extravagance rather than a necessity.

The Washington Post article is full of plaudits for Kassman's store and the special place it represented in the lives of many women. Kassman is currently holding a retirement sale but is still holding out hope that someone else might want to come along and buy the boutique and keep it open. She is keeping the bridal portion of the store open until all existing orders have been completed.

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.

When art collectors beef, there are no dis' records. Instead, there's just beef. Canadian art collector Jolles Shefner picked up one of Chaim Soutine's paintings from the Le boeuf (Piece of Beef) series for a mere $68,000 in 1981. She went home and hung it in her living room for the next 23 years. Then, she sold it for $1 million. Half a year after that, Soutine's beef wound up in Washington, D.C.'s National Gallery of Art, which paid $2 million for it. Now, all the people in this chain of transactions have beef. When someone makes a great deal, it's usually at the expense of the person on the other side.

Shefner's heirs sued the middlemen from Jolles' sale and the National Art Gallery – essentially for fraud. Though the truth is still struggling to the surface, Soutine experts Maurice Tuchman and Esti Dunow appear to be involved in both the Shefner sale and the later sale to the National Gallery of Art. Shefner's estate seems to have accused Tuchman and Dunow of market manipulation, using their Soutine savvy to maximize their earnings.

In the lawsuit filings, Shefner's heirs claim that Tuchman and Dunow left "at least half a dozen" comparable Soutine sales from the list they provided to the Jolles to support the 2004 valuation and sale. And, these folks are saying the National Gallery of Art didn't investigate the source of the painting sufficiently. Of course, the family wants the painting back.

Tuchman and Dunow deny any impropriety and have indicated that Jolles' daughter received an independent valuation from an auction house that put the value of the painting at $1 million. But, the dynamic duo of Soutine wanted to restore order to the world. So, they agreed to pay $210,000 to the National Art Gallery in a settlement deal so complicated, you'd think it would be intended to end in the death of James Bond. They will authenticate the painting and maintain a provenance listing. The painting itself will go back to the Shefner family. The National Art Gallery will pick up $1,325,000 in cash from the Shefner heirs and a seven-year promisorry note for $650,000. All three payments come to $2,185,000. The museum walks away with a small profit – and it holds onto the painting until the promissory note is paid.

Volkswagen is not a marque one usually associates with luxury, and so we admit to being somewhat skeptical about the new 2010 Touareg V6 TDI and not all that enthusiastic at first when the chance came to test it out. MotorTrend changed our mind with its recent comparison of diesel and hybrid luxury SUVs - amazingly, their pros all concurred that it outclassed more expensive models like the Mercedes ML320 BlueTEC, BMW X5 and Lexus RX 450h. Plus it's one of the most fuel efficient and cleanest SUVs in the world.

We had a chance to experience it firsthand on a recent jaunt to Washington, DC and Annapolis, Maryland. The Touareg handled all situations with poise and equanimity, from navigating the city streets to an amazing dinner at Wolfgang Puck's The Source, to finding the right marina in Eastport through the bay's backroads for some sailing (the touchscreen GPS was a big help there). We could easily have kept on going, as the comfy interior with its wood and leather resembles in MotorTrend's words "a den in a ritzy Alaska fishing lodge" - or for our purposes make that the upstairs bar at the Annapolis Yacht Club.

Don't think that "diesel" means noisy and slow like those old Mercedes wagons of your youth. The Touareg TDI is powered by a hushed 3.0L, turbocharged six cylinder engine that produces 225 horsepower and an impressive 407 lbs-ft. of torque. Tourque, we learned en route, is more important than horsepower in diesel engines. The TDI's torque gives it performance equal to the gas-powered Touareg V8 that's rated at 350 hp and 324 lb-ft of torque, to give you an idea. And whereas the latter has an EPA mileage rating of 13/18 mpg city/hwy, the TDI gets 17 mpg in the city and 25 mpg on the highway.

Another big listing has hit the market in Washington DC. This home on Whitehaven Street and currently is owned by Lea and Wayne Berman. Lea was Laura Bush's social secretary, and Wayne is a lobbyist. The grand home shows, as the Washington City Paper put it, a "penchant for patterns" including a room papered in a tartan plaid. The house was designed by Washington architect Nathan C. Wyeth, who also designed the Oval Office and it was also home to part of the art collection of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon, who lived next door. Both homes overlook the British Embassy and its elegant gardens. The eight-bedroom home has classic lines and is perfectly designed for entertaining Washington's elite. It is listed at $20 million.

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I first mentioned Evermay when it went on sale last fall for $49 million but didn't give it the full estate of the day treatment. Now that it has had a $10 million price chop it seems as good a time as any to take a second look. Evermay, a Georgian Revival estate on 3.58 acres, is Washington D.C.'s priciest home. The 12,000-square-foot house was commissioned in 1801. It created by Samuel Davidson, a businessman and international maritime merchant who once owned more than 150 acres of land in the heart of the city, land eventually occupied by the White House, Treasury, Old Executive Office Building and Lafayette Park. Evermay is located in walking distance to the White House with views of views of the Washington Monument and Rock Creek Park. The eight-bedroom home includes a ballroom and was rented out to a foreign official for the inauguration. The land includes a gatekeepers house and a separate office. This home was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1973. More details are available at the property website.

Architect Frank Gehry has worked his magic in major cities around the world but now he will finally have a place in Washington D.C. The famous architect has been chosen to create the national memorial to President Eisenhower on a site off the Mall. The Dwight D. Eisenhower Memorial Commission unanimously decided to choose Gehry. Dwight David Eisenhower II, the president's grandson, is a member of the commission and was one of the 11 judges.

Gehry, who is 80, called the decision exciting and said that he rarely enters design competitions but that that this project resonated with him. An image of Gehry's design has not been released and some are concerned that Gehry's distinctive swoops and flourishes will result in a building that is more a memorial to him than to President Eisenhower. The site will include interactive displays and is estimated to cost between $90 and $110 million and will take five years to design and construct.

I love it when people send me listings. This one comes from my friend in Washington DC who I think likes to torture me a little. Certainly this home in Washington DC has been tortured a little. The 1927 Beaux Arts home has been given a remodel that is Versailles by way of Las Vegas. Gilded surfaces, extravagant flops of drapery fabric, canopied beds and bombe chests all create a rather gaudy style (it's not as bad as Victoria Gotti's home but there are certain similarities). The seven-bedroom home includes high ceilings, ornate plaster moldings, herringbone oak floors, large rooms for entertaining and staff quarters with a separate kitchen. The one-acre grounds include a swimming pool.

My friend reports that the home was once owned by Tongsun Park, a key figure in the 1976 political scandal known as Koreagate in which South Korean political figures sought to gain influence in Congress. U.S. Rep. Richard Hanna received around $200,000 from Park. The home is listed at $14.6 million.

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