Greenwich, Connecticut real estate, politics, and more.
Greenwich, Connecticut real estate, politics, and more
85 Dingletown, $3.950 million, a year after starting at $4.750. I’ve written about this home before; I like it, others thought the entry directly into the house was too abrupt. Either way, the owner’s a friend of mine and a very nice guy, so I’m glad he’s found a buyer. He paid $2.145 million for the land in 2014, and that probably means he lost money here; fortunately, he can afford to take the hit.
Perhaps a failing roof and cracked pavement will be less of a deterrent at $6 million than it was at $13.
78 Zaccheus Mead Lane has switched brokers again and again it has a new price, this time $6.250 million. The owners bought it new in 2006 for $13 million and have been trying to unload it since 2012. After a spell away from the market it returned in 2018 at $12.750; that price has gone, the house remains.
125 Pecksland Road is now on its seventh broker and fifth price which is today $8.3 million, a slight drop from its previous price of $8.8, and a far cry from its January 2016 price of $12.995. New in 2001, the current owner paid $11.1 for it in 2011 and proceeded to put some real money into it, which has proved improvident.
6 Golf Club
Lots of our older inventory is suddenly finding new interest from buyers, which is great news. Mind you, we still have something like 105 unsold houses priced at $6 million and up, but at least the small fry are moving.
6 Golf Club Road, for instance, marked down to $2.895 million from its February 2019 price of $3.495 has a contract. Nice, older home on a small cul de sac which, coincidentally, overlooks the GCC golf course, it sold to these owners in 2004 for $4.1 and before that, sold for $3.450 in 2000. So not a home run, but a sale nonetheless.
25 Orchard Hill
25 Orchard Hill Lane, off Pecksland, has sold for $3,558, 750. Original price in July 2018, $5.450.
16 Boulder Brook
16 Boulder Brook, bank owned, closed yesterday at $3.2 million. It sold new to the foreclosed owners for $5,832,000 in 2007. A year or so ago when it was still priced at $4.5 I suggested to a client that he make a run at it in the low 3s, but he demurred. Too bad, because I think $3.2’s a good price for this house.
Time to go home
Apiarist brings “riot control bees” to George Foster protest, just to keep things civil.
Janesville [Wisconsin]’s Greg Hoeft had a brilliant idea to make sure the protest didn’t become yet another destructive riot — he brought 12 carts of bees to the event, which he planned to release if the protest got out of hand.
“The riot control bees are in their holding yard waiting to clear the streets of Janesville and keep peace to this county. I’m willing to bring them in and kick them over if things get out of control,” Hoeft posted on Facebook, The Gazette reported.
“Police learned that he planned to release the bees if the protest became unruly,” the local newspaper reported.
Hoeft towed 12 carts of bees into the post office parking lot, just behind the protesters.
More than 100 people showed up for the protest, along with some wary protesters who brought guns and bees to make sure riots did not ensue.
Police Sgt. Dean Sukus insisted that law enforcement had “things under control here.” He told The Gazette that police asked Hoeft to leave, and he did.
In fact, honey bees aren’t very aggressive and are certainly not the cannibal hornets the press is having so much fun with (yesterday a Riverside newcomer posted a picture of a harmless mud wasp on the “Neighbor to Neighbor” site asking whether it was a cannibal hornet - sheesh), but a swarm of them buzzing around the empty heads of rioters would make for delightful viewing.
ANTIFA Lite
That was said by a rioting Columbia University student to a NYT reporter during the 1968 riots, and though I was but a callow youth of 15 at the time, I thought it was one of the dumbest, most unaware idiocies I’d heard from the protest movement up til then, and it reamains so today; equalled certainly, but never surpassed.
I suppose that young radical went on to a comfortable career as a corporate attorney or more likely, university professor, but he must have spawned, and his grandchild is now living in Old Greenwich, because we’ve just had a sneak terrorist attack in Binney Park.
GREENWICH — Police were contacted about spray-painted graffiti that read “BLM” found at Binney Park in Old Greenwich over the weekend.
The spray-painted letters evidently refer to “Black Lives Matter,” and protests involving the deaths of black men at the hands of police, most recently in Minneapolis.
According to police spokesman Lt. Mark Zuccerella, the “BLM” letters, with three lines underneath, were found by town workers Sunday afternoon. Police said they are looking into the incident. The spray paint was found at the park’s bathrooms near the tennis courts there.
Right on, man, and Power to the People!
(Of course, it’s possible that the police and I may be wrongly interpreting this young man’s intent, and he may have been merely expressing his dream of becoming a forest ranger.)
Cozy and intimate
1 Old Round Hill Lane, a very nice Kaali-Nagy home that’s been on the market since June 2016 when it started at $8.495 million, has finally got a contract. Current ask is $4.795.
This was the first Kaali-Nagy designed house I saw when I was starting in this business back in 2002, and I was delighted by it because Kaali-Nagy somehow achieved what so few builders of mega-houses were capable of back then, homes with rooms matching human dimensions. In other builders’ spec homes, master bedrooms were sized like airplane hangars, living rooms would fit 50 of one’s closest enemies, and one would look in vain for a room to be comfortable in. Kaali-Nagy could do that and still does, others couldn’t and still don’t.
So I’m glad this house has found a new owner who’ll appreciate it.
I reported earlier today that 85 Richmond Hill Road, on the market since 2007, is now pending at an asking price of $3.995; down considerably from its initial price of $8.9.
And now comes word that 25 Richmond Hill, reported pending in April, has sold for $4.1. This was supposed to be a spec house, built in 2014 and priced then at $7.195 million, but it took almost six years and a $3.2 price slashing to get the job done. But at least it is done.
67 Summit Road, Riverside, pending; $1.525 million, 12 days.
Normandy
16 Normandy Lane, Riverside. $3.295. This was an older listing, having started at $4.195 in May 2019. Sometimes a little aging, and price-cutting, are necessary.
17 Windabout
17 Windabout Drive, new construction priced at $8.1 million, has a contract. 11,672 sq. ft., 2.8 acres purchased for $2.6 million in 2018, it replaces a 1962 Coggins house, which were popular recreations of older Colonials. I liked them, and so did the Greenwich market until about 20 years ago when they fell from favor.
And a slew of pendings:
35 Leeward lane
35 Leeward Lane, Riverside, asking $6.495 million, down from its price a year ago of $7.495, but still a big sale.
176 Shore rd
176 Shore Road, Old Greenwich, $5.895 million. A busy design, but there you have it.
Husted
40 Husted Lane, $3.795. Purchased for $4.425 million in 2014, it couldn’t find a buyer for all of last year at $4.395, but a new price and this new influx of buyers seems to have worked magic.
5 verona
5 Verona Drive, Riverside, $2.650.
9 Chateau Ridge, $2.595 million. Westchester buyer?
laurel Lane
8 Laurel Lane, $2.495. I like this home’s location more than I do Chateau Ridge’s, and also the design. I said as much when it hit the market last month and, obviously, someone else does too.
burying hill
52 Burying Hill Road, $1.650 million, which is less than the $2.4 paid for it in 2004 but that was then, this is now.
28 Welwyn Road, Riverside, $3.995. Started in April 2019 at $4.495.
And the former Fountain family homestead at 24 Gilliam Lane, Riverside, $3.795 million is pending after just 15 days. Not much that’s recognizable in the old place except the original radiators and the living room fireplace mantle, but the real selling point was probably the absence from the premises of the Fountain boys; terrorists all.
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