Hamptons Home Sales Plunge 67%
For those of you who think the worst of the Real Estate correction is behind us, here’s a little tidbit about some tony NY real estate.
“Home sales in the Hamptons, the New York oceanside communities favored by financiers and celebrities, plunged 67 percent in the first quarter from a year earlier as Wall Street job cuts and investment losses stifled demand for second homes.
Across 11 eastern Long Island towns, 96 homes sold in the three months ended March 31, marking the biggest percentage drop in at least 27 years, property broker Town & Country Real Estate said. It was the biggest percentage drop in their records, which date to 1982. In the same quarter of 2008, 287 homes sold…
The median sales price fell 28 percent from the year earlier to $698,461, Town & Country said. The decline was largely due to fewer sales of $5 million or more. The total value of all real estate sold in the Hamptons in the first quarter fell 78 percent to $140.2 million.”
Now that is some serious repricing going on:
Enjoy your summers . . .
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Source:
Hamptons, N.Y. Home Sales Plunge 67% in First Quarter
Oshrat Carmiel
Bloomberg, April 9 2009
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601213&sid=a_IieuwSGDJo&
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April 11th, 2009 at 11:34 am
We should all weep for the fat cats.
April 11th, 2009 at 11:38 am
To quote Seinfeld, “that’s a shame”.
April 11th, 2009 at 11:41 am
And we’re just now seeing drastic re-pricing of higher end homes, which will put further downward pressure on the markets for mid to lower end homes. It ain’t ovah til it’s ovah……and this ain’t ovah by a long shot.
April 11th, 2009 at 11:42 am
@cttfinder: Don’t be so sure about that. If we continue to see bailouts of the fat cats, perhaps so, but I think you’re overgeneralizing a bit, kind of like the adage, “NYC is immune to real estate downturns”. This myth that the high end market is immune too shall be shattered before it’s over.
April 11th, 2009 at 11:44 am
I’m cryin’ in my oatmeal…
April 11th, 2009 at 11:49 am
New York Times: Being Poor Is a Blast!
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2009/4/11/718941/-New-York-Times:-Being-Poor-Is-a-Blast!
Isn’t Ms. Martin brave — smiling through the tears!?
Isn’t she amazing!? With all this misery around here, she’s able to “enjoy it all.”
Well, not quite:
Ms. Martin is a real estate investor, her husband is a plastic surgeon, and their home sits on the 12th hole of a Cincinnati country club.
some great comments…
Slumming on the 12th hole.
It’s called “Depression Chic”
I’ve been hearing about this in Manhattan. It’s the latest craze at NYU: stop spending all your parents money and like, be all frugal and poor n stuff.
April 11th, 2009 at 12:06 pm
…but Larry Kudlow said the crisis is over?
April 11th, 2009 at 12:55 pm
Does Larry have a place in the Hamptons??? He’s been raving about his ARM a lot lately… When is the last time Barry was on his show? Too honest?
http://moneyneversleepsblog.blogspot.com
April 11th, 2009 at 1:04 pm
Ah yes, the old interest only ARM. I’m sure many of the social climbers on the Hamptons have a few of those resetting in the coming years and are either scrambling to re-fi or sell. It’s a myth that the rich don’t have a lot of debt. In many cases, some are more leveraged up to their eyeballs more than the average Joe.
April 11th, 2009 at 1:05 pm
Poor Biff! Poor Muffy!
Whatever will Biff and Muffy do if they can’t sell their cottage by the shore?
April 11th, 2009 at 1:08 pm
Doesn’t real estate always bounce back? Always has. Why is this time going to be any different? I think if you own a second home in the Hamptons, you’re probably not concerned with the present value at any given time, as I doubt any of them are considering selling, except maybe the odd hedge fund manager who forgot that a hedge fund is actually supposed to be hedged, and no one really cares about them anyway, except maybe their immediate families, and even some of them are probably just pissed at how they have been living with someone that friggin stupid.
April 11th, 2009 at 1:48 pm
OT-Sorry guys, but I have been reading here for about two years, based on what I’m about to share- there seems to be few other people in the world to trust. My 73 year old mother in-law had turned total control (including power of attorney) over to her nephew who is a financial planner with—- and he was short trading and churning with her 700,000 portfolio since 2004. She has lost over about 500,000 of her portfolio. You have to understand she was not involved in the decision making and had full trust in her nephew. We are in the process of getting the control back but do you know if there is any recourse that should be taken and is it even worth it?
April 11th, 2009 at 1:58 pm
@Irish:
Have you talked to an attorney about it? I would talk to someone who does Estate Planning or something in the financial realm.
Something about the facts as you have presented them (shorting the market, lost $500K out of $700K) just doesn’t sound right.
An attorney who does Estate Planning should probably be able to tell you if a crime has been committed. Embezzlement is always in the back of my mind. But I don’t know more (and don’t want to know) of the facts that could change the equation.
April 11th, 2009 at 2:01 pm
Irish @ 1:48
If you’ve got lots of money to spend on lawyers, you might be able to intimidate the nephew into coughing up some money… if he has any. But if you can’t afford to throw a lot of money at lawyers, then you’re probably screwed.
April 11th, 2009 at 2:10 pm
@OkieLawyer,
You are exactly right that it doesn’t sound right? It is incomprehensible to us also? It is the tax accountant who explained the facts to us? If nothing else we will be contacting compliance officers at the firm to see how this could have happened with a 73 year old womans account.
April 11th, 2009 at 2:12 pm
Yes, it sounds like she is screwed. At least she has enough left to last her lifetime, living conservatively.
April 11th, 2009 at 4:39 pm
IRISH!
By all means seek an attorney. If the nephew represents some larger firm you can easily go after the money there. See if the firm is a member of NASD or NYSE; you can make a complaint with them without an attorney. Many “financial planners” are representatives of reputable companies. Your comment “with –.” That’s the ticket. The “–” has money. Even if the guy is solo, he’s trading with some firm and made some kind of misrepresentations. He has committed a crime. You need to educate yourself a little and talk to a lawyer. Do not take this lying down. In a lawsuit with a significant company, you can sue for more than the money lost. That will attract an attorney on a contingency basis. Like I said, educate yourself.
It is certainly possible the nephew simply took a large portion of the money. If he has assets, you can sue to recover from those. Do something. Email me at drewburn@chartermi.net. I’ll be happy to explain more. I hate this kind of thing.
April 11th, 2009 at 5:08 pm
Meanwhile, in Palm Beach, here’s how the other half is faring…….
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/12/business/12palm.html?pagewanted=2&hpw
April 12th, 2009 at 12:06 am
It’s always interesting how some of the best goes and comes back as quick – and it is always interesting that it just doesn’t come back the same way….There are lots of rich Russians – who want the taste of The Hamptons and will bring a new and interesting to fare. Can you imagine being rejected from membership to a Country Club – and then reading in the paper that the most vocal of the objectors Disappeared while fishing. And how many “oy Veys” will ring out in the locker rooms, as the members begin to ask to have their cars brought around back to the locker room door as they exit. The fashionable of yesterday will strut and fret their daily walks on the upper east side with no one to look or care. Many refashioned parts of Brooklyn are coming back….or did they ever leave…see you at Luger’s for a Burger…it’s just over the bridge.
April 12th, 2009 at 11:08 am
That kid is lucky he’s not in my family.
An attorney would be the least of his concerns.
April 12th, 2009 at 1:05 pm
@drewburn,
Thanks so much for your input. I did check and yes the company is a member of the NYSE. We are still gathering information and will be getting back power of attorney on Tuesday. When I know more I will probably email you. Believe me, when we know all the facts, I won’t be putting — but the name of the company and the investors name. I don’t want anyone else to be at the receiving end of this dishonesty. We will also file a complaint with the NYSE. Having read this site for two years- I know their are many people with intergrity in the financial world.