What's this?
A friend of mine received a solicitation in the mail from something called the South Street Group offering to buy his house immediately, as is, with no commission. It was a mass mailing, so neither my friend nor I took it particularly seriously but I checked out the group anyway. It seems to be a "hard money" lender-a source of quick cash for people who are, say, being foreclosed on, as well as a realty brokerage. Can't say much about their lending business but as a resource for potential home buyers, the company's a bust. A search request for homes in Greenwich produced old, stale MLS listings:5 Irvine Court, for instance, which sold 9 months ago; Terrace Avenue, which not only is not for sale, it lacks the "waterfront" that South Street Group says it is on. Unless you count the storm drain that runs in front of the property.

It's 9:15 in the morning and I've been in the office an hour, waiting for clients to show up and sign a lease. It's not a huge deal-I usually come in early, but these people specifically requested an early meeting and now, an hour later, I'm still cooling my heels. I find that annoying. This is not going to be a long-lasting relationship.

38 Round Hill Road
Notwithstanding my gloomy prediction about high end sales, rumor has it that 38 Round Hill Road, just listed last week at $10,450,000, has an accepted offer. Lower Round Hill continues to be a prime address.