Meet a mortgage broker from Greenwich Bank & Trust Thursday, October 23rd
Diane Dutcher, an agent who's always dreaming up bright ideas for her listings, has arranged for a banker to discuss what's happening with mortgages these days (not all bad, or I presume the lady wouldn't agree to spend an evening talking about it). Details are in the link below but basically it's being held at 9 Boulder Brook from 5-9 PM, some form of food and beverage provided and of course, a chance to inspect the beautiful house built by Diane's client, York Construction (and an excellent firm it is), asking price, if memory serves, around $6.75 million. Temporarily a little short of cash? Come anyway for the information - Diane's not the type to lock you in a closet until you agree to buy (or if she is, she'll let you out early enough the next morning that you can still catch your train.)

Call the number on the linked flyer for a phone number to call - you don't want to arrive at 5 and learn that the dancing girls and wine aren't scheduled until 8!

Update:
Okay, that link didn't work, so here's what it says:
SECURING A MORTGAGE AMID THE BAILOUT
What the Financial Crisis Means to You… And How You Can Still Secure a Mortgage

Come hear personal mortgage banker Lisa Edson from Greenwich Bank & Trust talk about the financial bailout and mortgages and what that means to homebuyers in the Greenwich market
Also view the recently completed Classic Georgian style home by York Construction & Development. 8,600 square feet of fabulous living space, 6 bedrooms and ensuite baths, gourmet kitchen, media room, wine cellar, exercise room, and more, located in the “golden triangle” of mid-country Greenwich.

Open House: 5:00 – 9:00 p.m., Thursday, October 23

Mortgage Presentation: 7:00 p.m.

Light refreshments and hors d’oeuvres will be served

9 Boulder Brook Road

Greenwich, CT 06830

Free and Open to the Public

Call 203-698-3460 for more information

Don't you dare hurt that plant's feelings!
It's illegal in Switzerland.

ZURICH -- For years, Swiss scientists have blithely created genetically modified rice, corn and apples. But did they ever stop to consider just how humiliating such experiments may be to plants?

That's a question they must now ask. Last spring, this small Alpine nation began mandating that geneticists conduct their research without trampling on a plant's dignity.

The world's going to end soon, one way or the other.

The blame game
I like this WSJ's columnist's idea: put Chris Dodd under oath and in the witness seat. I'd like to see his pal Barney Frank in the same chair with him, goosing Connecticut's senior Senator every now and then.

Okay, this kind of sucks
Real estate impact to be "massive".

"I don't think anybody has lived through what we are living through right now unless they are 100 years old. The magnitude is so massive," said Tim Ballard, chief investment officer of Buchanan Street Partners, a Newport Beach, Calif.-based real estate subsidiary of The TCW Group Inc. of Los Angeles.

"This will affect ... job growth, consumption and other things. The [savings and loan] collapse did not have nearly the same effect," he said.

Commercial real estate is in the second or third inning of a game that might go into extra innings, industry insiders said.

The article is about commercial real estate not residential but the basic themes: no loans, need to sell, etc. are roughly the same. Note the good news buried deep within, however: there will be buying opportunities for those with access to funding.

So if I can't sell houses in this market,
maybe I'll rent them.

340 Stanwich Road
Nice house but ...
This house has been on and off the market since April 2006 for $4.295 million. The seller is obviously convinced that she, not the market, knows the right price so she's stuck to her guns despite being unable to sell it. Until today, when she lowered the price 7%, to $3.995 million. It's lakefront (well, pond front, but we realtors have never in our lives seen a mere "pond") and very nicely finished inside and so, ... we'll see.

The People's Paradise is rationing food

Well of course, they've always done that under Castro, except for party officials (attention liberals - don't let this interfere in even the teensiest way with your admiration for this Island heaven) but I guess things are getting tighter. I blame Bush, naturally, but at least every individual (or family, who knows?) is allowed to buy two whole pounds of lettuce. Our own collectivists must be green with envy.

GE at $18.99??!!
this is getting ridiculous. I may call my stock broker.

Greenwich Landing
Here's a tiny spot of good news
Two units in this Byram condo were reported as under contract today. No idea of selling price but asking prices were $1.695 and $1.595.

Owie

Courtesy of John Cooke, here is September's Inventory


Click on the picture to read it better, and don't miss the number of houses listed at $8 million and above: 73. If even a handful of those start dropping (and some already have), they can bring everything else down with them.

Oh, Goodie! A replacement!


Vlad Putin gets a tiger cub to rear and shoot again



I worried he'd run out

Blue skies, nothing but blue skies ...

I'll bet you think I make this stuff up:
World Wildlife Fund to tour the world and save it from global warming via private luxury jet

Join us on a remarkable 25-day journey by luxury private jet,” invites the WWF in a brochure for its voyage to “some of the most astonishing places on the planet to see top wildlife, including gorillas, orangutans, rhinos, lemurs and toucans.”

For a price tag that starts at $64,950 per person, travelers will meet at the Ritz-Carlton in Orlando, Fla. on April 6, 2009 and then fly to “remote corners” of the world on a “specially outfitted jet that carries just 88 passengers in business-class comfort.”

You're probably wondering: "are these the same people who've been telling us not to fly jets?" Sure they are, but then they were instructing the Little People. You'll see that, from its price, this tour will include Barbara Streisand (if she can be persuaded to disembark from her own jet) and very much does not include you. But here's their parting advice:

Tips for Saving Energy
Almost everything we do impacts the planet. Simple changes in our everyday lives can make a big difference and help stop global warming. Here’s what YOU can do: ....
Reduce your air travel.
Although air travel can be very convenient, the emissions from planes contribute significantly to climate change. When possible, use another form of transportation such as the train or bus.

Aren't you glad you know? Maybe they'll bring you back a T-Shirt. Organic cotton, of course.

Apparently there is serious thought of
shutting down the world's markets and reconstituting them under "global rules". I haven't been all that concerned with the panic until today, but I now fear that the collectivists, for so long shut out of power, are going to use this crisis to seize complete domination. I think I'll go home now and watch Oprah.

Update: a Socialist Tsunami's in the Works

(Not married to one another, but isn't it a cute picture?)

Connecticut Supremes Approve Gay Marriage, 4-3.

Whatever - I'm not planning on marrying anyone right now, of either sex, so I don't care. But I will say this: certain liberals, including unionized labor and teachers, are terrified of the constitutional amendment on the ballot that would, if approved, call for a constitutional convention (and voter referendums, if I haven't conflated two different ballot issues). When appointed officials overturn existing state law and put their thumbs in the eyes of citizens, the chances of something like a re-opening and re-drafting of our constitution become more likely.

49 Cutler Road
Pssst! Wanna buy some land?
Over the past few years this property in our NW corner has been offered for sale in a variety of permutations and at a variety of prices, all unsuccessful. Over that time you could have bought it as land at $1,495,000, $1,995,000, $1,750,000, or with a new house at $4,000,000 + (never built) and now as land again at $1,499,000. I can't say for certain, but my guess is that no one is buying land right now, at any price, so go ahead and drop the price: won't do any harm and who knows? Someone might bite.

Lose you desk on Maiden Lane?Have you considered a career change, like fishing? I understand it can be quite restful. Pay sucks, but hey - let's just say you'll be working on a different scale.

Putnam Hill
Downtown Condo's, updated.
This isn't my all time favorite project in town (I don't like co-ops, generally and this and its neighbor, Putnam Park, are co-ops). But the price is attractive: a 2 bedroom, probably in need of some updating (ok, the listing makes no mention of it ever having been touched since it was built in 1956 or so) asking $399,000. Last year, that might have been considered cheap and this year it's still not a whole lot of money, for Greenwich. Next year? Who knows!

Fun at the opening bell with Djbouti and the Gang

What, me worry?
You may have noticed, or perhaps heard, that the stock market's been doing a bit of gyrating lately. If so, you sure didn't get that news from the NYSE's web page which, every day, runs a charming photograph of yet another happy group ringing the opening bell. That makes me feel better; how about you?

Update: A spokesman for the NYSE informs me that they had considered posting something a bit more reflective of the times, like this, but decided against it.

Wall Street 1929

Okay, they laughed when his critics called Obama the Mesiah
How about Louis Farrakhan?

"You are the instruments that God is going to use to bring about universal change, and that is why Barack has captured the youth. And he has involved young people in a political process that they didn't care anything about. That's a sign. When the Messiah speaks, the youth will hear, and the Messiah is absolutely speaking."

Good enough for me - I just changed my vote.

17 Hendrie, Old Greenwich
Here's a disappointment
This house is just across from my family's two and I would have been delighted to see it sell for April's asking price of $7,750,000. It didn't happen, alas, and today it was knocked down to about 83% of that, or $6,450,000. I guess I won't retire this year. As an aside, it strikes me that, in most cases, when you post a picture of the view, not the house, you're probably in a bit of trouble. But speaking as a creek resident, it is all about the water, so ....

The sounds of silence
Candidates agree to wear lie detectors during debate!. Well that will be a quiet evening. Imagine if they tried this stunt at a lawyer's convention.

Well, here's a tired old voice from the past
Of all people, James Earl Carter has weighed in on the global panic. And surprise! It's all Bush's fault. I remember being the beneficiary of this dotard's wisdom back in the 80's when the inflation rate was 18% and I paid 14.5% on my mortgage. Since being driven from office the man has convincingly claimed the title as worst ex-President in history, wandering the world condemning America and Israel, cozying up to Castro, lauding Hugo Chavez and generally just spewing spittle-laced invective across the globe. And in my book, he'll go down as our worst sitting president, too. I'll admit that the current occupant of that office may end up edging him out for top position but regardless, I can think of no man I'm least interested in hearing from on any subject,especially on how to run an economy.

Modular Homes
A reader asked about these and I'll have more to say on them later (I like them, if they're made well, customized and erected by a good, experienced builder). In the meantime, here's an older column from my archived newspaper column (which is supposed to be linked to the current post and, for some reason, is not -I'll work on that, too):
May 14, 2004

A New House
A builder named Dave Tilly is building a new house on Irvine Street in Old Greenwich that’s worthy of mention for a number of reasons. First is its design. While I mourn the loss of so many small cottages in town, buyers today want larger houses, and builders, if they expect to stay in business, must comply. That said, this house, to my eye, fits into the streetscape very nicely, neither dwarfing the cottage next door nor crowding its own lot. Tilly speaks of ratios and proportions like an old Greek architect, and he’s achieved it here. Second is quality. The poured foundation is set on a foot of gravel, with an air system underneath the concrete floor that creates a negative airflow, sucking out any damp air. The furnace is a new German design so efficient (97%, compared to the usual 85%) that its exhaust gets blown out via a fan – it is too cool to rise on its own. That’s just the basement. Upstairs, the sheathing is plywood, not oriented strandboard, the shingles are hand dipped, Alaskan yellow cedar which, unlike its less expensive cousin, eastern cedar, bleaches grey, not black. The fenestration is by Marvin, there is custom millwork and cabinetry throughout the house and, all in all, it’s obvious that the building is being erected by a fussy, detail-oriented perfectionist. The third reason to take note of this house is that forty percent of it is (gasp!) modular – built in a factory by Haven Homes and shipped to the site. Despite what you may have read elsewhere about the poor quality of such construction, the only differences I can see between a “stick built” house and this one are the speed with which the initial building blocks went up and the craftsmanship in this one: it’s far better than most stick-builts. In evaluating a home, its place of construction —factory vs. on site— is irrelevant; it is the quality of construction you should worry about because, as they say in the computer business, garbage in, garbage out. Dave Tilly’s house is a finely-crafted piece of building which will still look good decades from now.

Update 10/10/08
The house sold for a then record price for that street and resold for even more a couple of years later.