Fools, fools, and “greater fools”!

Gideon Fountain writes:

I love it when Fudrucker (or my brother Chris) calls anyone who buys real estate around here that is priced over $1,000,000 “greater fools”. I’ve just checked the latest statistics from the Greenwich MLS, and in the last 90 days, 86 properties have sold or gone to contract in Greenwich, priced $1M+.

They range from $955,000 for 15 Pierce Road in Riverside (asking price was $1.035M) all the way up to the previously-mentioned 14 Meadow Lane, which got $32,500,000.

Another good example is the one pictured here, number 5 Sunset Road, Old Greenwich, that was reported sold Friday for $4,700,000.  The Town assessment was $1,936,550 so, to Fudrucker and Fountain (Chris), this was another example of a greater fool.

I have even seen Frankie riding up and down various streets on his tricycle, waving his fists and shouting at recent buyers “Fools!  Fools!” yet these folks just shrug their shoulders and continue enjoying their new houses! Poor Frank. It must be so annoying.

Nerve, chutspah, temerity? $32,500,000!

Gideon Fountain writes:

“Balls of steel” is a cruder expression, but how better to describe the investor-builder of this spectacular house at 14 Meadow Lane, formerly the site of actor George C. Scott’s old, moldering stone mansion?  Back in March 2005, this fellow, who lives fairly nearby, ponied up $8,725,000 (about $100,000 more than the highest offer I got when I was listing broker) for the tear-down on its 14.48 acres.

Five years later, a beautiful 14,131 square foot main-house, plus pool-house, plus “gate-house”, came on the market at $36,500,000.  And a year after that, it fetched $32,500,000* on July 26, 2011.  Building any “spec” house is a risk, but a $30M+ spec house?? Amazing.

* Not sure if Fudrucker was bidding, but if he had, he would have insisted his buyer go not one penny over $20M! And, sure enough, his buyer would now be living somewhere else. Funny how that works…

Chris Fountain: Quo vadis? Ut mos vos reverto?

Gideon Fountain writes:

Chris Fountain’s (much-needed) return should be around October 22nd.  In the meantime,  you have me occasionally, and Frank Farricker, seemingly always. Fudrucker reminds me of radical attorney* and some-time talk-show host Ron Kuby.  Kuby is often asked to stand in for vacationing conservative talk-show hosts, much to the disappointment of regular listeners.  Like Frankie, Attorney Kuby is mysteriously likeable, but does that mean you want to hear from him every day?

(The two Latin phrases are “Whither goest thou?” And “When will you return?”)

* A “radical attorney” is one who makes millions of dollars defending mob figures but whose real passion is reserved for defending an assortment of terrorists, leftists, and other anti-Americans.

Chris Fountain: The writer everyone wants to read.

Open House Tour

29 Pecksland

Open houses today divided into two types. Type one: the previously referenced “shelter”. 11 houses under $1 million, most or them can be purchased with a 20% down, and an FHA or Fannie or VA insured mortgage. Its like the old days, you can buy based on how much you pay a month, and nobody is at risk except the guarantor, which is of course the US Treasury. Predict brisk sales.

 

Type two, houses like 29 Pecksland (left). There are 11 houses on the market in excess of $5 million. All are far from town, with Baldwin Farms being the closest. Nice places all, but if you’re sitting on $5 – $6 million in cash these days do you a) pay retail and b) buy boring. Pecksland is close to town and what appears to be a thoroughly remodeled 1700′s house. So this I give a fighting chance but some of the others may be searching for a rapidly dwindling pool of greater fools.

Foxy Knoxy

That was then

So was this

So now, as the networks, Barbara Walters, and the rest of the vultures descend on the “EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW”, how much do you bet that the Knox handlers insist she be portrayed as Saint Amanda.

Regardless, this woman is the smokin’ star of the whole show  – not the Today folks, but the real star, Praxilla Trabattoni. What a name. And she plays polo