Realty Check – June 2016

Vroom
On Newtown Lane in East Hampton this summer you’ll be able to buy a fresh Dreesen donut, Michael Kors frock or electric car. Tesla Motors has opened a showroom in, of all places, the heart of the village. With retail neighbors such as Calypso and Scoop NYC the carmaker is sure to achieve the “low-pressure sales environment” it hopes for. And prospective customers will be able to take a test drive along village lanes. Vroom!

Starting Over
The Georgica house once owned by murder victim Thomas Gilbert Sr., who was killed by his son in 2015 at his New York apartment, has been demolished. The new owners purchased the 3,700 sf 1980 Wainscott structure for $9.75 million. The Hamptons dwelling had been on the market for several years. His son is awaiting trial.

Million Dollar Rental
If you don’t think prices have risen in the past few years, consider this: While Jay-Z and Beyonce paid $400,000 for a month to rent the Bridgehampton mansion belonging to uber builder Joe Farrell in 2012, the asking price this season for a month’s vacation in the 31,000 sf domicile has more than doubled to $1 million. With its own movie theater it might attract a Hollywood type. Then there’s the walk-in fridge, perfect for a celebrity chef. Or maybe the basketball court will attract a high-profile Knick. And if they can’t afford the price, they can kick in a mere $500,000 for a shorter term. Listed by Gary DePersia of Corcoran.

Celebrity Digs For Sale
When thespian Richard Gere listed his North Haven retreat for $65 million a couple of years ago, people wondered if his star power could bring in such a hefty ask. Apparently not. After many price chops, it has been almost halved to $36.25 million with listing agent Susan Breitenbach. The compound, known as Strongheart, is comprised of three waterfront lots (6.3 acres) overlooking Peconic Bay. His neighbors include architect Fred Stelle and rock legend Jimmy Buffet. The charm-dripping 19,000 sf main house was built in 1902, and presides over rolling lawns that lead to a private beach, deep-water dock, and, for a truly Zen experience, tea house.

Ch Ch Changes
Ed Reale, who left Brown Harris Stevens in October to manage the Hamptons operation of Compass, has now left that up-and-coming firm to join Sotheby’s. The real estate attorney, who managed Sotheby’s’ Southampton office before joining BHS, will again lead that office as well as their Bridgehampton one.

Nancy Grady, formerly of Brown Harris Stevens, has joined Compass in their Southampton office, where she is teamed with Miles Cooper. As an active member of the East End community and a full-time Hamptons resident for more than 25 years, Nancy is exceptionally well-positioned to guide buyers and sellers in the thriving Hamptons market.

Longtime Corcoran manager Gina Decker has left the firm’s Sag Harbor office to join the board of directors at Town & Country as Director of Acquisitions and Agent Coaching. The 30-year industry veteran is “experienced at all levels of the deal,” according to a T&C release.

Squabble No More
Tennis bad boy John McEnroe has put his Southampton estate, appropriately located on Squabble Lane, on the market for $14.5 million. Once owned by Standard Oil baron Henry Rogers, the property features over two acres of rolling lawns, gardens and, of course, a Har-Tru tennis court. Perhaps the new owners can play with Howard Stern, who lives down the block.

Sold
Entertainment honcho David Geffen is the secret buyer of a $70 million estate on Lily Pond Lane, according to the New York Post. The property had been the East Hampton getaway for the late fashion CEO Josephine Chaus, one of the first female CEOs. Geffen recently sold the West End Road compound he had purchased from Courtney Sale Ross. He pocketed circa $50 million in that deal. Word has it that it is now in the hands of developers.

Joseph Evangelisti, a managing director at J.P. Morgan Chase, has purchased the Charles T. Dering House on Sag Harbor’s Hampton Street for $3.7 million. The four-bedroom, four-bath Greek Revival house was built for Dering, a whaling merchant, in 1835. The home still maintains its original wide-plank flooring and millwork. Its newel post and stair railing were carved way back when by notable East Hampton furniture maker Nathaniel Dominy V. Dering took two stands of boxwoods, still extant, with him to his new abode when he moved there from his ancestral home, Sylvester Manor, the historic Shelter Island plantation.

Russian heiress/actress Anna Anissiova, famous for buying Diane von Furstenberg’s West Village townhouse for $23 million when she was 20, has purchased a $20 million parcel on Kellis Pond. The socialite, also known for spending $600,000 on a two-month Hamptons rental, is married to producer Peter Schafer.

Go West Young Hamptonites
Just west of Westhampton in the Town of Southampton, Remsenburg just might be the New Hampton. With a property selling for more than $10 million this spring, the quiet enclave has now entered the price stratosphere east of Shinnecock Canal. The sale of Seatuck Lodge, built as a private home in the 1890s before being turned into a hunting lodge, was finessed by Maria Cunneen of Corcoran and sets a milestone in that sleepy hamlet.