Realty Check

Hot Sales and Listings with a Dollop of Hamptons Gossip 

The season is finally here, after a dull winter and an interminably chilly and wet spring. Time to soak up some Vitamin D from our old friend the sun, not to mention the latest real estate news from your old pal Karen Dash.

Jackie Kennedy’s Childhood Summer Home Asks $55 Million 
Lasata, a legendary estate on Further Lane in East Hampton, has been the beloved home of captains of the industry since it was built in 1917. Now, the important house and beautiful gardens are on the market, asking a princely $55 million via Eileen O’Neill at Corcoran and Ed Petrie at Compass.

The 7.15-acre spread encompasses numerous structures, including an eight-bedroom mansion, a two-bedroom guest house, a caretaker’s cottage, a pool house, and a three-car garage with a workshop. But as grand as Lasata is now, it was finer still in the days when it was the summer home of John Vernou Bouvier Jr., a successful lawyer (who married an heiress) and the patriarch of the family that produced such disparate characters as Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, Little Edie Beale, and Lee Radziwill. Bouvier purchased Lasata, whose name allegedly means “place of peace” in Algonquin, in 1925. It was there, in Lasata’s stables, paddock and jumping ring, where young Jackie learned to ride and jump.

Today, Lasata is owned by “Spring Breakers” producer David Zander, who purchased the house from fashion designer and retail exec Reed Krakoff and interior designer Delphine Krakoff in 2018 for $24 million. Restored in 2007 and again in 2019, the interiors were designed by Pierre Yovanovich in a kind of spare Scandi-midcentury mood (think Helen Frankenthaler artwork, Charlotte Perriand and Frits Henningsen furniture), while the gardens were refreshed by French landscape architect Louis Benech.

As for Jackie Bouvier Kennedy Onassis, her love for Lasata never left her. When her father died in 1957, after Jackie’s storied marriage to John F. Kennedy, Jackie insisted on taking over the funeral arrangements. Instead of the usual funeral flowers, Jackie decorated St Patrick’s Cathedral with sprays of summer flowers in white wicker baskets. She said, “I want everything to look like a summer garden, like Lasata in August.” And from the looks of things, the gardens of Lasata are every bit as gorgeous in August now as they were 75 years ago.

Calling All Aspiring Restaurateurs!
Always wanted to run a restaurant in the Hamptons? Here’s a turnkey deal for you. Buoy One in Westhampton, a restaurant close to the village, was listed in April with Enzo Morabito of Douglas Elliman asking $4.5 million. Currently, the eatery offers casual, sit-down seafood, as well as catering and a retail seafood market.

The location is perfect, with 1.85 acres of space, and the property boasts permits for all uses and plenty of parking. The building is 4,000 square feet. The eatery opened in 2010 as a second location to the original restaurant in Riverhead, which was founded in 2003. Both the Westhampton Beach building and the business are for sale; the Riverhead outpost is not for sale.

Succession House Back on the Market 
Have you made a giant pot of money lately, possibly by acquiring a Swedish tech startup? Who hasn’t? But only one person will be able to purchase an iconic architect-designed Hamptons mansion made famous in “Succession.”

An ultra-contemporary Wainscott residence caught the world’s attention on season three’s episode four of the blockbuster series. Billionaire investor Josh Aaronson, played by Adrien Brody, summons Kendall Roy (Jeremy Strong) and Logan Roy (Brian Cox) to his beachfront mansion, to which Kendall comments, “Nice spot.” Nice spot, indeed.

Designed by Barnes Coy Architects, the alluring residence features inverted rooflines, designed to maximize the height of the property under local zoning laws and about which Chris Coy has said, “express a diverse village of parts…offering opaque surfaces of teak, stucco, granite and zinc that alternate with transparent swaths of tempered glass.” The 11,000-square-foot house, with eight bedrooms and 11 bathrooms, is comprised of four sections: a central communal space, the primary suite, a group of guest and family bedrooms, and an extensive lower level.

Outside, a sheltered deck includes an outdoor kitchen, and beyond the boomerang-shaped infinity pool and sunbathing deck, a path winds through the dunes to the beach.

The two-and-a-half-acre spread, framed on one side by 230 feet of oceanfront and on the other by farm fields, sold for $45 million in 2021 and now, just two years later, it’s back up for grabs at $55 million via Bespoke Real Estate. A mere bagatelle to a member of the Roy family, of course.

Vacation Like A Celebrity
SNL’s “Weekend Update” co-anchor Colin Jost is renting his Montauk home this summer for $65,000 per month. Set on over one acre with ocean views, he purchased it in 2015 for just north of $2 million. The 2,600 sq.ft. house has four bedrooms and three bathrooms, multiple decks and a heated pool. More goodies include a steam shower, bocce court and a Sonos sound system. Jost, who’s married to actress Scarlett Johansson, has been a cast member of “SNL” since 2005, when he joined as a staff writer. He was made co-anchor of the show’s “Weekend Update” segment in 2014.

“Sex and the City” star Sarah Jessica Parker is renting out her Amagansett beach cottage this summer for $95,000 per month, according to Realtor.com. It can also be rented for the month of July for $45,000, or from August to Labor Day for $35,000. The petite property is both cozy and charming and features a deeded pathway to one of the best beaches in the Hamptons. Besides “Sex and the City,” fame, Parker recently starred on Broadway with her husband Matthew Broderick in Neil Simon’s play “Plaza Suite.” The sequel to “Sex and the City,” HBO’s “And Just Like That,” is back for its second season in June.

Ch Ch Changes
Sotheby’s International Realty has welcomed Nick Brown to their East Hampton office. Nick has a lifelong connection to the Hamptons, which provides him with an unrivaled understanding of the area and an unparalleled ability to offer clients guidance and support in all aspects of real estate.

A native New Yorker, Nick grew up on the Upper East Side of Manhattan. Since day one, he has spent weekends and summers at his family’s beloved converted 18th-century barn in the Springs section of East Hampton. After spending 30 years on Wall Street, Nick’s financial acumen enhances his ability to serve his clients’ real estate needs.

Well before getting his real estate license, friends and colleagues often looked to Nick for guidance when searching for a special second home or Hamptons summer rental. As a professional sales agent, clients can expect as much handholding as desired when selling, buying, or renting, always providing expertise and dedication in what may be a very challenging process.

Nick splits his time between the West Chelsea neighborhood of New York City and East Hampton. In the summers when not running to and from real estate appointments, Nick can dependably be found on the Amagansett beach that he has frequented his entire life.