The Continuum is Sexy on the Beach

We have mentioned the luxury address that is the Continuum, 50/100 Pointe Drive on Miami Beach, many times. And we need to now mention that one of the most absurd Continuum Penthouses, PH-1, is up for sale. To recap, the Continuum is the only residential luxury building right on the sand, although, the W Hotel & Residences will soon be open not far away (technically it’s still a hotel). Besides the most exclusive beach club, the Continuum has the best five-star amenities without being anything like a hotel! The Continuum consists of a 13-acre gated property which features European spa, gym, three tennis courts, three pools, two restaurants, concierge and 24-hour valet.

It gets better, like that’s even possible.  The 7,000 square foot, three level Penthouse has 360 degree views of Miami Beach, 13 foot ceilings, a private elevator and pool.  Plus, some real serious technology; Smart House touch panels for audio and video, automatic shades, plasma TVs and a movie theater. Oh and two professional grade bars and a champagne bar. Just in case your head wasn’t spinning, the five bedroom, seven bathroom unit is priced right around $15 million which is a very reduced rate. Good luck with that one!

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Her Madge-esty in Manhattan. Luxury NY Property.

If you’ve never been jealous of Madonna now you just might. The reigning queen of pop just bought a New York property fit for royalty. Madonna purchased an Upper East Side mansion for $40 million. The luxurious Manhattan mansion has, count them, 13 bedrooms and 14 bathrooms! It features a garden, nine fireplaces, an elevator, wine cellar with grotto and a two car garage. The only reported downside is that a nearby subway sometimes makes the mansion shake a little. Madonna has apparently overlooked the inconvenience. Madge has no plans to move in yet, as she wants to do major renovations first. When you drop money like this on a space, it better be perfect to the “T” before you call it home sweet home. Looks like her Madge-esty may be a permanent New York resident and a whole lot closer to her Yankee "friend" Alex Rodriquez.

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Ralph Lauren Changes House. If Only A Luxury Mansion Could Talk.

Ralph Lauren is an American fashion icon, slash, mogul with a net worth at $2.8 billion. In 1981 Lauren purchased a wood and stone beach house in Montauk, New York. The same house once owned by John Lenon and Yoko Ono. The five-and-a-half acre estate features a clay tennis court, plus, a fierce car collection. Which includes a Ferrari 250 GTO, a McLaren F1 GTR LM, and, of late, a Bugatti Veyron.

Ralph Lauren has been featured in Architectural Digest Magazine (not for fashion retail but for his real estate and home design).  Ralph says he loves places that transform him and that, that’s exactly what his homes do. The Lauren’s have five homes, each with a different purpose. There is the apartment in Manhattan and two houses not far away: the Montauk beach house, at the tip of Long Island, and an estate in Bedford an hour north of Manhattan. Plus, two more distant homes: a ranch in Colorado and a two-house refuge in the fashionable Round Hill resort, near Montego Bay on Jamaica.

Ralph Lauren knows best that people change outfits regularly, so why not houses? Ralph Lauren’s family has room to "transform," change, play, role-play, dress-up and change zipcodes whenever they want. Oh the beauty of being a billionaire. We all want to play dress-up in picture perfect houses with Ralph Lauren.

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Lenny Kravitz May Say Bye Miami. Another Multi Million Dollar Mansion For Sale in Miami Florida.

 

Lenny Kravitz has made his mark on Miami Beach and maybe it’s his time to move on. What we mean is, Kravitz just put his Miami home up for sale but lets go back. Lenny Kravitz was behind the Delano Hotel’s chic piano lounge, Florida Room. The Florida Room was opened in Decemeber 2007 and has remained popular on the South Beach social circuit. In 2008, Kravitz designed a full recording studio in the luxurious Setai Hotel. The Setai Recording Studio is a 2,500 square foot, two-story penthouse featuring the latest music equipment and Atlantic Ocean views.

Kravitz purchased a Sunset Island 2 property in 2001, for a reported $8.9 million. In 2005 the Sunset Island 2 property was sold to developer Steve Muss for $14.5 million. Kravitz the retreated to his Biscayne Point property which he had purchased in 1997 for $725,000.  The 5,717 square foot Biscayne Point home has three bedrooms and three baths. Plus, a personal recording studio and a rockstar white fur and mirrored lounge. Lenny Kravitz just listed the property on the market for $2.85 million. Biscayne Point is a guard-gated neighborhood that is just 10 minutes north of South Beach. For those of you channeling your inner-rockstar, buy Lenny Kravitz’s house. Then add alcohol, loud music, topless girls and voile, a rockstar is born. Where will Kravitz go next?

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Who Put the Bill in the Billionaire.

 

The richest people in the world have lost billions but from the looks of it, you’d never know. A year ago 1,125 billionaires existed; today there are only 793 billionaires. The average billionaire’s net worth is $3 billion, which is down 23% in the last 12 months. Despite the numbers, the world’s billionaires are still sitting pretty on mega-properties. Bill Gate stock may be down but at the end of the day he goes home to a 66,000-square-foot compound. Gates compound worth as much as $113 million, costs $1 million in annual property taxes alone. Bill Gates built his home into a hillside on the edge of Lake Washington, near Seattle, it’s an 84-step trek to the main entrance. Not a fan of walking, don’t worry there’s an elevator. Wood columns in the foyer are over 70 feet tall, doors inside the house weigh over 800 pounds but have been balanced for easy handling. The roof is stainless steel and the woodwork flawless, with imported woods from around the world. Hidden cameras inundate the property and interior house. The most state-of-the-art movie theatre in the world is below ground encased in a concrete shell. “Fort” Gates features a 60 foot swimming pool with an underwater music system; a 2,500-square-foot gym; and a 1,000 square-foot dining room, which seats 24. The estate is electronically monitored down to its trees. A 40-year-old maple in the driveway is electronically monitored 24 hours a day. If the tree seems dry, the right amount of water is automatically dispensed. Not bad Mr. Bill Gates, not bad at all.

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Real Estate in Miami Florida. Is Now the Time to Buy?

Donald Trump claims “now” is the time to buy property, if only it were that easy.  Many who still have the money to buy “now” can’t find financing. If financing isn’t stopping you, consider yourself lucky and look to South Beach. Right now in South Beach properties are being sold for way less than asking price.  Take, for instance, luxury building Murano at Portofino, located at 1000 S Pointe Drive in the South Beach area of Miami Beach. Where a penthouse unit with an asking price of $12,000,000 just sold for $7,600,000. The spacious three bedrooms, five and a half bath unit is just one example of what’s going on in South Beach, there are lots more just like this. The question is, when will the real estate market finally hit bottom? The question is tough to answer but it seems like buyers are moving towards the beach. Activity is gradually picking up, more inquiries, and more viewings, will sooner or later translate into more sales.

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Madonna Shacks up in Palm Beach

    

Looks like Madonna is channeling her inner Mrs. Robinson. The now single 50-something pop star just finished a very sexy photo shoot with W Magazine (pictured above). Her on camera love interest was 22-year-old Brazilian male model Jesus Luz. The girl in the fantasy just made her own reality, Madonna and Luz have moved into a $6.5 million Palm Beach mansion. The fully furnished five bedroom, seven bath mansion features golf course views, a pool, spa, pool pavilion and outdoor kitchen. Madonna hasn’t purchased the mansion yet but it is on the market if she changes her mind. For now Madge is just renting the 10,000 sq. ft space, on a month to month basis for $50,000. Looks like Madonna gave up Guy and the rain in London for Jesus, polo and some serious heat. She always has had good taste. Not that we really care but where are the kids Madonna?

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Another Take on a New York City Institution









The legendary Plaza Hotel which opened in New York City in 1907 has changed ownership several times. Trump bought it from the Hiltons back in 1988 and then sold it. El Ad Properties bought the Plaza Hotel in 2004 and began mega revamp-age. The historic hotel doors closed in April 2005 to re-open in March 2008 with a proper Fifth Avenue facelift. Today the Plaza Hotel and Residencies are for the rich and famous. However, yesterday The Plaza’s famous restaurant The Oak Room re-opened to the public. Redesigned by architect Annabelle Selldorf, the more contemporary looking restaurant will furthermore feature a new executive chef and menu. The chef is Eric Hara who has most recently run the kitchens of David Burke Townhouse and Fishtail. Hara has developed a new American cuisine menu for The Oak Room, with prices that take a bad economy into account. Entrees will range from just $22 – $35 and with so much new; the Plaza Hotel seems like the perfect place for some hope to grow.

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Sick San Fran Penthouse for Sale

The Penthouse at the St. Regis in San Francisco is on the market if you’re in the market to buy. The majority of you aren’t about to go splurge on a $70 million penthouse but let us paint a picture for you. The luxurious space is over 20,000 square feet and features a movie theater, pool and 2,900 square foot terrace balcony. The owner of the St. Regis Penthouse is CEO of MacFarlane Partners, and the manager of Californian Public Employee Pension Fund. Forget about someone paying $70 million for the Penthouse pad. We are more interested to know why Californians let their pension fund be held and managed by a real estate investment firm, umm, hello?

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The French Actually Made it Better: Luxury Mansion For Sale

A Los Angeles mansion designed to look like Versailles has been on the market since 2007 for $125 million. The gaudy Versailles poser belongs to Suzanne Saperstein, the divorcee of Texas millionaire David Saperstein. The 50,000 square foot estate known as Fleur de Lys, sits on about five acres in Beverly Hills, California. The Sapersteins’ bought the lot in the 1990’s and spent five years building the monstrosity.

Fleur de Lys features Italian marble walls, French limestone floors, gold-embossed leather wall coverings, gold-leaf crowned moldings and a ballroom with ceiling frescos. Plus, a library, two kitchens, a movie theater for 50, and a massage room and gym. That’s not it, theres a pool house with full kitchen, a three bedroom manager’s house, staff quarters for ten, a nine car garage, oh and, almost a mile long jogging track.

Fleur de Lys ties with Donald Trump’s Palm Beach mansion for second highest listing price currently in the U.S for a single-family house. The first spot for highest listing price belongs to Saudi Prince Bandar bin Sultan’s Aspen, Colorado ranch, listed for $135 million. The estate has been on the market for some time now, probably because its an immense eyesore. If you want to see Versailles then go to France! In this case, the French did do one thing better then us. If Ms. Saperstein does manage to sell Fleur de Lys, the estate will break the previous California record for a listing price, which was $75 million. Well, good luck with that ya’ll.
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