Tag: property

A Highway Ponzi House

Montauk beach house built for Ponzi schemer Bernie Madoff resurfaces for sale for double what U.S. Marshalls got for it in 2009; its asking price seems crazy given it could be washed away by erosion

Built to the designs of the architect Gene Futterman on what Forbes disparagingly termed a “wind-swept, isolated” plot “on the easternmost edge of New York State, [where] the next stop is Portugal, about 4,500 miles across the Atlantic,” a beach house originally owned by Bernie and Ruth Madoff is once again for sale.

Described once by a Hamptons broker as “a 1980s dump set in a fabulous location,” 216 Old Montauk Highway in Montauk at the tip of New York was sold in 2009 by U.S. Marshalls Services after the sentencing of the orchestrator of the largest ever Ponzi scheme in world history.

A Highway Ponzi House – As it was in 2009 when the U.S. Marshalls Services seized the Ponzi schemer’s house: 216 Old Montauk Highway, Montauk, The Hamptons, New York State, NY 11954, United States of America.

A Highway Ponzi House – The house in its current form.

A Highway Ponzi House – The house’s former owner Bernie Madoff and its current owner Steven Roth (pictured with all-round wrong ‘un Jared Kushner).

A Highway Ponzi House – Current owner Daryl Roth bears a remarkable resemblance to Ruth Madoff. You could easily mistake one for the other.

Whilst Bernie Madoff rots on a 150-year prison term and his wife exists in relative poverty, his 3,000 square foot former getaway was bought by Broadway producer Daryl Roth and her billionaire real estate investor husband Steven, a man described as a “close confidant of Donald Trump.”

The Roths hired “world renowned architect” Thierry Despont to rid all traces of the Madoffs in 2011 and the resulting creation is a 3,000 square foot home with a two-storey ‘great room,’ 3 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms. It has a free form gunite pool, cabana and 180-foot of direct frontage to the Atlantic ocean.

Offered for sale again in 2018 for the ludicrous figure of £16.5 million, realtors Out East now seek just £14.1 million, but reaction to the listing has been less than enthusiastic. Dealbreaker described the bedrooms as “still prison-sized” whilst Guest of a Guest added: “You can’t get more on the beach than this… But with beach erosion escalating all over Long Island, and Dune Road basically about to fall into the sea, you’d better be okay with the big possibility of losing all your money on this short-term investment.”

The Names & Numbers – 216 Old Montauk Highway, Montauk, The Hamptons, New York State, NY 11954, United States of America

September 2020 – For sale at a reduced price of £14.1 million ($17.9 million, €15.3 million or درهم65.7 million) through Out East.

May 2019 – Reduced in price to £15.6 million ($19.9 million, €17 million or درهم73.1 million).

April 2018 – Listed for sale for £16.5 million ($21 million, €17.9 million or درهم77.1 million) through the Corcoran Group, a sum 140% higher than the 2009 sale price.

2011 – Renovated by “Manhattan’s most in-demand architect,” Thierry Despont. Of his work, Forbes remarked: “The Frenchman whose clients include Bill Gates, Oscar de la Renta, Calvin Klein and Ralph Lauren, ripped out everything – right down to the studs – to turn the floor plan of the 1982 house upside down. He moved the front entry from the second floor to the first by tearing out a catwalk from the driveway and replacing it with mahogany steps sloping down to the home’s first level. He moved the master bedroom to the second floor. The living room was more of a challenge. The house was built with a vaulted ceiling in the main room that in those big-shouldered, big-haired 1980s years would have been called the ‘great room.’ Despont turned the sharp angles of a cathedral ceiling into a giant curve by creating a barrel vault covered in oak planks that look a bit like a weathered boat hull. The exterior he left much as he found it – contemporary lines, but with a traditional cladding of cedar shingles.”

November 2009 – Sold for 7% above asking price at £7.4 million ($9.4 million, €8 million or درهم34.5 million) to Vorando Realty Trust founder and chairman Steve Roth and his award-winning theatre producer wife Daryl Roth.

September 2009 – Listed for sale for £6.87 million ($8.75 million, €7.47 million or درهم32.13 million), a punchy sum 192% higher than the appraisal figure.

September 2009 – U.S. Marshalls Services appraised the house at £2.4 million ($3 million, €2.6 million or درهم11 million) leading to a mocking New York Post article suggesting: “Those who see Bernard Madoff as an evil purveyor of excess might be disappointed by his beach house: It’s not that palatial. At 3,014 square feet, the home is cottage-size by superrich standards. Its faded furnishings look as old as Madoff’s epic fraud. There’s no garage. Not even a walk-in closet.”

1979 – 1.5-acre site purchased by Bernie and Ruth Madoff for circa $250,000 or the equivalent of £703,000 ($895,000, €764,000 or درهم3.3 million) today.

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Steven and Daryl Roth with their close chum President Donald Trump.

Mrs Madoff now lives in much reduced circumstances and was spotted hauling out her own trash in 2012. One of her sons committed suicide, the other died of cancer and her moronic daughter-in-law, Stephanie Madoff Mack, wrote a ridiculous book titled: ‘The End of Normal.’

Also seized – The Madoffs New York penthouse was sold to the creator of Cabbage Patch Kids and Pokémon Alfred A. Khan in 2010 for £6.3 million, but the “curse of Madoff” struck when it subsequently went up in flames. It was placed for sale again in 2013 when Khan split from his wife.

Then and Now – Bernie and Ruth Madoff built a quite hideous fireplace in their pompously described ‘Great Room’ using stones gathered on the beaches of Montauk (according to Hamptons.com); it has been kept by the current owners in a somewhat reduced state and the ceiling has been dramatically altered also.

Now – The somewhat plain kitchen of the house also serves as a dining space.

Now – One of three bedrooms in the property. The views do make up for them not being especially large, but if you were paying £14.1 million, wouldn’t you want more closet space?

Now – One of three deck spaces overlooking the Atlantic ocean.

Then and Now – The pool and cabana remain quite unaltered.

Now – The entrance to the house is not especially impressive.

Now – A view of 216 Montauk Old Highway from the beach.

Now – An aerial shot from the ocean illustrating how close to the sea the building truly is.

Now – A general shot of the beach.

Now – The somewhat modest entrance gates to the property give no clue to its current or previous occupant’s financial statuses.

Now – An aerial shot illustrating the boundaries of the 1.5-acre plot; it’s certainly a lot more expansive than Bernie Madoff’s cell.

September 23, 2020
Five of the Worst – Undesirable Homes Currently For Sale

‘The Steeple Times’ selects five undesirable homes currently for sale that many would say would remain best avoided; they’ve all been in the news and they’re all connected to infamous names

Destined most certainly not to feature in Penny Churchill’s Downton Abbey-esque country house porn Country Life column or as an Evening Standard chi-chi ‘Homes & Property’ ‘House of the Week,’ we have selected five undesirable homes currently for sale.

In spite of the fact that one has a link to a recently deceased paedophile, two have been the scene of murders, one is supposedly haunted and the final was the setting for a bizarre nine year sleep, their prices seem somewhat crazy – but maybe some people will just love the idea of living with notoriety. Whether any of these undesirable homes sell for their asking prices, however, seems as likely as the case of Jack the Ripper ever being solved.

Paedo Palace – 9 East 71^st Street, Lenox Hill, New York, NY 10021, USA

For sale for £69 million ($88 million, €74 million or درهم121 million) through Modlin Group.

Known as the ‘Herbert Straus House’ in polite circles, but now forever more likely to be remembered as ‘Jeffrey Epstein’s Paedo Mansion,’ this 28,000 square foot, 7-floor, 40 room mansion was home to the deceased bestie of Prince Andrew from 1996 until his incarceration and suicide in 2019.

Few details are shared on the listing other than to declare it of “gargantuan size and opulence” and “the largest single-family home in New York City.” Though the late Alberto Pinto’s design work at the property is lauded, there’s no mention of what Ghislaine Maxwell got up to there or the bizarre birthday parties with Christopher Mason.

Murder Mansion – Devisdale House, Dunham Road, Bowdon, Cheshire, WA14 4QG, UK

For sale for £3.25 million ($4.16 million, €3.51 million or درهم15.28 million) through Jackson-Stops.

Originally called ‘Oakleigh,’ this “striking Gothic Victorian villa” subsequently became known as ‘The House of Horror’ but has now been renamed ‘Devisdale House’ in an attempt to relieve it of a position in the ranks of undesirable homes.

In March 2005, Christopher Lumsden, a partner in the international law firm Pinsent Masons, killed his former Sotheby’s auctioneer wife Alison in the house in a “frenzied domestic attack in the master bedroom” according to The Sun. He stabbed her 30 times after she announced she was leaving him for another man and was amazingly jailed for just five years “after he was found guilty of manslaughter on the ground of diminished responsibility, claiming he had a depressive illness.”

‘Oakleigh’ subsequently “fell into rack and ruin” in spite of reports suggesting Lumsden may have inherited his wife’s fortune, but more recently it was purchased by a property developer. They have added an especially ghastly underground swimming pool, sauna, cinema room and triple garage and now pompous selling agents Jackson-Stops pretentiously laud the property as “incredible,” “striking” and “meticulously remodelled.” Christopher Lumsden, meanwhile, was released from prison after serving just two years of his jail sentence.

A Killer Castle – Pencoed Castle, Pencoed Lane, Llanmartin, Newport, Gwent, Wales, NP18 2ED, UK

For sale with a guide price of £950,000 ($1.2 million, €1 million or درهم1.7 million) by auction on 17^th September 2020 through Allsop.

Pencoed Castle dates to the 13^th century and in the time since one can imagine all sorts has gone on there. Most recently, in 2016, a then 56-year-old businessman Peter Morgan strangled his girlfriend of three years, a 25-year-old personal escort named Georgina Symonds, in a bungalow in the castle grounds. The married multi-millionaire was sentenced to life with a minimum term of 25 years in prison and with that the estate found itself joining the ranks of undesirable homes.

Wales Online report that “it is not known if Mr Morgan still owns the property,” but for less than a million pounds, a buyer could get themselves not only the castle (which could be turned into 12 dwellings and offices also), but also a former farmhouse, two bungalows and 64.8 acres of land. Previous plans to turn the site into a Disneyland-style theme park called Legend Court came to nothing and of the property a local cryptically remarked: “This place’s recent history is very dark.”

Axing a Ghost – Maplecroft, 306 French Street, Fall River, Massachusetts, MA 02720, USA

For sale for £696,000 ($890,000, €751,000 or درهم1.2 million) through Century 21 The Seyboth Team.

Sold last for £469,000 in February 2018 and £386,000 in November 2014, Maplecroft is described by realtor Suzanne St. John as “a Queen Anne Victorian Mansion,” but many would consider it fitting instead of a listing on a roster of undesirable homes. It was built in 1887, extends to 3,935 square foot and includes 7 bedrooms and 4 bathrooms.

The allegedly haunted residence, which stands on a plot of 0.31 acres, is notable as the post-prison home of one Lizzie Borden (1860 – 1927) – a woman who was the main suspect in the 1892 axe murders of her father and step-mother. Accused, tried and acquitted, Miss Borden inherited a fortune, bought Maplecroft and when she died of pneumonia her wake was held in the parlour.

The current owner also owns the house where the murders were committed and runs it as a ‘murder house B&B.’ He had intended to convert Maplecroft into something similar, but COVID-19 (and perhaps the spirit of Lizzie Borden) got in the way.

A Nine Year Sleep – Sleepy Cottage, 1 School Lane, Turville, Henley-On-Thames, Buckinghamshire, RG9 6QX, UK

For sale for £750,000 ($960,000, €810,000 or درهم1.3 million) through Savills.

Strictly speaking, our final choice in our roster of undesirable homes, has had only a gruesome past in a fictional sense given that it sits in a village used in Midsomer Murders. Nobody in their right minds – if such a place did really exist – would want to reside in any of Midsomer’s locations given the risk of ending up brown bread would be so high, but the innocent sounding name of this cottage makes it worthy of mention.

Used also in the perfectly harmless series Goodnight Uncle Tom and the BBC sitcom The Vicar of Dibley, 3 bedroom, 2 bathroom Sleepy Cottage is also noteworthy as it was most famously home to ‘The Sleeping Girl of Turville.’

Of this enigma, selling agents Savills remark:

“Ellen Sadler, who lived in the cottage with her family when in 1871, aged eleven she purportedly fell into a deep sleep from which she could not be roused for nine years. The case attracted international attention from newspapers, medical professionals and the public. She became a tourist attraction for the village, and her family made considerable money from visitors’ donations.”

“Rumours exist that among the elder Turville residents that Royalty even took an interest in her. The Prince of Wales, the future King Edward VII, visited her and laid his hands on her which people in those days believed would cure the sick.”

“As the years went on and with no sign of Ellen waking, speculation grew that her illness was caused by her mother, an issue that was never resolved. In late 1880, soon after her mother’s death, Ellen awoke. She later married and had at least five children.”

Undesirable Homes Currently For Sale – Pictured top: Jeffrey Epstein’s initials were prominently displayed at the entrance to 9 East 71^st Street whilst the entrance hallway beyond aimed to impress with its classical grandeur. Goodness knows how many unfortunates passed through this space on their way on their way to be abused by the late Mr Epstein and his mucky madam Ghislaine Maxwell.

September 12, 2020
Chic Chicheley

Grade I listed Baroque mansion Chicheley Hall in Buckinghamshire for sale for £7 million or 62% less than the current owners have spent on it

Just as historically significant as the £10 million Lilford Hall in nearby Northamptonshire we featured in June, but in far better condition, a Grade I listed mansion in Buckinghamshire has just come to the market for £3 million less.

Chicheley Hall, near Olney is being sold due to the activities there – a combination of a conference venue, hotel and a centre used by the Royal Society – being curtailed due to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic. It is offered for the sum of £7 million – which seems a relative bargain given its current owners paid £6.5 million for it in 2007 and spent a further £12 million on its renovation subsequently.

Constructed on the site of an earlier house destroyed in the Civil War in the 1720s to the designs of master builder Francis Smith, Chicheley Hall became the seat of Sir John Chester, the 4^th baronet. It is of nine bays on three floors upon a raised basement and is described as an “exceedingly rare example” of English Baroque architecture.

“For more than 100 years, architectural historians have waxed lyrical in the pages of Country Life of Chicheley Hall” remarked Penny Churchill when it was placed for sale in June 2007 and since 2009 it has been owned by the Royal Society.

Having carried out a “major programme of repair and refurbishment to turn the hall into a high-quality venue for residential conferences,” the Society created a venue that provided 14 bedrooms suites in the main house, 34 en-suite bedrooms in two Grade II* listed former stable blocks, two lecture theatres, meeting rooms, sitting rooms, dining rooms and reception areas. There is parking for 50 vehicles and an apartment that was used by the centre’s director.

Knight Frank market the 34,928 square foot freehold property as a whole or in three lots complete with 75 acres. They describe the mini-estate as including “beautiful formal gardens, a ‘3 sided’ lake, a walled garden, woodland walks, a Grade II* dovecote and farmland.”

Chicheley Hall is situated 7 miles north east of Milton Keynes and is 50 miles from both central London and Oxford.

The Names & Numbers – Chicheley Hall, Hall Lane, Chicheley, near Olney, Newport Pagnell, Buckinghamshire, MK16 9JJ, United Kingdom

September 2020 – For sale for £7 million ($9.1 million, €7.7 million or درهم12.6 million) through Knight Frank.

June 2020 – De Vere Venues permanently closed Chicheley Hall as a conference venue and hotel due to the impact of coronavirus. In a statement to MKFM, the firm remarked: “Sadly the resulting devastating economic impact [of the pandemic] on the hospitality industry, together with heightened operational restrictions, has meant we have taken the difficult decision to close our doors permanently.”

2007 – Sold to the Royal Society for £6.5 million ($8.5 million, €7.2 million or درهم31.1 million). They supposedly subsequently spent £12 million ($15.6 million, €13.3 million or درهم57.5 million) on renovations. These were in part funded by the Norwegian-American business and philanthropist Fred Kavli (1927 – 2013).

June 2007 – Placed for sale for £9 million ($11.7 million, €10 million or درهم43.1 million) through Savills on behalf of Nicholas Beatty, the 3^rd Earl (born 1946).

2001 – Used as a stand-in for Bletchley Park in the feature film Enigma. The building has also been used in other productions including Pride and Prejudice, The Meaning of Life, The Red Violin and Black Beauty.

1952 – Ownership by the Chester family ends when David Beatty, 2^nd Earl Beatty (1905 – 1972), son of First World War naval hero Admiral David Beatty, bought the hall. Of his “major restoration programme,” Penny Churchill remarked: “Interior designer Felix Harbord, perhaps best known for his work at Luttrellstown Castle near Dublin, set out to recreate classic 18th-century interiors, using mainly light colours to accentuate the beauty of the mouldings and panelling. Very sensibly, the earl also added a bathroom to almost every bedroom.”

1939 to 1945 – Chicheley Hall was used by the Special Operations Executive as its Special Training School No. 46, by Czechoslovaks for SOE parachute missions and as a FANY wireless telegraphy school. After the war, the hall was converted for use as a school.

1720 to 1724 – Built by Sir John Chester, 4^th baronet on the site of an earlier mansion to the designs of master-builder Francis Smith of Warwick. According to Country Life’s Penny Churchill, “a total of 955,550 bricks was used in the construction of the house, wings and garden, of which a staggering 85,000 were used for the garden walls.” She added: “For the next four years, Sir John himself paid the various master-craftsmen who worked on the interiors. The result was some of the finest woodcarving, joinery and plaster-work to be found in any English country house of that period. The elegant formal gardens were laid out by George London and Henry Wise, of Hampton Court and Melbourne Hall fame.”

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The entrance hall of the house is impressive. English Heritage remark of it: “Entrance hall with Corinthian surround to front door and triple arched screen with marble columns leading to staircase, said to be designed by Flitcroft when working for Kent. Ceiling painting attributed to Kent.”

The ceiling painting is attributed to William Kent and depicts Herse and her sisters sacrificing to Flora.

Continuing, there is an especially wide staircase beyond.

One of many reception rooms.

The dining room is dominated by wooden panelling.

Another entertaining space.

In its last use as a hotel and conference centre, a total of 48 bedroom suites were created within the property.

This former coach house is currently configured as two large conference suites and a meeting room.

One of two lecture theatres currently on-site.

A conference room.

Another view of the exterior of Chicheley Hall.

Viewed from across the ‘three sided lake.’

An aerial shot of part of the 75-acre mini estate.

And from another angle.

Formal gardens.

A plan of part of the Chicheley Hall site.

September 8, 2020
Five of the Best – Houses for Sports Fanatics

‘The Steeple Times’ discovers five properties that will appeal to serious sports fanatics with a desire to indulge their passions at home that are currently for sale

Whilst most would simply go to a racecourse to watch the horses or to a football ground to cheer on their heroes on the pitch, five homes follow where sports lovers can partake in their very own confines follow:

503 Studio Road, Stamford, Connecticut, USA

£5.84 million ($7.69 million, €6.51 million or درهم28.24 million) through William Pitt Sotheby’s International Realty.

A vast 18,000 square foot house on 13.21 acres in Connecticut that is currently for sale cannot be described as a “looker,” but it comes with its own private, professional indoor hockey and skating rink (pictured top). There’s a Zamboni ice resurfacer “for perfect ice” and even heated team benches, a lighted scoreboard, home and visiting team locker rooms and a viewing ‘lounge.’ In addition, there are two guest houses and an outdoor swimming pool.

St. Clements Hall, Terrington St. Clement, Norfolk, UK

£240,000 ($316,000, €267,000 or درهم444,000) through Attik.

Most people looking for a “3-bedroom semi-detached house” are likely to be couples with 2.4 children, but for those in a somewhat different position, a 19^th century, 1,873 square foot former youth hall might appeal. Primarily reconfigured to provide a 27-foot by 39-foot ‘skate bowl’ with 13-foot vertical wall, mini skate park and three 4-foot quarter pipes, the house also more conventionally has an open plan living space, 3 bedrooms and a shower room. Even the snobby girl in Avril Lavigne’s Sk8er Boi song might be impressed; the house has featured in The Sun, on the BBC and in Netflix’s Amazing Interiors.

Tourles Farm Stud, near Lewes, East Sussex, UK

£2.5 million ($3.3 million, €2.8 million or درهم12.1 million) through Windsor Clive International.

Owned by the Kazakhstani phosphorus tycoon Nurlan Bizakov since 2010, Tourles Farm Stud has been part of Hesmonds Stud. Described in TDN Europe as “one of the best presented farms we have offered in recent years” by William Harford of Windsor Clive, the 113.78 acre property “has [only] become available due to the owner’s successful investment in France [at Monfort et Preaux in Normandy]” and comes with a 3-bedroom cottage, a stable barn with 26 boxes and a 4 furlong all-weather gallop.

UNICA, 10697 Somma Way, Los Angeles, USA

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=193&v=UDRVhCe8hIc&feature=emb_title

£75.8 million ($100 million, €84.5 million or درهم137.3 million) through Hilton & Hyland.

On and off the market since 2018, this “one-of-a-kind” 41,000 square foot Bel Air house on 1.35 acres includes 8 bedrooms and an astounding 21 bathrooms. There are also 20 garage spaces in an “auto-gallery,” 8 bars, a 36-person screening room and not one, but two 75-foot swimming pools. The pièce de résistance for sports fanatics? A full-sized NBA basketball court.

Kinlochdamph Estate, Torridon, Scottish Highlands, UK

£2.75 million ($3.62 million, €3.06 million or درهم13.30 million) through Goldsmith Estates.

Extending to 4,085 acres, the Kinlochdamph Estate is perfect for those wishing to achieve a Macnab (and bag a salmon, a stag and a brace of grouse within one day). It has a recently refurbished 4-bedroom lodge, red deer stalking, trout fishing on its hill lochs and a small population of grouse, ptarmigan, woodcock and snipe. Income is provided by forestry and a hydro scheme, but any wannabe John Buchan will purely be buying this place for its sporting rights.

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September 7, 2020
Georges Simenon’s ‘House of Happiness’

Tiny French pied à terre on the Côte d’Azur once owned by the ‘Maigret’ author Georges Simenon for sale for just £107,000; he described the property as his ‘house of happiness’

Whilst some of the supposed ‘bargain’ properties we’ve featured recently – such as this £15,000 Edwardian ‘fixer upper’ house in Buffalo, Kansas – are in obscure parts of America and might seem a little off-piste and quirky, an especially quaint £107,000 Côte d’Azur pied à terre will no doubt appeal to literary lovers.

Bought by the Maigret author Georges Simenon (1903 – 1989) in 1956 as a birthday present for his second wife, Denyse Ouimet, and featuring usable space extending to 272.2 square foot, the property includes a reception room, kitchen, bathroom and mezzanine sleeping area. A separate entrance leads to a second bedroom and bathroom.

Offered for sale last year for £161,000, this petite pad in Cagnes-sur-Mer has recently been reduced in price by 34% to £107,00. The selling agents are Emmanuelle Minassian International Real Estate – whose offices are situated directly next door.

The Numbers – 98 Montée de la Bourgade, Cagnes-sur-Mer, Haut-de-Cagnes, Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur (PACA), 06800, France

September 2020 – Reduced in price to £107,000 ($142,000, €120,000 or درهم522,000) through estate agents Emmanuelle Minassian International Real Estate. The cost to fix the roof has been estimated at £12,110 ($16,060, €13,550 or درهم58,975) by the selling agents.

November 2019 – Offered for sale for £161,000 ($213,000, €180,000 or درهم781,000) through estate agents Emmanuelle Minassian International Real Estate.

Pictured top: The former Cagnes-sur-Mer home of Georges Simeon – which he is said to have described as his “house of happiness” – and the acclaimed author himself. The Belgian born writer published over 500 novels and was capable of writing 60 to 80 pages per day. He had at least two dozen pseudonyms and around 550 million copies of his works have been printed.

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Georges Simenon’s ‘House of Happiness’ – The reception room features an open fireplace and tiled flooring.

Georges Simenon’s ‘House of Happiness’ – Georges Simeon somehow managed to live at 98 montée de la Bourgade with his third wife and their three children in the 1950s in spite of it being quite beyond tiny. His initial ‘S’ is still to be found on in the ironmongery on the external staircase railings of the building.

Georges Simenon’s ‘House of Happiness’ – 98 Montée de la Bourgade is situated on a picture perfect side street in Cagnes-sur-Mer. Amongst attractions of the town are the Hippodrome de la Côte d’Azur, a well-known horse racing track, and a 2.5-mile long beach.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u_QaT4mLR8E

September 4, 2020
A Mach 3 Fixer Upper
Charming detached Edwardian house in Buffalo, Kansas – the birthplace of the first man to beat Mach 3 – for sale for just £15,000; it comes with 0.5 acres of land, a barn and is in reasonable condition

In England, £15,000 will just about buy you a Ford Fiesta hatchback, but in Buffalo, Kansas, you could get a detached Edwardian house on a plot of 0.44 acres.

Featured on the blog Old Houses Under $50k, 309 North Church Street comprises of a 3-bedroom, 1-bathroom house extending to 2,197 square foot and it comes with a small barn also. It is a “fixer-upper” but it appears surprisingly not in the very worst of states.

Built in 1910, the house comes in at a price of just £6.89 per square foot – which seems a true bargain compared to the £4,909 per square foot Chelsea Barracks, London one bedroom we featured in June – and is described as “very cute” and the “perfect [place] for raising your own chickens.”

Milburn G. ‘Mel’ Apt (9th April 1924 – 27th September 1956) was born in Buffalo, Kansas and graduated from Buffalo High School in 1942. He was killed after separating from the Bell X-2 in his escape capsule during the record-setting flight that exceeded Mach 3.

Buffalo, Wilson County itself was founded in 1867 if you believe Wikipedia. It was “named after the American bison, commonly known as the buffalo.” It grew to be incorporated as a city in 1898 due to the Missouri Pacific Railroad passing through it, but as of 2010 had a population of just 232 people. Mel Apt (1924 – 1956), the first man to attain speeds faster than Mach 3, was born there.

309 North Church Street is offered by Diane Hess of Midwest Real Estate, Inc.

The Numbers – 309 North Church Street, Buffalo, Wilson County, Kansas, KS 66717, United States of America
- August 2020 – For sale for £15,140 ($20,000, €16,800 or درهم73,500) through Midwest Real Estate, Inc.
- 2019 – Tax assessment of £1,840 ($2,431, €2,037 or درهم3,348).
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A Mach 3 Fixer Upper – An internal shot of 309 North Church Street, Buffalo indicates that it might be in basic condition, but it is far from a wreck.

A Mach 3 Fixer Upper – Further empty rooms in the property include character features such as sash windows and wooden floors.

A Mach 3 Fixer Upper – The house a kitchen where you can currently cook on a stove or barbecue and sit on a plastic chair or a fold-up one.

A Mach 3 Fixer Upper – The kitchen cabinets definitely need replacing.

A Mach 3 Fixer Upper – A Google Maps image of the house and barn shows that they were both previously painted red. The plot is open and flat.
August 19, 2020
From Cloth Caps And Clogs to Sophistication

Reader of ‘The Steeple Times’ shares news that ‘up north’ is “no longer “just cloth caps and clogs” and illustrates this with information about the sale of her £1.5 million home

Our readers are important to us and one, Julie Harper of Old Crook Car Farm, Bracewell, Barnoldswick, took the trouble to write in to tell us she thought our publication “great, funny, very true and to the point.” We thank her for her kind words.

Sharing news that she is selling her home for £1.475 million ($1.930 million, €1.630 million or درهم2.691 million), Harper explained she’d purchased what is now a 5,692 square foot detached property almost 30 years ago.

Of it, she remarked: “It consisted of a rabbit infested pile of stone – which included the remains of a demolished farmhouse and a barn in ruins – and in the time since we have lovingly rebuilt it into a 5-bedroom home with indoor swimming pool.”

“Due to my love of horses,” she added, “we have constructed stables, a storage barn and a menage also and we have made a bolthole ‘up north.’ It’s no longer cloth cap and clogs up here, it’s on the up and with people fleeing lockdown London due to coronavirus, this could be a wonderful residence for a family who are able to work from home. People sometimes forget there is actually life beyond Birmingham – but there really is.”

Continuing, Harper remarked of her house – which is on the market with Dacre, Son & Hartley – “it is like living in a five star hotel, you could even add a helicopter pad in the field.”

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From Cloth Caps And Clogs to Sophistication – The entrance hall.

From Cloth Caps And Clogs to Sophistication – A sitting room complete with a bar.

From Cloth Caps And Clogs to Sophistication – Another reception room.

From Cloth Caps And Clogs to Sophistication – The kitchen.

The indoor swimming pool.

The terrace of the pool.

One of five bedrooms.

Another bedroom.

A rather charming bathroom.

The gardens.

Another view of the setting.

The stables.

The manege.

The entrance to the property and its garaging. The late Percy Shaw would have been very happy with such.

August 16, 2020
A Lament for London

Matthew Steeples expresses lament for London’s post-coronavirus future – here is a city that faces an exodus and recession

This morning in The Guardian, Emma Brockes – a “British writer in New York” according to her Twitter handle – penned an article about how that city is “going back to the 1970s” as a “long overdue correction to the ravaging effect of high finance.”

Her fascinating analysis of how the “post-Covid hotspot” is set to lose its middle classes and “become more dangerous,” could also be applied to London.

Aside from families releasing that they desire outside space rather than cramped flats in the pandemic, the exodus to the suburbs and beyond is most definitely occurring. Property prices are rising in more rural areas and workers will commute less and less.

The new era ahead involves working from home and the consequences were explained to me recently by a city restaurateur. When allowed, he reopened for a week – but hardly anybody came. He found the city empty of his usual regulars, closed his doors and will try again in September.

Sandwich shops such as Pret have seen a sharp decline in revenue and tailors are suffering as well. People no longer need a Savile Row suit and instead wear their shorts or dressing gowns whilst they work. Many shops have closed – some would have closed anyway given the high street was already failing – and stabbings have sadly dramatically risen.

Dick Whittington famously fictionally arrived in London expecting the streets to be paved with gold. He initially found to the contrary and ended up cold and hungry and now many will find the same. With an expected second wave of coronavirus this winter and the worst recession in history underway, London needs to wake up and smell the coffee.

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August 15, 2020
Grosvenor Grabs The Ground Rent
Vast Belgravia artists’ studio goes on sale for just £1.3 million, but of course, there is a catch and that is the extorionate ground rent

A 2,124 square foot artists’ studio in Belgravia has gone on sale for just £1.3 million or the equivalent of £612 per square foot. There is, of course, a catch and that is that the ground rent is a staggering sum of £58,000 per year.

Featured in The Steeple Times when last offered for sale for £995,000 in November 2017, the opulently decorated ground and first floor property available provides not only a double height 23’9” by 20’6” reception room but also a dining room and kitchen. There are also 3 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms and the space is described as being “for those involved in arts and media.”

The lease on the space is described as having been “renewed for 15 years with the Grosvenor Estate and agents Lurot Brand remark: “The grandeur and scale of this property is extraordinary in both charm and character.”

The Numbers – Ground and First Floor Apartment, Bradbrook House, Kinnerton Street, London, SW1X 8EL, United Kingdom
- August 2020 – Offered for sale for £1.3 million ($1.7 million, €1.4 million or درهم2.4 million) by agents Lurot Brand.
- August 2020 – Ground rent of £58,000 per year ($76,000, €64,000 or درهم278,000 per year), an increase of 9.4% on the sum in 2017.
- November 2017 – Marketed for £995,000 ($1.3 million, €1.1 million or درهم4.8 million) by Kinleigh Folkard & Hayward.
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August 11, 2020
Was Melania Trump Trafficked?

Matthew Steeples examines allegations that Melania Trump was originally trafficked by Jeffrey Epstein

“Fun-loving party girl” Melania Knauss – if you’d believe the pyramid of piffle that is Wikipedia – first met Donald Trump at a party in September 1998. The pair allegedly swapped phone numbers in a bathroom, dated and eventually married in a lavish ceremony on 22^nd January 2005 in Palm Beach, Florida.

However, but unfortunately now unverifiable given he’s brown bread, the late paedophile Jeffrey Epstein repeatedly claimed this to be untrue. Reports have long suggested that “Epstein claimed to be the one who introduced Trump to then-Slovenian model” and given the disgraced financier’s planes frequently jetted back and forth to Eastern Europe, stranger things indeed have happened. Melania Trump coul have flown on the infamous ‘Lolita Express’ and she could be one of mucky Maxwell’s recruits.

It is now widely accepted that Epstein leveraged his power over other wealthy men through the introductions of young ladies – and this morning an example of such was provided in the form of the story of the marriage of Turkish property developer Mahir Furtun to Cash Generator heiress and Epstein ex Shelley Anne Lewis. It is also well known that he kept tapes and records that could be used to blackmail such men and as such it is quite possible Donald Trump could well be on such lists.

With Trump’s three sets of “good wishes” to Ghislaine Maxwell being described as “coded messages” by Nigel Cawthorne, author of Prince Andrew, Epstein and the Palace, this week, it is apparent that the 45^th POTUS is trying to stop ‘Bouncing Bob’s’ daughter revealing something. It could well be true that Melania Trump could actually be a more important pawn in this nasty saga than one originally might have imagined.

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August 9, 2020