Tag: renovated

Palming Off Il Palmetto

Billionaire founder of Netscape has failed to sell his Palm Beach mansion in a year; it remains on the market for £105 million (or 754% more than he paid for it in 1999)

Four times married, a father of four and a collector of rather large gin palaces, Texan James H. Clark founded Netscape in 1994 and earnt $2 billion (the equivalent of $3 billion, £2.3 billion, €2.6 billion or درهم11 billion today) from that project when it was sold to AOL in 1998.

Clark paid just $11 million for a Palm Beach mansion named ‘Il Palmetto’ in 1999 (the equivalent of $16.2 million, £12.3 million €13.8 million or درهم59.5 million today) and spent four years renovating the 5.46-acre property. He placed it for sale for $137 million (£105 million, €117 million or درهم503 million) last August but has plainly failed to attract a buyer.

Built to the designs of the Swiss architect Maurice Fatio (1897 – 1943) as an “Italian Renaissance-style palazzo” in 1930, the house – which is also known as 1500 South Ocean Boulevard – is described by selling agents Sotheby’s International Realty as “without peer in Palm Beach.” The building was subjected to a four year renovation by Mr Clark, reportedly extends to around 44,200 square foot and aside from including 10 bedrooms, 14 full-bathrooms and 12 partial-bathrooms, also comes with a 20,000 bottle wine cellar and a second cellar for an additional 1,000 crates.

Architecturally “a series of pavilions connected by cloisters,” the main house is dominated by formal entertaining areas with 16^th century carved ceilings and accessed from a private tunnel underneath the road is a 2-bedroom beach house with an infinity pool that “blends into the turquoise waters of the Atlantic Ocean.” To the other boundary, on Lake Worth, is a boathouse with motorised launches for two vessels and a 2-bedroom apartment above.

July 30, 2017
Pricey Pickhurst

130 acre Surrey estate with gardens by Arabella Lennox Boyd for sale for £28 million (or £13 million more than it was marketed for in 2013)

A Surrey estate has gone on sale for 87% more than in was offered for four years ago.

Featured in Country Life in 2013 whilst for sale for £15 million ($19.1 million, €17.1 million or درهم70 million) and on the market now for the much higher sum of £28 million ($35.6 million, €31.9 million or درهم130.7 million), Pickhurst at Chiddingfold, near Goldalming centres around a 15,430 square foot Grade II* listed mansion.

Built by the Scottish born architect J. M. Brydon for himself in 1885 in the style of Norman Shaw and most recently refurbished by developers Royalton, the main half-timbered house was originally much larger. Reduced in size in the 1950s, after a fire devastated its service wing, it now includes not only 6 reception rooms and 6 bedroom suites, but also a vast wine cellar, a belvedere tower and a home cinema.

A further 3 bedrooms and a “hot relaxation suite” can be found in an adjoining coach house and in addition to two further 3 bedroom cottages and a Grade II listed gate lodge, there is also a stable block, machinery barn and garage. In total, internal space extends to some 30,000 square foot.

Unusually for a property just 42 miles from central London, Pickhurst comes with 130 acres of land. Divided into formal gardens partly designed by Lady Lennox-Boyd and Chelsea gold medalist Fiona Lawrenson, woodland and pasture, there is also a 1.23 acre lake, a clay tennis court and an outdoor swimming pool. A family shoot on the estate is described as “regularly having 250 bird days”.

Selling agent, Trevor Kearney of Savills, is far from modest in talking about Pickhurst. In marketing material for the property, he gushes:

“This is the very best country estate that I have ever seen. Pickhurst is a best in class offering of unquestionable style and quality”.

Of the renovation works he carried out to the house, in 2013, West Sussex based architect Ian Adam Smith, commented:

“At the outset, the house looked as if it had been more or less chainsawed in half, yet, in spite of the fact that, before the fire, it was almost twice its size, local planning regulations would only allow us to extend the footprint by 40%”.

“And, with no plans and no service wing to work with, we had to more or less create an entire new country house within a Grade II* listed building bearing in mind all the restrictions that that implies. Luckily, I was given a free hand by my very fastidious client, and we were able to build a new entrance, incorporate a modern-kitchen/family-living complex, upgrade the bedrooms and bathrooms, install acres of walnut panelling and replace the existing cherry-wood flooring with oak parquetry”.

“With more than a nod to Lutyens, Webb and, in the gardens, to Gertrude Jekyll, we also reintroduced some interesting original features, such as the belvedere from where you can look out across the roofs of the many and varied Arts-and-Crafts houses that are a distinctive feature of Chiddingfold and the other villages in this wonderful part of Surrey”.

Current pictures of the property removed at request of Claire Basing Lawson of Savills, 23rd August 2017.

June 23, 2017
Anything But A Steel

Renovated Pacific Heights, San Francisco residence with Danielle Steel as a neighbour for sale for sum 652% higher than it sold for in 1994

A buyer wishing to live just to the north of Danielle Steel’s architecturally striking ‘Spreckels Mansion’ home can now purchase 1994 Jackson Street in San Francisco’s Pacific Heights.

For sale with agent Malin Giddings, the 5,490 square foot, 4-storey detached house offered includes not only 4 reception rooms, 4 bedrooms and 6 bathrooms, but also a bar, wine room, exercise room, elevator and barbecue. It comes with a 2-car garage, two balconies and a garden and is curiously described as having a “re-scripted aesthetic” that “caters to the 21^st century family while incorporating the best finishes of yesterday and today”.

Built in 1940 and completely reconfigured by Ken Fulk – an “incredible… sprightly… design guru” with a client list ranging from Napster’s Sean Parker to Bebo’s Michael and Xochi Birch, according to Vanity Fair – £8.40 million ($10.75 million, €9.62 million or درهم39.50 million) is sought for the house.

Indicative of the sharp rise in prices in the neighbourhood since it became popular with the titans of Silicon Valley, 1994 Jackson Street sold for $6.25 million in 2008 (the equivalent of $7.10 million, £5.55 million, €6.35 million or درهم26.09 million today) and $1.43 million in 1994 (the equivalent of $2.36 million, £1.84 million, €2.11 million or درهم8.67 million today). Plainly, now, this is a house that’s anything but a steal.

Prior to renovation – 1994 Jackson Street, Pacific Heights, San Francisco, California, CA 94109, United States of America as it was presented when sold in 2008

1994 Jackson Street today

The house is set just beneath Danielle Steele’s ‘Spreckels Mansion’ (2080 Washington Street)

Danielle Steel and her palatial home

1994 Jackson Street (viewed from the side)

The house has been made-over by San Francisco “man-about-town” Ken Fulk

He is famed for having designed homes for amongst others Michael and Xochi Birch

The staircase of 1994 Jackson Street

The house’s main reception space

The dining room

The kitchen

A colourfully carpeted entertaining area

A recreation room with a bar

The master suite has a bedroom area, sitting area, dressing room, balcony and bathroom

Another of the four/five bedrooms in the house

The view

A floor plan of the space

May 27, 2017
An Epic Estate

Scottish sporting estate, once home to Sir Walter Scott, for sale; it comes with nearly two miles of fishing on the River Tweed, 863 acres of land and seven houses

The Scottish estate where Sir Walter Scott, Bt. (1771 – 1732) wrote his narrative poems Lay of the Minstrel and The Lady of the Lake and his epic, Marmion, has recently been placed for sale for £5.5 million ($7.1 million, €6.4 million or درهم26.2 million).

Offered by Savills and leased by the novelist, playwright and poet from 1804 to 1812, Ashiestiel House in Selkirkshire stands above in 863 acres above the River Tweed and is 35 miles from the centre of Edinburgh. It comes with six further dwellings, 1¾ miles of salmon and sea trout fishing on the River Tweed, an in-hand stock farm, commercial forestry, a pheasant shooting, duck flighting and equestrian facilities.

Sir Walter Scott, Bt. (1771 – 1732) was the tenant of Ashiestiel for eight years prior to moving to Abbotsford, an estate he eventually expanded to some 1,000 acres

An Epic Estate – Ashiestiel, Clovenfords, Lauderdale, Selkirkshire, Scotland, TD1 3LJ, United Kingdom

Extending to 10,360 square foot and renovated in 2011, the estate’s Grade A listed main residence includes 5 reception rooms, 9 bedrooms and 7 bathrooms. It dates to the 17^th century and amongst its features are a peel tower and space described as suitable for entertaining “on a grand scale”.

Ashiestiel was last placed on the market – with just 24 acres of land and its two gate lodges – for £1.75 million in 2009 (the equivalent of £2.15 million, $2.79 million, €2.48 million or درهم10.26 million today). At the time, then owner and joint master of the Buccleuch hunt, Robert Claydon, told The Telegraph:

“I’ve come back from cubbing and caught a salmon at the end of the garden. It’s very wild countryside – south of us you won’t hit a road for 10 miles. It was the best move we ever made coming here. We escaped the rat race – people understand the countryside up here”.

May 25, 2017
Making a Manor

Refurbished Surrey manor house with connections to Detmar Blow and Gertrude Jekyll for sale for £2.55 million

Reduced in price by £200,000 since when it was previously on the market in June 2015, a Surrey manor house is again for sale – but this time for £2.55 million ($3.32 million, €2.96 million or درهم12.20 million).

First mentioned in association with Robert de Upbroke in 1282, Osbrooks at Capel, near Dorking was built as a hall and smoke bay house in the 15^th and 16^th centuries. Subsequently redeveloped in the 17^th century and then extended by Detmar Blow (1867 – 1939) – an architect, contemporary of Edwin Lutyens and disciple of John Ruskin – in the arts and crafts style in the early 20^th century. The building was given Grade II listed status in November 1966 and more recently had a swimming pool, gym and garaging added.

Osbrooks in 1890

Osbrooks today (with 20th century extension to left)

Standing in 14 acres of gardens and grounds designed by amongst others the especially prolific Gertrude Jekyll (1843 – 1932), Osbrooks now provides 4,987 square foot and features 4 reception rooms, a bar, 8 bedrooms and 5 bathrooms. It includes such details as oak joinery, leaded windows and tall, diagonal chimney stacks and could very easily be used as a location in a Midsomer Murders or Miss Marple murder mystery television drama.

Of the property, in April, John Fisher of selling agents Sotheby’s International Realty told The Times: “It could be a house for entertaining as well as comfortable living. It has all the space you could require, as well as proximity to good schools”.

An adjoining 4-acre plot with stabling and planning permission for a 1,959 square foot, single storey dwelling is also available through Sotheby’s. It is offered for £450,000 ($586,000, €523,000 or درهم2.2 million).

May 22, 2017
A Big Priced Basement

Cadogan Square flat for sale for a sum that, if achieved, could make it the most expensive subterranean home in London; it is offered at a price that equates to £2,130 per square foot

Created from the merger of two flats, one of which was marketed for £3 million ($3.8 million, €3.5 million or درهم14.1 million) in 2013, a basement apartment in Cadogan Square, Knightsbridge has gone on sale for the staggering sum of £6.25 million ($8.01 million, €7.35 million or درهم29.42 million).

Possibly one of the most expensive subterranean homes in London, if not the world, the 2,933 square foot remodeled apartment comes with a Moroccan themed courtyard garden and includes not only 2 reception rooms, 4 bedrooms and 5 bathrooms, but also a coffee bar, a television room and a steam room. It is described as providing a “flexible living” space.

The share of freehold property is offered by Strutt & Parker and situated within a Grade II* listed building designed by the Scottish architect Richard Norman Shaw (1831 – 1912) in 1883.

April 26, 2017
Hidden in Hans

Hidden house in Knightsbridge for sale for £1.595 million; it might suit those with an aspiration to live like Julian Assange

A cleverly refurbished ‘hidden house’ behind 163 Pavilion Road in Knightsbridge has been brought to the market by Savills.

699 square foot Hans Cottage has its own private front door, a patio garden and features an open plan reception-kitchen, two bedrooms, two bathrooms and a utility room. It is available on a leasehold basis with approximately 99 years remaining.

£1.595 million ($2.044 million, €1.906 million or درهم7.507 million) is sought for the property – which is just a few hundred metres from the hideout of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange. It was previously marketed for £1.25 million ($1.60 million, €1.49 million or درهم5.88 million) in an unrenovated state in May 2012.

April 21, 2017
Witchfinders and Watermills

Picturesque watermill used in ‘The Witchfinder General’ and ‘Dad’s Army’ for sale

Witches and water don’t have an affinity – with dunking being a common form of punishment for suspects in the 16^th and 17^th centuries – and at The Watermill on the River Black Bourn at Ixworth in Suffolk, just such activity occurred in the 1968 film The Witchfinder General.

The Watermill, which is now for sale for £1 million ($1.3 million, €1.2 million or درهم4.6 milllion) through Savills, was also a location in the popular BBC series Dad’s Army and of this property, which until recently was used as a holiday rental, the corporation’s Martha Kearney once remarked: “I can’t think of a more enchanted summer evening than sitting outside the Mill, gazing across the water lilies on the pond to the beautiful island beyond”.

The Watermill prior to renovation

A working mill from 1800 until 1946, the 5,848 square foot, three floor building comes with detailed restrictions about how it could be altered given it is Grade II* listed but currently provides 3 reception rooms, 5 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms.

Previously rented from £1,450 to £3,000 per week depending on season, The Watermill is situated on a three acre plot that includes a picturesque lily-covered mill pond with island and mill race. An outbuilding has lapsed planning permission for conversion into ancillary accommodation whilst the former mill itself retains much of its original machinery.

April 15, 2017
Red Rollers

Pair of striking red Rolls-Royces with Scottish connections to be auctioned at the Imperial War Museum Duxford

Rolls-Royces tend to be noticed wherever they go but a pair to be auctioned later this month are especially stand-out examples in that they both come in especially bold shades of red.

The first car, a 1990 Rolls-Royce Corniche III convertible, is offered with an estimate of £50,000 to £60,000 ($62,000 to $74,000, €58,000 to €69,000 or درهم228,000 to درهم273,000). It was built to special order for a Scottish laird and features one-of-a-kind red paintwork said to match the colour of his family’s tartan. The 27-year old automatic, 6.75-litre vehicle comes with an original set of cut glass decanters and matching glasses and has covered just 64,900 miles.

The second comes in the form of a 1935 Rolls-Royce 20/25 limousine with coachwork by Hooper & Company of Westminster, London. It is presented in maroon and black with black upholstery up front and red to the rear. Originally owned by a Mrs Margaret Abercrombie of Castlehead, Paisley, the 3.7-litre long-wheelbase car subsequently spent 39 years in the USA before returning to the UK in 2003. It is offered with an estimate of £24,000 to £26,000 ($30,000 to $32,000, €28,000 to €30,000 or درهم109,000 to درهم118,000).

The cars will be sold by H&H Classics at the Imperial War Museum Duxford in Cambridgeshire on 29^th March.

March 18, 2017
Raising Walton Street

Six storey Chelsea house for sale for 268% more than it sold for in 2007

Last sold for a total of £5,025,000 million ($6,668,000 or €5,936,000) in 2007, 37–39 Walton Street in Chelsea was formed by the merger of two townhouses that has created an 6,294 square foot home complete with the addition of a two level iceberg basement extension.

Offered for sale now for £18,500,000 ($25,550,000 or €21,854,000) after a lengthy renovation, the six storey house has not only five bedroom suites but also a media room, a lift and a mechanised rising floor that converts a swimming pool into a large entertaining room.

Situated directly next to The Enterprise bar and restaurant, the house is being marketed by Strutt & Parker.

The swimming pool is a multi-functional space with a mechanised rising floor that turns the room into a large entertaining room

The sauna

The dining room

The kitchen

The master bedroom

A lift connects four of the six floors

The garden

One of two terraces

There is also off-street parking to the rear

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September 11, 2016