March 2009
Studio City, CA.
Can the Rich Make it?, originally uploaded by here in van nuys.
For the past decade, this domestic scene was unremarkable.
An enormous modern home with a three-car garage.
Somehow we imagined that this was attainable and desirable.
The market goes down and down and nobody know where it will settle.
Speculation in stocks and housing has now proven to be good for very few, and a losing scam for millions more.
So, one has to wonder: can the rich make it?
Here in Van Nuys 
I’ve blogged about that very house several times. I don’t remember much of the house that was torn down to make room for this house (and four more, the lot was subdivided) but I hate to keep seeing the old ranch homes getting torn down for McMansions.
That house is offered right now at 4+ mil and I don’t think they’ve had a single offer since it was built. They’ve tried several different real estate agents, but they haven’t lowered the price of the property at all. As a matter of fact I think they raised the listing price from 3.9 to over 4.
That house was also built with a total disregard for resources – it should have solar panels, heated floors and tankless water heaters. If you ever get the chance to see the property, check out the world’s largest water heater in the garage – crazy!
The McMansions around the 2mil price range or lower are still selling, just not as quickly and the old ranch homes are considered tear downs now and are slow to sell.
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