Knockdown Mania! A new trend for the one percent!

This summer, a friend of ours bought a home in Piermont, situated right on the Hudson River. I thought it was an odd buy, as the house was rather small and quite dated, and he paid a bunch for it, presumably for its location and spectacular view of the Hudson and the Tappan Zee Bridge. So I wasn't surprised when one day the demolition crew arrived and started tearing it down. Now, a much bigger and more modern home is going up, which will undoubtedly have a great view of the river.
Tear-downs aren't unusual, especially in river towns like Piermont which have older homes in prime locations. But what appears to be a fad among America's super-rich these days are buyers dropping millions on a once-fabulouse house they intend to destroy. Curbed.com reported on the trend recently, citing celebrities such as NYC hedge fund manager David Tepper, who bought a 6,200 square foot house in the Hamptons for $43.5 million. He immediately knocked it down and proceeded to start construction on a 15,000 square foot replacement.
Paramount Pictures CEO Brad Grey did much the same thing in California, but with a twist. He bought Frank Sinatra's former house and tried to flip it for $20 million. When it didn't sell, he knocked down the house and put the lot back on the market as a building site. The price? $20 million.
In Connecticut, knocking down quaint old waterfront homes is pretty common, but now, realtors are marketing these houses as "development opportunities." A 1,300 square foot 3-bedroom house on a prime acre lot in Old Saybrook, Conn., about two hours from NYC, was described in the broker's property description as having "unlimited possibilities to create your dream home." The price was dreamy too: $5.6 million.
Maybe its a commentary on our throw-away society, or maybe it's just a case of the "One Percent" acting like the one percent, but as a realtor who loves homes, it saddens me a bit to see older houses destroyed because the land they sit on is worth more than the house. Guess I'd understand it better if I'd gone into hedge fund management.

If you're interested in a property to knock down, or to actually live in, visit our listings, or see what just came on the market in the Hudson Valley.