I read in the press that the rage for routinely tearing down houses to make way for gigantic monsters has come to an end, as the reality of a crashing economy strikes home - or, in this case - homes.
So is the "raze 'em" syndrome really over? If you read the signs, maybe not. New candidates for the wrecker's ball ironically, may be some of those very bad manors that succeeded the torn-downs.
Too many of the monster mansions erected too late in the boom cycle are sitting there unwanted and unloved and, worst of all, not selling, even after some repeated substantial slashes in asking price.
During the hyperventilating boom, buyers were rushing in with cash or guaranteed mortgages in hand, often gezumping rivals already bidding over the asking prices. But even as they fought to purchase the newest neo-Intuit-styled hybrid castle, it seemed inevitable that one day this supercharged bubble had to burst.
Every runaway boom, from the Dutch tulip mania to the dot-coms, eventually has to self-destruct. While this town is renown for its real estate integrity, even we are not immune to an economic meltdown that summons up ghosts of the Great Depression.
As one of the earliest and most insufferable critics of this rush to gigantic abodes, I was known to mutter darkly, "Some day there are going to be a lot of B&B's in Greenwich."
So what happens to these multmillion edifices that now sit empty - like the little toy soldier who's covered with dust - bereft of buyers despite drastic slashings of prices? How long can they sit there, vacant and forlorn?
One old-time dealer in house and home suggests there may have to be a round of deconstruction, lopping off huge chunks of the many-splendored mansions and reducing them to more modest sizes, a move that might attract buyers looking for a nice new place less grandiose but with substantially reduced asking prices and less onerous upkeep.
I find it hard to contemplate such a possibility, although I do wonder how long the owner of these pricey properties can sit there idly, bleeding carrying costs. It must be tough for those suffering builder's remorse. Had conditions not changed so violently and precipitously, they probably could have disposed of their products in a reasonable and profitable fashion. Our walled streets have been sorely impacted by Wall Street.
Here again, a frazzled clichŽ proves its wisdom: Timing is everything. No one profits by this sad turn of events. For folks who bitterly resented the McMansion phenomenon, there's no satisfaction in witnessing this downturn in the posh market.
We all hope this too shall pass and some normality - this time maybe a little less exuberant - will return sooner than we have any reason to really believe. But looking at Congress, which was guilty of creating this economic Armageddon, and all the experts and government suits in the Tower of Babble called Washington, doesn't engender much optimism.
In my personal case, there's an amusing (to others) turn of events. Our first house in Greenwich was a modest little ranch in a wooded area up north some. After we left in the mid-'50s, it stood through several subsequent owners.
Today, on that site, emerges a Graustarkian monster, a bizarre and kitschy conglomeration of turrets and porte cocheres and spires, crenelated towers, minarets, domes and furbelows, dotty dormers and other indescribable architectural quirks that makes the worst examples of the hubristic McMansion mania look like a humble cottage.
A friend of mine insists there's a delicious irony in this turn of events. Maybe so. It could be a lesson also. What was our tiny house doing on over 21Ú2 acres? We were guilty of letting all that expansive wooded property go to waste. What dummies we were in those days! I'm embarrassed to admit we even cherished the long stretches of early New England stone walls on the property.
The Blue Team
Name for President Obama's (oops, forgot to say president-elect) Cabinet and major advisors: The Blue Bin Administration. After all, the man who promised change has reached in and recycled the old Bill Clinton gang for a another shot.
That reminds us of the nefarious pardons President Clinton issued in his last minutes in office. And poor George Bush? Last we saw, he was pardoning a turkey. He'll catch more hell for that than Billy did in absolving some scummy criminals.
For those who wondered what the Obama campaign war cry was all about- it comes with his answer to the complaint that you can't really bring that bunch back to power: Yes we can!
Bernie Yudain, whose column appears Wednesdays and Sundays, is a former managing editor of Greenwich Time. His e-mail address is bernardct6@aol.com.
Source: greenwichtime.com
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