Princess Margaret of Denmark’s French Fortress Goes to Public sale, Matt Stone’s Former Venice Pad Lists, and Extra Actual Property Information

From the homes of celebrities like Matt Stone and Princess Margaret to new build projects in Miami and beyond, there’s always something new happening in the real estate world. In this summary, AD PRO provides everything you need to know.

Albert Azouz

Rosarian Stephen Scanniello collaborated on the leafy grounds with Tom Curruth, a gardening expert who has cultivated more than 100 varieties of roses.

On the market

South Park creator’s former home listings for $6.5 million

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A home in Venice, California that was once owned by South Park co-creator Matt Stone has just gone on the market for $6.5 million.

Located on an enviable corner lot in Venice’s southernmost Silver Triangle, this recently renovated Danish Modern-style home offers three bedrooms, four and a half bathrooms. Highlights include stained concrete floors, hand-made tiles by ceramist MaryMar Keenan, and mahogany doors and windows by Tischler und Sohn. The garden is a collaboration between Stephen Scanniello, curator of roses at the New York Botanical Gardens, and Tom Carruth, who holds the same post at The Huntington in San Marino, California.

There is also a self contained structure which currently serves as a three car garage but could be converted into an art studio, office or guest house. Billy Rose from The Agency has the listing.

Trevor Tondro/The Fridman Group

LA Reid sells ultra-modern Bel Air mansion for $21.5 million

Superstar producer LA Reid has put his secluded Bel Air mansion up for sale for $21.5 million. Reid, whose associates included Janet Jackson, Mariah Carey, and Jennifer Lopez, purchased the seven-bedroom property in 2016, shortly after construction was completed. Compass’s Tomer Fridman and Sotheby’s International Realty-Beverly Hills Brokerage’s Chantel Mehrabanian share the listing.

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The new taste: Visit AD experts at the kitchen workshop

The three-story stucco and stone structure features more than 11,200 square feet of living space — accessible via an elevator or suspended staircase — and an underground parking garage with space for four vehicles. There’s also a staggering 10 bathrooms — including a spa-like restroom with a walk-in infrared sauna and red-light therapy machine.

“We’ve seen many homes, but none quite as magical as this one and in a setting as alluring as this one,” said Reid’s wife, Erica Reid, who was very handy with the design choices.

Some of the furniture is by mid-century modern designers Vladimir Kagan and Christian Liaigre, and the Reids are open to selling many of the items along with the house.

The couple didn’t do much renovation, but installed a scarlet home theater inspired by the art deco decor of Paris’ Hotel Costes. They first listed the property in 2019 for $22.9 million and have since listed it on and off the market multiple times — most recently in 2022 when it listed for $21.95 million.

Concierge Auctions

The former residence of Princess Margaret of Denmark and Prince René of Bourbon-Parma features amenities like an oasis-like in-ground pool and stunning views of Cap Ferrat.

Princess Margaret of Denmark’s French fortress is up for auction

The French Riviera estate where Princess Margaret of Denmark lived for decades is up for auction. Known as “La Carriere”, the six bedroom mansion is located in Villefranche-sur-Mer, nestled between Monaco and Nice. It was actually built into the stone walls of an existing fort in the 1920s and offers the ultimate in royal privacy.

A cousin of England’s Queen Elizabeth, Margaret lived mostly in France with her husband, Prince René of Bourbon-Parma, until her death in 1992 at the age of 97. (The family fled La Carriere during World War II and took up temporary residence in New York.)

The historical character of La Carriere is emphasized by the arched windows, the antique high beamed ceilings and the large fireplace. However, if the new owners feel cramped, they can enjoy unparalleled views of the Mediterranean Sea from multiple terraces and a rooftop hot tub.

There is no reserve, but the property was previously listed for $13.1 million. The bidding process opened yesterday at Concierge Auctions.

The houses were featured in a July 1997 issue of AD.

Elliott Rosenblum designed both houses.

Then and now in Larchmont

Much has changed in the quarter century since 61 and 65 Woodbine Avenue appeared in the pages of Architectural Digest. The two homes, which form a single estate in Larchmont, New York, were the work of architect Elliott Rosenblum, known for designing stores for Barneys, Calvin Klein, and Saks Fifth Avenue.

His client was a Westchester County psychotherapist who was relocating and wanted a space that was “comfortable enough for two but able to accommodate her and her husband’s extended friends and family,” according to the original 1997 article.

Framework Home

The two-home property includes over 11,000 square feet of living space.

Rosenblum’s solution consisted of two clapboard-style homes that would be right at home in Nantucket: a 7,500-square-foot, 13-room main house where the two could spend the warm months, and a 4,000-square-foot, 10-foot “cabin.” where they could overwinter.

The original 1907 structures on the property were stripped down to their foundations to make way for Rosenblum’s lavish design. Now on the market for the first time, both residences are listed at Carey Federspiel of Julia B. Fee Sotheby’s International Realty for $6.8 million.

A comparison of the original 1997 footage of the route and new photos taken that year shows that while the world outside is very different, these houses are much the same.

Framework Home

The ceiling of one of the property’s main bathrooms.

“The eyebrows, the domes, the antique hardwood floors, and the furniture are all there and beautiful,” says Federspiel. “The wood in the house wasn’t whitewashed or painted gray like so many houses have been in the past decade.”

In fact, the only things that have grayed are the cedar shingles, which have naturally weathered their original brown.

style

The Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation enters the shoe industry

You may not be able to afford a Frank Lloyd Wright house, but you can walk in his shoes – literally. In April, the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation collaborated with fashion brand Kith on a capsule collection. The New Balance Made in USA 998 sneaker is offered in two colorways, including off-white and the brick red, apricot and olive green tones of Broadacre City, Wright’s unbuilt futuristic city concept.

Priced at $220 a pair, the shoes sold out quickly, Fast Company reported, and have turned up on eBay for as much as $750.

Kith also designed two t-shirts, one with a Wright-inspired sketch on the front and one with the foundation’s logo. The collection’s advertising campaign was shot on location at Taliesin West, Wright’s studio in Scottsdale, Arizona, and features on-site employees as models.

News

Rents are coming back down to earth

According to a report by real estate portal Zumper, a record number of new rental apartments came onto the market in April 2023, which also suggests that rental prices are beginning to normalise. At $1,495, the nationwide median rent for a one-bedroom apartment has remained flat since March and is up just 6% year-on-year. That’s a very different picture from the double-digit gains seen in 2021 and 2022. The median price of $1,842 for a two-bedroom unit is just half a percentage point higher than last month.

Indeed, April was the sixth consecutive month of moderate volatility, with the median studio rent falling in 39 of the top 100 markets. “The rollercoaster days of the pandemic, with wildly unpredictable price changes associated with mass migrations, are behind us,” the report said.

Of course, some things remain the same: New York tops the list of most expensive US cities with an average rent of $3,570. Jersey City is less expected to rank second with San Francisco, with an average rent of $3,000 for a one-bedroom apartment.

Miami ranked fourth with an average one-bedroom rent of $2,840. That’s only a 6% increase from March, but a whopping 61% increase from January 2020, when the median rent for a one-bedroom home was just $1,760.