Soaring Into The Stratosphere

(CBS)  Jade Mills is an agent in Los Angeles' high-end housing market.

"It used to be that $5 million would buy a beautiful house," said Mills, of Coldwell Banker Beverly Hills. "Now I'd say you have to go to $10 million to buy your dream home."

Talk about dreams! One house with a movie theater sells for $30 million. It also has a bowling alley and, amazingly, below the regular pool is an underground pool.

"I think it is the great square footage," said Mills when asked what one thing pushed up the price of a house. "Anything over 30,000 square feet."

And then there is a Beverly Hills mansion listed at $165 million, reports CBS News correspondent Hattie Kauffman. But that record price comes as the rest of the housing market is down 22 percent because of problems with subprime mortgages and foreclosures.

"Sales are very low," said John Karevoll of DataQuick Information Services. "They're probably the lowest they have been in 10 years."

But Karevoll says that is not the whole story.

"Once you get to the very high-end, the market removes itself from those fundamentals and behaves unto its own," said Karevoll.

In fact, across the country, while overall home sales are down, high-end sales are up. Look at these numbers:

L.A. overall sales are down 20 percent; high-end sales are up 20 percent.

San Francisco is down 19 percent, but high-end sales are up 4 percent.

In New York overall sales are down 17 percent but sales of high-end homes are up 7 percent.

Elizabeth Stribling sells to the rich in New York City. She agrees prices have remained steady in the luxury market.

One townhouse in the city is selling for $15 million.

"You're really in a calm, calm haven," said Stribling.

From East to West, no one knows how long prices for these princely palaces can remain insulated from the rest of the market.

[mlasorte]

You should get the facts before rushing to judgement. Grew up very middle class and put myself through college at age 42.

Those being foreclosed on made some bad decisions that they are responsible for. They either bought too much or didn't plan for the interest increases. When do they start taking some of the blame for their bad decisions.

It's easy top blame someone else and just as easy to find others to comiserate with.

[timetrips1]

mlasorte - Spoken like a true trust-fund baby.

Not everyone is born with a silver spoon in their mouth. Find a little compassion, not everyone who is poor is a "Lazy wastrel". All you are doing is spouting another stereo-type. Those that have made it should be the first ones in line with a hand for those following behind so that eventually all who strive for it have a shot at making it.

[mlasorte]

It's funny how an article about the high end housing market turns into whining session for the unhappy. Wealthy people have what they do because they got off their butts and made something of themselves. We are all responsible for where we are in this world, not George Bush or the man in the moon. If you don't like where you are stop complaining and do something about it!

[slim1h2o]

Posted by jjreding at 12:41 PM : Jul 23, 2007

So right you are brother

[jjreding-2009]

Here we are in the 21st century and the haves have more and the have-nots have less. The foreclosure market is huge but the rich are buying multi-million dollar mansions. Here in Cleveland we have the highest housing foreclosure rate in the entire country. Everywhere I look I see houses for sale - sometimes 4 or 5 on a single street.

Bush crows about how the economy is working well and people point to the stock market with its recent close of over 14,000 - but what they don't say (or not very frequently) is that it's the investors, NOT the average person on the street, who is benefiting from this. And almost 40% of the investing is going on beyond our shores. It's the Chinese and India who are propelling the stock market gains, because Bush can't see past his own rich nose to realise that most of us in this country ARE have-nots - as if he would care anyway.

[minminmin-2009]

SharnCedar -

Have to agree. Bush totally sucks, but not much of anything better on the horizon.

[slim1h2o]

bush the worst? How about tricky Dickie? or had you forgotten? Look back in Am. history; you won't have to look far to find worse, believe it.
Posted by normsw at 03:55 AM : Jul 23, 2007

Sorry, Bush is WAY worse than Dickie was. (he wasn't very well thought of though)

BTW, You can't buy your dream home for under 5 million? ***!

[normsw]

bush the worst? How about tricky Dickie? or had you forgotten? Look back in Am. history; you won't have to look far to find worse, believe it.

[sharncedar]

Is Bush the worst president ever? By allowing the crooked and the thieves atop American industry to break laws and defraud shareholders and the government so openly, he hasn't really helped them. He instead has created a country full of hate and classwarfare, a country simmering with anger and bent on revenge. The worst president in history, easily, although I reckon Hillary will somehow be worse.