Ready for a delightful little rage-stroke to lead you into the weekend? Because the Wall Street Journal has a doozy of an article up today about the new real estate trend for the rich and super-rich: buying "staycation" homes in a different neighborhood in their own cities. (h/t Gothamist)
For example, a couple who lives in Midtown also owns a $2 million Tribeca pad, which they escape to on the weekends for a "country home"-like experience. "What I love is that unlike the Hamptons, it’s a quick subway ride down there, and it totally feels like you’re on vacation," the husband told the WSJ. "We wanted another Manhattan experience."
What's driving this trend? (If you can call something that seems limited to the one percent who can actually afford two homes in New York City a trend, anyway.) Well, the desire for "a change of scenery" without spending all the time it takes to be chauffeured to the Hamptons, or take a ride in your private jet to St. Barts.
"Different neighborhoods have different experiences," CORE broker Shaun Osher told the WSJ, and apparently that's good enough for the folks who're snapping up these so-called staycation homes. One Gramercy couple has a second home in Brooklyn Heights; another woman, who lives primarily in Red Hook, recently snapped up a "beach house" in the Rockaways.
And then there's this:
Urban revitalization also plays a role: Many buyers want to experience the new restaurants and art galleries popping up in gentrifying neighborhoods. Another bonus is that a home in an up-and-coming city neighborhood can be a good investment.
So if you suddenly start seeing a lot of extremely wealthy people in Ridgewood or Mott Haven and aren't quite sure why, well, there you go.
This trend isn't limited to Manhattan—Miami and Los Angeles also have their own subsets of staycationers, including one woman whose primary home is in South Miami, but who has a "vacation home" in Key Biscayne, a mere half hour away.
Ms. Barrios said her Key Biscayne condo is decorated in beachy whites and blues to accentuate the vacation-home feel. She also keeps an entirely separate—and more casual—wardrobe at the condo to avoid having to bring clothing back and forth. She added that she and her husband make sure not to bring any work with them to Key Biscayne. "When I go over there I make sure it’s only to relax," Ms. Barrios said. "Otherwise you’re not getting away."
Of course: if you're not relaxing in your second expensive home in the same expensive city that you live in most of the time, what are you even doing with your life? (lolsob)
Anyway, the story is ridiculous and very much a reason to poke fun at the very wealthy who don't seem to have a connection with the majority of New Yorkers who spend two-thirds of their income on rent every month. The rich: They sure are different from the rest of us.
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