You ask how such destruction might happen?

We are not talking about drug deals gone bad or stolen merchandise being hidden. We are talking about lavish gifts given to state and government employees who are obligated, by law, to report and turn over a gifts received from foreign entities valued at over $480. They also have the opportunity (which very few, if any, have ever taken)to purchase these more expensive gifts at fair market value.

At thePresidential level, flushing gifts down the toilet or tossing into the trash isn’t exactly an option. And they are still obligated to turn over these expensive gifts to the National Archives, within a reasonable period of time, we might presume. For example, in 2023 Jill Biden received from the Indian Prime Minister a 7.5 carat diamond very conservatively valued at $20,000. Rather than turning it over to the National Archives, it is reportedly being held in the East Wing of the White House for undetermined purposes for an undetermined period of time.

According to the Associated Press, CIA Director William Burns received the aforementioned $11,000 Omega watch and mysteriously reports that it was another victim of undisclosed destruction and could not be handed over to National Achives. Of additional interest, a CIA employee was the recipient of the mentioned $30,000 jewelry set as well an Omega Sea Master Aquaterra watch and a ladies Omega Constellation watch–all valued at $65,100. The status of this largesse?

Reported: All destroyed. Total destruction.

But there is more.

These are required reports that federal employees must make. Sometimes painfully so.

There was another CIA employee who was reported to have received a men’s Yacht Master II Rolex Perpetual watch valued at $18,700.

Reported: Destroyed.

A second CIA employee received a ladies Rolex Oyster Datejust watch with value of $12,500.

Reported: Destroyed.

Another CIA employee reported receiving a men’s Rolex Air King watch worth $7400, while another reported getting a lady’s Rolex Oyster Datejust watch valued at $12,500.

Both reportedly destroyed.

Another reported on this government disclosure was a $7,450 Rolex Air King watch

Reported: Destroyed.

Let’s give the benefit of doubt to many government servants who receive expensive gifts and turn them over to the National Archives, where they belong. Regardless of how painful the task might be.

But are we really to believe this level of luxury destruction? Do these people really expect us to believe that they would actually destroy a Rolex rather than turn it over to the National Archives?  Ditto for precious jewelry and lesser Omega watches?

And when will that 7.5 carat  diamond make it to the National Archives?

These are questions we should all be asking. And perhaps the National Archives can auction off these luxurious goods and help reduce our national debt–or pay their own operating expenses.

The post The Luxury of Destsruction appeared first on Luxury Home Digest.

Mexico is struggling with a number of serious problems, including failed real estate developments along the Baja coastline–just south of the San Diego border. From the northern tip of Tijuana’s coastline down to Ensenada, Baja beach areas are spotted with the rusting remains of failed high rise condo projects.

And one of the biggest failures is the Trump Ocean Resort Baja just north of Punta Bandera, where unwitting U.S. investors thought they were buying into one of the safest investments possible: A beach condo development offered by none other than Donald Trump and his family.  Up to 600 buyers paid 10 to 30 percent down on condos ranging from $274,000 for a 485-square foot studio to nearly $3 million for a 2685 square foot penthouse.

Today,  infuriated real estate investors have lost millions of dollars–with scant chance of getting anything back.

Some people refinanced homes in 2006 to come up with the $100,000 to $1 million deposits–which were subsequently and legally spent by the developer. Today, all that remains is an aging billboard with a large photo of The Donald, a shuttered sales center and showroom, a parking lot and a number of excavation holes and standing construction equipment.

This year, parents are warning kids not to head to Baja for Spring Break.  Mexico’s drug violence has escalated and kidnappings are all-too-frequent.  These tourist fears coupled with the global economic meltdown make real estate speculation investment in Baja a risky proposition.

In 2009, our family will remain in Southern California for Spring Break.  And until Mexico gets drug violence under control, we join countless others in avoiding a border crossing.

Call it a protest–or just protective parenting instincts.

The post Trump’s Baja Luxury Resort Fails appeared first on Luxury Home Digest.

Once upon a time, we whispered about the “F” word creeping into luxury real estate. These days, it is common real estate talk.

The Wall Street Journal quotes Realty Trac reporting that the number of $1-plus million homes in some stage of foreclosure has ballooned to 7,968 between January and August this year. This compares to 4,214 during the same months last year.

Within these numbers, it is interesting to note the relative surge in the $2-plus million home market. This luxury group has grown the fastest: How about 499 in foreclosure process, compared to 201 for the same period last year.

These luxury foreclosures aren’t just the McMansions that proliferated in many upscale suburban communities. These homes are waterfront, behind exclusive gated communities, and in tony towns where these financial embarrassments rarely occur.

The bargains abound. The luxurious Bradenton, FL home pictured above (and listed by Patricia Tan with Prudential Palms Realty), for example, was originally listed at $3.78 million and is now under contract for $1.1 million. There again, and according to DataQuick, more than 64,300 homes priced at $1million or more were sold in 2007–which is more than triple the number for 2002.

In our local San Diego luxury real estate market, we are seeing our own casualties. According to our stats, there are 34 homes in some state of the foreclosure process in exclusive Rancho Santa Fe–with one on Via De Santa Fe valued at over $12 million. In La Jolla real estate, where prices are equally high, but with more condos and a greater population, there are 118 properties in the throes of foreclosure.

What will be the consequences to the highest end of the luxury market? There will be some fallout–and perhaps a more robust luxury home rental market, but most of these owners are well-entrenched and funded–and can afford to wait out this market crisis.

And for luxury home buyers, the market hasn’t looked this good–or offered so many choices– in several decades.

For more, read:

The Finest Foreclosures – WSJ.com

The Luxury of Frugality

Rise in Luxury Home Foreclosures, REO’s and Short Sales?

California Luxury Home Foreclosures

7 Bargaining Secrets for Luxury Home Buyers

Luxury Home Foreclosures More Common

The post Luxury Foreclosures Becoming More Common appeared first on Luxury Home Digest.