The most famous New York City brownstone in television history is up for sale. Again.

The brownstone in which Sarah Jessica Parker’s lead character Carrie Bradshaw resided in HBO’s Sex and the City just hit the market for a cool $9.65 million. Located in the West Village, the 4,100-square-foot home features five spacious bedrooms and six fireplaces, but you wouldn’t know it watching the show, where the brownstone was a cramped one-bedroom loft.

The hefty price tag may not be the only major hang-up, though. The brownstone was just purchased for $9 million in November, but rumor has it the steady stream of SATC fans who come to ogle the stoop Parker made famous has created such a nuisance, the current owners have been driven to sell.

Too bad the $9.65 million price tag won’t pay for privacy.

[Photo from Global Grind]

Who doesn’t love a deal? When it comes to housing, there are  a lot of bargains out there right now. But some can blow you away with their prices. MSN Real Estate recently rounded up some of the cheapest houses in each market. Let’s take a look at a few of them.

The award for cheapest house goes to this Detroit house, which can be all yours for $1. Yes, $1. It looks like it requires quite a bit of work, so your final outlay would probably be significantly more.

You could own this Jackson, Miss. house for only $4,900. But judging from the picture, you might need to shell out for some landscaping.

How about living in one of the most exclusive places in America? Let’s just say that $399,000 isn’t cheap by most people’s standards. And the house is small, at only 676 square feet.  Plus, it has a bit of an unsavory recent history. But hey, its in Beverly Hills!

What do you think of seeking out cheap houses? Are they diamonds in the rough or just rough? Are they worth the money and the risk?

Photos courtesy of MSN Real Estate.

For those in the market to buy a home, searching the latest listings can be a perilous adventure. Whether located in the local newspaper or in a national database online, consumers can view hundreds of home listings before finding “the one.”

Last week, Redfin — and online real estate brokerage — published results from a 21-month study of more than 1.2 million listings on the market to find the most opportune time to list a home. Turns out sellers can gain a marginal advantage by timing their listing just so.

According to Redfin’s study, Friday is prime time for sellers to list homes. Consider:

• Homes listed on Friday are toured 19 percent more.
• Homes listed on Friday or Thursday sell for slightly closer to original list price.
• Homes listed on Friday are 12 percent more likely to sell in 90 days.

What gives? Redfin cites the fact consumers tour listing at a rate of two-and-a-half times more on Saturday and Sunday compared to weekdays.

Our theory is that since home buyers tend to tour homes on the weekends, homes listed on Fridays are the freshest in buyers’ minds when they’re making their weekend plans. It also seems likely that many home buyers sort their weekend ‘must see’ lists by date listed, going to see the freshest homes first so they have the best chance of getting in on a potential good deal before other buyers. These factors put homes listed on Friday in front of more touring buyers on the weekend (which our touring data bears out). More tours leads to more offers, and more offers leads to a better price and a better chance of selling.

In this fickle market, improving the numbers by 12 percent here and 19 percent there gives builders a major advantage with no additional investment necessary. It’s something to bear in mind before you introduce your next home to the market.

Take a stroll through Katie Couric’s Hamptons getaway on Cottages & Gardens and you’ll find a perfect example of a home that totally reflects its owner. Elegant, laid back and even playful, Couric’s sprawling beach house features a full tennis court, a pool, ornate landscaping (designed by her older sister) and plenty of space to relax and entertain. And that’s just the outside, but Couric admits entertaining is a top priority.

“I love doing all the typical things in the Hamptons, like making dinner with friends,” Couric says.

When Couric purchased the home, the interior required just a few minor tweaks and personal touches. The exterior, however, was a much larger undertaking:

At the rear of the house is a wonderful covered patio, perfect for outside dining, but the view from it was murky at best. A white picket fence and row of hydrangeas enclosed an adjacent small lawn, and a large shade tree loomed too close; these elements obscured the connection between the house and the pool and left the landscape hemmed-in and claustrophobic rather than inviting and airy. Batchelor [Couric's sister and landscape artist] removed the fence and hydrangeas and repositioned the shade tree, opening up the view of the pool and even the tennis court beyond.

As for the pool, it was saddled with unattractive brick coping and a lopsided deck; Batchelor added new bluestone coping and potted annuals that give vertical definition to the pool’s horizontal plane. Completing the setting are symmetrical pergolas covered in wisteria and perennial beds planted with peonies, phlox, coneflowers, daylilies and ornamental grasses.

We should all be so lucky to have a builder, remodeler or landscape artist in the family. Then again, make one mistake improving the fragile beauty of a home in the Hamptons and you won’t have to worry about having friends for dinner.

[Photos by Keith Scott Morton for Cottages & Gardens]

Did you miss out on the suburban Chicago house from the movie Home Alone a few months ago? Movie buffs, rejoice. The bungalow from the Coen Brothers’ cult classic The Big Lebowski is on the market in Venice, CA, for a cool $2.3 million.

The listing is for the compound includes six one-bedroom bungalows, one of which belonged to Jeff “The Dude” Lebowski (played by Jeff Bridges), and was better known for a rug that tied the place together.

Located just a few blocks off Venice Beach, the area includes many actors and artists as neighbors, most notably Lindsay Lohan. Unfortunately, we can’t provide more details about the house because the realtor’s website has crashed due to heavy traffic.

We read about famous homes hitting the market every other week it seems, yet these listings usually don’t sell very quickly. If you could have a famous home from any movie or television show, which would it be?

[Photo from LA Weekly]

Should you shoot for the stars when buying your first home? That’s the question Investopedia, via MSN Real Estate asks. We say: probably not, but it all depends.

Let’s start with saying that if you have the money and are financially comfortable, you should do whatever you want when buying your first home. But most people buy their first home in the younger years of their lives, often with a young family to support. In that situation, does it make sense to buy your dream home on the first go-round?

Some people take the attitude that their home should be “The One,” the place where they want to build their lives and memories. For these people, it is important to get it right the first time around since they have no intention of house-hunting again. Others want have their house grow and shrink as needed, which usually means buying a new house.

In this economy, there are important considerations to consider when buying your house. Since none of us know how long this downturn will last, you should like your house enough to stay in it for a while if needed. More importantly, you should like the community where your house is located. If you like where you live, you might have the option of remodeling and adding on to your house to suit your needs.

Readers, was your first house your dream house? Did you look around one day and realize that against all odds it had turned into your dream house? Or did you decide to trade up when your first house wasn’t working for you?

Photo courtesy of sean dreilinger on Flickr.

With the real estate market slowly springing back, there is an underlying issue: your homes worth. Chances are there is a home — or several homes — in your area that has been foreclosed on. It’s not only sad for the person or family that lived in that home but sad for you, as well, as it pertains to the overall value of your home.

The best option for many of us is to stay put, invest in what we have, and in doing so, increase your home’s value.  Maybe more slowly than in the past 10 years, but it will go up. Consider also a recent AARP survey that found more than 85 percent of people age 65 and older would prefer to stay in their current homes as long as possible. Many choose to remodel their homes to suit their new life style like a first floor master bedroom or a new gourmet kitchen.

Some older homeowners may develop a disability that limits their activities, which is another reason to renovate and adapt their homes to their needs.  In fact, a recent Department of Housing and Urban Development study showed that more than 1 million households with a disabled older resident need some type of renovation to make their home a more livable environment — like an access ramp or lever handles on the doors.

Before considering these modifications, a cost analysis needs to be done to weigh the remodeling cost to that of building a new home that will accommodate these features. In the long run it may be easier and less expensive to build a new home in your same neighborhood.

For many, their homes are right where they want them. Close to family and friends.  The idea of moving as earlier stated is just too much to handle. Some homeowners are tearing down their three-bedroom bungalows and building their dream home right in the same spot. Nowadays, staying near family is of growing importance to today’s retirees, and it just makes sense to live in an environment in which you are comfortable.

One of the other trends in remodeling and building for retirees is the concept of universal design. Once thought of as a design that was for the benefit of persons needing assistance with their homes, universal design is slowly becoming a mainstay in construction practices. Wider doorways, light switches at lower heights, levered door handles all are for the benefit of whom ever lives in the home both young and old.

Experts in housing trends predict that as the baby boomers age more and more are going to stay put and invest their money right at home. And why not? For years, people say that location is key. That is true, but now, we must add comfort.

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The recession has done more than impact the rate at which new homes are sold. It’s actually changed the way new homes are built.

The recession has brought about a paradigm shift. “Bigger and better” is being replaced by “smaller is smarter,” according to a recent study by the National Association of Home Builders, and this trend expected to not only outlast the recession, but become the new standard.

Dr. Paul Emrath, vice president for survey and housing policy research at NAHB, reviewed consensus data from 2005 to 2009 and authored Characteristics of Single-Family Homes Started in 2009. The numbers only tell half the story:

Emrath’s study shows the median size single-family home shrank from 2,268 square feet in 2006 to 2,100 in 2009. This isn’t just the product of stricter loan standards and a shaky re-sale market. Now more than ever, energy efficiency is viewed as a priority, not a luxury.

Note the number of bedrooms and bathrooms has barely changed over that period. Homeowners’ haven’t changed during this five-year period. Rooms are simply becoming smaller, along with the rest of the home.

“A house is a complex commodity,” Dr. Emrath told Marvin Windows and Doors in an interview Tuesday. “And there are any number of ways to upgrade it irrespective of its size.”

Dr. Emrath’s study also found a change in philosophy around less energy efficient features. For instance, homes built with a fireplace fell from 54.8 percent in 2005 to 48.8 percent in 2009. Heat pumps, which more evenly distribute warmth throughout the home, have risen from 31.4 percent in 2005 to 38 percent in 2009.

The study also suggests homeowners are applying the lessons from the recession of the early 1980s. In other words, don’t expect home sizes to rebound along with the economy:

“This time, part of the current home size decline may again be a temporary recession-related phenomenon,” Dr. Emrath writes. “But part can also be attributed to trends in factors like the desire to keep energy costs down, amounts of equity in existing homes available to roll into a new one, tightening credit standards, less emphasis on the pure investment motive for buying a home, and an increased share of homes sold to first-time buyers.

“Not all of these trends are likely to reverse themselves immediately at the end of a recession.”

Renovating your home can be one of the great joys of home ownership. You get to put your own personal stamp on the space, but what happens when you want to sell? DIY Life lists five projects that are most likely not going to be worth your time and money. Here they are, along with our thoughts.

• Too Much Taste: DIY wisely points out that even if you think brightly colored walls look stylish and unique (no argument there!), other people might not think so. Should others’ opinion matter? Probably not…unless you want them to buy your home. If you plan on staying put a long time, you might as well paint your bathroom orange. Painting can be a pain, but it’s a fairly cheap and easy fix. If you think you will be selling soon, do yourself a favor and go with beige.
• Budget-Friendly Fixtures: We think that you should buy the highest-quality items that your budget will allow. After all, you can’t change out your flooring the same way you would some cheap throw pillows. Again, we think this decision will have a lot to do with how long you will be in the house. Cheap fixtures might be fine for a few years but bother you after 10 years.
• Big Ticket Items: DIY Life mentions a pool as a prime example. In that case, we say it depends on the climate. In a northern environment like Minnesota, where Marvin is located, pools are rare and might not add to resale value. In a place like Arizona or Florida? Buyers might welcome the chance to take a dip. But any big ticket home item must be weighed by the enjoyment you will derive from it vs. how much of its value you can recoup. Maybe your future buyers won’t be impressed by that expensive steam shower you put in the master bath.
• Reinvention of Space: Our opinion is that this depends how easily you can swap things out. Let’s say you use your third bedroom as a crafting room. When it comes to selling, buyers probably want to envision it as a bedroom, but that’s a fairly quick fix to stage. More permanent room re-dos, like turning that bedroom into a bathroom (to give DIY Life’s example) might not be so wise.
• Unfinished or Poorly Done DIY Work: If you’re handy, do it yourself. If you’re not, or don’t have the time to finish what you started, PLEASE just hire someone to get it done. You’ll thank yourself for it later.

What other home renovations do you think are an unwise use of time, space and money?

Image courtesy of freefotouk on Flickr

Looking for a small place? A really, really, REALLY small place? Well then, you might want to consider this Italian getaway. For the low price of $68,000, this 55 square foot location can be all yours. You’ll get a tiny bathroom and a bed in a sleeping loft. They even manage to fit in a window!

OK, so it’s not terribly practical, but the location is amazing. The world’s smallest apartment is on the Piazza di Sant’ Ignazio and is right behind the Prime Minister’s residence. Who knows, it might be just the thing for a Roman holiday or sleeping the night away after living la dolce vita. Besides, think of the bragging rights that come with owning the word’s smallest apartment!

Image courtesy of The Telegraph.