Westhampton Beach property sale ‘record’
A three-acre bayfront property has sold for $6.45 million, said Ryan Serhant of Nest Seekers International. Serhant, a co-star of Bravo’s “Million Dollar Listing New York,” has the listing with fellow Nest Seekers broker and East End native Robert Canberg. In an email, Serhant claimed the sum fetched for the property at 102 Dune Road was a record in the area, where the average home sale on the bayside of Westhampton is in the $3.5 million to $4 million range. The 6,000-square-foot new construction home with views of the bay and ocean has two stories, seven bathrooms and seven bedrooms. Five of those bedrooms are ensuite guest bedrooms with a junior master suite on the first floor and a master suite above with a balcony. Outside, the grounds have a heated gunite pool, cabana and a private boardwalk leading to a deepwater dock. Chatham Development Company is the developer for the property, whose construction was financed by Emerald Creek Capital. Meridian Capital Group brought together Emerald Creek and Chatham, who are currently working on other projects in Westhampton Beach. “We’re always happy to work with them,” said Emerald Creek managing partner Mark Bahiri about Chatham founder and president Harvey Gessin and his son, vice president Chad Gessin. “They are extremely professional and build great product.” [Nest Seekers International]
Kenneth Lonergan’s ex-Bridgehampton estate goes to contract at $11.95M
A Bridgehampton property that came on the market in March 2017 with an $11.95 million ask has gone into contract under the same price, Curbed reported. Kenneth Lonergan, who wrote “Gangs of New York” and directed “Manchester by the Sea,” had lived in a previous home on the property at 70 Matthews Lane but sold it in 2015 for $3.7 million. The 12,000-square-foot new construction home was designed by Bobby Alpine and James Michael Howard, who won an Institute of Classical Architecture and Art award in 2017. It has seven bedrooms, seven bathrooms, 30-foot-tall cathedral ceilings in its main living area, a master suite that has access to a rooftop terrace and an eat-in kitchen with a 10-person breakfast nook. The home also has a home theater, a bar and a recreation room with a fireplace. Outside, there are specimen trees, a heated gunite pool, an outdoor fireplace, a spa, a pool house with a half-bathroom and a two-car garage. Martha Gundersen of Brown Harris Stevens and Gary DePersia of the Corcoran Group represented the listing. [Curbed]
Airbnb hosts in Suffolk County earned $42.1M in 2018
According to numbers released by Airbnb, about 3,600 hosts across Suffolk County earned $42.1 million in 2018. Throughout the year, 114,200 guests checked into Suffolk listings, according to Long Island Business News. Meanwhile, neighboring Nassau County had only 560 registered hosts last year, who earned $5.3 million from their homes. Between May 25 and Sept. 3, 2018, during the height of the rental season, Airbnb had 81,700 guest arrivals across Long Island. The $47 million that visitors earned their Airbnb hosts last year represented a 38 percent increase over 2017, according to the company. Airbnb, whose East End use has been controversial, remains in talks about the collection of hotel taxes with officials in Nassau and Suffolk counties. In 2018, Suffolk Comptroller John Kennedy got about 1,000 hosts to pay the county’s 3 percent occupancy tax. A federal judge recently blocked a New York City law designed to crack down on Airbnb and other short-term rental sites. [LIBN]
HUD vouchers sought for Amagansett affordable housing project
New York State Homes and Community Renewal wants the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to release eight vouchers for low-income units in a new affordable housing complex in Amagansett, 27east reported. The vouchers would help families live cheaper in the Hamptons hamlet. The 37-unit modular complex, which has yet to break ground, would have 12 one-bedroom apartments, 12 two-bedroom apartments, 12 three-bedroom apartments and one four-bedroom home all spread between seven two-story buildings. The public has until Jan. 18 to submit comments on the project, which will be built at 531 Montauk Highway. Without any objections, HUD should be able to release the vouchers in February. Builders plan to break ground in April, though various agencies still need to review the proposed development, known locally as AMG 531. [27east]
Developer wants Riverhead zoning change to build hospital housing
Joseph Manzi, a developer from the Suffolk County hamlet of Rocky Point, wants the Riverhead Town Board to change the zoning of 26 acres in the town so that he can build 34 units of workforce housing for the employees of a nearby hospital, Newsday reported. Staff at the Peconic Bay Medical Center have approached Manzi to build the housing to accommodate for a planned expansion of the facility. But Manzi’s lawyer, Steven Losquadro, said the property’s zoning rules do not allow for such construction. Losquadro said his client would build the units without dramatically increasing density and keep those units “much more affordable.” Some Riverhead officials are open to the proposal, but others are worried that it could increase congestion in the area. [Newsday]