| Fearing the Worst on Park Avenue The national luxury-home builder Toll Brothers is moving to alter two small, pre-Civil War houses that survive amid the tall co-ops of Park Avenue, despite lobbying efforts by neighbors to save them. Billings Slip Back After five months of positive readings, the Architecture Billings Index slipped back into negative territory during April, an indication that demand for design services declined. CBRE Taps New Vein From Old Deal The real-estate company's top-of-the-market acquisition of Trammell Crow Co. has turned out to be the deal that keeps on giving, in the form of incoming CEO Robert Sulentic. Builder Is Constructing REIT for Home Rentals Beazer Homes has formed a REIT with KKR that will buy and then rent single-family homes, one of the largest and most talked-about asset classes in the real-estate business. Private Properties Celine Dion lists a private Canadian island for $29.3 million; Ryan Seacrest is in escrow to buy Ellen DeGeneres's home for $37 million; a midtown Manhattan duplex lists for $12 million. Chelsea's Perennial Inspiration If last year was about big, manly architectural statements at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show, this year is about exploring the softer, more sensual side of gardening, with smells and sounds featuring heavily in show spaces. Tax Terms Amended in Empire State Building IPO The Malkin family that controls the Empire State Building has agreed to change the terms of the skyscraper's public offering, making the tax treatment less punitive to small investors. Foreclosures Show No Sign of Decline The percentage of homeowners delinquent on their mortgages in the first quarter fell to the lowest level since the end of 2008, but the share of loans in foreclosure remains high. |