Unfortunately my father was not great at handling his fortunes and lots of money went through his hands - he left very little behind. He was like a gambler who continued to let everything ride and at the end of the day it didn't do well by him. But one of the things he used to say which I believe to still be true is this: you can't go wrong by investing in real estate in East Hampton. My own house, which we bought in 1979, is worth over twenty times what we paid for it. Had we been able to buy other real estate we would be rich now. We could, of course, cash in - but then we wouldn't be able to live here so we're essentially living in our bank, like so many other people here.
All this brings me to my present frustration. Right now is a great time to invest in real estate here. Prices are lower than they've been in a long time, there are foreclosures to be found, and people are settling for less than asking prices to get out from under debt. This was unheard of ten years ago. And that's my frustration. I still can't invest. Because I'm still living in my bank. Oh the dilemmas of living on the East End!
4 comments:
Reminds me of a story my Dad always told me. The story was how Paul Biancos' father had bought a lot of beach front property down to Sammis beach and the surrounding area during the depression. He paid only the taxes owed. A lot of people thought he was crazy. Who in the world would want to live on the beach ?
A wise investment but one the man himself never realized the gains on.
I think you are right to hold onto your " bank " Once it is gone ,it is gone. And you can't replace tradition or home.
Ben...that wasn't my uncle's father, it was my uncle himself. He did well at real estate developing, with a good business woman for a wife.
Would be a good idea to buy when the prices are low. They will grow higher again,and if I was young, I'd do it. But...alas, I'm not young enough any more, and haven't the patience to be a landlord to the changing breed of tenants who aren't as responsible as they were when my parents did that. Siiiigh... we're all kind of living in our banks these days!
Mom said that he and my aunt started dating in the late 1930's and Uncle B's father wasn't around then, perhaps already dead. As for beach property, he and Aunt Sis knew that it was a commodity, that's why they bought Sammis Beach, West Harbor and Old House Landing areas to develop,which they did in the 1950's and 60's. As for buying it for taxes owed, I've never heard that one before about Uncle B. Sometimes I wonder how these tales get started.
I remember driving down into Springs with my family and seeing the "Sunny Dell Acres" sign and my father saying "Who in the world would live way down here?" LOL! Tell everyone on Woodbine Drive that now!
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