subject: Foreclosures Decimating Prices Of Houses And Mansions [print this page] Foreclosures are decimating prices of houses as well as mansions. The mega mansion named Dean Garden in Atlanta has not been spared although indirectly. It was not in foreclosure but the general climate of the real estate pulled down its price from $40 million to $7.6 million.
It had been completed in 1992 at a cost of $25 million by Larry Dean and his first wife Lydia. It has been bought by entertainment king Tyler Perry. The personal possessions were sold off in a separate sale.
It took 17 years for the mansion to be sold and Dean said he was relieved when the deal was done. It required $1 million annually towards maintenance. His first wife Lydia had been paying for it recently. The mansion has an awesome waterfront skirting the Chattahoochee River.
Over and above the $25 million spent on building it, the couple had spent an extra $18 million to clear dues of staff, utilities and taxes that totaled to $43 million.
Dean said, I didnt get a dime out of the sale of the house. I own all the personal effects. Thats why Im having the sale. The $7.6 million went to pay off the back debts. I owed Lynda more than the buyer paid for it. The buyer basically stole the house. Dean has gained from this experience.
He became a millionaire starting life in the poor quarters of Atlanta. Repeated divorces gnawed into his fortune. The upkeep of the house too greatly reduced his money power. He said he would never go for such a venture again given a second chance. Nevertheless he does not think himself as either unhappy or unsuccessful.
Dean is looking for another wife after having divorced for the third time. He has plans to shift to Florida and sit down to pen a book regarding Internet dating. He thinks that online there is a general tendency to tell lies about weight and age.
Dean thinks that his eldest son Chris aged 43 years would react the most to the sale. At the age of 21 Chris had been assigned the job of decorating the mansion. His first effort ended in failure and a year later he withdrew from his work as interior decorator. Chris said wistfully, Our whole family is coming to the end of a chapter, Chris Dean said wistfully.
This was so wonderful at the beginning, and so new, then after their divorce, when Mom moved out, it lost its life. He said the memories of the mansion are linked with pies and cakes cooked by his mother and kept piled on the countertops.
