Ah, Fall, when a builder's fancy lightly turns to impossible profits

9 Shaw Place, new construction, is asking $5.250 million. The listing description, obviously designed to appeal to out-of-town Internet browsers, describes it as "located in an estate section of Riverside", which is laugh-out-loud funny. Cobra, do you remember your house, or my family's, or any house on Gilliam Lane resembling an estate? Neither do I. As for "Shaw Place" being a " private lane off Gilliam Lane" I'd describe it as a shared driveway, no?

It claims 7,000 square feet, one-third of which is buried underground, and, of course, a "gourmet kitchen": Judging from Greenwich real estate listings, there hasn't been anything but a gourmet kitchen built in town since, I'd guess, 1975, so I'm not sure how this is a distinguishing feature.

No interior shots yet, so presumably the house remains unfinished, but I'm sure it will be an entirely pleasant home when completed; I'm less sure of this price.