$4.2 for Havemeyer? Well, why the hell not? Prices became detached from neighborhoods long ago

builders used to have available “design books”, thick volumes of read-to-go, standard house plans. if this builder didn’t use one and paid an ARCHITECT instead, he wasted his money

5 Pleasant View Place, $4.195 million, is hosting its first broker open house tomorrow, and because it’s one of just a few houses on the tour, it’s bound to have visitors.

It’s new construction, and I’ve already said I won’t ask about that price, but I do have a question: when did homes built by contractors before they had a buyer go from being “spec houses” to “custom”? It’s sort of like shopping at Tom McCan for custom wingtips, and I don’t recall ever doing that.