The Sky's the Limit: Passion and Property in Manhattan
by Steven Gaines
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Book Summary Information
Author: Steven GainesEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2006-06-03
ISBN: 0316154555
Number of pages: 304
Publisher: Back Bay Books
Book Reviews of The Sky's the Limit: Passion and Property in Manhattan
Book Review: The Manhattan Gold Rush
Summary: 4 Stars
The Sky's the Limit is a very entertaining look at the "gold rush" mentality that surrounds the best real estate in Manhattan. While not a "deep" book, Sky will keep readers involved with a report on the "lifestyles of the rich and famous."
There are many good aspects of Sky. Readers will enjoy author Steven Gaines' account of the history of Manhattan real estate. For instance, it is difficult to believe that one could have almost any Manhattan property that he or she wanted for $250,000 as recently as the 1970s. Readers will also learn about the byzantine rules that Manhattan's coop boards apply to keep "the wrong sort of people" out of the most-prestigious buildings; it is sometimes difficult to fathom why people allow these boards access to the most-intimate details of their personal and financial lives just for the right to spend a lot of money on a glorified apartment.
Gaines also has the good fortune to write about a number of fascinating characters. There is a lot of gossip about celebrities who own Manhattan real estate; reader will learn something about the residences of Barbra Streisand, Sting, Sidney Poitier, and many others. Perhaps more interesting are the people who make it their life's work to help the wealthy buy and sell Manhattan real estate; Gaines does a good job of describing the fierce competition for the "cream" of the real estate market.
If there is a missing element to this book, it is that Gaines never tries to explain the Manhattan "gold rush" - or what it might mean for our society. In a world that most seem to agree is becoming smaller each day, what do these people expect to find in these incredibly-expensive apartments? Do they find happiness? What does this concentration of wealth mean for the United States and the world? How do "average" middle- or working-class New Yorkers regard the wealthy who live in Manhattan? Gaines never really tries to put his story in a broader perspective.
On the whole, however, The Sky's the Limit is a breezy, fun read that will teach readers a bit about life in Manhattan's best residences.
Summary of The Sky's the Limit: Passion and Property in Manhattan
From the author of the bestselling Philistines at the Hedgerow, a mesmerizing inside account of the high-stakes world of Manhattan residential real estate Steven Gaines takes us from New York's most expensive condominiums and co-ops to the offices of its most powerful real estate brokers to reveal the outlandish displays of ego, bad behavior, and status hunger that come into play when the best addresses in the city are on the line. With his signature elan, Gaines weaves a gossipy tapestry of brokers, buyers, co-op boards, and eccentric landlords and tells of the apartment hunting and renovating adventures of many celebrities-from Tommy Hilfiger to Donna Karan, from Jerry Seinfeld to Steven Spielberg, from Barbra Streisand to Madonna. Gaines uncovers the secretive, unwritten rules of co-op boards: why diplomats and pretty divorcees are frowned upon, what not to wear to a board interview, and which of the biggest celebrities and CEOs have been turned away from the elite buildings of Fifth and Park Avenues. He introduces the carriage-trade brokers who never have to advertise for clients and gives us finely etched portraits of a few of the discreet, elderly society ladies who decide who gets into the so-called Good Buildings. Here, too, is a fascinating chronicle of the changes in Manhattan's residential skyline, from the slums of the nineteenth century to the advent of the luxury building. Gaines describes how living in boxes stacked on boxes came to be seen as the ultimate in status, and how the co-operative apartment, originally conceived as a form of housing for the poor, came to be used as a legal means of black-balling undesirable neighbors. A social history told through brick and mortar, The Sky's the Limit is the ultimate look inside one of the most exclusive and expensive enclaves in the world, and at the lengths to which people will go to get in.Economics Books
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