Upstate

The megawatt real estate of the Hamptons may be suffering from shrinkage as a new generation of glitterati increasingly chooses the rustic charm of upstate New York instead. Business Insider reports a surge in the popularity of second homes and tourist activity in Hudson Valley and Catskills towns—and a corresponding dip in Hamptons home prices—in 2016.
Is Upstate the new East End?

February 3, 2017

Win this Catskills cabin with a 200-word essay

In a non-traditional run around the local real estate market, one enterprising couple is attempting to sell their Bethel, N.Y. vacation house by inviting buyers to submit a 200-word essay on, ““How would owning the lakefront dream home change your life?” along with $149. Andrew Bares and Kelly Lavorgna had attempted to sell the two-bedroom cabin on five-and-a-half acres at 391 Woodstone Trail twice in the last four years without success, which prompted them to undertake this slightly different angle on the prospective buyer's "sweetheart letter." If the contest attracts 5,500 applicants, it will bring the sellers $819,500 for the house (h/t New York Times).
So what's the catch?

February 1, 2017

This ‘car-lover’s dream retreat’ was expertly designed in the woods of Hudson Valley

Nestled in the woods of the Hudson Valley is this stunning home designed around a unique focal point: the generously sized garage. Architect Marcia McKeel, of Studio MM Architect, explained in ArchDaily that the garage "is the locus of the design, generating space for car storage and maintenance as well as a spacious wine cellar and a furniture workshop." The rectangular home, partially embedded in the hilly landscape of the Hudson Valley, juts out from the lower-level garage. Inside, a striking open plan living space was designed for everything from entertaining to relaxing by the fire.
Take the tour

January 22, 2017

SPACE T2: A 1959 hunting shack transformed into an off-grid studio by Steven Holl

By Ana Lisa Alperovich

Space T2 is a minimal artist studio located in Rhinebeck, NY. Steven Holl Architects built the off-grid cabin using what remained of a 1959 hunting shack, dressing the exterior in a sleek black wood skin while keeping the interior core a cool and contrasting white. The tiny abode rests on a handful of stilts that have been embedded in the sloping earth below.
Learn more about this former shack

January 19, 2017

Perfectly preserved Victorian with a dreamy wraparound porch asks $785K in Hyde Park

It's hard not to crush on this Upstate Victorian, perfectly preserved since its construction in 1879 (h/t CIRCA). Located at 21 Curry Lane in New Hyde, both the architecture and location impress: the white house, with its original slate roof and wraparound porch, sits on a hill overlooking the Hudson River. It's a 15- minute drive to the Metro North station in Poughkeepsie for city dwellers, and it's $785,000 price tag is quite impressive.
See the grounds and interior

January 16, 2017

Helen Hayes’ former Nyack home asks $719K

Helen Hayes' acting career spanned nearly 80 years, earning her the nickname "First Lady of American Theatre" and garnering her distinctions such as being one of only 12 people to win an Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and a Tony and earning her the Presidential Medal of Freedom and the National Medal of Arts. When her storied life came to an end in 1993, she was living in Nyack, New York, where she first took up residency when she married playwright and screenwriter Charles MacArthur in 1928. At that time, the couple moved into a home at 29 Shadyside Avenue that Charles' father had built in 1908. Now dubbed the "Helen Hayes Honeymoon Cottage," the lovely Arts and Crafts-style home is on the market for $719,000 (h/t CIRCA).
See it all

January 16, 2017

TBD Architecture designs Tetris-like artist studios for an Upstate couple

By Rebecca Paul

TBD Architecture + Design Studio took on the challenge of designing two conjoined artist studios for a couple on the same property as their home in Watermill, New York. The creative housing is nestled amongst a cluster of trees at the edge of the site, and the double-studio structure is made up of two intersecting volumes each designed to accommodate the specifics needs of their respective artists-- a collage designer and a ceramist.
Learn more about this property

Architecture And Design

January 10, 2017

A bona fide log cabin on 18 acres in the Catskills asks $775K

It doesn't get any more rustic than this log cabin in upstate New York. Located at 1260 Spriceton Road, in West Kill, the home sits on a whopping 18.4 acres of land, which connects to 19,250 acres of a forest preserve. The custom cabin was made in the Scandinavian full scribe style with white pine logs. Inside, you could easily mistake this home for a hunting lodge. And it's priced less than some one-bedroom apartments in Manhattan, asking $775,000.
See the stunning property

Distinctive Homes

January 4, 2017

Live like Theodore Roosevelt in an updated log cabin upstate for $1.15M

This rustic cabin was built in the early 1900s on land that was part of Theodore Roosevelt’s 1897 Campfire Club. And that's not the only presidential connection the property comes with: it's also located upstate in Chappaqua, hometown of the Clintons. Asking $1.15 million, the cabin was renovated and doubled in size by the current owners in 2005, who managed to preserve the feeling of the original, retro cabin. And although you're living out in the woods, it's only a 50 minute trip into Manhattan.
Check out the full property

January 2, 2017

For $525K, this 1880 Dutchess County country house has a horse barn, a wood shop and a pond

If you owned this Dutchess County home, you’d never need to stay in a cute country inn; the historic Hyde Park/Pleasant Valley four-bedroom house resembles a quaint B&B from its outbuildings and pond to its cozy interiors (h/t CIRCA). Currently on the market for $525,000, 45 Marshall Road is about the most textbook example of an uncomplicated country home that we've seen in a while. And it might be just the thing for next year's Christmas card photo.
Explore the simple life

December 22, 2016

Historic upstate farmstead offers a dairy barn, yoga studio, and luxe main house for $2M

This 18th century farmstead, known as Spy Hill, is historic on the outside but has been renovated with modern, luxurious finishes inside. Located upstate in Brewster, New York, it's on the market for $1.95 million, CIRCA tell us. There's the main house, decked out with fireplaces, a large outdoor terrace with a covered veranda, as well as a guest house, three-level dairy barn, workshop, yoga studio, green house and heated in-ground pool and spa, all over four acres. Talk about an impressive property.
Now take the tour

December 13, 2016

Own the incredible Arts and Crafts home where Milton Glaser designed the ‘I ♥ NY’ logo

Graphic design legend Milton Glaser's most famous works are arguably the I ♥ NY logo and the psychedelic Bob Dylan poster, both of which were created at his upstate home in Woodstock. He and wife Shirley have owned this incredible, early 20th century stone-and-glass home for more than 50 years, adding a contemporary aesthetic to its historic Arts and Crafts style and maintaining the 76+ acres of gardens and forest. It's now hit the market for $1.8 million since, according to Gothamist, the couple has reached a point "where downsizing has become the obvious choice."
READ MORE

December 8, 2016

Minimalist guest house by Studio Padron keeps upstate New York enlightened in style

By Tracy A. Marciano

Black has always been in style for New Yorkers, and our penchant for the commanding hue continues with this discreet, minimalist cabin in the woods by Studio Padron and design think tank SMITH. Built entirely from mature red oak trees that were removed during construction of the property's main house, the tiny abode uses materials that would have otherwise been discarded. Duality is also a strong design principle of the project and it creates a refined balance in the one-room library and guest house.
Check out the stunning photos

December 8, 2016

Colonial Bronxville mansion built by General George Custer’s widow hits the market for $5M

After General George Custer perished in Little Big Horn in 1876 (Custer's Last Stand), his widow Elizabeth Bacon Custer moved to New York amid her quest to salvage her late husband's legacy through her three books, "Tenting on the Plains," "Boots and Saddles," and "Following the Guidon." In 1902, after attainting recognition and financial success through her writing, Elizabeth commissioned a massive Colonial-style home in Bronxville. Located in the high-end Lawrence Park neighborhood, the landmarked mansion boasts six period fireplaces, seven bedrooms, turreted rooms, "whimsical nooks and crannies," a large wine cellar, and landscaped gardens surrounding stone terraces and pathways.
Tour the historic home

December 4, 2016

Harmonize with nature in this $488K mid-century modern home in the Ramapo foothills

If you've got Eichler dreams and Fallingwater fantasies, but don't live in state that's abundant with mid-century modern architectural gems, it helps to be on the lookout for homes like this one. The Rockland County house on over an acre of woods in Wesley Hills, NY, now on the market for $488,000, was built in 1965 by Versland Rhodes, a popular builder of contemporary upstate homes of the day. The four-bedroom home is beautifully preserved, with details like a sunken living room, cherry wood cabinetry and hardwood and stone floors joining conveniences like central A/C. Like many modern homes, every effort was made to minimalize the border between inside and outdoors, so you get to enjoy a wraparound deck, tons of windows and scenic views.
Take the tour

November 20, 2016

Studio Marchetti’s Dutchess County home is a series of pavilions sliding past each other

By Rebecca Paul

Living outside of the city comes with its sacrifices, but breathtaking scenery is not one of them, not to mention ample space and modern architecture. This beautiful home is situated on a hill in Dutchess County and was designed for a young family by the New York architecture firm Studio Marchetti. The structure is made up of a series of pavilions that slide past each other in order to highlight the beautiful views and includes a pool and pergola to further integrate nature into the living space.
Tour the property

November 7, 2016

$3.95M Yonkers castle with more than 20 rooms is out of this world

Just outside of New York City, at 170 Shonnard Terrace in Yonkers, you could be living like a literal king. This property is home to a stone castle with over 20 rooms replicated to reflect 16th through 18th century European style. The castle, known as Greystone Court, began as a country house in the 1880s and expanded over the years until it became its luxurious, grand current iteration. The current owner, Kohle Yohannan, purchased it in 2000 after the property had become rundown and restored the castle to its original splendor. It is now on the market for $3.95 million.
Take the grand tour

October 25, 2016

Steven Holl’s Upstate ‘Ex of In House’ is an experiment in voids and sense of place

By Rebecca Paul

In architecture, research and concept come long before building and design, but more often than not architects don't have the chance to execute their ideas to the fullest extent when managing client expectations. But New York-based architect Steven Holl didn't have that issue with his Ex of In House, a small guest house-turned-experimental site on the property of his personal Hudson Valley residence. The 918-square-foot structure is part of the firm's Explorations of "IN" research project, which questions "current clichés of architectural language and commercial practice." Here, they wanted to explore "a language of space, aimed at inner spatial energy strongly bound to the ecology of the place.”
See more of the house

October 25, 2016

For just $825K you can live like a governor’s daughter in this historic victorian home

By Shiloh Frederick

For only $825,000 you can own a home fit for a princess, or at least for a governor's daughter. The Emma Flower Taylor Mansion is the historic Watertown home of its namesake and her husband John Byron Taylor. The 14,000-square-foot residence was built in 1896 as a wedding present from Mrs. Taylor's father, former New York Governor and financier Roswell Pettibone Flower. He recruited acclaimed architects Lamb and Rich to create the palace-like home perfect for his only daughter. Today, the 14 bedroom, nine bathroom mansion is divided into eight separate apartments; however, it has still retained the regal Victorian look that's made this home a cherished piece of New York history.
Take a look at the mansion

October 11, 2016

Fall getaway: Travel to the historic Inns of Aurora for an anti-Manhattan antidote

Now that fall is in full swing, why not take a weekend getaway upstate to the Finger Lakes wine country, where the fall foliage is in all its glory and the crisp air is perfect for cozying up next to a fire. The charming town of Aurora, located on a hill on the east side of Cayuga Lake is just a five-hour drive from the city, and here you'll find the Inns of Aurora, a collection of four very different historic properties with rooms to rent and a lot of history to share.
Join us on an historic tour of the Inns of Aurora

October 4, 2016

289-acre Hudson Valley estate built for the Roosevelts and Astors asks $22M

Here in Manhattan, $22 million barely buys a townhouse, but not far away upstate in Dutchess County, it'll get you a whopping 289 acres, complete with a Georgian-style manor, Greek Temple-inspired pool house, equestrian facilities, and some serious historic pedigree. The Post reports that the 1851 Atalanta estate was built for Franklin Hughes Delano and his wife Laura Astor Delano (FDR's great uncle and aunt) as a wedding gift using land from the Astor's nearby Rokeby estate. It's now hit the market, providing a wealth of views inside the home and throughout the stunning Hudson Valley grounds.
Take a tour right here

October 3, 2016

Escape to this Catskills school house for an idyllic upstate vacation

This historic, former school house is the perfect upstate escape, as it's nestled on five acres of land with access to a private river. Located between three different towns--Saugerties, Catskill and Hudson--the charming building has been comfortably renovated to hold up to four guests. The rustic interior boasts high cathedral ceilings over one big open room, while your surroundings include plenty of places to swim, hike and relax. If that sounds like a dream away from New York City, the property is rentable through Airbnb for $240 a night.
Go inside the school house

October 2, 2016

Historic upstate property with 15 acres sells itself as a $915K getaway for New Yorkers

This property is being sold as the perfect haven for a New Yorker who needs an escape upstate. Located at 287 Marcott Road, in Stone Ridge, it's a sprawling 15 acres that's just 80 minutes from Manhattan and 20 minutes from the Amtrak station. On all that land is an 1800s stone structure, which has been renovated and is used as the main house, a heated in-ground pool and a guest house, all surrounded by forest. And it's asking about the price of a one-bedroom apartment in Manhattan, $915,000.
Walk the grounds

September 26, 2016

1920s stone house built on the cliffs of the Palisades is asking $4.6M