$6.3 M Mercer Island Mansion Sells in 2 Months – James to Myers

High end Lake Washington waterfront sales are picking up! This mansion sold 11/28/12 for $6.6 million. It sold for close to the listing price and in less than two months after it was listed for $6.9 million by Tere and David Foster, Windermere: “The estate stands proud as you enter the gates to this luxurious residence placed on a shy half acre in one of the most sought after communities on Mercer Island. Soaring ceilings, marble & wrought-iron anchor grand spaces for entertaining. The open floor plan creates a sense of ease for formal or casual gatherings. A grand master suite with large walk-in closet and spacious bath provides an escape. Game and movie nights in the entertainment wing with its’ own kitchen. Waves roll up on the private beach, as you enjoy jewel-tone sunsets & the glow of the city lights from downtown Seattle and Bellevue. Mature lawns host garden parties, with an outdoor kitchen and expansive patio. A perfect spot for Seafair, with an amazing dock & surely one of the best positions on the lake.”

The sellers were Greg and Carol James. Greg is the Founder and CEO of Renton based TOPICS Entertainment. The company is the largest privately held multimedia publisher in the United States. The buyer was Andrew C. Myers. The mansion is 7,730 sq ft on 0.5 acres with 75 feet of waterfront. In 2007 and 2008 the mansion had a famous sign on its dock regarding the mansion under construction next door. More information about the sign and the neighbors, the Justin Graham family, and their architect, Eric Cobb, is in the following 4/23/13 post below.

Mercer Island Boulevard Pl Mansion Sale $13 Million

This mansion sold 11/21/12 for $13.3 million. This property, known as “The Boulevard Place Mansion,” was featured in Seattle Mansions posts on 8/31/11 and 10/21/10. It was listed for sale at $28.8 million in 2010, lowered to $19 million in 2011 and an auction on 8/30/11 failed to attract the minimum bid of $15.5 million. The mansion was listed by Kris Robbs, Ewing and Clark, “Unique property takes advantage of 1.6 acre, street to Lake prize. Two-inch limestone floors extend from entry, spill down terrace around the in-ground pool & hot tub. Impressive 164' westside waterfront ready for speed boat, Seadoos & yacht. Soaring ceilings, balcony, warm wood office & leaded glass doors, with state-of-the-art theater & 9.1 surround. Two outdoor Viking BBQ complement gourmet kitchen. Escape to romantic master suite, spa bath with aroma/chroma therapy So many divine finishing details!”

The living area is 13,636 sq ft with 7 bedrooms, 11.25 baths, theaters, multiple kitchens, wine cellars, and 8 washer-dryer rooms. There is additional covered non living areas and resort-style features including a 120” plasma TV rising from the edge of the pool. The sellers were David and Becky Sandwith and the buyer was a trust. The Sandwiths purchased the lot for $5.4 million in 2004 and construction commenced. They reportedly had a total of about $30 million invested in the property. David, his parents and siblings sold Kent based Mikron Industries, a manufacturer of high tech window components, for $205 million to Quanex Corporation in 2004. The $28.8 million 2010 listing was the most expensive King County MLS listing at the time. The property is one-half mile north of Paul Allen’s compound and on page 59 in Lake Washington 130 Homes.

Mastro Pieces and Michael’s Mansion

Mastro’s Former Medina Mansion

“Mastro Pieces” is the title of today’s Seattle Times article on the auction of Michael Mastro’s items that he left behind before he and his wife disappeared last summer. They remain at large following warrants for their arrest and court orders that they turn over jewelry valued at $1.4 million.The courts confiscated items left behind. These include the following items (and the auction net prices): 2007 Bentley ($95,500), Chihuly chandelier ($35,000), Steinway piano ($17,000) and four bottles of wine ($2,200). The auction netted a total $341,000.

The mansion was sold by the bankruptcy court in 2010 for $9.1 million. Unpaid debts are more than $270 million.

The Mastro bankruptcy, with original debts of $570 million, is the largest in Washington state’s history. Many “family and friends” lost their fortunes when his commercial real estate investment funds failed. More information about Mastro and his former Medina Mansion is in previous posts on 4/6/11, 11/10/10, 10/11/10 and 11/12/09 and Lake Washington 130 Homes on page 126.

Mercer Island Mansion Auction

Mercer Island Boulevard Place Mansion

The Mercer Island Patch reported 8/30/11 the Boulevard Place mansion auction on this date failed to attract the minimum bid of $15.5 million. There were four qualified bidders attending the auction. This property was featured in a prior 10/21/10 post.

Last fall it was listed for sale at $28.8 million and was the most expensive King County MLS listing.  It is one-half mile north of Paul Allen’s compound and on page 59 in Lake Washington 130 Homes. The Puget Sound Business Journal published a 10/18/10 article about the property.

The living area is 13,636 sq ft with 7 bedrooms, 11.25 baths, theaters, multiple kitchens, wine cellars, and 8 washer-dryer rooms. There is additional covered non living areas and resort-style features including a 120” plasma TV rising from the edge of the pool.  Construction started in 2004 when David and Becky Sandwith purchased the lot for $5.4 million. The Patch reported they have a total of about $30 million invested in the property. David, his parents and siblings sold Kent based Mikron Industries, a manufacturer of high tech window components, for $205 million to Quanex Corporation in 2004.

Michael Mastro in the News

Mastro’s Former Medina Mansion Sold for $9.1 Million

Michael Mastro is back in the news. The Seattle Times 4/6/11 article stated, “Judge Marc Barreca turned down a bid by the guardian for the now-incapacitated Mastro to pay her, and her lawyer, from funds administered by Mastro's chief adversary, court-appointed trustee James Rigby.” Further details are in the article. The Mastro bankruptcy, with debts of $570 million, is the largest in Washington state’s history. Many “family and friends” lost their fortunes when his commercial real estate investment funds failed. Mastro was incapacitated following a head injury from a fall in his Palm Springs home two months ago. More information about Mastro and his former Medina Mansion is in previous posts on 11/10/11, 10/11/10 and 11/12/09 and Lake Washington 130 Homes on page 126.

Yarrow Point Tip For Sale - $19.5 Million

Tip of Yarrow Point

This was the home (or close to it) of Leigh S. J. Hunt (1855-1933) who owned the Seattle Post Intelligencer. He settled here in the late 1800s and named his estate “Yarrow” after the name of an estate in one of his favorite poems by William Wadsworth. He later purchased property on Hunts Point and that peninsula took his name. The house on this property was built around 1900. The house is about 100 feet from the water behind the trees. The waterfront, which was under water when the house was built prior to the locks, looks like a park but is part of the 3.54 acre estate. This house and the above photos and information are on pages 134, 159 and 162 in Lake Washington 130 Homes.

This is the tip of Yarrow Point, offering fantastic 180° views of Carillon Point to the east, Kirkland’s marina and downtown to the north and the north Seattle area to the west. From the MLS listing: “An unassuming entry quietly shepherds the Eastside's most magnificent lifestyle canvas, available to the market for the first time in over 70 years. A unique blend of rich history & poetic splendor converge at this 1900's period garden estate, extensively remodeled in 07. The property includes 3.54acres encompassing enchanting grounds & 465 frontage ft of prized Lake Washington shoreline. The privacy, scale & quality of the waterfront are unrivaled; a lakeside oasis for generations of enjoyment.”

Jeffrey Greenstein Sentenced to Prison

Pictures of Greenstein’s mansion on Mercer Island

Site of lavish fund raisers

The Seattle Times published an extensive article Friday 1/28/11 by Mike Carter about Jeffrey Greenstein. Greenstein and his partner, Charles Wilk, were each sentenced to four years and two months of prison. They were found guilty of recruiting wealthy clients to execute one the largest tax-evasion scams in U.S. history involving $240 million of evaded taxes in one year.

Prior to being indicted in 2009 for this crime, Greenstein was a highly regarded and well respected businessman and philanthropist in the Seattle area. He founded and ran Seattle based Quellos Group, a hedge fund, which he sold in 2007 to a New York firm for $900 million. He contributed generously to numerous charities and Democratic candidates. He was on the board of trustees of the Seattle Art Museum.

The photograph above, along with information about the mansion, is from page 76 in my book, Lake Washington 130 Homes.

Paul Allen House Guide

The following is a guide to Paul Allen’s 9.6 acre multi-mansion estate/campus on Mercer Island. It is on the west side of the Island about 4 miles south of the I-90 Bridge. It is directly across from Seattle’s Seward Park.

A – 4 buildings ~200 ft from water: 10,680 sq ft main building with gym and 2 indoor tennis courts; 5,220, 4,210, and 2,050 sq ft guest houses; and 12+ car garages for an antique and race car museum and guest parking.

B – Mother’s house, ~50 feet from water, 11,300 sq ft plus 7 car garage.

C – Catamaran, Dragonfly, to drag-and-fly helicopters.

D – Main house including attached indoor pool and lakefront building to the north and wood garden/lakefront house to the south, 9,890 sq ft.

E– Concert hall theater and guest facilities, 11,560 sq ft.

F – 1,750 sq ft house with 100 ft waterfront acquired in 2006 for $5.2 million.

The mansion is on pages 64 and 65 in Lake Washington 130 Homes.

Mercer Island Mansion Sells for $6.8 Million

This Faben Point Mansion sold in October for $6.8 million. Last year when my book was published it was listed for $8.8 million. The sellers were William K. and Mary E. Buckley. The buyer was Lars Karlsson Edenkrans, a prominent clothing industry CEO from Sweden.

From the previous Internet listing: “One of a kind. 110′ wft. Killer View West, on MI’s Faben Point with birds eye view of SeaFair. Commute to Seattle or Bellevue in 5 min or downtown MI in seconds. Approx 9000 Sqft of living in main house plus separate guest house. Designed for easy, relaxed living. Main level great room includes dual media perfect for upscale entertaining or Super Bowl parties. Included in sale enjoy the golf cart, 2 Supercharged SeaDoos and 25′ Cobalt . . . Just bring your Yacht! Truly designed for FUN!”

The photograph above (plus additional information on the home) is from page 53 in my book, Lake Washington 130 Homes. This is the house on the right (southern) of the three large mansions just north of the I-90 Bridge that can be seen from the bridge. It is the 3rd home from the left in the top picture in my 12/19/10 post immediately below.

Microsoft’s Ballmer’s Mansion

Steve Ballmer’s Hunts Point Estate

The Seattle Times reported that many stockholders at Microsoft’s 11/16/10 annual meeting “grumbled about Microsoft’s languishing stock price.” Click here CEO Steve Ballmer conducted most of the meeting and discussed Wall Street’s disconnect to the stock price, optimizing every day, new products, and Goldman Sachs’ suggestion to break up the company.

The Seattle Times also reported, in an 11/5/10 article, Ballmer is selling $2 billion of his Microsoft stock. This is about 18% of his holdings. Click here 

Compared to the other 30 present and past Microsoft executives’ homes in my book, Ballmer has a relatively modest estate. It is in Hunts Point and next door to Craig McCaw’s (formerly Kenny G’s) estate. The photograph above is from page 155 in my book, Lake Washington 130 Homes.

Mastro Mansion Sells for $9.1 Million

The Seattle Times reported Michael Mastro’s Mansion sold for $9.1 million by the bankruptcy court. The buyers used an attorney to sign the documents to keep their identity off the official records.

My previous blogs below, dated 10/11/10 and 11/12/09, provide additional information on the Mastro bankruptcy and “family and friends” investors. The photograph above is from page 126 in my book, Lake Washington 130 Homes.

Seattle Times article:  Click here

More in formation is in previous posts on 10/11/10 and 11/12/09.

Mercer Island Mansion $28.8 Million Selling Price

A Mercer Island west-side mansion that is listed for sale at $28.8 million is the current most expensive King County MLS listing .  It is one-half mile north of Paul Allen’s compound and on page 59 in Lake Washington 130 Homes.The Puget Sound Business Journal recently published an article about the property.

The living area is 13,636 sq ft with 7 bedrooms, 11.25 baths, theaters, multiple kitchens, wine cellars, and 8 washer-dryer rooms. There is additional covered non living areas and resort-style features including a 120” plasma TV rising from the edge of the pool. Construction started in 2004 when David and Becky Sandwith purchased the lot for $5.4 million. David, his parents and siblings sold Kent based Mikron Industries, a manufacturer of high tech window components, for $205 million to Quanex Corporation in 2004.



Mastro Mansion $9.9 Million Selling Price

The Seattle Times and Puget Sound Business Journal have reported Michael Mastro’s Mansion will soon be listed for sale by the bankruptcy court for $9.9 million. The Business Journal article includes numerous pictures of the interior. It has taken over a year for the bankruptcy court to take over the house and offer it for sale to provide some of the partial payment to creditors. The Mastros tried to set up and claim it as property not subject to the bankruptcy.

My previous blog below, dated 11/12/09, provides additional information on his bankruptcy and “family and friends” investors. The photograph above is from page 126 in my book, Lake Washington 130 Homes, http://www.hundredhomes.net/. I remember many times going by the Mastros’ mansion by boat and seeing a large parties (for family & friends?) with a band and waiters and waitresses in formal attire. The Evergreen-Point mansion is 7,050 square feet with 176 feet of waterfront. The Mastros paid $15 million for the mansion in July 2006.

Seattle Times article

Puget Sound Business Journal article with 16 pictures

(More in formation is in a previous post on 11/12/09 and an update is in an 11/10/10 post.)

Gary Reed Moves into Madison Park Mansion

William G. “Gary” Jr. and Victoria Reed moved from their Medina home (see earlier blog below) late last year. The new home has 7,700 sq ft on 0.7 acres with 60 feet of waterfront. It is three houses south of the Reed Estate homes (pages 19 through 22 in Lake Washington 130 Homes, http://www.hundredhomes.net/). The southern home (page 22) in the Reed Estate is owned by Furman Moseley and his wife and Gary’s sister, Martha Reed Moseley. I’ve been told Furman and Martha live elsewhere and their son, Colin Moseley and his family live in that house. Colin is the current Chairman of Simpson Investment.

The 8 acre Reed Estate is where Gary and Martha grew up. It was established in the early 1900s by their grandfather, Mark E. Reed. It was that era’s version of the current Gates and Allen estates. It was subdivided in the 1940s into a private gated community of nine homes. Howard Schultz owns the most prominent of the current homes (page 21). His property has a gate inside the gate.

(Information on his previous Medina home is below.)

Gary Reed Sells Medina Mansion for $22 Million

William G. “Gary” Jr. and Victoria Reed sold their 8,600 sq ft Medina home (page 100 in Lake Washington 130 Homes, http://www.hundredhomes.net/) in September 2009. This and the Bezos estates at 5.35 acres each are the largest in Medina. This estate has 305 feet of waterfront and the property stretches over 200 yards from the shoreline to Overlake Drive. The lot is relatively flat with lush landscaping and a tennis court at the water’s edge. The sale went relatively unknown since it was a private, family transaction. The recorded buyer was Blue Water Realty LLC whose principals are Gary’s son, Doug Reed, and Sarah Reed. I have not been able to verify if that is who is living there. Please comment if you know.

Gary and Victoria have moved to their new mansion in Madison Park (see later blog above). The Seattle Times labeled Gary “the most powerful Seattle business leader you’ve likely never heard of.” He is or has been on the Boards of Microsoft, Paccar, Safeco, The Seattle Times Company and Washington Mutual. He is the grandson of Mark Edward Reed who joined Simpson Logging in 1897 and was named president after the company’s founder, Sol Simpson, died in 1906. The Reed family bought out the Simpson family and the company is now one of the largest private, family owned companies in the state. It is now Tacoma-based Simpson Investment Company. Gary worked in executive positions with the company starting in the 1960s and served as Chairman from 1971 to 1996. He oversaw the company’s expansion into plastics and other manufacturing.

(Information on his new Madison Park home is above.)

Bezos Completes $28 Million Home Improvement

Jeff Bezos, founder and CEO of Amazon.Com, recently completed his $28 million Medina home improvement.  Property records show a $28 million building permit was issued in 2008 and completed in August 2010.  This was accomplished with little publicity or fanfare.  The living area increased from 13,200 sq ft to 29,000 sq ft in two buildings.  In addition there are “non living area” buildings that include the largest boat/party house (about 4,500 sq ft) on Lake Washington, a caretaker’s cottage and other buildings.  This and the Reed estates at 5.35 acres each are the largest in Medina.  Bezos has 310 feet of waterfront and the property stretches over 200 yards from the shoreline to Evergreen Point Road. The lot is wooded with a steep bank so very little of the buildings, except for the boat and dock structure, can be seen from the water.  (See pages 105 and 112 in Lake Washington 130 Homes, www.hundredhomes.net)

Machael Mastro's Mansion

These are photographs of Michael R. Mastro’s Medina/Evergreen-Point mansion. It is 7,050 square feet with 176 feet of waterfront. The Mastro’s paid $15 million for the mansion in July 2006. I took these photographs and they are from my book, Lake Washington 130 Homes, http://www.hundredhomes.net/.

The Seattle Times and Puget Sound Business Journal have reported Michael Mastro, age 84, declared bankruptcy this summer. His investors included many “family and friends” who begged to let them invest in his commercial real estate projects. His projects, up until 2008, had substantially higher than average returns for more than 20 years. The publications also reported Mastro, regarding allegations that he tried to put this mansion, Rolls-Royce and jewelry out of reach of creditors, stated, “These allegations are misleading, incomplete and inflammatory.”