Mortgage is high, but the living is easy

Magrath

Mortgage is high, but the living is easy
4 c" |# Q6 c0 UAll the (extravagant) comforts of a million-dollar home

Jamie Hall
The Edmonton Journal
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Tuesday, May 22, 2007

! H- w# U4 l. M: A6 |  B+ n& D+ yEDMONTON - It's early spring, so the panorama looking down the hillside at the fast-flowing water of the mighty North Saskatchewan only hints at the coming verdant explosion.
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' H- U) c% G: q) k" a+ ?( pEven so, from almost every room in the house there's a stunning million-dollar view -- or, in this case, $2.5 million.
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That's the asking price for this 3,800-square-foot home in Ramsay Heights in Riverbend, which is one of 50 or so million-dollar-plus properties currently for sale in Edmonton.

The midday sun streams through the windows, its rays bouncing off the granite countertops and off the face of the stainless steel refrigerator in the kitchen.
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6 v  k; T/ p- J; M+ AStainless steel appliances, all built in, and a huge wine cellar, are among some of the home's luxurious features, its floors, doors and walk-in closets crafted from the finest maple.

. {# W1 D, b% U$ j4 ~# mThe light pouring through the windows can be dimmed with a click of a button, activating both the power shutters and the home's theatre system, a movie-size screen descending from the ceiling in the elegant living room as the shutters quietly whir to a close.
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8 _' l# y3 Q7 @  t"It's really one of a kind," says realtor Sally Munro as she tours visitors through the home.

Peeking into people's homes is a popular way to while away a weekend afternoon, but it's rare to get a look inside homes with seven-digit price tags.

3 Z* X2 L8 R8 ]2 \, j5 W& L6 k& ?( i"We all want to see inside (these places)," says Munro, who hosts a weekly CityTV feature called Million-Dollar Homes, where she takes viewers on a personally guided tour through some of the city's most breathtaking houses and estates.

Munro has specialized in high-end properties for more than 25 years. Six years ago, she achieved a professional goal, and was awarded a Fine Homes & Estates designation for selling five homes over $500,000 during the course of a year.

& {  l# a2 p/ j7 M7 j9 _& HIt's a sign of the times in Edmonton, she says, that she has achieved that goal every year since.
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% H+ y+ A1 b$ O5 T; `"Selling a million-dollar home today is as difficult as it was to sell a $500,000 home several years ago," she says. "It was a tough market."
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3 ^5 j: m$ A- u9 ^2 ?; XAnd, generally speaking, one doesn't see "Open House" signs in front of luxurious properties.
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That's likely why business is brisk at the Summit at Magrath in Riverbend, where curiosity-seekers can see what constitutes a million-dollar property.
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The three-storey homes -- complete with elevator -- are selling for $1.7 million fully furnished, slightly less without. The show homes are all unique, but share many luxury features.
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4 x5 x* Z# r3 G6 F  uThe curiosity that draws people here also makes the Alberta Ballet's annual House and Garden Tour one of its key fundraisers. The houses on the tour are among the most spectacular in the city.

( |, g$ ]4 b1 lLynn Mandel, who once chaired the event, summed it up this way.
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2 @6 V  w. J. p% y3 f& O"There's something about looking," she said, "to be able to look into someone else's home."
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jhall@thejournal.canwest.com

BY THE NUMBERS

' z5 K* D5 f; P% ]22: Average days on the market for a typical home
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- x% m- b( b9 R$ Z+ _8 i96: Average days on the market for million-dollar-plus property
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& m# T$ r0 Q5 y& X8 z7 B2 I437: Longest number of days on market for million-dollar plus property.

. m1 e2 L6 K8 @  ?$2.5 million: Most expensive property sold on Edmonton MLS
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HIGH-PROFILE PROPERTIES
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' Z/ b3 i' I$ u* Q9 T/ C2 U- The Magrath mansion on Ada Boulevard was the most opulent in the city when it was built by William Magrath in 1912. It stood empty for a number of years before it was rescued and restored to its former glory by current owners Nellie and Sid Braaksma, who bought it in 1999 for $675,000.
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- When Bruce Saville sold his software company to an American interest several years ago for $100 million, he celebrated by buying a piece of the Oilers, then built the biggest house in the city. The Saville mansion is 35,000 square feet and includes a basement replica of the Oilers' dressing room, its floor parqueted with autographed hockey sticks.
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3 @9 I! h# X! W- Rexall magnate Daryl Katz's humble abode spans nearly the length of a football field on the west bank of the North Saskatchewan and is rumoured to have cost $20 million. At 25,000 square feet, it's second only to the Saville mansion in size and boasts an indoor pool which, with a few hours' notice and some elbow grease, can be converted into a gymnasium.
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Interested in doing some peeking of your own? The 13th edition of Alberta Ballet's annual House and Garden Tour, which raises the curtain on some of the city's most spectacular homes, will be held June 23rd and 24th.
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& V- l( a$ f  vLimited tickets available through Ticketmaster (www.ticketmaster.ca) or 451-8000. $35 for self-tour; $55 for the bus tour.
© The Edmonton Journal 2007

BaiLing

good article