The Disappearing Las Vegas Condos

The Disappearing Las Vegas Condos

Three weeks ago, Eli Verdnikov, an engineer in Los Gatos, Calif., received a letter saying that the apartment building he planned to retire to — Icon Las Vegas — would not be built. In the envelope was a check for $73,672.81, the 10 percent deposit Mr. Verdnikov had paid, plus interest.

But Mr. Verdnikov wants more than the $73,672.81. Since he agreed in May 2005 to buy the 1,400-square-foot, two-bedroom apartment near the Las Vegas Strip for $728,900, its value, he says, has increased. “To purchase something similar, we would need to pay $200,000 more,” said Mr. Verdnikov, who has been looking for a new apartment with his girlfriend, Gitty Stone. So Mr. Verdnikov is suing for the gain he would have realized if the apartment had been built.

Prices right for reluctant waterfront sellers in Riviera Beach (South Florida)

Prices right for reluctant waterfront sellers in Riviera Beach (South Florida)

For years, a few residents in a Riviera Beach waterfront neighborhood have railed against the city on national television, in newspapers and during countless City Council meetings.

Then along came Wayne Huizenga Jr. with visions of a mega-yacht building business where the homes stand. And in the end, there was no long legal battle. No eminent domain. No protests of unfairness.

Just the quiet sound of a pen, swooshing across a real-estate contract.

Mortgage break-even point is crucial

Mortgage break-even point is crucial

Experts call it the time when amassed monthly savings exceed the amount paid in points.

Bob Walters is willing to shell out cash to get a rock-bottom mortgage interest rate. That’s why he always pays discount points.

“I have never, in my history of being in the mortgage business, gotten a mortgage when I didn’t pay points,” says Walters, the chief economist for Quicken Loans. “If you know you’re going to be in a mortgage four or five years, it always makes sense.”

Anybody Home?

Anybody Home?

Lance Ponton Jr. was a condo developer’s dream.

In September 2004, he put down 10 percent deposits on five Harbour Island condominiums before they were even built. Ponton, 27, hoped to sell them for a big profit as soon as the building was finished and his deals closed.

“But when it was done, we found that everyone else in the building was doing the same thing,” Ponton said.

Manatee’s mobile home parks may be next to go (Florida)

Manatee’s mobile home parks may be next to go (Florida)

Spend a few hours at Windmill Manor mobile home park with Jan McMeans and you’ll meet an entire neighborhood.

“That’s my girlfriend’s house over there,” said McMeans, as the 66-year-old pulled her golf cart over to say hello to the seventh person in a five-minute span. “And over there is a real nice couple. Everybody knows everybody here, and that’s why we love it.”

Shuffleboard games, bingo and monthly dinners are a way of life in this close-knit community. The place is bustling with activity all day long.

Woods set for swing shift to South Florida

Woods set for swing shift to South Florida

Tiger will miss his ‘little hangout’ in Isleworth after his move to Hobe Sound.

With a tinge of regret, Tiger Woods said Wednesday that his days as a full-time Orlando landlubber are nearing an end as he plans to relocate to a sprawling $38 million oceanfront compound he purchased this month on Jupiter Island.

While Woods said he may keep one of the two homes he owns at Isleworth Country Club and make an occasional visit, the draw of the open sea ultimately overcame his desire to stay in his adopted hometown of the past decade.