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LA Gets the Luxury Condo Bug
City's vertical trend extends to rich
By Kevin Spak
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Posted Aug 21, 08 9:38 AM CDT
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(Newser)
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LA’s multi-millionaires are downsizing. While the wealth and fame in the City of Angels has traditionally expressed itself in estates, preferably gated, now a steady stream of the very-well-heeled are trading in their mansions for high-rise luxury condos, the New York Times reports. “People are ready to live in a more urban way,” says Robert Stern, one of several prominent architects designing such vertical manors.
High gas prices and traffic have been drawing residents from across the payscale downtown recently. But to lure billionaires from their mansions, condos are offering an array of amenities, including 24/7 restaurants, outdoor entertainment spaces, and Israeli-trained security guards to keep out the paparazzi. Even with them, some believe the trend will pass. “Amenities are certainly a draw,” one developer tells the Times, “but are they any better than what they already have?”