Luxury Marketing at its WORST..

Now that summer has arrived we like to entertain and so we had our first dinner party last night. It was an intimate gathering of close friends and neighbors where we showcased our new home, to some of them for the first time. As we were having coffee and drinks we started discussing a particular person that we all know and his latest idiotic idea. He owns a number of buildings in the area and one of them happens to be a beautiful, old world, building with a premier address. You would be amazed at the interior detail, formal garden and constant upgrading of the building (as tenants vacate). The problem with this "Luxury" building is multi-fold.

When I see an advertisement for a luxury apartment, I think of things like marble counters, maple cabinets, beautiful floors etc. NOT linoleum tiles and 40's metal cabinets with 20 coats of paint on them. I would also expect to see a dishwasher and washer/dryer not directions to the laundry mat a block away. Granted... on entry to the building, you are greeted by a grand foyer with gorgeous wall coverings and chandelier that leads up a formal stairwell.

The other side of the problem is the landlord himself and his controlling, money grubbing nature. He literally tells the tenants that they can't open the window blinds, have candles in the home, not to run the window unit as a fan with the door open and so much more. I understand that he owns the building, but such clauses should be written into the lease not be delivered as addendum notices on a quad-monthly basis.

When you own a building with one of the most prominent addresses in the city, you have to remember that people talk and most potential tenants will ask questions of the neighbors BEFORE making a decision on the apartment. So if you are going to bill it as "Luxury" then make sure that the reputation proceeds the listing.