Lorraine Bracco: Poster child for the Realtor racket?
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- July
- 11
Lately I’ve been in the market for a home and, inevitably, I’ve been become positively addicted to Realtor.com. So much so that I’m actually reading the articles archived on their site. One of which was an interview with Sneden’s Landing homeowner Lorraine Bracco.
Now, I think it’s great that Bracco says Realtors are boss in the Q&A, but her optimism about housing as an investment struck me as a little odd. After all, the home she’s trying to sell in Rockland has been on the market for four years. She’s dropped the price from $4.4 million to $2.9 mil. (Incidentally, it’s still listed on the Mason Sammett site, if you’re interested.)
Yet she still says, “I’ve never had a bad experience with real estate or a real estate professional.” A few other incongruous excerpts from the interview after the break.
The housing slowdown has shaken a lot of people’s confidence. Has it altered your strategy?Bracco: I always feel the stock market will go up, go down. Some people are very, very good at understanding that medium. The housing market will do the same thing, but for me it’s worked out. I was lucky when I bought a loft in Tribeca in lower Manhattan and sold it in 1999. Normal girls shop for shoes. A friend and I bought in Florida. I needed a place to relax and vacation. It’s a dream come true. A great location on the beach and a short [plane] ride from New York.
What else do you like about real estate?
Bracco: I’ve never had a bad experience with real estate or a real estate professional. I was always able to get properties I wanted, and they helped facilitate that.
Any plans to buy other properties since salespeople remind us that now is a great time to invest?Bracco: You know, today, no. Tomorrow may bring a new opportunity. Who knows?
You’re on the board of directors of Riverkeeper, an environmental organization that Robert F. Kennedy Jr. heads. Are your homes green?
Bracco: I would say my homes are 50 percent green, and I’m still working on it. It’s not the easiest thing to do. I went from oil to gas, changed light bulbs, and bought energy-saving appliances. When my car dies, I’ll get a hybrid. I’m involved with Riverkeeper because Bobby Kennedy said, “You have a house on the Hudson River. You have to be on the board.”
How’d you get into importing Italian wines under the Bracco Wines label?
Bracco: I spent 10 years in France and learned how to eat, drink, and speak French. As a celebrity, you’re often offered all kinds of deals. Nothing appealed until somebody came to me with this idea. My father is Italian-American. It felt right. I go to Italy and different vintners. Last year, we sold between 10,000 and 13,000 cases. I haven’t yet bought vineyards but I hope to.
This entry was posted
on Friday, July 11th, 2008 at 2:51 pm by Ted Mann.
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