Monday, December 17, 2012

Monday Mish Mash: Nate Berkus

The New York Post reported over the weekend that nice-gay New York City-based interior decorator and former television host turned book writer turned home goods tycoon Nate Berkus has packed his designer bags and decamped for Tinseltown where—so the story goes—he bought a fancy Mercedes and snagged a house in the Hollywood Hills all in the same day.

The westward move was reportedly and at least partly motivated—so the story goes—by his budding romance with a fella named Jeremiah Brent, another nice-gay decorator best known by reality television watchers as the square jawed and gel haired former assistant of celebrity stylist Rachel Zoe.

As far as we know, Mister Berkus continues to own at least two apartments in lower Manhattan that include a one bedroom pied a terre on Downing Street—bought in 2006 for $550,000—and a much more substantial 3,000 square foot terraced duplex in a well-maintained 19th century walk-up building just off Fifth Avenue in the Greenwich Village that he bought in 2011 for $3,350,000, worked over but good with sleek glass and metal partitions, antique marble mantels and vintage Belgian hardware and then—natch—had photographed for the the high-gloss pages of the November 2012 issue of Architectural Digest.

Mister Berkus also still owns a nearly 4,000 square foot condo crib in Chicago (above) that he bought back in July 2003 for $1,500,000. Since the design dynamo put his no longer needed three bedroom and four bathroom spread in Chi-town up for sale in early 2011 for $2,650,000 there have been no fewer than five price reductions that have plummeted the price to its current $1,890,000.

listing photos (Chicago): Baird & Warner

10 comments:

Madam Pince said...

What happened with Carlos, the architect he gushes about in The Things That Matter?!?

Anonymous said...

no info about the hills house?

DC Guy said...

That Jeremiah Brent is yummy. Seems dumb as a stump, but nonetheless yummy to look at.

Anonymous said...

Gossip in this town is so bad. Zero insight on what happened with Carlos. But then it's quite possible that Carlos has been over for a long time.

LA would seem to suit him well, and now that O has moved west. . . He's stated that he wants to get back on tv, though I'm not quite sure what form that would take. He's been given two major chances with that medium, and he couldn't make them work.

deepu said...
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Anonymous said...

What are those two flimsy chairs doing in the living room? Utterly pointless.

Anonymous said...

That 4000 sq ft condo is a coop, I believe. An older coop with absolutely fearsome assessments and tough entry barriers. It's amazing what those kinds of problems can do for the value of a place.

Anonymous said...

He was on OZ lately and seemed really sad and didnt look so good. I want to not like him, but he seems like a nice guy. And going through the tsunami and the loss of his partner could end many of us. He spoke of losing his show and kicking sleeping pills, but still seemed sad. Carlos was living in another country no? Thats hard to sustain among guys when both have success.. Regarding LA..keep in mind that even us gays go through mid life crises. I think Nate comes from a wealthy family and he co produced The Help..so money is probably not an issue. Bet the new man has a big uhhhh ego and is at the top of his game.

Anonymous said...

jeremiah is ugly to me.

Madam Pince said...

Anons 6:42 & 8:46 -- Nate & Carlos may have been over for a while, but I wonder why Nate featured him so prominently in his new book. The NYC apartment was their shared residence, even though I'm sure CH had one in his homeland of Mexico as well. I agree about surviving the tsunami and Fernando's death ... and was a little surprised that, once again, Nate dedicated a book to him. Maybe losing Mr. Bengoechea is a hurt he can't move past. (I can't imagine losing your spouse but never seeing the body; I was blessed to be with Master Pince when he departed this mortal coil, which was an enormous help in saying goodbye.)