A new center dedicated to Florence’s artisans is getting ready to open in the Oltrarno neighborhood, where these trades have been practiced for centuries. The new Spazio-Arte e Meistieri (SAM), located in the Conventino, will have some 3,500 square meters of space for a range of artisans and their workshops.   The new facility will include an information center to promote Florence’s century-olds...

The Hôtel des Ambassadeurs de Hollande, once owned by the late Paul-Louis Weiller, is now up for sale. The Parisian landmark was constructed in the late 1650s for the Amelot family and was originally called the Hôtel Amelot de Bisseuil. Mr Weiller was a World War I hero and successful businessman, and he purchased the house in the Marais neighborhood in 1951 and set about restoring it to its original...

Noho Square, once one of the highest profile luxury and mixed used developments proposed for London, has been sold. The troubled project has some new hopes now that control is being acquired by development company Stanhope, according to the Financial Times. Icelandic bank Kaupthing teamed up with property developers Nick and Christian Candy several years ago with the original plans, and now has agreed to...

A 78-acre vineyard and winery is for sale on an island off the coast of British Columbia, Canada. The property has a restaurant, four-bedroom house with its own swimming pool and spa, and a 66-foot boat dock. This Canadian estate is located on Saturna Island and has 45 acres of mature vines, from which the licensed winery has produced wines since 1998. In addition to the winery and home, it has a guest...

Actor and comedian Cheech Marin has recently lowered the asking price for his Malibu, California beachfront house. The former partner in the Cheech & Chong comedy duo was asking $3.9 million, but the price has been dropped to $2.95 million. The home is 3,400 square feet with four bedrooms and 3.5 bathrooms. It has a deck that overlooks the Pacific Ocean and direct access to the beach.   Simon Cowell...

Dubai’s Victory Heights luxury golf development has started to welcome new homeowners to the premier residential and golf project. The development is centered on the Ernie Els designed golf course, which makes its way through the 963 luxury villas and townhouses.   The General Manager of Victory Heights, Yasser Al Raee, is pleased to see the first homeowners move into the Sports City project: “The...

The UK Office of Fair Trading (OFT ) has used its power to issue a prohibition order against an East Yorkshire estate agent banning him from engaging in estate agency work. As part of its role the OFT can bar from estate agency work a person who has committed certain specified offences such as fraud, or other dishonesty or violence; or who has committed racial or sexual discrimination in the course of...

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Demand for Jamaican property appears to be on the up with overseas property website Homesgofast.com reporting a 30% increase in enquiries for its Jamaican property listings compared to February 2008. According to the international portal the two countries that seem to be driving this interest are the UK and Canada   CEO Nick Marr Homesgofast.com “"We have a huge demand for Jamaican property from people...

The property market in Singapore had a significant improvement in February compared to January, according to the most recent report from the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA). The sales figures for both December and January were anemic, with only 108 and 131 units sold in these months, respectively. In contrast, February saw a total of 1,323 new homes sold.   Real Estate firm CB Richard Ellis indicates...