A Miami Beach duplex that just sold for $1.3 million looks nothing like it did when it was the lavishly decorated home of late legendary architect Morris Lapidus. The apartment, in Belle Isle’s Terrace Towers, was virtually stripped by the “enterprising flippers” who forked over $900,000 for the more than 2,600 square feet of space only a little more than a year ago, according to the real estate website. The new owners turned Lapidus’ old digs — the Modern visionary designed the building, too — into tore down walls, creating a concrete loft. They also updated the kitchen and bathrooms, and added an outdoor shower to the second-floor balcony — before turning their tidy $400,000 profit. Only the home’s curving staircase was untouched; the dining room that Lapidus used was removed before the work began and is now in the Bass Museum. The Russian-born Lapidus died in 2001. His designs include the Fontainebleau and Eden Roc hotels, both well known to tourists worldwide.
Posted on: Fri, 26 Jul 2013 00:19:13 +0000