A new plan could make our favorite sci-fi films a reality. Netherlands-based architecture and urban design practice MVRDV — in collaboration with Airbus, Bauhaus Luftfahrt, ETH Zurich and Systra — have formulated a plan for the future of “urban air mobility.” 

The project envisions how humans might integrate flying vehicles into our urban environments as a holistic mobility concept. It’s all centered around what MVRDV calls “vertiports” — fancy landing hubs that connect the new aerial network with existing ground-based transportations systems, such as trains, subways and buses. 

“As cities become denser and technologies improve, it becomes increasingly clear that the truly three-dimensional city—one that includes flying vehicles—is surely one of the city models of the future,” said Winy Maas, founding partner of MVRDV. 

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Amazon’s best-kept secret is out. VRSNL, (short for “versional”), has been quietly selling luxury fashion items since September 2019. A total of 30 designers are currently on the VRSNL roster, including Alexander McQueen, Balmain, Prada and Jimmy Choo. What distinguishes VRSNL is a section called “The Remix,” which features original editorial content that tells stories behind the brands and designers. The retailer also has an app, which allows today’s trendsetters to shop wherever, whenever.

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What will 2020 bring?  These four trends are expected to impact luxury buying and selling in the new year and decade ahead. 

1. Luxury Housing Holds Steady

This year, expect “guarded optimism” to replace last year’s uncertainty over fears about a global economic slowdown, a U.S.-China trade war and a potential U.S. recession, according to Mansion Global. This is encouraging news for luxury real estate, which has traditionally been tied to global economic growth, yet is generally more insulated from market fluctuations. Many U.S. luxury housing meccas are generally stable, while some high-end hotspots like Los Angeles and Miami could be poised to rise or make a comeback in 2020. 

1. The Rise of the Mid-Sized Luxury Market 

When realtor.com released itsannual list of the hottest markets last December, surprise cities like Boise, McAllen, Texas and Tucson topped the list. “The cities that we expect to do best in 2020 are not necessarily big, fancy, coastal cities, but secondary markets where the job market is still pretty good but housing is affordable,” said Danielle Hale, chief economist of realtor.com. Affluent buyers from high-cost cities want a good deal as much as anyone — so we expect to see midsized cities with stable and solid economies and more affordable housing as the top performers in 2020. 

1. Less Square Footage

“Less” is becoming “more” — even in the highest price segments. Consistent with NAHB data that found the average new single-family home size has been trending lower since 2015, realtors in some luxury markets are reporting that a growing number of affluent buyers are willing to “trade space for place.” This is especially true in the luxury condo segment, where buyers are increasingly getting flexible on square footage if a building has amenities or hospitality programs attached to it. 

1. Urbanization of the ‘Burbs, Emergence of ‘Hipsturbias’

People are moving back to the cities, it’s true — but as millennials start families another phenomenon has emerged, according to Emerging Trends in Real Estate 2020, a report released by Urban Land Institute and PwC: “hipsturbias.” Hipsturbias are suburban markets with hip or cool live/work/play environments offering walkability and/or transit access. Brooklyn is a prototype, but hipsturbia examples are beginning to crop up across the U.S. — from New Jersey communities such as Hoboken, Maplewood, and Summit, to New York’s Yonkers and New Rochelle, to Evanston, Illinois and further out west — Santa Clara, California, and Tempe, Arizona. 

Which trend do you see impacting your community?

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From impressive museum expansions to new openings, the art world has captivated us with fresh perspectives and new experiences. 

There was Miami’s Rubell Museum, whichreopened and expanded during Art Basel in a brand new location. The new space, designed by Selldorf Architects, occupies 100,000 square feet of space with about 80 percent of the new building accessible to the public. MoMA’s late 2019 opening of its massive expansion was easily one of the most talked-about art events. Designed by Diller Scofidio + Renfro and international design firm Gensler, the legendary museum completely rethought the experience of art with an additional 40,000 square feet of gallery space, an admission-free ground floor gallery, a live programming place and a second-floor destination where visitors are invited to explore new ideas about the past, present and future through art. Other notable expansions of the year included North Carolina’s new and vastly improved Asheville Art Museum, which increased its exhibition space by 70% and shined a light to the city’s cultural renaissance over the past 30 years. West Palm Beach also saw the opening of the Foster + Partners-designed Norton Museum of Art expansion totaling 50,000 square feet, which includes a new gallery space and a subtropical garden that houses a collection of contemporary art sculptures. 

What’s ahead for the art world in 2020 is even more exciting. The Denver Art Museum is expected to begin the phased reopening of its unified campus in June 2020 with the unveiling of three levels of the Gio Ponti-designed Martin Building (formerly referred to as the North Building) and the new Anna and John J. Sie Welcome Center (Sie Welcome Center). Another hotly anticipated 2020 museum opening is the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures in Los Angeles. The 300,000 square foot campus includes a renovated historic building and a new spherical structure, which will include a 1,500-panel glass dome, will also feature two state-of-the-art theaters, a long-term exhibit on moviemaking, dramatic rotating galleries, project spaces, fine dining and casual restaurants, and an open-air terrace with views of the Hollywood Hills. 

Whether you’re a film aficionado or a contemporary art connoisseur, the dynamic new art world is destined to keep you inspired and intrigued this year. For more information, use the contact information below.

Diesel Sells Million Dollar T-Shirts 

Diesel recently unveiled the most expensive T-shirts ever. The Italian fashion brand is selling 143 “one-of-a-kind” T-shirts starting at just under $1.6 million. With the purchase of a shirt, the buyer would receive a condo at Diesel Wynwood 28, a new 143-unit project in Miami’s famed design district. 

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Wellness is a hot topic these days. Whether it’s personal care, anti-aging, nutrition, preventive medicine or spas, wellness is a $4.2 trillion industry, according to the Global Wellness Institute. And companies are responding by creating new products and programs for consumers. Pinterest even introduced emotional well-being activities in response to the millions of searches on emotional health its users conducted in 2018.   

Sherwin-Williams recently surveyed nearly 500 homeowners and 200 interior designers to gauge how wellness is expressed in interior design and décor – and nearly all respondents (94% and 97%, respectively) reported they were incorporating wellness in some way.

Here are five ways you too can incorporate wellness into your home:

• Natural light. Sunlight boosts vitamin D, wards off seasonal depression and improves sleep. Perhaps that’s why 87% of designers use natural light to improve wellness. So, open those blinds, and let the sun shine in!
• Air quality. One way to improve air quality in your home is to limit VOCs (volatile organic compounds). Try selecting low- or no-VOC paints, using acetone-free nail polish remover, burning candles made from beeswax or soy and using natural cleaning products.
• Colors. Certain colors, such as greens and blues, promote calm. The color least likely to be associated with wellness: red.
• Zen.  You don’t have to leave home to find peace. Consider incorporating a gym/fitness room, reading room, greenhouse, meditation or yoga room into your home.
• Clutter.  Clutter creates stress, and it’s unpleasant to look at. Eliminating the mess may take time, but the payoff makes it worthwhile. Follow Marie Kondo’s advice to get rid of things that don’t “spark joy,” and replace them with things that do.  

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