Jack Nicholson has put his Victorian house in Aspen, Colorado, on the market for a cool 15 million dollars.

The veteran actor, 74, was last seen at the property, in the ski resort area, with daughter Lorraine over Christmas.

According to Realtor.com, the estate was added to the National Register of Historic places in 1987, boasts of five bedrooms, eight bathrooms and overlooks Hallam Lake in Aspen’s West End, the Daily Mail reported.

The green gabled home is known as Newberry House and was built in 1895 for one of Aspen’s early residents, William Shaw.

The 5,790 square foot property has a 2 1/2-story wood frame, and a large veranda, and boasts of a vernacular interpretation of the Shingle style and an unusual carriage house which was incorporated into the overall design of the home.

Some big investors have shown interest in buying foreclosed properties being sold in bulk by Fannie Mae (FNMA.OB), the largest U.S. home funding source, the Wall Street Journal said citing people familiar with the process.

Under the deal, the investors would have to rent out the properties they buy from Fannie and not sell them for several years, the Journal said.

The sale consists of 2,500 homes divided into eight regional pools that have a current market value of $320 million, and the bids are due by mid-April, the Journal said, citing an offering document prepared by Fannie’s adviser Credit Suisse.

Officials are looking to complete the first transactions by late May, the Journal said.

The Journal named New York based broker dealer Amherst Securities Group and a fund run by mortgage-bond pioneer Lewis Ranieri as interested bidders. Hedge fund manager Paulson & Co and private-equity investors Colony Capital LLC are also considering bids, the Journal said.

Spokesmen for Fannie Mae and Credit Suisse declined to comment to the Wall Street Journal on the sale.

Hope Bay Studio is a group of three separate dwellings in 13 acres on the iconic White Cliffs of Doverwhich have amazing views out over the English Channel to the French coast.

Available for the first time in nearly 60 years, the property comprises a large property built in 1937 together with a reason built artist’s studio and two detached bungalows.

The whole property requires modernization but it is an offering full of potential with 13 acres of land along the top of the cliffs included in the sale. The main house has a drawing room, sun room, kitchen, breakfast room, five bedrooms and two bathrooms, while the guest bungalow has two bedrooms, a sitting room and a kitchen. The staff bungalow offers two bedrooms and a living room plus kitchenette.

These main dwellings sit in around three acres of landscaped gardens and the remaining land has been left as natural downland offering nature, wildlife and sea views for miles. The house is all adjacent to land owned for the most part by the National Trust.

The pretty seaside village of Kingsdown is just one mile to the north and offers a small selection of shops, a post office, butcher, a selection of pubs and a primary school. The historic town of Deal is just five miles and Dover is eight miles. The guide price is £1.4m. For more information visit www.jackson-stops.co.uk.

Jeffrey D. Butler, the Connecticut Light & Power chief who resigned after he became the lightning rod for criticism of the company’s power restoration attempt after the Halloween snowstorm, put his Avon house up for sale Thursday for $1.6 million.

Butler and his wife Susan bought the 6,800-square-foot Colonial on Pembroke Drive in 2009 and are listing the 5-bedroom, 5.3-bathroom home for approximately the same price they paid for it.

Just eight houses priced at $1.5 million or higher have sold in Avon since the Butlers purchased the home, and there are at present five other homes in the town on the market in that price range, according to Rob Giuffria, president of Prudential Premier Homes in Farmington.

“The market for $1.5 million plus homes in Avon and the nearby area is still in transition, and I would anticipate the Butler home to sell for much less than the list price,” Giuffria said. “Who knows, maybe somebody will buy it because they believe they won’t lose power to the house.”

The listing agent, Ellen Seifts of Prudential Connecticut Realty in Avon, did not instantly respond today to an e-mail seeking comment. A call to Butler’s home was not immediately returned.

The brick Colonial on two-acres boasts views of the Heublein-Tower and includes a game room, wine cellar, a gunite pool with hot tub, a waterfall and koi pond, a guest house with full bath and kitchenette and a 4-car heated garage.

Butler, an engineer by training, resigned in November among a firestorm over CL&P’s handling of the storm recovery and aftermath. Charles Shivery, CEO of CL&P parent Northeast Utilities, said Butler was not forced out or asked to step aside, but offer to leave because it seem his remaining on the job could become an issue that would hinder the company’s efforts to move forward.

Butler moved to Connecticut to take the CL&P president job, after a long career in the energy industry, nearly completely in California at Pacific Gas and Electric.

Butler became well-known to the state residents during twice-a-day, high-profile, televised news conferences after the Oct. 29 storm that left hundreds of thousands of customers in the dark for a long as 11 days.

The listing did not talk about that the house has a back-up generator, but Butler told reporters at one briefing that he had a generator but it failed during the power outage, also leaving Butler in the dark.

Are you house hunting, or do you just like to see how others live? Here are a few of the homes for sale in New Rochelle.

Maybe you’ll discover your dream home.

Here are a few homes on the market in the Queen City. 76 Chauncey Ave. Listing price: $385,000. 4 bedrooms, 3-1/2 baths. 1,700 square feet. Listing office: coldwellbankermoves.com. Information from trulia.com

70 Cortlandt Ave. Listing price: $850,000. 4 bedrooms, 4 full baths & 2-1/2 baths. 3,200 square feet. Listing office: BH&G Rand Realty.

76 Chauncey Ave. Listing price: $385,000. 4 bedrooms, 3-1/2 baths. 1,700 square feet. Listing office: coldwellbankermoves.com

Because of the rupee continues to fight a losing battle against the greenbuck, realty-sector is bucking up on a new trend.

Indians living overseas are now looking back home for some moneymaking gains as the currency market throws up good investment options. 28-year old Kabir Batra is living the great Indian dream in America, a secure job at Siemens, sufficient savings and now it is time for making future investing. And during his holiday trip to Delhi he spotted the right chance in Dwarka.

“I wanted to make a good investment in reality sector but last year I didn’t have enough funds, and this time it is a blessing in disguise as because of depreciating rupee, I am getting deals which are 20 per cent cheaper from last year,” said Kabeer Batra, a NRI.

And as the rupee continues to fight a losing battle against the greenbuck, realty sector is bucking up on a new trend.

“The main demand is coming from Dubai and interestingly new markets like South Africa are also witnessing a new change. Of course traditional markets like US and UK continue to generate demand front the NRI community,” said Anuj Puri, chairman of JLL.

Given that the rupee dollar price equality has resulted in at least 20-25 per cent discount on the project, developers are willing to extend further discount of 10-15 per cent to boost their sales. Many are participating in abroad road shows and have their bets on rupee-weakening further.

“We are looking at Dubai road show to get more sales from the NRI community which is abruptly in action owing to weakening rupee,” said Bandish Ajmera, chairman property exhibition at MCHI.

And while investors like Kabir continue to look for future investments here there is no-denying that for these developers weakening rupee is actually a gaining-strength.

HARRISON COUNTY – Drive anyplace on Highway 90 in Harrison County and you’re bound to see them. Sale-signs are posted on vacant lots up and down the beach-front highway.

A still dull economy and the high cost of post-Katrina insurance have both contributed to an copiousness of beach front property now on the market.

“With the taxes and the insurance, on top of the construction expenses to build up or set back, it’s made it almost infeasible to be able to build back on residential lots on Highway 90. It’s really, very costly. You’re going to have to have deep-pockets to do it,” said Windy Swetman.

Harrison County Supervisor Windy Swetman is also a residential-developer who keeps close tabs on the real estate industry. He says such lots have always been premium property, but elements like the storm and recession are having a detectable impact.

“They’ve always been high-dollar. The difference right at the present is that you have a higher premium on insurance that you’re paying and the recession. So, you’re in a recession, you have higher insurance, the taxes are even there at a high rate for them,” said Swetman.

“What I anticipate happening is the property along Highway 90, for the majority part, is going to become commercial over the next few years,” says Jerry Creel, the community development director for the City of Biloxi.

He says projects like the new McElroy’s will draw other development along the waterfront.

“Right now, we’re in discussions with eight hotels, six restaurants that all desire to situate along the beach. Just the discussion stage right now, but we’ll make some proclamation as those come to fruition,” said Creel.

He says tax credit programs that pardon property taxes for up to seven years are also an incentive for new development.

Needs to realise roughly Rs 3,000 crore to keep to debt decrease target for current financial year.

India’s largest developer by market capitalization, DLF Ltd, is banking on at least two to three big ticket sales in early 2012, to stay to its debt reduction target for the current financial year. The developer needs to realise Rs 3,000 crore to Rs 3,500 crore from noncore asset sales, to attain its 2011-12 goals.

Although the company is still far from the divestment figure it had set, Rajeev Talwar, executive director sounded sure about making it on time. He told Business Standard the developer was expecting a couple of big ticket sales before the current financial year closes.

Besides the much talked Aman-Resorts deal, DLF is looking at a transaction to offload stake in its Pune IT Special Economic Zone (SEZ), sometime early next calendar year, Talwar said. Another deal to sell stake in the Noida IT-SEZ is also in the offing. According to analysts, these three deals could fetch DLF Rs 3,300 crore.

“The Aman hotel sale is only at arm’s-length, but would not conclude this calendar-year. Early next year looks more likely,” said Talwar. The stake sale in Aman will exclude the Delhi hotel (earlier named Lodhi). Analysts said the Aman Resorts sale could be a projected Rs 2,000 crore deal. The Pune-SEZ deal could be worth Rs 900 crore and the stake sale in Noida SEZ could fetch the company between Rs 400 crore and Rs 450 crore.

The company may seem at selling the un-built land of DLF Hotels and Hospitality Ltd (DHHL), again as part of its noncore divestment strategy. “We will try to get the maximum valuation of the sale,” he said.

Earlier this week, DLF acquired an additional 26 per cent stake in its joint venture DLF Hotel Holdings Ltd (DHHL), from Aro Participation Ltd and Splendid Property Company, affiliates of Hilton International, for Rs 120 crore. The joint venture has one Hilton hotel, in Delhi.

Another divestment DLF has initiated is in Galaxy-Mercantile, a JV between DLF Home Developers Ltd and Infrastructure Development Finance Company. Four days ago, DLF announced signing an agreement to divest its entire stake in Galaxy-Mercantile. Galaxy will buy the entire DLF stake in the project for Rs 450 crore over the next 12 to 18 months. DLF has already received the first share of Rs 200 crore from this deal. The balance payment has been linked to various leasing milestones.

As for the SEZ-projects in Pune and Noida, DLF holds 70 per cent in both. The Pune SEZ is a joint venture with Ackruti City. According to Talwar, the company is in talks with Indian and foreign companies to sell its stake in the Pune SEZ. The industry buzz is that international private equity Major Blackstone will buy into DLF’s Pune SEZ. The Noida SEZ asset is a JV with another real estate company, 3C.

In the case of Aman hotels, DLF has got the final-bids from four or five companies. Khazanah, Malaysian government’s wealth fund, is being seen as the most possible buyer. Other prominent bidders include Kingdom Holdings, the company which owns the Four Seasons Hotel, and a Chinese hospitality group, it is learnt.

DLF’s net debt stood at Rs 22,519 crore as the half end of September. It aims to bring down debt to Rs 19,000 crore to Rs 19,500 crore by the end of this financial year, and to Rs 10,000 crore by 2013, through sale of noncore assets.

New home sales rose a bit in October, but the level of demand is historically very weak because of high-unemployment in the U.S. and competition from cheaper existing homes.

Sales increased by 1.3% to a seasonally adjusted annual-rate of 307,000 from a downwardly revised speed of 303,000 in September, the Commerce Department said.

Economists surveyed by Dow Jones Newswires had estimate sales would slip by 0.3% to an annual-rate of 312,000.

The average price in October for a new home was $212,300, higher than the level of $204,200 a year earlier and as yet down from the month earlier.

Uncertainty in the direction of home prices can give would-be buyers second thoughts, with some of them waiting for a better deal. Owners who want to sell, on the other hand, tend to take their property off the market until prices steady a trend that adds to inventory in the future and depresses-prices further.

New homes are, generally, more expensive than previously owned property. People have been particularly attracted to foreclosed homes because of the low-price tags.

New-home sales amount to about a quarter of their peak before the bubble began deflating around five years ago. Sales are way below healthy levels, considered to be an annual rate of around 750,000.

Year over year, new-home-sales were 8.9% above the October 2010 level.

Because many people have much of their net worth tied up in their homes, the bursting of the price bubble made consumers feel less wealthy and discouraged spending. The economy slouches from late 2007 to mid 2009. It has been trying to retrieve strongly but unemployment stays high.

For the housing sector to recover, the economy needs to create more jobs and housing prices must steady. But economists think prices will keep falling because the foreclosure-pipeline is long. Falling prices pull more homes “underwater,” which mean the owners owe more on their mortgages than the property is worth. That leads to more foreclosures and lower prices.

With builders pessimistic, the no of new-homes listed for sale at the end of October was 162,000, which is historically low. That supply would take 6.3 months to reduce at the current sales speed and is around a healthy-level. The supply in September was 6.4 months.

The Commerce statement said October new home sales were mixed. New home Sales rose 14.9% in the West and 22.2% in the Midwest. Sales were flat in the Northeast and fell 9.5% in the South.