Teardown Mania- Larger Homes Are Replacing Smaller Ones - Excerpt from New Canaan Darien & Rowayton, April, 2003 Builder and developer Arnold Karp of Karp Associates in New Canaan is no strager to demolition permits. He estimates that he does four to five teardowns a year in the corridor stretching from Westchester County through Fairfield County, and is constantly searching for buildable lots to add to his inventory. "The market for teardowns is basically driven by the people who ultimately buy the homes," he reports. "While I may find a 1,400-square-foot ranch charming, nobody who's buying a new house in this community is looking for that." Karp's experience has been that clients consider a teardown when they can't find what they're looking for on the market. "Most people don't wake up one morning and say, 'Let me go find a '50s rach and tear it down.' Usually they spend three to six months looking at everyting that's on the market." he says. And occasionally teardowns are done because clients have specail requirements they can't find in another house - for example, a master bedroom or in-law suite on the first floor.

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