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Douglas Newby insights on Architecturally Significant Homes, Neighborhoods, and the Evolution of Cities

Impact on Homes That Make Us Happy

Douglas Newby is a national award-winning realtor who identifies architectural significance, value, and homes that make people happy. Insights offered in these articles include the nuance and evolution of neighborhoods, cities and Dallas. If you are interested in purchasing an Architecturally Significant Home, go to Douglas Newby & Associates real estate site DougNewby.com.

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Favorite Douglas Newby Blog Articles

Preservation Minded Owners are Key to Saving Historic Homes

Preservation Minded Owners are Key to Saving Historic Homes

Preservation celebrates another preservation victory. I just sold one of the most important architecturally significant homes in Dallas with deed restrictions included in the sale that prevent the home from being torn down, and helped the property sell for a higher price than the appraised value. David Williams-Designed Home Sold for Over Appraised Value and...

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Zoning Lobbyist Claims Home Owners Have Faulty Judgment When Advocating for Home Ownership

Zoning Lobbyist Claims Home Owners Have Faulty Judgment When Advocating for Home Ownership

Dallas Should Nurture Home Ownership for Stable and Appealing Neighborhoods A recent Dallas Morning News column reveals the argument that zoning consultants and STR lobbyist are using to promote rental units and apartment developments in single-family zoned neighborhoods. Esteemed zoning consultant Dallas Cothrum in his Dallas Morning News column recently wrote that homeowners, usually older...

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Observations and Clarifications to Tom Foster Texas Monthly Article

Observations and Clarifications to Tom Foster Texas Monthly Article

Tom Foster, a Texas Monthly writer, wrote an article on Allie Beth Allman and her large presence in the Dallas real estate market. She is a deserving subject as she is the last of the residential real estate titans of a generation. Ebby Halliday is gone, Charles Freeman is gone, Virginia Cook is retired, and...

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Preservation Dallas 50th Anniversary Home Tour Celebrates Architects and Neighborhoods

Preservation Dallas 50th Anniversary Home Tour Celebrates Architects and Neighborhoods

Understanding the relationship of architecture and neighborhoods is the foundation of understanding preservation. This 50th anniversary home tour by Preservation Dallas on April 15th is the best Preservation Dallas Home Tour yet. The tour elevates itself from previous home tours that focused on a specific neighborhood, a specific architect or random historic Dallas houses. This...

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How Architect Designed Homes Can Outperform the Market

How Architect Designed Homes Can Outperform the Market

Most houses sell at generic prices and there is a reason why. The real estate industry is geared for homeowners to sell their homes for the same prices as their neighbors’ homes. The whole industry—realtors, lenders, appraisers, homeowners and homebuyers — accept the current concept of comparables. Legislators and regulatory agencies even dictate the restrictions...

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Beverly Drive Book Club Talk – The Poor Side of Town and Why We Need It 

Beverly Drive Book Club Talk – The Poor Side of Town and Why We Need It 

Below is the Talk Presented by Douglas Newby to the Beverly Drive Book Club It is a real treat for me to be here with you today. Thank you, Susan Bednar Long, Karen Edwards, Ruth Ruhl and the Beverly Drive Book Club for inviting me. I can’t think of any place better than the Beverly...

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Architecturally Significant Homes in Dallas are Best Collection in Country

Architecturally Significant Homes in Dallas are Best Collection in Country

Dallas has the best collection of 20th and 21st century architecture in the country because of the cross-pollination of ideas from the extraordinary lineage of talented Dallas architects with the regional and national architects that design homes in Dallas. The interaction of architects with each other and the patrons of architecture at this architecturally significant...

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Dallas Architecture Forum Celebrates 8 Architects and 250 Years of Architecture

Dallas Architecture Forum Celebrates 8 Architects and 250 Years of Architecture

The Dallas Architecture Forum, on their 25th anniversary, highlighted eight architects in an informative and insightful way. The program at the Dallas Museum of Art was presented in two panels. One was led by Kate Aoki, AIA, who now designs the DMA exhibits, and Kelly Mitchell, AIA, who is a talented architect and who many...

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Anchor Neighborhoods are Threatened by Shifting Dallas Downtown Density

Anchor Neighborhoods are Threatened by Shifting Dallas Downtown Density

Anchor neighborhoods zoned MF2, made up of architecturally significant modern townhouses, condominiums, attached single-family, and single-family homes, are being threatened by the shifting downtown Dallas density and proposed mid-rise and high-rise zoning. Downtown Dallas Density Keeps Moving Towards Our MF2 Anchor Neighborhoods Downtown Dallas keeps creeping away from the original Central Business District on Main...

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Short-Term Rentals are Assault on Homeownership and Single-Family Zoning

Short-Term Rentals are Assault on Homeownership and Single-Family Zoning

Why do single-family occupied homes matter and need to be protected? Homeowners are the heart and soul of the city. When homeowners start leaving a neighborhood, the neighborhood declines. When homeowners have confidence in the future of a neighborhood, they buy a home in that neighborhood or reinvest in the home they already own in...

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Homeowner’s Greatest Property Right is Single-Family Zoning

Homeowner’s Greatest Property Right is Single-Family Zoning

Some Confuse a Homeowner’s Greatest Property Right With How Many Uses the Homeowner can Utilize for Their Home A homeowner’s greatest property right is not how many uses a homeowner can use their home, in addition to that as a home, such as a tavern, rooming house, short term rentals (STRs), office suites, pharmaceutical production...

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Fair Park First – Single Family Neighborhood Homes Last

Fair Park First – Single Family Neighborhood Homes Last

Fair Park First Might Prompt 21st Century Urban Renewal Wiping Out Neighborhoods Recently, exciting plans for Fair Park were unveiled at an architectural forum by Fair Park First, the nonprofit selected to transform and manage Fair Park’s transformation. The elements of the proposed transformation are ambitious and have great potential for Fair Park, the surrounding...

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Each STR Will Cause Decline in Home Values Across Dallas

Each STR Will Cause Decline in Home Values Across Dallas

Everyone knows that a single-family home loses value if an STR (short-term rental) opens up next door. Homebuyers will pass over the STR-compromised home for other comparable homes desired by homeowners. And another thing happens. Dallas is losing population and, even more important, losing homeowners. An STR opening on a block might be so disturbing...

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City Manager Ward System Form of Government Needs Reform

City Manager Ward System Form of Government Needs Reform

The City Manager form of government always seemed to give Dallas an advantage. It seemed to prevent a Chicago Mayor style form of ward system government, creating a political machine ripe for corruption. Now Dallas has something even worse than a Chicago Mayor ward system form of government. Dallas has a City Manager ward system...

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4908 Lakeside Drive is Demolished – Start Saving Homes Now

4908 Lakeside Drive is Demolished – Start Saving Homes Now

4908 Lakeside Drive, Highland Park, Texas, should be the wakeup call that we should start saving homes now. “Start Saving Homes” should be the public cry. There is an understandable consternation when there is an onslaught of homes being torn down across the country, particularly one that has the significance of 4908 Lakeside Drive in...

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Browse 100 Compelling Articles by Douglas Newby

Douglas Newby Expertise

A life long curiosity and interest in art, culture and economics, and how they impact homes, neighborhoods and cities shape the prescient understanding Douglas Newby has for evolving real estate markets. His uncanny ability to see which homes and neighborhoods thrive and which will lag and when has been immensely beneficial to his clients and to the city. Ultimately, what is most important is homes that make us happy.

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Realtor Douglas Newby

Douglas Newby understands the economic and aesthetic impact of homes and neighborhoods that make us happy better than anyone in the county. I hope you enjoy my thoughts on architecture, home, desirable sites, neighborhoods, and the evolution of cities. Ultimately what is most important is a home that make you happy. If you have an interest in buying or selling a home or questions about the evolution of Dallas, call me at 214.522.1000.

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The #1 Realtor For Architecturally Significant Homes

Douglas Newby created the concept of architecturally significant homes and has registered trademark Architecturally Significant® and Architecturally Significant Homes®.

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National and international art galleries endorsed National and international art galleries endorsed Dallas by participating in the Dallas Art Fair. Often artists lead the way in discovering and reclaiming neighborhoods making them fashionable. Much the same can be said of art galleries. Barry Whistler Gallery gave Deep Ellum a boost three decades ago and then gave the Dallas Design District an additional thrust. Now international galleries are doing the same thing for Dallas by participating in the 15th Dallas Art Fair. We know Dallas has the country’s most diverse economy attracting a steady flow of Fortune 500 companies. We know substantial people are moving to Dallas, resulting in more homebuyers than home sellers in Highland Park and Dallas. Dallas, increasingly attractive for relocations, is rightly associated with an open friendly city, lower taxes, safety, educational opportunities. Now international galleries are endorsing the aesthetics of Dallas. Art transcends even the draw of jobs, safety, education and favorable economics. People of all incomes enjoy art. Now Dallas enjoy the art world coming to us. This year Art Fair spaces were consistently beautifully curated, the art strong, the galleries friendly, and the viewers excited. The Dallas Art Fair also showed the strength of Dallas art galleries. Dallas art galleries at the Fair more than held their own. Dallas art galleries in the Dallas Design District also had art openings to coincide with the Art Fair and the week of art conversations in Dallas. Private art collections were also made available to view. Art work presented by east and west coast galleries and those from around the world made me even more appreciative of the fabulous Dallas art galleries, art collectors and collections that we have in Dallas. Since grade school, I have loved fairs – including writing a long school report on fairs, going to book fairs, the Chicago International Trade Fair, art fairs in other cities, and of course the Texas State Fair. The Dallas Art Fair has blossomed into an internationally important fair – one that is enjoyable, educational, and one that endorses Dallas. *DallasArtFair
#DallasArtFair #DowntownDallas #DallasArt #DallasDesignDistrict #Dallas
Real Deal insights were provided earlier this year Real Deal insights were provided earlier this year by Publisher and Founder Amir Korangy of The Real Deal, the largest real estate magazine in the country. It is interesting how people outside Dallas interpret the city. Amir Korangy hosted a dinner at The Mansion Restaurant that included former Mayor Mike Rawlings; CEO of Crow Holdings, Michael Levy; Dallas Regional Chamber Senior VP of Research and Innovation, Duane Dankesreiter; The Real Deal’s National Managing Editor Jerry Sullivan, Texas Editor Rachel Stone, and Dallas reporter Erick Pirayesh, along with a few other real estate leaders. I find interesting to compare the perspectives of those from inside and outside of Dallas. When over a year ago Amir visited Dallas to learn about the city, he asked people what made Dallas so successful. The first person suggested it was because the people in Dallas were nice. Amir said he thought this didn’t seem enough to be the foundation of a city’s success. He said after he spoke to 30 people over the week and they all said essentially the same thing, that maybe this was the key component to the success of Dallas. One certainly could not point to mountains or an ocean as the draw to Dallas. Nice is a pleasant but rather anemic word for something more profound in Dallas. When my clients are moving to Dallas or considering moving to Dallas, the first way I describe Dallas is that it is the most open city in the country. In Dallas people are considered for what they contribute and add to the city. Recently this idea was reinforced at a Dallas dinner for 80 people being celebrated for their contributions to the city. It was mentioned that Dallas is a place far more collaborative than divisive. The fun, generous, warm mood of this assemblage of successful people from the full political spectrum conveyed this. At the earlier dinner, Amir Korangy said that Dallas is both a magnet for Fortune 500 companies and is an encouraging environment for people in every demographic to start a business. The sentiments and mood of these two dinners reinforced in my mind—niceness in Dallas is the real deal. *Real Deal
 
#Dallas #City #TheRealDeal @mrkorangy #rosewoodmansiononturtlecreek
This Robert Frost style poem was inspired by my bl This Robert Frost style poem was inspired by my blog article on DouglasNewby.com- Preservation Dallas 50th Anniversary Home Tour Celebrates Neighborhoods and Architecture.

In neighborhoods, where history breathes,
Preservation Dallas, its mission weaves.
Fifty years have come and gone,
A golden era, a tale now spun.

With architect's passion and vision clear,
Neighborhoods standing, as we stand here.
A house, a home, a living tale,
In every brick and timbered bale.

Kessler Park and Swiss Avenue,
Touched by hands, old and new. Cheek and Fooshee, Dilbeck, too,
A tapestry of architects, their essence imbued.

Winds of change, they blow and gust,
Yet in these homes, our trust is thrust.
Oak Cliff and Munger Place, a story to share,
Intricate patterns, a legacy's heir.

As I wandered through these homes,
I felt the whispers, the ancient tomes.
Of lives well lived and dreams fulfilled,
In every corner, history distilled.

To celebrate these architects, we gather near,
Their talents, their visions, we revere.
For in their craft, they've woven time,
Preserved for us, a gift sublime.

We stand upon the shoulders of the great,
Their work, an anchor, against time's weight.
And as we walk the neighborhoods of yore,
A part of us, forevermore.

So let us celebrate this jubilant day,
In honor of those who've paved the way.
For through their work, we too shall see, 
A past preserved, an eternal legacy. *Preservation Poetry

#PreservationDallas #DallasNeighborhoods  #DallasArchitects  #SwissAvenue #OakCliff #dallashometoura #mungerplace
Here is how iconic drinks are maybe named at iconi Here is how iconic drinks are maybe named at iconic restaurants. Javier’s Gourmet Mexicano is the oldest iconic restaurant in Dallas. It is much loved, known for its professional service, unwavering Mexico City inspired food, and much fun. Led by Javier’s example, wearing an Italian suit, with Ferraris, Lamborghinis, and other stylish cars lined up in the front, Javier’s is known for tradition and style. It is against this backdrop that an iconic drink may be created. When Javier inquired what drinks he could request the server to bring to the table, he was told a top shelf Margarita rimmed with sugar. Javier’s eyes got wide and a curious expression appeared as he said he has never had that request. When told he could think of it as a Maya Margarita, Javier repeated, “Maya Margarita” and said, “It has a good ring to it.” Grace Kelly, a stylish  woman, propelled a Hermes handbag to be called the Kelly bag. Here a stylish woman might propel a sugar-rimmed top shelf Margarita to be called a Maya Margarita. *MayaMargarita
 
#JaviersDallas #Javier #Dallas #IconicRestaurant #MayaMargarita #SugarRimmedMargarita #Margarita #DallasRestaurant #MexicanRestaurant #eventdirector #nationalmargaritaday @JaviersGourmetMexicano
From graduate student looking work on the first le From graduate student looking work on the first level of the Guggenheim Museum, Alex Katz’ work ascends to the highest level and to the triumphant and concluding piece of the exhibition, which was loaned by Dallas’ own art collector, Marguerite Hoffman. Katz’ wife was a reoccurring subject matter throughout his 60-year career, including the oversized faces Katz is best known for. The final piece in his show has his wife’s back to the viewer, and yet we still can tell exactly who it is. A retrospective this linear is also nice as we see the evolution of an artist’s work and in this case the distinct evolution of styles and attitudes of each decade. As you slide through the images, you will be able to see the final picture of the back of the woman repeated six times on the canvas. This piece is destined to become part of the Dallas Museum of Art’s permanent collection. *Katz Ascends
#guggenheim #ArtExhibition @guggenheim #AlexKatz #DallasArtCollector #UpperEastSide #Design
Michael Lee, a brilliant designer and a Highland P Michael Lee, a brilliant designer and a Highland Park native, has reclaimed Dallas as his home and continues to reclaim Dallas architectural components and artifacts from architecturally significant homes and merge them into new spaces. A celebration at his new retail space at Nick Brock on Slocum in the Design District provided the opportunity to see how a collection of individual pieces offered for sale were placed in a graceful composition that was as enticing as each individual piece. Additionally, sunlight illuminated the space. When Michael moved to Malibu, his genius was quickly recognized. His California work was featured in Architectural Digest and he was the talk of the town. Simultaneously, his projects in Dallas were equally revered. It is so fun to have Michael and Gatsby back in Dallas. When you see them, you are bound to see many of the most talented and delightful people in town.  Here we see the Director of the Dallas Opera, the North American CEO of Christie’s Auction House, and Carol Lee, who with her late husband John Ridings Lee, lived and entertained in iconic modern and historic homes that were the toast of the town.  From business leaders to aesthetic leaders and interior designers, this space glowed with talent and love that always surrounds Michael Lee. *Reclaim Dallas
#NickBrockAntiques #Antiques #GatsbyGeerts #DallasDesignDistrict #ArchitecturallySignificant #ArchitecturalArtifacts #Retail #DallasCelebration #Dallas

Architecturally Significant Homes® and Significant Homes® and Architecturally Significant® are registered in the US Patent and Trademark Office. Text, Images, Photography - Copyright © 1994–2023 Douglas Newby. All rights reserved. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Douglas Newby. Douglas Newby & Associates | 25 Highland Park Village #100-592, Dallas, TX 75205 | (214) 522-1000. Text, Images, Photography - Copyright © 1994–2023 Douglas Newby. All Rights Reserved. Website design by webplant.media