HO M Es tiple-residence and farm management. With that expertise supporting their efforts, Leidesdorf Hack and Stern provide seamless service to owners of mulitple residences. “Our clients who own these lovely places want privacy and a five-star experience in their own home,” Stern says. “When they arrive for the season or the weekend, there may be maintenance issues that distract from their relaxation and fun.” Not if Stern Estate is in charge: the pair creates a customized, preventative, twelve-month maintenance calendar for each residence’s caretakers and household staff. “If the person in charge follows the calendar, there will be minimal surprises for the client upon arrival,” Leidesdorf Hack says. This page, clockwise from top left: Alexandra Leidesdorf Hack and Sandra Stern in the greenhouse of Stern’s Englewood, New Jersey, home; Stern with spring cuttings from the greenhouse; a painting by Isabelle DeGanay; the Stern Estate team at work in the library. Opposite: Leidesdorf Hack (left) and Stern have joined forces to launch Stern Estate.
Stern Estate will locate and install that “dream team” for each property, hiring new staff or refining the skills of current ones—right down to personal instruction on caring for antiques and fine furnishings (complete with a care guide manual written in, if applicable, the staff member’s native language). Stern and Leidesdorf Hack conduct one-on-one training sessions with staff. As a “final exam,” the staff member “teaches” the lesson back to his or her instructor, confirming that the information has been perfectly absorbed. Stateside, Stern Estate manages client homes in locations from North Miami and Palm Beach to New York, Locust Valley, and Westport (and “that’s just this week!” adds Stern). Once they have their residences in shipshape, Stern Estate’s client might just celebrate by jetting off to a new destination—with Stern to assist them in her concierge advisory services role. “Most of our travel requests are bespoke trips for multigenerational families, customized to their destination points—often involving the lease of private villas, chateaux,
or ranches,” she says. Stern Estate’s “golden rolodex” of contacts worldwide also exposes clients to academic admissions advisory services: “For colleges, schools of any sort, we have vetted the most capable advisors on the east and west coasts for admission from fitness camps to drivers’ courses to Ivy League schools,” says Leidesdorf Hack, a double-degree Ivy League graduate herself. And once that coveted admissions letter has arrived, the duo will locate the most appropriate living situations for clients in university and college towns. No request or dream is too detailed for Stern Estate’s attention. The women of Stern Estate well deserve their sterling reputations: trust is their mantra. “It’s the type of service and relationship we hope to establish with everyone we work with—from the billionaire to the farm hand,” Stern says. We’d gladly turn over the keys to our homes, and our lives, to Stern Esate! u For more information, visit sternestate.com or call 917.306.0216.