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The $140 million home of Celtic Tiger bankrupt

Broke Irish property developer’s lavish lifestyle revealed

DARA KELLY,

IrishCentral.com Staff Writer

Published Monday, April 18, 2011, 7:20 AM

Updated Monday, April 18, 2011, 10:16 AM

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Derek Quinlan

Photo by Alan Weller/Bloomberg

Details of the lavish lifestyle of one of Ireland’s property barons, now broke have been revealed.

According to documents lodged with the Land Registry in France, Barclays Bank loaned former Revenue Inspector-turned-financier Derek Quinlan a total of $90m for his dream home, complete with discotheque and a flower preparation room, on the Cote D'Azur in the French Riviera.

Now,the $140m waterfront home, named the Villa La Carriere, has become a nightmare for the bank, reports the Independent.

The home is now for resale but may only fetch about $ 50 million says property experts.

Neigbors include Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen and Roman Abramovich, the Russian billionaire and owner of Chelsea FC.

Nama , the Irish body charged with clearing up Irelands’ property mess is is struggling to offload the nine properties it seized from Quinlan last Thursday, after he failed to repay the €600m he owes personally, with€300m of the debt having been owed to Anglo Irish Bank alone before being taken over by Nama.

Barclay's Bank is so anxious to move the Villa La Carriere that local real estate sources are saying that any offer approaching $75m will be accepted, with some suggesting it could yet be offloaded for as little as €50m.

The 10,000 sq ft house has eight bedrooms, nine bathrooms, a cinema, a wine cellar, a walk in fridge, a salt-treated heated infinity pool overlooking the sea, and an elevator servicing all four flours.

Nster.com

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mamaginnty | Apr 19, 2011, 10:34 AM EDT

Thats what we are paying for, rich gits, crook banks, German banks being the worst, and crook governments, this gov. even worse than the last. If we dug deep enough our prisons would be full, but that will not happen when big money people are involved, even our judges won't let thier massive wages be accounted for. We are angry mcdolan, but thats not good enough, the citizens of Ireland were never into protesting in a big way. The Time Is Now.

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mcdolan | Apr 19, 2011, 04:46 AM EDT

Dream house indeed. We, the plain people of Ireland, are paying for this indulgence and thousands like it. As others have noted, I am having a problem paying my electricity, health insurance, meagre phone/internet bill, and keeping food on hand on €200 a week. Cheese sandwiches and home-made leek-celery-cabbage soup are weekday staples right now. Makes me really angry!

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bunkerisland | Apr 18, 2011, 07:05 PM EDT

Who are the fools, Quinlin or the banks!

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paulmassey | Apr 18, 2011, 12:57 PM EDT

Sounds like a nice crib. I wish I could help him out, but I wrapped up all of my disposable cash in mortgage payments and groceries this month. I mean, nine bathrooms! That would be perfect for me.

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LoyalCitizen | Apr 18, 2011, 12:38 PM EDT

What an advertisement for education.

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peterquinn | Apr 18, 2011, 11:15 AM EDT

Ah, how the world turns.The property barons have become poverty barons. How come none of them are in prison?

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bazzarooney | Apr 18, 2011, 10:15 AM EDT

Maybe David Drumm could buy it ?

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bogsidebunny | Apr 18, 2011, 10:09 AM EDT

He's not the only Irishman who has hidden or stashed loads of money in foreign banks and property. Just about every political figure of EVERY party from the top players in Dáil Eireann down to local authorities are as guilty as Mr. Quinlan. Ali Baba and his 40-thieves could learn a lot if they came to Ireland.

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ciarrai | Apr 18, 2011, 09:40 AM EDT

Like the Stephen Bishop song says: "You better save it for a rainy day..."

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