The never-cheap Hamptons may finally crossed the line into totally, ridiculously, stratospherically expensive as folks with money realize the summer is winding down and they wouldn’t mind spending some time on the East End before the season’s out. Power broker Lori Barbaria of Prudential Douglas Elliman just rented a modest — for the Hamptons, at least — 3,500-square-foot house in Bridgehampton for mind-bending $150,000 for two weeks, not including the $250-per-shot for the cleaning service required every few days. Her colleague, Paul Brennan, says he’s gotten calls begging for anything on the waterfront for $30,000 for a weekend, a fairly novel request as short-term rentals are frowned-upon in the Hamptons and asking for them is tantamount to wearing polyester to polo. But even with those huge sums being offered, brokers are skeptical anything will pan out. “Once in a while you can do something if the owners are out of the country,” says Brennan, “but the reception is usually lukewarm.” —S. Jhoanna Robledo
