REAL ESTATE: Selling Rare Earth

"There's no such thing as an undiscovered paradise," says a California real estate man named Karel van Haefton. "There is only a paradise that someone has found and wants to sell." He should know. At 29, Van Haefton is founder and owner of a most unusual realty company. Operating out of a handsome houseboat on Sausalito's waterfront, it is called Rare Earth Realty, and it sells the kind of land that some people consider, well, paradise.

For those who want their own secluded beaches badly enough, Rare Earth offers 2,700 acres of Caribbean frontage in Colombia (asking...

Want the full story?

Subscribe Now

Subscribe
Subscribe

Learn more about the benefits of being a TIME subscriber

If you are already a subscriber sign up — registration is free!