Annie Leibovitz Keeps Her Homes

At a time when a growing army of Americans face the cold, harsh reality of foreclosure, celebrity photographer Annie Leibovitz managed to work a deal allowing her to hold on to not one, but four different chunks of real estate: three brownstones in Manhattan's Greenwich Village and a rather large property in Rhinebeck, New York. This must be the grand-momma of all modification deals!

Not long ago, it looked as if the big-spending, in-hock-up-to-her-ears photographer would lose not only her properties, but the rights to her photographs as well. Then, back in September, she renegotiated a $24 million loan with Art Capital, although still risked losing control of her assets, which were put up as collateral.

Now, Colony Capital, an L.A.-based private-equity that specializes in distressed real estate, has agreed to take over all of the debt and, as part of the deal, will help Leibovitz market her famous pictures, according to the Financial Times and others.

Well, OK, it wasn't actually a mortgage modification, but it's a whopper of a deal for Annie.