If there was any doubt that the luxury real estate industry is facing financial issues, the latest casualty in Aspen, Sotheby’s International Realty, should dispell that notion.

Sotheby’s closed their doors on Feb 13th, after running into financial difficulties and the franchise will be taken over by a former rival, Morris and Fyrwald Real Estate.

The luxury ski resort business has been hard hit by the financial crisis, and the value of sales in Aspen fell 46% in 2008, with the trend continuing.

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The New York Post’s Jennifer Keil and Chuck Bennett reported in Monday’s paper that Citigroup is about to upgrade to a new $50 million, twelve-seat corporate jet.

The New York Post, citing “a source familiar with the deal,” reported today that Citigroup executives authorized the purchase of a new Dassault Falcon 7X, which seats 12 in leather seats and sofas and includes a custom entertainment center.

Citigroup received $45 billion from the government last year, including a $20 billion emergency infusion in November.

Chanel is to cut 200 jobs as fears grow that the supposedly recession proof luxury market is falling victim to the global credit crisis.

The staff cuts are a direct result of declining sales, part of the overall slide in luxury spending that was not alleviated by the recent holiday shopping season. Among the jobs are 16 posts at the brand’s boutique on rue Cambon in Paris in the heart of Paris’s fashion district.

The job losses, described by some commentators as the label’s worst crisis since founder Coco Chanel fired all her staff at the outbreak of war in 1939, represent almost 10% of the company’s production workforce.