I mentioned this one back in 2006 but it deserves another look with some new pictures. There's a reason it's been on the market for a long time, it appeals to a very particular style. This eight-bedroom home in Chandler, Arizona has a manor style that seems rather out of place in the Southwest. The home was built in the 1980s by someone with a taste for the baroque. It is on over 11 acres and the home itself has over 13,600 square feet of space. Most of the furniture is remaining with the house because it was purchased for the home. The home also has an English bar with a pool table, a large theater room, game room, wine cellar and two workout rooms. The estate also includes a guest house, gardeners house and a garage that can hold 15 cars. Murals, stained glass and an amazing barrel vaulted library room all contribute to the overall sense of English style gone theme park. A Sotheby's listing shows the home at an even $10 million but the property website has it at $8.8 million. It was listed at $11.5 million back in 2006.
I've got a ton of pictures on this one but it's worth it. The Bader House is billed as the ultimate bachelor house and indeed, I think just about anyone would swoon if invited inside. This home is the ultimate in modern design and Hollywood glam. Located in the hills in West Hollywood and perched above the Sunset Strip, this one has all sorts of features designed to tempt. The floor-to-ceiling walls of glass show off sparkling nighttime views. Super sexy architectural details includes a parking spot in the living room, a mechanical dining room table, and a sensuous fire elevating from an open pit. The home has just two bedrooms but it does have a home theater and a gourmet kitchen. At $5.995 million, it could make some Hollywood lothario and his Porsche very happy.
Yesterday I showed you a restored chapel, today's home has a similar style but is very new. This home was part of the Street of Dreams in Longwood, Florida this year, in fact it was the winner, for best in show, landscape design, architectural design and interior design. The Grand Chateau d'Usse is on three acres in the the new home development of Lake Club of Markham Woods Rd.
The ornate five-bedroom home has an Italian theme starting with 30' travertine arches on the exterior. Inside this home, has a formal living room with a floor-to-ceiling fireplace. There is also a formal dining room for diner parties, which are made easier by a wine cellar and a caterer's kitchen. The home is full of extravagant details such as a bookshelf filled den which hides a hidden door that takes you to the master bedroom closet which is large enough to include a laundry station. The master suite includes a fireplace, computer-controlled shower and a hidden television as well as a private patio. The wood theater room has its own bar and beverage center. The pool area includes a lazy river, island seating, fire pit, waterfall, and three beach areas. One wing of the house has two guest cabanas which open out onto the back patio with the summer kitchen, television, fireplace and bar. It is listed at $9.7 million.
Today's home has East Coast style with the luxury of West Coast weather. This compound is located in a colony of beach homes on Sand Point Road in the coastal community of Carpinteria, California. The five-bedroom estate includes both a main house and a guest house. The design takes the traditional Cape Cod style and lightens and brightens it with an exterior of bleached cedar shingles and an interior of large windows and white beams. The home is practically perfect (maybe the media room is a bit off but other than that, wow). Because it is Carpinteria though you'll pay through the nose for a home like this. It's listed at $32.5 million and doesn't even seem to have a pool.
The last time I checked out a home in Honolulu, Hawaii the top home was listed at $10.8 million. Since back in April, that house has been reduced to $9.25 million and there is a new home in the top spot. Today's home is located in the Diamond Head area and has incredible water views. The two-story residence has three master suites with ocean views and private balconies, maids room and a three-car garage. It also has a particularly alluring feature, an infinity edge pool that faces the ocean. This home is listed at $10.75 million.
Last time I checked out a house in the Tiburon area for a look at the most expensive zip codes, the top house in the area was listed at $38.5 million. Since then that same house has climbed to $44 million and the top of the market has seen a few more lavish homes such as today's estate listed.
The Tiburon peninsula lends itself to beautiful properties that make the best of the views in the San Francisco Bay area. This one, called Paradise by the Bay turns its approximately 6.8 acres into a charming family compound. This luxury estate has been in the same family since 1926. The estate includes a five-bedroom main house, three outbuildings, a championship tennis court, pool, children's playground, and scenic waterfront area in a secluded cover.
The main house has water views from the dining room, kitchen, master suite and living room. The lower level media/family room opens to the lawn area. There is a patio room that has been historically enjoyed as an area to entertain and host noted musicians. Other features include an office which is situated adjacent to the main house, overlooking the gardens and distant Ring Mountain. The lower deck "cottage" is an ideal guest retreat overlooks the water and opens to a deck.
The small pool is surrounded by grass and also has a cabana and bar designed for entertaining and relaxing by the pool. This area is accessible by a private road for the catering staff. The massage sanctuary is a private massage deck that allows one to hear the lapping of the water and enjoy complete serenity while getting a massage. You can also enjoy veggies from your own organic gardens or send the kids off to play in the children's play area with sand box. In fact the property is so rambling that the pathways are marked with cute signs pointing the way to different areas. This property is listed at $22.6 million.
Beach house season is upon us and Figure Eight Island is one lovely place to spend your summer. The private island in North Carolina has around 450 homes and is reached by a guarded causeway bridge.Today's home on the island is a new build. It has a reverse floor plan with the main living level on top floor. The home has four bedrooms including a large master suite that includes a steam shower in the master bath. The home has large porches and decks and is built for entertaining with a chef's kitchen, wine cellar, family room with a wet bar and an elevator to all three levels. This home is listed at $4.595 million.
It's not exactly ski season but today's estate in Vail, Colorado is probably fun in the summer time too. The five-bedroom mountain home has a contemporary style that combines the rustic and the modern to great effect. It is on 1.2 acres of land and includes a large four-bedroom guest house which brings the total bedrooms on the property to nine. The main house has views of the Gore Range Mountains and surrounding aspen forest from large floor to ceiling picture windows. In addition to large living, dining and kitchen spaces there is also a family and recreation room, Jacuzzi and dry sauna. The home has ski-in access and walking distance to ski slopes and town. The home is zoned duplex so the main house and guest house could be sold off separately, there is also the chance to add approximately 4,000 square feet to the home in case 4,360 square feet is too small for you. This home is listed at $10.95 million.
Another tremendously expensive property has gone on the market in the Hamptons. Braden Keil's Gimme Shelter column in the NY Post reported on today's estate, a 12-bedroom home that is nearly 18,000 square feet. The property is owned by Juergen Friedrich, who ran the European division of Esprit sportswear and has spent a great deal of money updating the home, which was built in 1902 and designed by Grosvenor Atterbury. The country home sits on 9.11 acres that include old trees, flowering shrubs, evergreen perimeters, rose gardens. indoor pool, outdoor pool with pavilion, tennis court, paddle court, gymnasium, carriage house and a four-car garage. At nearly 3,000 square feet, the master bedroom suite is larger than many homes. What may hurt it on the real estate market is that it is not on the water. But if you can live without that, it's a pretty impressive property. It is listed at $67.5 million.
Today's home in the Shadyside area of Houston, Texas is the type of place I would love to be invited to for a cocktail party. Not only is it a beautiful classic home, a vintage Harrie Lindeberg and John Staub design built in the early 1920s (and on the National Register of Historic Places), but the current owners have created an inviting abode full of a variety of art to ogle and shelves of books to browse through. This eight-bedroom home is on 1.7 beautifully landscaped acres with formal gardens and a greenhouse. The home includes a dramatic entrance hall with a floating staircase,large living room, library, garden/media room, dining room, gourmet kitchen w/morning room and wine cellar. A new pool and pool house were constructed in 2002. There is also a carriage house with staff quarters. This home is listed at $11.3 million. The AOL home value tool estimates it at just $2,307,393.
Today's home is in the small town of Garrison, New York in upstate New York. The four-bedroom home won me over with the living room that has a 30-foot ceiling and a fireplace with a tall wood surround. There are plenty of fireplaces in this home including one in the formal dining room, one in the mahogany-paneled library and one in the master suite. The home has four bedrooms total and the herringbone wood floors give this home a cozy feel. It sits on over two acres with gardens and landscaping, an in-ground pool and a stream with a tiny bridge. It is listed at $2.25 million.
Today's home in Teton Pines, Wyoming isn't the most expensive or largest in the region but it has a great open style. I love the homes that take the Jackson Hole style of making log cabins on steroids and turn it into something lavish but also modern and intimate. The home sits on the fourth hole of the Teton Pines Golf Course. It measures 6512 square feet and has four bedrooms. The open floor plan features high pitched ceilings and a juxtaposition of stone walls and light wood for an airy feel. I'm not sure what the upholstered chairs are doing in the kitchen, it looks a little like an office but overall the use of white oak and and big windows facing the mountain views have me sold on this home. Also worthy of note is the master suite which features a fireplace, a dry sauna and a steam shower. This home is listed at $4.95 million.
Overall the condo market is still struggling but there are pockets of exuberant planning. In the Nashville neighborhood of Belle Meade, Tennessee there are three projects planned that offer luxury housing for empty nesters. Belle Meade is already home to a wide variety of large luxury homes but now developers are betting some of these homeowners might be looking for something a little smaller and less time consuming.
Belle Meade Court offers both condos and townhomes and at prices from $400,000 to $750,000 is the least expensive. It is the only one currently under construction. The Manning at Belle Meade, shown above, which is planning construction by the end of the year, offers two bedrooms under 2,000 square feet up to penthouses over 5,000 square feet. Community amenities include an entertaining salon and dining room, catering kitchen, guest suite, private wine storage, a library, fitness center, business center, pool and croquet lawn. Prices range from $950,000 to $5 million. The third project, 112 Harding Place, is in limbo until the market heats up again but is located near the Belle Meade Country Club and offers units from just under 3,000 square feet to over 5,000 square feet and are expected to be priced from $1.3 million to nearly $2.8 million.
Given the current real estate market it does seem likely that at least one of these projects probably won't make it to completion. Their success hinges on the interest of retiring baby boomers willing to invest in condo life.
When faced with a property with an impossibly hefty price tag we have to ask the question is it worth it? This one seems pretty promising. It's a 25-room red brick residence with 100ft of frontage along Park Avenue and situated between 64th and 65th Street in one of New York City's prime neighborhoods.The home was built in 1920 but has been renovated with new heating and air conditioning, a mechanical elevator, security and electrical systems. The home has southern and western exposures and views onto Park Avenue. There is a sunny yellow chef's kitchen and pantry, five large bedrooms, large formal rooms for entertaining, many staff rooms, a laundry, a wine room, a play room and space for a lavish home theater. Older touches of charm include the wood burning fireplaces, a marble staircase and hardwood plank floors. At $35 million, it's among the ranks of the most expensive pieces of real estate in the city.
Wisteria Hill in New Canaan, Connecticut is a 1910 estate drenched in genteel charm. The large home sits on 8.66 acres that include landscaping that appears straight out of a garden magazine. The home is out of the pages of Architectural Digest. A particularly charming detail is the white and blue tile fireplace surround in the breakfast room. Often window treatments give me the vapors, but in this case, the vibrant window shades offer a nice pop of color in this very elegant home. There is a two-bedroom guest house over the large garage. This home is listed at $11.2 million.
