America's most expensive homes, where you living?

[circleme]

Yes, because you're analyzing ownership through the prism of a middle-class existence.

I also think that is the main reason. Maybe an attitude like mine will change suddenly if you have the appropriate financial resources. Maybe it's just because it seems so surreal to me when I compare such possessions with my status quo.

 

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[MJ DeMarco]

I also think that is the main reason. Maybe an attitude like mine will change suddenly if you have the appropriate financial resources. Maybe it's just because it seems so surreal to me when I compare such possessions with my status quo.

Think of someone cooking, cleaning, landscaping, and doing everything for you ... you live like a king. That's what happens when money no longer becomes an issue. And if you think you have to manage those people, you can still hire a manager that does all those management tasks.

I wish I was at that level (I can hire people to manage the house but I still have to manage the people I hire).

 

[Kak]

Yes, because you're analyzing ownership through the prism of a middle-class existence.

Homes like this are managed by other people and made hassle free, most likely, just like the owner's company which allowed the owner to afford this huge house in the first place.

I bought my house and an optional "caretaker" came with the home, as long as I was willing to pay his salary. He would take care of all the hassles you errantly predict would steal your freedom.

Gold. The same way people think a bigger business with more resources deprives them of freedom.

 

[MTF]

Think of someone cooking, cleaning, landscaping, and doing everything for you ... you live like a king. That's what happens when money no longer becomes an issue. And if you think you have to manage those people, you can still hire a manager that does all those management tasks.

I wish I was at that level (I can hire people to manage the house but I still have to manage the people I hire).

Having all these strangers at my home every day sounds like a nightmare. I find it interesting that it wouldn't bother you considering you're also an introvert.

 

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[UK_Mike]

Having all these strangers at my home every day sounds like a nightmare. I find it interesting that it wouldn't bother you considering you're also an introvert.

And to me, but I guess the advantage of having a massive house is you could probably avoid them most of the time, let them get on with what they need to be doing. I kind-of see the difficulty of a big house, and that is from my current small-minded viewpoint, but I guess no-one builds a nice, small, manageable house on a plot in a wonderful location. What developer would do that?

 

[MTF]

guess no-one builds a nice, small, manageable house on a plot in a wonderful location. What developer would do that?

Not sure about the US/UK but elsewhere you can buy your own plot of land and build your own house the way you want it. There's no need to buy from a developer, particularly since most developers build whole neighborhoods with too many houses right by each other.

Also, I saw plenty of incredible and not big houses in excellent locations in Australia, New Zealand and Spain.

I'm even staying now in a house in Greece that has three bedrooms, a million dollar view and is on one hectare of land, surrounded by six hectares of olive grove. You wouldn't need to hire anyone to maintain it.

 

[Lex DeVille]

you're also an introvert.

The bigger your house, the more places you can hide from people.

 

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[Antifragile]

I’m a highly functional introvert. I can impress groups with my networking skills and can do a good job with public speaking. But I enjoy my alone time and crave it. It is reflected in my choice of sports, my meditation practice etc.

That said, I see no conflict with having staff / employees. Both at the office and at my house. Just the same as I don’t see a conflict with having a pilot on a plane or someone making me a latte at a cafe.

At a house, some (like @MTF ) may see it as an escape from others. Yet that’s where my family and I live in peace. People who take care of our needs here, aren’t in the way, they help.

I’ve never understood folks on this forum who oppose having employees. It’s just another skill to learn - no different than whatever skills feeds you today. It’s a way to save time, earn more money, and create the life on your terms. All the while helping someone else pay their bills through employment.

The houses in this thread prove it, no solo-person can buy USD 9-figure priced house.

Sidebar comment: there is a show called ”Alone” - a survival competition where contestants are alone in the wild with some tools and skills… whoever lasts the longest, wins. Most people quit because they are missing other people. Even those who are introverts. Yet a few can truly stay alone and it’s the hunger or illness that typically gets them. In short, to each their own. But those who love avoiding all human contact aren’t buying these houses because they can‘t.

 

[MTF]

I’m a highly functional introvert. I can impress groups with my networking skills and can do a good job with public speaking. But I enjoy my alone time and crave it. It is reflected in my choice of sports, my meditation practice etc.

That said, I see no conflict with having staff / employees. Both at the office and at my house. Just the same as I don’t see a conflict with having a pilot on a plane or someone making me a latte at a cafe.

At a house, some (like @MTF ) may see it as an escape from others. Yet that’s where my family and I live in peace. People who take care of our needs here, aren’t in the way, they help.

I’ve never understood folks on this forum who oppose having employees. It’s just another skill to learn - no different than whatever skills feeds you today. It’s a way to save time, earn more money, and create the life on your terms. All the while helping someone else pay their bills through employment.

The houses in this thread prove it, no solo-person can buy USD 9-figure priced house.

Sidebar comment: there is a show called ”Alone” - a survival competition where contestants are alone in the wild with some tools and skills… whoever lasts the longest, wins. Most people quit because they are missing other people. Even those who are introverts. Yet a few can truly stay alone and it’s the hunger or illness that typically gets them. In short, to each their own. But those who love avoiding all human contact aren’t buying these houses because they can‘t.

I guess that's a personal preference. My home is for me, my family, and my friends. Not strangers. Having strangers in my house would limit my freedom rather than help me live a life on my terms. I wouldn't be able to walk around naked (yeah better try not to picture that), be in complete peace (because someone would be always around), or just be alone without worrying that I'd stumble upon a cleaner, chef, landscaping guy, etc.

For the same reason, I hate hotels and almost always rent Airbnbs away from it all. This is how I recharge. If I had people constantly around, I'd go crazy.

I don't need help and wouldn't want to live in a huge mansion. It's not a matter of finances or limiting beliefs or whatever. I just prefer a smaller house, no more than maybe 200 square meters (which for the American standards is probably a tiny house) but have it located away from other people.

I sometimes hire someone for a deep clean but otherwise I'd rather clean myself and not have to deal with the stress and potential risk of having a stranger at my home, potentially going through my things. Yes, I know, it depends on who you hire. But to me, it's still not worth the stress and risk.

Same goes for cooking or whatever else you would need to maintain a big house. I'd rather cook myself as otherwise I'd get fat with a chef. I'd rather leave the backyard/garden/plot natural than hire someone to create a fake manicured landscape that consumes tons of resources to keep that way.

I don't avoid people. Rather, I want my home to be the sanctuary where I let in only the people who are closest to me.

Give me this (a random picture from somewhere in Australia that was once for sale that I saved for my vision document) over a huge mansion that requires staff (and/or comes with direct neighbors):

 

[MJ DeMarco]

I guess that's a personal preference. My home is for me, my family, and my friends. Not strangers. Having strangers in my house would limit my freedom rather than help me live a life on my terms. I wouldn't be able to walk around naked (yeah better try not to picture that), be in complete peace (because someone would be always around), or just be alone without worrying that I'd stumble upon a cleaner, chef, landscaping guy, etc.

For the same reason, I hate hotels and almost always rent Airbnbs away from it all. This is how I recharge. If I had people constantly around, I'd go crazy.

I don't need help and wouldn't want to live in a huge mansion. It's not a matter of finances or limiting beliefs or whatever. I just prefer a smaller house, no more than maybe 200 square meters (which for the American standards is probably a tiny house) but have it located away from other people.

I sometimes hire someone for a deep clean but otherwise I'd rather clean myself and not have to deal with the stress and potential risk of having a stranger at my home, potentially going through my things. Yes, I know, it depends on who you hire. But to me, it's still not worth the stress and risk.

Same goes for cooking or whatever else you would need to maintain a big house. I'd rather cook myself as otherwise I'd get fat with a chef. I'd rather leave the backyard/garden/plot natural than hire someone to create a fake manicured landscape that consumes tons of resources to keep that way.

I don't avoid people. Rather, I want my home to be the sanctuary where I let in only the people who are closest to me.

Give me this (a random picture from somewhere in Australia that was once for sale that I saved for my vision document) over a huge mansion that requires staff (and/or comes with direct neighbors):

I'm certainly not one to complain about the general decline in humanity and the desire to live in the boonies, away from the big city.

Yet, you describe avoiding people like the plague for several paragraphs, and then say, I don't avoid people. So I tend to believe the former, not the latter. Complete isolation to the point you don't want to hire people to make your life easier doesn't sound like happiness; it sounds like paranoia and neurosis, like a bad, overused Hollywood trope.

Sadly, it sounds like you don't need a home, you need a bunker and barbed wire fence.

On some days I must admit, I feel the same.

 

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[MTF]

Yet, you describe avoiding people like the plague for several paragraphs, and then say, I don't avoid people. So I tend to believe the former, not the latter. Complete isolation to the point you don't want to hire people to make your life easier doesn't sound like happiness; it sounds like paranoia and neurosis, like a bad, overused Hollywood trope.

I'm not sure if my writing sucks these days or if it's a cultural difference or if you're interpreting it a different way.

What I said is that I don't want or need people in my own house. Except for cleaning, I don't need anyone else to make my life easier. My life is easier for me personally when I do the shopping, cooking, etc. I enjoy it. I don't want to outsource it. It would make my life worse.

I do outsource things I can't or don't want to do (like fixing stuff) but I see zero point for me personally in hiring anyone else.

I'm aware that some people would love everyone else to take care of these things for them. I wouldn't want that.

And yes, I prefer living on the outskirts or in the countryside. And yes, I prefer spending time with just one or two people, not be in a crowd. And yes, all things being equal, I'd rather be in a place with fewer people.

And that's as far as my avoiding people goes.

My life would be way easier if I was avoiding people like the plague and being okay with it. Alas, I've been to some remote places where few people live and I would never be able to live there. And to some extent, I wish I was this kind of a loner as it would be way easier to find a great place to live. I saw some spectacular places to live in New Zealand and Australia where you could easily not see anyone ever.

But I like going to nice supermarkets. I like going to restaurants. I like being able to participate in my favorite hobbies which can often only be done with other people. I sometimes even like going to big cities to feel the energy (and then recover in a quiet place).

I also don't have anything against humanity in general and most certainly wouldn't want to live in a bunker. My only need and preference is to have my home for myself, my family, and friends.

-----

Bringing it back to the main topic, I checked the most expensive real estate currently for sale in Poland. The most expensive place that looks like a villa to live in (and not an entire multi-family historic building) is this:

10+ pokojów, dom na sprzedaż - Łomianki, warszawski zachodni, mazowieckie - 64108933 • www.otodom.pl

Fantastyczny więcej niż 10 pokojowy dom na sprzedaż w miejscowości Łomianki, warszawski zachodni, mazowieckie, za cenę 30 000 000 zł. Ten dom na sprzedaż, położony na działce o powierzchni 14 609 m² ma 1 560 m² powierzchni użytkowej i 1 560 m² powierzchni całkowitej. Biuro nieruchomości Jazz...

www.otodom.pl

It costs 30 million PLN which is less than 7 million USD. And it looks like shit for this price. Even the pictures are terrible. What an embarrassing work by the real estate agent.

For comparison, I checked the most expensive houses in one of the best areas of Spain. This one is the most expensive in this area (but not necessarily in all of Spain as the site doesn't allow me to sort all listings by price).

https://www.idealista.com/inmueble/98752013/

Price: 35 million euros (37 million dollars). And that's a baller house in your style (in that it's like a mini resort).

 

[UK_Mike]

^ That place in Spain looks quite nice, but it's very close to other buildings, and not even similarly-sized ones.

 

[MTF]

^ That place in Spain looks quite nice, but it's very close to other buildings, and not even similarly-sized ones.

Yep not my style but definitely a style many people from this forum would love. It's a part of a super expensive neighborhood so you're paying for status, security and potential networking.

My style (the location, not the house in itself) is more like this (I wish the listing for one house I found a few months ago was still active as it was much better than this):

https://www.idealista.com/inmueble/101939069/

I wouldn't necessarily want to live there as it's a very dry climate area and I like greener surroundings. But that's just to show that you can get a private house for less than 500,000 euros. No direct neighbors, nature around, looks quiet. And it's 20 minutes from the towns and beaches.

But the style I personally love the most and consider by far the most beautiful in the world is the modern Australian style. Something like this is almost perfect (almost as it looks like the neighbors are close and the plot of land isn't that big plus the house is too huge):

https://www.realestate.com.au/property-house-qld-doonan-142981836

But of course, that's over 5 million AUD and not half a million euros lol.

 

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[Bigguns50]

What a cool thread and a very inspiring article. I don't spend much money but if there's one thing I still want to spend money on, it's real estate.

Currently I'm only spending money renting Airbnbs in cool places. But once I find a place I really enjoy, I'd love to buy or build a house there.

My dream is to own 2-3 houses around the world, have them all furnished the way I like and with exact copies of all of my stuff (like clothes, sports gear, etc.). Then I'd travel between them with only the most personal items in my carry-on backpack so that it's super easy to move between them.

As cool as it is to try different Airbnbs, something is always wrong with each place. Either the outdoor furniture is terrible, or there's a little too much noise from a nearby road, or the bed could be more comfortable, or they lack some useful appliances, or the entrance gate is a pain to open, or the Internet connection is slow, or a neighbor is loud, etc.

Then there's also all the research and the worry that even after all this research, you'll still encounter some surprises. And of course, then there's the fact that you can't stay as long as you like as there may be other bookings in the future.

It would be so nice to own 2-3 homes in places you love and set everything up in the same or similar way as that would greatly diminish the time needed to adapt to a new place. As the seasons change, I'd move to always enjoy the best weather and the best lifestyle.

As for expensive houses in general, I never understood how people could spend millions on houses with neighbors right across the fence. I would much rather have a small house on a big lot outside of it all than a big house on a small lot but in a "high-status" neighborhood.

To me, as @MakeItHappen wrote, the only way is to have a house without any direct neighbors. First and foremost, I'm looking for peace and quiet. What's the point of spending a shit ton of money only to still be surrounded by other humans on all sides and never feel 100% free and private in your own home?

My dream is to own 2-3 houses around the world, have them all furnished the way I like and with exact copies of all of my stuff (like clothes, sports gear, etc.).

Dito. I don't know if I want houses, condos, or a combination.

First and foremost, I'm looking for peace and quiet. What's the point of spending a shit ton of money only to still be surrounded by other humans on all sides and never feel 100% free and private in your own home?

Yep. Been in the city. Been in a small town. Definitely prefer a small town that is an hour's drive to a big city for necessities like health care.

 

[ZackerySprague]

Looking at the Timber Cabin style homes. Not sure yet, but I do love Nature.

 

[MJ DeMarco]

Looking at the Timber Cabin style homes. Not sure yet, but I do love Nature.

These are the guys who are doing my Timber home in Sedona, if I ever get around to doing it.

PrecisionCraft Log & Timber Homes | Custom Log Home Builder

PrecisionCraft is a world-wide leader in the design and production of custom log homes and timber frame homes.

www.precisioncraft.com

 

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[ZackerySprague]

These are the guys who are doing my Timber home in Sedona, if I ever get around to doing it.

PrecisionCraft Log & Timber Homes | Custom Log Home Builder

PrecisionCraft is a world-wide leader in the design and production of custom log homes and timber frame homes.

www.precisioncraft.com

View attachment 55365

I got the photo from that website, actually. Lol.

 

[ZackerySprague]

These are the guys who are doing my Timber home in Sedona, if I ever get around to doing it.

PrecisionCraft Log & Timber Homes | Custom Log Home Builder

PrecisionCraft is a world-wide leader in the design and production of custom log homes and timber frame homes.

www.precisioncraft.com

View attachment 55365

I have a feeling you will get it done .

 

[ZackerySprague]

These are the guys who are doing my Timber home in Sedona, if I ever get around to doing it.

PrecisionCraft Log & Timber Homes | Custom Log Home Builder

PrecisionCraft is a world-wide leader in the design and production of custom log homes and timber frame homes.

www.precisioncraft.com

View attachment 55365

Park City Residence - Precision Craft

Check Out Our Work! Get a look at The Park City Residence, an Modern Interpretation of a Rustic Ski-Home. Contact Us for Your Dream Home.

www.precisioncraft.com

 

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[Midnightbast111]

I live in Sacramento