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A look back at 9 luxe homes with unforgettable price cuts
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Nine bizarre home listings that will shock and surprise
But who would buy these properties?
One of the most popular real estate social media accounts belongs to Zillow Gone Wild. The social phenomenon boasts more than 2 million followers on its platforms.
Zillow Gone Wild has gained enough popularity to make the leap from the internet to television. HGTV has commissioned a nine-episode series featuring zany listings, capped by a one-hour finale.
Its social media success isn’t necessarily a surprise. People found themselves increasingly obsessed with scouring properties on Zillow during the pandemic, dreaming of living out lockdown anywhere but where they were. Zillow Gone Wild, which launched in 2021, felt like a natural extension of that desire, taking it to its logical extreme.
There’s always going to be an appetite for consumers to gawk at wacky home listings, even if they have no desire to actually buy said homes. Thankfully, there’s no shortage of bizarre homes on the market at any given time.
With that in mind, here are some of the most interesting listings that recently caught our eye.
461 Silvernails Road | Pine Plains, NY | $25 million
This Hudson Valley estate has been on the market for months, but recently received the Zillow Gone Wild treatment. The heiress of late hotelier Sol Kerzner put the 130-acre Columbia County estate on the market in the spring, hoping to get a county record $25 million in a deal. Among the 7,500-square-foot home’s features are 26-foot high ceilings in the living room, perhaps leaving residents feeling like they’re watching the NFL or “Real Housewives” in a palace. Compass’ Leonard Steinberg shares the listing with Byron Anderson.
22072 Pine Lake Road | Battle Creek, MI | $5.8 million
On the surface, nothing seems particularly odd about this home in Battle Creek, completed only five years ago. It’s certainly luxurious: a 13,500-square-foot mansion overlooking a lake, a greenhouse and three other homes on the property, which spans an unfathomable 319 acres. A stroll around the grounds, however, unveils something even more extravagant: a 5,000-square-foot bunker. The hidden structure includes living space for up to 20 people, two kitchens, a grow room and a shooting range, according to the Detroit News. If the zombie apocalypse arrives, there will be at least one prepared homeowner in Michigan. Five Star Real Estate’s Mary Noneman is marketing the property.
765 Price Canyon Road | Pismo Beach, CA | $3.4 million
Welcome buyers to the old saloon. This canyon retreat in Pismo Beach spans nearly seven acres, dominated by its 5,000-square-foot main residence. The home is less than a mile from the beach and there are five dwelling units on the property, which has many different features to enhance its private nature, including a yoga platform. It’s a home that wouldn’t be possible to construct under contemporary zoning laws. Century 21 Hometown Realty’s Blake Chaffee has the listing.
4101 Humphrey Street | St. Louis, MO | $2.5 million
Was this what Hozier was referencing in his hit song, “Take Me to Church?” The St. Louis religious building is nearing one year on the market, but still lacks a buyer, even after it gained notoriety from Zillow Gone Wild. It was built in 1929 but was recently renovated. There’s 11,000 square feet in the church itself, plus 5,000 square feet in an attached rectory. An advertising agency has taken up residence in the church while Ted Wight of Sotheby’s International Realty markets the property.
85 East Canyonview Drive | Ransom Canyon, TX | $2 million
Robert Bruno died before he could finish the Steel House, but that didn’t stop it from becoming a vacation rental and fodder for Zillow connoisseurs everywhere. As the name suggests, the three-bedroom, three-bathroom home is made of heavy steel and is styled in a fashion reminiscent of something out of “Star Wars” or the Pixar animated universe. The 2,400-square-foot home has appeared on Zillow Gone Wild. Monument Realty’s Courtney Bartosh has the listing.
160 Johnson Dairy Road | Rockwell, NC | $675,000
For reasons that aren’t hard to surmise, this property is named “The Pyramids,” according to the listing. It looks like someone stepped straight out of Egypt and onto the field-covered streets of North Carolina. Both of the pyramid-shaped buildings are livable spaces and are connected by a breezeway with a sunroom, screened porch and covered deck. If a buyer can cope with their 3,700-square-foot home being pyramids, they can surely embrace the 18-acre plot with six pastures and a creek. DM Properties & Associates has the listing; no word if Cleopatra was an agent for the firm in the past.
26 Coastline Drive | Inman, SC | $595,000
Once again, the shape of a home is the most interesting feature it has. There’s a strange quality to this 2,000-square-foot home in South Carolina, which has three bedrooms and three bathrooms. It looks like it could explode if it tries to drink just one more glass of water. Or maybe it was cast in “Rolie Polie Olie.” There’s 73 feet of water frontage with a dock and a nearby patio. Leslie Horne and Associates has the listing for the property, which was originally listed at $650,000 last June, according to Zillow.
2569 North 46th Road | Somonauk, IL | $475,000
It’s a bird! It’s a plane! It’s a spaceship doubling as a home! That’s what someone might think of 2569 North 46th Road in Somonauk, built 20 years ago for the late Chicago radio psychic Joe Tufano, who hosted a show under the name Joe Who. The four-bedroom, 4,000-square-foot home is essentially circular, curved all around. At one point, a Canadian firm added a motor to help the home rotate, though it’s not operational. The home isn’t currently on the market, but has been floating on and off listing services for months, so it may zoom back on to the public scene soon. Ro Malik, an agent at Keller Williams One Chicago, represents the seller.
360 Beach 59th Street | Queens, NY | $225,000
This listing in Rockaway Beach offers something much more unique than a house — a houseboat. The funkily-designed home was built in 1968 and has a spacious lower level with a full kitchen, living room and office. The deck has a bedroom with French doors opening out to a “roof” deck. The boat is docked at Marina 59 via a lease, but would need to be towed to another marina if desired, as the boat is immobile. Naruetai Tongsomboon of Re/Max Elite holds the listing.
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