The world’s most expensive homes’ list starts with the most recently completed Antilla in Mumbai and ends with an ancient Dracula’s Castle in Romania. While geographically these homes share very little in common, all the homes on this list can lay claim to affluent owners, architectural excellence and extravagance in more than one form.
This list of the top 10 most expensive homes in the world features mansions, castles, villas, a penthouse and a historical museum.
1. Antilla
2. Villa Leopolda
3. The Penthouse
4. Fairfield Pond
5. Hearst Mansion
6. Franchuk Villa
7. The Pinnacle
8. The Manor
9. Updown Court
10. Dracula’s Castle
The world’s first billion dollar home is Antilla, a custom built 27 storey mansion. This is the home to one of the world’s richest men – Mukesh Ambani, who is the head of Reliance Industries, the largest company in India in terms of market capitalization. The house boasts of a helipad, health club and a six floor garage where close to 170 cars can be parked. At 570 feet height, the mansion is mostly made of glass, has double height ceilings with crystal chandeliers.
Ballrooms, retractable stages and a movie theatre are additional features of this $1 billion home in Mumbai. This ultra modern mansion requires a staff of 600 servants, assistants and security guards who have entourage rooms at the Antilla.
King Leopold II of Belgium built an 80,000 square foot estate called the Villa Leopolda. While unqualified rumors about the owners of the $520 million villa still exist, reports suggest that the house belongs to a banker Edmond Safra, whose wife Lily currently occupies the house. This 19 bedroom villa faces the French Riviera and features some of the most enviable gardens in the world. The estate has a bowling alley, a movie theatre and sports courts.
This villa also has multiple kitchens and dining rooms and in addition to this has a beautiful display of antiques. Villa Leopolda is considered to evoke the Belle Epoque period of European history and is therefore considered a Monument Historique amongst the famous Louvre and Eiffel Tower.
Estimated at $200 million, The Penthouse in London is the most expensive flat in the world. Situated atop one of the most coveted and affluent addresses in London- Number One Hyde Park, The Penthouse is catered to by the best of security. British SAS guards from Special Forces, iris scanners and bullet proof windows are some of the security features offered to residents at The Penthouse.
The building also features panic rooms and a secret tunnel that leads to a nearby Mandarin hotel. Additional amenities at The Penthouse include wine tasting rooms, squash courts and communal spas. In addition to these luxuries, residents at The Penthouse have access to 24 hour room service.
Ira Rennert’s home in Sagaponack, New York estimated to be at a $190 million is the most valuable house in the Hamptons and also one of the most expensive homes in the United States of America. The house located on 250,000 square meters property derives its name from the Fairfield Pond that the property overlooks.
The main building spans over 10,000 square feet, has an Italian façade, close to 30 bedroom and 40 bathrooms. Fairfield Pond features nearly a dozen chimneys, a Mediterranean style roof and a $150,000 hot tub. It also has a basket ball court, a bowling alley, two squash courts and two tennis courts.
The Hearst Mansion was the former residence of publisher William Randolf Hearst and it showcases 29 bedrooms, 3 swimming pools, a disco room and a theatre. This $165 million home has featured in The Godfather and was resided in briefly by President J F Kennedy during a short visit to the Beverly Hills. This mansion built in the 1920s and spanning over 6 acres was purchased by William Hearst in 1976. He then put up this Beverly Hills mansion for sale in 2007 but took it off the market when buyers did not show interest in the exorbitantly priced property.
Elena Franchuk bought a girl’s preparatory school in 1997 and transformed it into the Franchuk Villa in 2006. This $160 million 5 storey Victorian Villa underwent a refurbishment after it was bought by the AIDS philanthropist. Now the villa stands to include 10 bedrooms, a gymnasium, an underground indoor swimming pool and a panic room after a 10 million pound upgrade was done on this southwest London home.
The Yellowstone Club in Montana is a billionaires-only ski and golf club that shares its owners Time and Edra Blixseth with The Pinnacle. Their residence, The Pinnacle is considered to be the largest and most extravagant property on the Yellowstone Club. The Pinnacle has 10 bedrooms, which have interesting features like the equalized heating system because of which every point of the Montana home’s floor is heated, and so is its driveway. The $155 million house also has fireplaces in each of its bathrooms and an enormous wine cellar. This is considered to be one of the most expensive residences to be made on golf property.
Cindy Spelling has christened her home with late television producer Aaron Spelling as The Manor. This $150 million home has 123 rooms, multiple pools and three kitchens. The Manor also has an indoor skating rink, a bowling alley, a private orchard and sports courts. Aaron Spelling’s home was constructed in 1991 and includes an exclusive room for wrapping gifts, a doll museum and one floor dedicated as closet space. The house’s living space is spread over 56,500 square feet of land and occupies 2.4 hectares of the most desired Los Angeles property.
The Updown Court is currently valued at close $140 million and is considered to be one of the most expensive homes in the world. At 40,000 square feet, the Updown Court at Windlesham, Surrey is considered to be larger than Buckingham Palace.
One factor that sets this home apart from the others is that it consists of 22 bedrooms and 27 bathrooms, which have 24 carat gold leaf mosaic floors in each of them. Beside this exotic feature, the 103 bedroom mansion includes a bowling alley, five swimming pools and a private theatre. The Updown Court’s foyer staircase is believed to be modeled after the stairs in Gianni Versace’s Miami mansion.
This $135 million castle was built in Romania in the 14th century and is currently considered to be a national monument. Dracula’s Castle has 57 bedrooms, of which 17 consist of antiques and artifacts that is open to the 450 million tourists visiting the castle every year. This is because the castle not only serves as a manor but also a museum, which showcases Old World furniture and antiques that were handcrafted.
