Most Incredible Megamansions in the World
There's no textbook definition for how big a mansion is, but most people would say a house enters mansion territory at around 5,000 square feet. To be a megamansion, a house would have to be at least 10,000 square feet.
And to live up to the "mega" part of the name, it's reasonable to expect a megamansion to have some luxurious and over-the-top features. Like indoor pools, ancient Greek-style statues and bedrooms with retina-scanner locks.
These megamansions from around the world are awesome — and sometimes they're just awesomely tacky. Are they worth the price? You be the judge.
Stonewall Farm
Value: $100 million
Location: Westchester, New York
Square footage: 24,000
Number of bedrooms: 8
Number of bathrooms: 8
Stonewall Farm Unique Features
This house has everything you need to balance work and life.
Private elevator, 4,000 square-foot pool house with gym, 60-foot swimming pool, indoor zen garden, wine cellar, pub, tasting room, professional equestrian facilities, cattle farm, hayfields, apple orchids, eight staff residences, caretaker's house, 740 acres of land.
Can you say om?
Stonewall Farm: Bottom Line
Stonewall Farm is one of the most expensive properties up for sale in the entire world, with the seller pricing his 740-acre estate at a hopeful $100 million. The seller is Barry K. Schwartz, co-founder of Calvin Klein and a thoroughbred horse breeder. He, along with his wife, Sheryl, have produced winners of 40 stakes races, with a few galloping in the Kentucky Derby.
Schwartz purchased nearly the entire swath of 740 acres for a mere $3.25 million in 1979 before venturing into the racing business, according to Mansion Global. The main house, a plantation-style colonial, was built in 2003. That alone encompasses 24,000 square feet.
The Boyd Residence
Value: $66 million
Location: Sydney, Australia
Square footage: 25,833
Number of bedrooms: 4
Number of bathrooms: 5
The Boyd Residence Unique Features
How this for uniqueness — 360-degree views of the harbor, wine cellar, study, gym, rooftop pool, Art Deco interiors, furnished with 200 pieces of furniture, floor-to-ceiling windows?
Not too shabby.
Bottom Line: The Boyd Residence
It doesn't have to be a freestanding home to be a megamansion, as the Boyd Residence clearly proves. Located in the heart of Sydney, Australia, the Boyd Residence is a massive three-story penthouse of nearly 26,000 square feet with Art Deco-inspired interiors designed by Blainey North. Each of the home's five full bathrooms are decked out in marble.
The apartment is billed as the most expensive penthouse in Australia and was built by property developer John Boyd, who lives there with his family. It's been on the market since 2018. International buyers, who probably would have been the home's target market, can't buy it.
Australia enacted laws in 2015 forbidding the purchase of established properties by foreign buyers.
The One
Value: $500 million
Location: Los Angeles, California
Square footage: 100,000
Number of bedrooms: 20
Number of bathrooms: 30
The One Unique Features
This mansion has a nightclub, 30-car gallery, IMAX theater, jellyfish room, moats, champagne cellar stocked with $250,000 of Cristal and a bowling alley.
Bottom Line: The One
"The One" is a spec home built by Nile Niama, a movie producer turned real estate developer who creates mansions for the ultra, ultra-rich. But at this point, we're not sure if "The One" will ever be done.
Society Group PR started its PR blast back in 2017, touting this as the most expensive home in America way before it was even finished. Construction of the property began in 2013, so we're going on seven years without finding the "The One." Maybe they've been leading us on this entire time.
At $500 million, it's one of the most expensive homes in the world. But chances are, it won't sell for that much, if and when it ever hits the market. Spec houses rarely do.
924 Bel Air Road
Value: $94 million
Location: Bel-Air, California
Square footage: 38,000
Number of bedrooms: 12
Number of bathrooms: 21
924 Bel Air Road Unique Features
That $94 million value includes a helicopter pad, infinity pool with a 20-foot 4K TV, downtown Los Angeles views, three kitchens, full-fledged bar, gym, massage parlor and a massive wine cellar.
Bottom Line: 924 Bel Air Road
We're starting to see a trend here: A giant spec house is put on sale for an exorbitant amount of money, makes a huge PR splash, there's a media blitz about it, and then the house sits on the market for years until it sells not with a bang, but a whisper.
That's what happened to 924 Bel Air, once dubbed the world's most expensive home for quite a while because of its $250 million price tag, which included a fleet of expensive cars — including a Bugatti and a Rolls-Royce — and personal servants.
But the house was just way too over the top. It sat on the market like a huge, garish hillside ode to the nouveau riche for a year before dropping to $188 million, and then selling for $94 million (38 percent of its original listing price) in 2019.
The polished steel staircase reportedly cost $2 million, so we think this one didn't make a lot of money — and there were probably no Bugattis with the purchase.
UNICA
Value: $100 million
Location: Los Angeles
Square footage: 41,000
Number of bedrooms: 8
Number of bathrooms: 21
UNICA Unique Features
The house has a basketball court, 1,200-bottle wine cellar, recording studio, gym, 75-foot indoor pool, 75-foot outdoor pool, weatherproof outdoor television and a 36-person theater.
Bottom Line: UNICA
This is another spec house designed to lure the ultra-rich to the ritzy Bel-Air neighborhood of Los Angeles.
UNICA (in all caps, so you know you're buying big-time property) was finished in May 2020 and blends the Spanish villa style with everything cartoonishly rich people could ever want.
Like an indoor basketball court, car gallery, and huge outdoor television to watch the rest of the world from a 75-foot infinity pool.
Signature Villa
Value: $54.5 million
Location: Dubai, United Arab Emirates
Square footage: 42,000
Number of bedrooms: 11
Number of bathrooms: Unlisted
Signature Villa Unique Features
Unique features include a resort-style pool, floating glass staircases, floor-to-ceiling windows, indoor pool and spa, state-of-the-art theater, nightclub, gym and a waterfront location.
Bottom Line: Signature Villa
This "Signature Villa '' is a modern 11-bedroom villa right on the end of a man-made peninsula on the island of Palm Jumeriah in Dubai.
There are four expansive living areas and enough place on the 42,000 square-foot property to accommodate 16 staff, with a nightclub that can hold 200 people.
It looks sort of like an office building, although less so than Pharell Williams' house.
Going Greek in Beverly Hills
Value: $26.9 million
Location: Beverly Hills, California
Square footage: 11,000
Number of bedrooms: 8
Number of bathrooms: 11
Going Greek in Beverly Hills Unique Features
It has a Venetian-style stone pool with spa, water features, pool house, detached guest house, custom Greek-like touches, custom fireplace, massive closets, gym, gardens and a half basketball court.
Bottom Line: Going Greek in Beverly Hills
Whoever built this mega-mansion wasn't just inspired by Greek architecture. They tried to smash entire Renaissance paintings into house form.
There are reliefs of Doric columns in some walls and freestanding columns elsewhere. The fireplace in the pool room has been custom-made and includes sports Greek-like reliefs and figures. The builders took the neoclassical style way too far, into the realm of absurdity.
On the plus side, the house does have amazing gardens and an awesome backyard.
Scott McNealy's House
Value: $53.9 million
Location: Palo Alto, California
Square footage: 32,000
Number of bedrooms: 5
Number of bathrooms: 7 full, four half-baths
Scott McNealy's House: Unique Features
Unique features include an indoor sports court, climbing wall, spa, steam room, massage parlor, outdoor patio with three fire features, pavilion, 110-yard golfing area, billiards room, poker room, movie theater, dance floor, wine cellar, convertible pavilion and a panic room.
Bottom Line: Scott McNealy's House
This is Scott McNealy's house, the guy who founded Sun Microsystems and sold it to Oracle Corporation for $7.4 billion in 2010.
Although McNealy insists he's not a billionaire, he pretty much lives like one. McNealy built this home over a period of seven years. It's a combined 32,000-square-foot, four-level estate nestled in the hills of Palo Alto, California.
Set on 13 acres, the house and property are stuffed with all kinds of recreational activities, including a 7,300-square foot pavilion "that can host car collections, ice hockey, tennis, horses, gymnastics, art studios, you name it," according to the listing.
Spelling Manor
Value: $120 million
Location: Holmby Hills, California
Square footage: 56,500
Number of bedrooms: 14
Number of bathrooms: 27
Spelling Manor Unique Features
It has 123 rooms, a bowling alley, hair salon, flower-cutting room, doll collection room, nightclub, fish tanks and more square footage than the White House.
Bottom Line: Spelling Manor
Spelling Manor is one of the most notorious megamansions in all the land. Originally built by legendary television producer Aaron Spelling for his wife, Candy, in 1988, the home has long since been ridiculed for being a ridiculously large display of excessive wealth.
The house no longer belongs to the Spellings and has since been remodeled by Petra Ecclestone. Ecclestone bought the mansion for $85 million when she was 23, then sold it for $120 million in 2019, $80 million less than her original asking price of $200 million.
For a more in-depth look at the history of Spelling Manor, check out our story.
Darlington
Value: $48 million
Location: Mahwah, New Jersey
Square footage: 50,000
Number of bedrooms: 21
Number of bathrooms: 29
Darlington: Unique Features
Want a 110-year-old Aeolian organ? This mansion has that.
It also has an indoor sauna, wine cellar, cigar room, hand-carved woodwork, 30-foot-high ceilings, a library, theater, beauty salon and double master wing.
Bottom Line: Darlington
A megamansion from another time, Darlington was built in the early 1900s by railroad magnate Charles Crocker. The home is made of Harvard brick and Indiana limestone, and the interior is stuffed with old-world furnishings and hand-carved woodwork.
The house used to be around 38,000 square feet, but then the owners decided to add another 12,000 square feet of living space, likely for the modern amenities such as the built-in spa room and home theater.
Darlington originally went up for sale at $48 million in 2018, but the price tag has since been removed and replaced with a much more distinguished "price upon request."
Villa St. Pierre
Value: $46 million
Location: Los Angeles
Square footage: 36,000
Number of bedrooms: 8
Number of bathrooms: 20
Villa St. Pierre Unique Features
We're talking about an indoor swimming pool, bowling alley, gym, indoor racquetball court and theater.
Bottom Line: Villa St. Pierre
Villa St. Pierre is a 36,000-square-foot megamansion located in Bel-Air, where it sits atop a 47,900-square-foot lot. The house takes up nearly the entire plot of land.
Past the wrought-iron gates and inside the Mediterranean-inspired villa, you'll find spiral staircases, a wall-length black marble fireplace and an indoor pool among other luxury features.
According to realtor.com, the house also was up for rent for $75,000 per month as of 2018. That's just $2,500 a day, or $104 per hour.
Fashionably Massive
Value: $68 million
Location: Los Angeles
Square footage: 30,000
Number of bedrooms: 17
Number of bathrooms: 22
Fashionably Massive: Unique Features
It has 60 rooms, Japanese and French gardens, a pool house with floor-to-ceiling marble tiling, 6,000-square-foot movie theater with a catering kitchen, greenhouse and funky design choices.
Bottom Line: Fashionably Massive
This is fashion designer Lubov Azria's house, who married fashion designer Max Azria. Together, they ran BCBG Max Azria for many years. Max died in 2019, and Lubov is selling her megamansion, possibly to downsize.
The 30,000-square-foot, 60-room mansion first went on the market for $85 million in 2015, then for $78 million in 2019, shortly after Max's death.
Built by architect Paul Williams in the 1930s, the plantation-style house has been remodeled and redesigned for a much more modern buyer.
Rancho Art House
Value: $39 million
Location: Rancho Santa Fe, California
Square footage: 22,500 square feet
Number of bedrooms: 6 bedrooms
Number of bathrooms: 7 bathrooms
Rancho Art House Unique Features
This megamansion is the definition of unique with custom-designed geometric architecture, a floating glass staircase, indoor firepit, curved kitchen, amazing fireplaces and art installation.
Bottom Line: Rancho Art House
This living piece of art — which we're brilliantly dubbing the Rancho Art House — is absolutely striking.
There are angles and geometric shapes and glass everywhere. It's a house that doubles as a sculpture.
Built in 2008, this unusual megamansion has been on the market since 2017, when it first listed at $45 million.
Baldridge House
Value: $6.9 million
Location: Fort Worth, Texas
Square footage: 11,725
Number of bedrooms: 6
Number of bathrooms: 6
Baldridge House Unique Features
Unique features include a converted bank vault, regular bank vault, carved wood paneling, two-level garage, diving pool and outdoor pizza oven.
Bottom Line: Baldridge House
The Baldrige House is a historic property that was erected in 1910, built for the rancher and banker Earl Baldridge.
It originally had a bank vault in its basement, but that has now been converted into a media room.
However, the current owners, during their extensive renovation work, placed another vault in the house as an ode to its history, according to realtor.com.
Simpson Castle
Value: $6.975 million
Location: Fort Worth, Texas
Square footage: 24,093
Number of bedrooms: 7
Number of bathrooms: 16
Simpson Castle Unique Features
It has castle-like features, indoor pool, room-sized closet with automatic shoe racks, huge private study, elevator, two kitchens, courtyard, indoor golf simulator, craft area and expansive pool.
Bottom Line: Simpson Castle
This is the house of Bob R. Simpson, co-founder of XTO Energy and co-owner of the Texas Rangers, who is worth several hundred million dollars.
It looks kind of like if the rocker Slash blended his house with a castle, and not like the house you would expect a man in his 60s to have.
The 2006-built megamansion has over 24,000 square feet of living space with stone walls that resemble a castle, a rockstar-style indoor pool, three private offices, an office with black coffered ceilings and three wet bars throughout the home. This guy parties.
Villa Paradiso
Value: $18 million
Location: Middletown, New Jersey
Square footage: 16,000
Number of bedrooms: 6
Number of bathrooms: 8
Villa Paradiso Unique Feataures
Unique features include an Italian granite courtyard, fountains, koi ponds, two-story marble foyer, sunken living room, theater, wine cellar, tasting room, kitchen with two islands, coffered ceilings, stenciled plaster and an enormous aquarium.
Bottom Line: Villa Paradiso
Villa Paradiso (full name: Villa Paradiso on the Navesink) is a 16,000-square-foot, 2007-built Tuscan villa with a show-stopping centerpiece: a 20,000-gallon aquarium that takes up an entire wall in the bar. Above it, a piece of the ceiling, painted with a sea turtle, can retract and produce a disco ball.
Other features of this 24-room mansion include a movie theater with a 110-inch screen, another large (but not gigantic) fish tank in an office and a 1,500-bottle wine cellar with a tasting room.
Owlwood
Value: $115 million
Location: Los Angeles, California
Square footage: 50,000
Number of bedrooms: 9
Number of bathrooms: 10
Owlwood Unique Features
It has a sunroom, library, Olympic-sized swimming pool, pool house, gardens, two-story stair hall, historic touches, custom woodwork, crown moldings and historic pedigree.
Bottom Line: Owlwood
Owlwood is one of the most expensive homes in Los Angeles. Built in 1932, the Italian revival estate has an entertaining history. One of the home's previous owners, Hotel Bel-Air founder Joseph Drown, is suspected to have started his affair with Marilyn Monroe at Owlwood and frequented the historic megamansion regularly.
It was later owned by an oil magnate and then Sonny and Cher, who outfitted the classy home with 18th-century furniture, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
It's been on the market for quite a while and is still waiting for the next buyer to turn a page in its history.
Texas Mega Chateau
Value: $30 million
Location: Houston, Texas
Square footage: 26,401
Number of bedrooms: 8
Number of bathrooms: 12
Texas Mega Chateau Unique Features
Unique features include a looking pool with water features, pool, gardens, moldings, white marble, hand-scraped hardwood floors, marble fireplaces and antique boiserie.
Bottom Line: Texas Mega Chateau
This neoclassical chateau in Houston, Texas, is completely over the top in its attempt to become the next Parthenon.
There are multiple statues sculpted in the Greek and Renaissance traditions, numerous decorative columns, hand-painted ceilings, a gallery dedicated to statue busts and an entire chamber dedicated to looking like you have a lot of money.
Along with some more statues.
Sugar Land Villa
Value: $9.9 million
Location: Sugar Land, Texas
Square footage: 19,180
Number of bedrooms: 9
Number of bathrooms: 10
Sugar Land Villa Unique Features
It has Venetian plaster walls, gold leaf accents, lots of crystal chandeliers, a theater, indoor fountain, two-level foyer, huge chandelier and wrought-iron railings.
Bottom Line: Sugar Land Villa
This megamansion in Sugar Land, Texas, is another example of garish neoclassical design.
The two-story foyer features Corinthian columns, an extravagant chandelier, and a "Tiffany-style" glass-domed ceiling painted with clouds in the Renaissance style, according to the listing.
The foyer looks like it was supposed to be a stunning display of wealth, but it's so ostentatious that it's laughable.
Sky Lane Spec House
Value: $30 million
Location: Los Angeles, California
Square footage: 16,700
Number of bedrooms: 7
Number of bathrooms: 8
Sky Lane Spec House Unique Features
Unique features include two elevators, an infinity pool, gym, sauna, Italian marble driveway, hilltop views and a 20-car auto gallery.
Bottom Line: Sky Lane Spec House
This spec house on Sky Lane in Los Angeles was erected in 2019 and originally went on sale for $42 million in June of that year. Ten months later, that price dropped to $30 million.
The megamansion is reminiscent of other recent Los Angeles spec homes: ultra-modern, set on a hill, sweeping views, retractable glass walls for indoor/outdoor living and an infinity pool.
The real question is, how much did it cost to build, and how much does it need to sell for to break even?
Wish Castle
Value: $11.2 million
Location: San Juan Capistrano, California
Square footage: 15,883
Number of bedrooms: 9
Number of bathrooms: 12
Wish Castle Unique Features
Unique features include a butterfly staircase, elevator, wine cellar, library, grotto, Jacuzzi, children's pool, game room, guest quarters, mother-in-law quarters, two dishwashers, butler's pantry and a six-car garage space.
Bottom Line: Wish Castle
Wish Castle was built in 1989 and is somehow less offensive than the other neoclassical megamansions. Sure, it looks like a castle, and the interior is rather ridiculous, but at least there aren't marble columns and Greek statues every five feet.
The mansion was originally built by Robert L. Wish, a property developer, and since then has only had one other owner. It has some serious security, too, as the house is secured behind three gates.
The home can come furnished for the right price, according to the OC Register.
House of Zen
Value: $350,000/month
Location: Pacific Palisades, California
Square footage: 20,000
Number of bedrooms: 6
Number of bathrooms: 7
House of Zen Unique Features
Unique features include indoor and outdoor Zen gardens, a 20-seat theater, outdoor dining and television, car gallery, rooftop deck with pool, lounge and bar, car gallery, safe room, and views to the Pacific Ocean and Silicon Beach.
Bottom Line: House of Zen
This megamansion in the Pacific Palisades features some extraordinary features.
The house has some real indoor/outdoor living, with retractable glass walls and a rooftop deck that includes a pool and Jacuzzi. But one of the coolest things about the place is the master bedroom, which is accessible via retinal scanner and has a retractable ceiling.
Of course, it would have to have some incredible features for $350,000 per month, plus the $700,000 security deposit. The home was built by luxury property developer Ardie Tavangarian.
6 West Rivercrest
Value: $14.5 million
Location: Houston, Texas
Square footage: 21,032
Number of bedrooms: 7
Number of bathrooms: 9
6 West Rivercrest: Unique Features
It has a butterfly staircase with ironwork, library, huge dining room, butler's pantry, wine room, master bedroom with two baths and dressing rooms, guest house, entertainment pavilion, pool and six-stall stable.
Bottom Line: 6 West Rivercrest
This Palladian-style villa in Houston, Texas, has some Greek-inspired architecture, especially in the backyard. It also has a butterfly staircase and a two-story foyer in the front.
The master bedroom has a private terrace while the master bathroom has two baths, dressing rooms and huge closets.
It also has a ridiculous walk-in shower encased in blue marble, and double vanities made of solid wood with custom engravings.
Bella Vista Polo Ranch
Value: $55 million
Location: Summerland, California
Square footage: 43,000
Number of bedrooms: 11
Number of bathrooms: 14
Bella Vista Polo Ranch: Unique Features
It has gardens, a 5,000-bottle wine cellar, tasting room, 20-seat movie theater, salon, sports bar, disco ballroom with men's and women's bathrooms, pool house, helicopter hanger and 1280-foot-long swimming pool.
Bella Vista Polo Ranch: Bottom Line
Bella Vista Polo Ranch sports an astounding 43,000 square feet of living space and an array of features. The house itself is split into two worlds, with 19th-century style furnishings in areas like the dining and formal rooms, while modern amenities like the bar and nightclub can be found elsewhere.
Britney Spears' "Radar" music video was filmed here in 2009. The home features extensive polo grounds, which makes sense given the owner. Pat Nesbitt, a financier and chairman of the Windsor Capital Group, was an executive director of the World Polo Championships, according to CNBC.
The window treatments in the ballroom alone cost $250,000, the home's listing told the news outlet.
Related:Most Expensive Homes in the World
Racecar Lover's Dream
Value: $62 million
Location: Los Angeles, California
Square footage: 15,642
Number of bedrooms: 5
Number of bathrooms: 8
Racecar Lover's Dream Unique Features
Notable features include a convertible firepit/cocktail table, infinity pool, car showroom, double-sided indoor/outdoor fireplace, cantilevered master bedroom, vast Los Angeles views and an awesome toy racetrack.
Bottom Line: Racecar Lover's Dream
Kipp Nelson, a former partner at Goldman Sachs in London and founding partner of Flashlight Films (they helped produce "Sully"), had this home custom-built for him over six years, from the bottom to the top. Set on a promontory in the hills of Los Angeles, this mansion's three levels are made up of wood, stone and concrete, and has a showroom that can fit 15 cars.
Nelson, a racing enthusiast and former racecar driver, has an astoundingly cool, custom-built miniature racecar track called "Kippway." In the same room is a Formula One simulator. Both come with the house, according to Mansion Global.