How the other half lives . . .

[limewave]

This scenario really gets me. This house wasn't enough:
Main house: 12,000 square feet
Number of bedrooms: 5
Bathrooms: 8 1/2
Garage: 3-car
Guest house: 1,100 square feet
Value: $4.5 million

So it was demolished for this:
Main house: 22,000 square feet
Number of bedrooms: 3
Bathrooms: 5 full and 5 half-baths
Garage: 3 buildings
Guest house: 6,000 square feet
Value: Still being assessed; building permits over $3 million (total finished value was guesstimated to be ~$10 mil.)

Where was this at?

I got a full tour yesterday. There are many secret passageways and hidden rooms. There's even a panic room. It's pretty cool. The reason they have so many bedrooms (and 4 kitchens!) is that they have guests that will stay with them for several months at a time. The mother-in-law is currently visiting them for 3 months and will eventually live with them full-time I imagine.

These people have more money than I can even dream of. As DH said, the interest on their savings alone could probably build that house every year. And in a time when no one has been building, they employed quite a few people over the last year. I'm thankful they reinvested the money locally.

[zoom-zoom]

Where was this at?

South Shore Dr., in Holland...about halfway down towards Lake MI.

Ha, now I notice that the URL was messed-up because it contains the word d*ck. It's the DeVos house. Let me fix that with Tinyurl...
Here's a functioning link.

[Bike Writer]

I was just in Holland this week, sure wish I could have seen this from the water. WOW, what a house!

[limewave]

You saw something enormous and overwhelming and were in awe of it and in the process you peered into a lifestyle that is very different from that of most people. Your post did not indicate a hint of envy or scorn for that lifestyle, just a realization that it is very different from your own and that is very natural.

Surprisingly, I didn't feel any twinges of jealousy. However, I DO get VERY jealous when I read about new bikes on this forum! Which is why you almost never see me comment on those threads

[Tri Girl]

Holy Schnikeys!!! The guest house alone would house half my neighborhood.

[channlluv]

The article says they want that house to be a gathering place for multiple generations of their family, and I take that to mean extended family, as it's a vacation home, or so it's described in the article. It looks like a hotel or a B&B to me.

As for three bedrooms, I think a room has to have a closet to be listed as a bedroom. There may be a dozen more non-closet rooms that may provide sleeping quarters for all the cousins, but I'm guessing.

As for buying bigger and better, it doesn't really bother me all that much if the person doing the buying can afford it. We live pretty modestly, ourselves, but DH has no problem plunking down some serious cash on bikes. It's about priorities.

I have a friend who is building one of those huge houses on a canyon near where they currently live -- I tease her and call it a compound because it will have multiple buildings and a huge pool, etc. -- but she's doing it to provide homes for her parents and her mother-in-law, and for her kids and their families when they grow up, plus they'll be doing summer camp enrichment-type stuff like yoga and dance and art classes and all sorts of stuff like that for their many friends and their kids during the summer. I'm kind of happy to be in that group.

Roxy

P.S. As for the housewarming gift, I'd pick a dozen or so pretty bulbs to plant. Something that will grow and multiply, like daylilies, and then every time they bloom, she'll think of you.

[Biciclista]

We have our own super-monster house in my neighborhood. There are a few mini-monsters, I hate 'em, but they're not mine, so I ignore them. But this one....gawd, talk about your sore thumbs.. Almost 6,000 sq ft, 5 bedrooms, 5.5 baths. Most homes here are about 2500 sq ft. ranch style homes.

The first owners lost it to forclosure, I think it's already on it's third set of owners.

It looks like a village.

[shootingstar]

Well, in some vicarous way it is interesting to know someone and visit a large home...mansion like, etc.

In our building, we sneaked up to see the penthouse before they sold it.

We were underwhelmed and couldn't see why it was worth paying the extra $$$$ for more space but everything else wasn't extra special.

[RadicalEdward]

For a house warming gift - if you haven't already sorted something else out

When we moved into our home some friends of ours gave us a folder with all of the local restaurant take-away menus
They both had written little notes on each of them on what was best to order at each, or directions or where to sit when eating in
It's been absolutely invaluable - and was the best house warming gift I've ever gotten
Thoughtful - and cost them nothing except time

[salsabike]

For a house warming gift - if you haven't already sorted something else out

When we moved into our home some friends of ours gave us a folder with all of the local restaurant take-away menus
They both had written little notes on each of them on what was best to order at each, or directions or where to sit when eating in
It's been absolutely invaluable - and was the best house warming gift I've ever gotten
Thoughtful - and cost them nothing except time

What a great gift!

[KnottedYet]

For a house warming gift - if you haven't already sorted something else out

When we moved into our home some friends of ours gave us a folder with all of the local restaurant take-away menus
They both had written little notes on each of them on what was best to order at each, or directions or where to sit when eating in
It's been absolutely invaluable - and was the best house warming gift I've ever gotten
Thoughtful - and cost them nothing except time

Wow! That is a great gift idea!

How perfect for anyone who might be moving into a new neighborhood.

[Tri Girl]

For a house warming gift - if you haven't already sorted something else out

When we moved into our home some friends of ours gave us a folder with all of the local restaurant take-away menus
They both had written little notes on each of them on what was best to order at each, or directions or where to sit when eating in
It's been absolutely invaluable - and was the best house warming gift I've ever gotten
Thoughtful - and cost them nothing except time

Yes! This for sure!!!! I would have LOVED to have gotten that when we moved into our new neighborhood!

[Brandi]

6 1/2 bathrooms? Really? REALLY?

[snapdragen]

6 1/2 bathrooms? Really? REALLY?

Bet they don't have mold either....

[laura*]

As for three bedrooms, I think a room has to have a closet to be listed as a bedroom. There may be a dozen more non-closet rooms that may provide sleeping quarters for all the cousins, but I'm guessing.

Hmmm, maybe they are playing the house value assessment game: The number of bedrooms might be a factor in what the government assessor calculates. Plus, based on the style of the new house, I bet the owners might prefer armoires instead of closets.