Upper Makefield Township, Pennsylvania | $ 2.975 million
An expanded and modernized four bedroom, three bathroom, and two half bath farmhouse from the 1840s on 4.49 acres of land with a barn and swimming pool
This former federal mansion is located in a luxury housing development in Upper Makefield Township, a historic community in Bucks County that preserves 40 percent of the scenic land. Most of the single-family homes in the enclave have been built in the past 15 years by a specialist builder who also worked with a local architect to renovate this property from 2006 to 2009. The interior designer made significant additional contributions to “brightening up” the house, the interior designer said Estate agents.
The property is located approximately 30 miles northeast of Philadelphia, 70 miles southwest of New York City and 3 miles west of Washington Crossing, where George Washington crossed the Delaware River to win the Battle of Trenton. A number of shops, restaurants, and inns in Newtown, the area's business hub, is five miles south.
Size: 5,185 square feet
Price per square meter: $ 574
Inside: The stone farmhouse has a vertical frame extension that forms a cubit, and there are entrances from both parts of the building. The main entrance is now at the end of a bluestone path to the side. It opens into a large, tiled foyer that leads through one door into a huge eat-in kitchen and through another into a long, cupboard-lined butler pantry with a guest toilet at one end.
The kitchen has vintage floorboards, a stone fireplace wall, traditional-style cabinets with granite countertops, and modern lighting. The appliances include a Wolf six-burner gas stove, three dishwashers and a pizza oven. A series of French doors along one back wall open to a covered stone deck overlooking the pool, and there is a breakfast banquet in one corner.
The formal dining room is to the right of the original entrance. It has light, plastered plaster walls; wide, antique floorboards; and a massive fireplace that has been converted to gas. To the left is a living room with a fireplace and similar finishes. The guest toilet opposite the entrance door is papered in irregular gray stripes that are reminiscent of trompe-l'oeil masonry mortar.
Upstairs there is a second living room with a fireplace, rag-covered walls and access to a long terrace overlooking the pool. Next to it is a laundry room with a window and sink and cupboard. The master bedroom has a cathedral ceiling, marble fireplace and access to the terrace. The en-suite bathroom is completely clad in white tile or marble and has underfloor heating, a steam shower, a vintage-style bathtub and two sinks.
A second floor guest bedroom also opens to the deck and has a bathroom tiled with tiny marble squares on the walls (including the steam shower) and large marble squares on the floor with underfloor heating.
Two more bedrooms are on the third floor, including a guest suite with a bathroom that includes a claw-foot bathtub with shower head and a washbasin balanced on four swiveling legs.
An extension of the stone house next to the kitchen has a room at ground level with a cathedral ceiling and open beams and a semi-underground, temperature-controlled wine cellar. The outer door opens to a brick terrace.
Outside space: As part of an extensive landscaping project, sellers removed a koi pond and added a fire pit to complement the in-ground pool with an infinity edge and circular spa. The grounds are large and lush. A four-bay garage includes an exercise room and game room or gym. (It has a mirrored wall.) There is parking for two cars in the two-story barn. There are 160 hectares of protected land next to the property.
Steer: $ 20,449
Contact: Louise Williamson, Keller Williams Luxury International, 215-262-0077; louisewilliamson.kw.com
Denver | $ 2.95 million
A four bedroom, three bath brick home built in 1890 on 0.28 acre lot
Isaac Slade, founder, pianist, and lead singer of Denver-based band The Fray, bought this home for $ 950,000 in 2009 and did some much-needed renovations. It's in West Highland, a tree-lined housing enclave about three miles northwest of downtown, with Victorian Hulks and Craftsman bungalows, prestigious schools, and a business district called Highlands Square.
Size: 5,285 square feet
Price per square meter: $ 558
Inside: A foyer with parquet floor and moldings leads through pocket doors into a double room. The front of the parlor is papered in a western-themed pattern with Native American homes; it is hung with a teardrop-shaped pendant lamp made of glass and wrought metal. The fireplace has a stamped metal cover surrounded by reclaimed tiles. Wooden doors with a pointed headboard open to a small reading room at the foot of the tower.
At the other end of the lounge there is a dining room through pocket doors. There is also a living room with built-in glass-fronted bookcases and red walls that are listed as exactly the "vintage cover" of "Crime and Punishment". (No mention of the edition or even the century.) The inspiration for the dark green ceiling of the room is also mysterious. (Possibly a copy of "Black Beauty" from 1877?)
The kitchen hides most of its high-end appliances behind white cabinets, but not the lipstick red AGA stove or the pasta station. The central island is crowned by a plate made of black walnut. There is also an antique wood china cabinet that almost soars above the high ceiling. A laundry room next to the kitchen, with its narrow proportions and venerable slop sink, could have been a butler's pantry.
On the second floor, the primary suite is divided into several rooms. The bedroom is at one end, with an open door topped with a carved headboard. It opens into a long living room with a fireplace with a patterned tile surround and an antique bathtub on Mexican tiles in a window bay. French doors open to a marble bathroom with a steam shower, a vanity unit painted with flowers, and a cut-glass ceiling light. Also on this level is a guest room, kitchenette, and bathroom with green-painted paneling, marble-tiled floors, and claw-foot tub with gold paws.
On the third floor there are two more bedrooms and a bathroom, including a room used as an office with decorative woodwork from the demolished Denver house that belonged to railroad magnate David H. Moffat. In the basement there is a stage and a bar, the ceiling of which is partially covered with the Fray plane tickets.
Outside space: The deep front yard is surrounded by a wrought iron fence. A sundeck in front of the living room leads to a grassy back yard with a deck and an Asian wooden pavilion. The detached garage was used as an art studio by Mr. Slade's wife Anna Slade.
Steer: $ 7,396 (2020 based on a $ 102,566 tax bill)
Contact: Mckinze Casey, LIV Sotheby’s International Realty, 303-893-3200; sothebysrealty.com
Lopez Island, Washington | $ 2.98 million
A 2017 energy efficient two bedroom, two bath home set on 3.52 acres overlooking the water and 30 feet of water frontage
This home was built to showcase the sustainable design practice of the neighbors next door boat. (The drive from Seattle takes a little under three hours and includes a 45-minute ferry ride; a seaplane ride takes about 40 minutes). The property was built using structural insulated panels on the base of a 1970s cabin (the cedar cladding was cut from the old house's floor joists). The property is close to parks, farms, and nature reserves and about five miles south of the grocery store. It is one mile south of the Lopez Island Golf Club and the local airport.
Size: 1,619 square feet
Price per square meter: $ 1,841
Inside: The main entrance is on the side, across from a large cedar-clad rainwater cistern (there is also a well). The hinged door is made from recycled white pine boards that are three inches thick.
Inside is a large room with concrete floors; Wall surfaces made of textured plaster; 12 foot steel-framed windows and glass doors overlooking the San Juan Channel; and a chic red kitchen. Reclaimed wood panels cover the chimney wall at the other end of the room, and steel doors hide both the fireplace and the television screen above. (The house also uses HRV and heat pump technologies.)
The two bedrooms behind the kitchen have a built-in cupboard made of split bamboo with antique Asian chests. The bathrooms (one en suite, the other is available to guests) are clad in Italian porcelain stoneware tiles, the subtle patterns of which are reflected in sandblasted glass partitions; Each bathroom has a shower and a tubular copper towel warmer. In the hallway behind folding doors are full-size washing machines and a sink. All lighting in the house is LED.
Outside space: The large room doors open to a deck facing the water. An outdoor kitchen is made of corten steel and concrete. The property has a rain garden for filtering rainwater runoff; Fruit and forest trees; and meadows with poppies. It is reached via a path through a forest.
Steer: $ 6,989 plus a 1 percent bank tax for outdoor purchase, conservation easements, and beach access
Contact: Mary Clure, Orcas Island Realty, 360-961-7523; orcasislandrealty.com
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