As agents, we’ve all seen it before. The ‘unique’ listing with the throwback interiors, the far-out floor plans or the strange locations. However, that is nothing compared to what these sellers and their brokers are dealing with on these most incredible pieces of artful real estate around the world, according to a recent Bloomberg real estate article.
“In the late 1960s, the architect Luis Barragán was commissioned to create an equestrian compound in Mexico City with stables, a four-bedroom main house, riding paddocks, and a shallow pool for horses to refresh themselves; the property, called Cuadra San Cristóbal, was adjacent to the exclusive equestrian French Club.
The club is no longer, but the home has been rigorously maintained by the family that commissioned it. Four years ago, they put the property on the market (its current price is $13 million), at which point they were forced to reckon with a conundrum faced by owners of architecturally significant houses around the world: A historically significant architectural pedigree can be a burden, not just a selling point.”
Ouch. What was once considered significant and something anyone with the cash would snatch up has fallen into the category of ‘I can appreciate, but can I really live here?’ Not only that, but over time, neighborhoods don’t always stay the same…
“Thirty years after Cuadra San Cristóbal was built, the equestrian club is gone, and the neighborhood, once upscale, has gone downmarket. “Many of the lots have been fractionated,” said Federica Zanco, the director of the Swiss-based Barragán Foundation. “There are many small-scale houses that are not particularly elegant, and not particularly well kept.”
What’s a seller to do? For sellers like this who have cherished the significance of a property, the blow of low-ball offers and developers who only want to tear it down make it a long and gut-wrenching process. It’s not only the unique nature of these properties either, but in some cases, the cost of up-keeping a historic property, as is the case of the massive Chateau d’Aubiry in France…
“…built by Gustave Eiffel (designer of the Eiffel tower), “every meter you’ll find a new painting, or sculpture, or design,” said Anthony Diaz, the broker representing the home. “It’s not just a castle; it’s an historic monument.” (Indeed, it is listed as suchby the French government.)”
Before you take on your own unique, artful or historic property, consider what you’re willing to part with in time, money and heart to resell it again!
