Whether it’s adjusting your business model, mastering a new technology, or finding strategies to profit from the next market, Inman Connect New York it will prepare you to take the next steps. The Next Chapter is about to begin. Be a part of it. Join us and thousands of real estate leaders Jan. 22-24, 2025.
Every day, we here at Inman’s editorial staff cover the real estate industry’s hard news. Filing legal claims, criminal cases, employment victories, industry rivals and more. There is never a dull moment.
But the end of the year also brings an opportunity to reflect on why some of us writers end up writing this rhyme in the first place: We actually like houses. There is the drama of making deals. The dream of imagining a new life. And the simple joy of viewing a well-designed home – or, more often, a well-designed listing for that home.
TAKE THE INMAN INTEL INDEX SURVEY FOR DECEMBER
So, for the second year in a row, we’re bringing you the Inman editorial staff’s favorite lists this year. The houses below range from cabins to large houses. They are urban and rural. But they all served this year as a reminder to us why we love this beat.
When I’m feeling hopeful come summer and dreaming of escaping the punishing heat of the Southwest, I sometimes think about how nice it would be to own a lakeside cottage in the Adirondacks with my family.
This spacious 8 bedroom condo in a secluded area of Lake Placid will accommodate the needs of my parents, two siblings and our family (three partners, five children and counting). With multiple fireplaces, dining room, wine room, boat house, pool and screened porch, there is something for everyone.
Of course, the arrangement of property ownership with my family members sounds like a nightmare, and the 23 hectares of land attached to this property, while beautiful, seems very difficult to maintain. (We also couldn’t afford such a place.) But it’s nice to dream of the cool mountain air, the sounds of children laughing by the water and the quiet that comes with vacationing in a place where cell service is unreliable. — Lillian Dickerson
I was very skeptical when this three-unit home in one of Chicago’s most exclusive neighborhoods came on the market. Surely, I thought, this town would be closed to anything but a single-family home. After a quick call to the listing agent and some follow-up with the village, I confirmed that the three-flat was built before modern design and was therefore legal.
The listing represents an excellent opportunity to enter one of the premier zip codes in the country. It’s a place I wouldn’t have been able to afford if the other two units didn’t help pay the cost of the house. Burglary is something I have written about before and dreamed of doing one day. Then came this list. – Taylor Anderson
Any website on visiting Lake Tahoe will mention Emerald Bay, a deep-growing, tree-lined bay on the lake’s southwest shore. It couldn’t be named better and, for many, it’s more suited to a luxury upgrade. And its location on the outer edge of the Desolation Wilderness, along with Tahoe’s building standards, reduces risk from things like wildfires.
The right to build here was the US Forest Service. In 1934, it completed 20 Emerald Bay Road, a testament to the now-forgotten minimalism of the northern Bay Area. This 1,000 square meter residence – for rangers and loggers who go into the forest to work – has since been renovated with a touch of mountain modernity, able to live all year round.
I’ve seen it on the list for two winters now as I skied my snowboard — a cozy, snow-covered hovel at the bottom of a backcountry ski resort that’s often the subject of some of the industry’s most notable photographers. In this home, I can host aprés-ski gatherings and, come summer, watch the bay wake and name the bears. Considering how much the ski-in/ski-out tag adds to the resort’s actual inventory, the $800,000 price tag isn’t a bad number. – Craig Rowe
Jamaica has a special place in my heart. My grandfather was born in Coleyville – a small town located on the second highest point on the island. It is said that Coleyville’s name (pronounced cool-e-ville) was inspired by the local climate, where it was rare to see light frost on the mango and ackee trees during the fall and winter. It’s been years since I came to my grandfather’s country, but I often think of the fertile land, the patois wailing in the corner shops, the salty smell of the sea breeze, curry-stained fingers, and the bittersweet joy of scotch bonnet sauce.
Before my grandfather came to the US, he was a skilled carpenter who helped build his family’s home and many other homes throughout Coleyville. My memory of the house is faded, as it has been more than 20 years since I visited it.
However, when I saw this list inside Saint Ann Parish, I immediately thought of having a family reunion there – aunts and uncles in the kitchen selling curry goat recipes and grandpa’s famous rum egg nog, the little ones running to the trees and picking. worn green shutters. We would all be in the garden, playing music and arguing over card games. We can all trade stories about our lives in Jamaica, the US and Canada, and how we are all connected, despite the thousands of miles and decades between us. – Marian McPherson
As billionaire preppers prepare for the apocalypse by building multi-million dollar mansions in places like New Zealand, a few simple tweaks to real estate search engines can open up options for all of us. Set up a search for a rural area, specify “live off the grid,” and limit your results to properties of at least 2 acres and some interesting things pop up.
Heading over to Zillow and using these search criteria in Redding, California – a city of 90,000 people in Northern California separated by I-5 and the Sacramento River – we open several options for living in one, from cabins to McMansions.
For me, it was love at first sight for this “highly desirable” 1,200-square-foot, 2-bedroom home located on 71 acres just outside the boundaries of the Shasta-Trinity National Forest. Featuring “open meadows, ponds, seasonal streams, barns, laundry, work shops, outdoor kitchen area, garage, chicken coop, hunting cabin, study with wood stove, orchard and vegetable garden,” it looks like bang for your buck at $425,000 – although I think it will present the head appraiser with some headaches, not to mention the auto loan. underwriter. — Matt Carter
Like most of the internet, I was happy when they were famous Home alone The house came on the market last spring. The brick manse – which was asking $ 5.2 million – is very close to the beautiful place of the house, and besides me Home alone on holidays. And of course, like much of the internet, I was overwhelmed by the listing photos. While the interior depicted in the film is warm and welcoming, the version that exists today is sterile and cold. All other variations are gray or white. Sounds like an Airbnb you can’t forget to write a review for.
So why is this the list I can’t stop thinking about in 2024? Because most of the internet responded the same way. In various social media, complaints about the small beauty of the home have spread. People, obviously, want a home, not just a house. And for that reason, the list holds the change in the growing sea; Modern minimalism seems like it will finally go the way of the Tuscan kitchen. Our long gray world nightmare of a thousand years may finally be coming to an end. – Jim Dalrymple II
I just came across this Lake Tahoe mansion and it immediately stole my heart. I want it now, but I’m only dreaming. Growing up in Virginia, I was always surrounded by water – whether it was a lake or a pond in my backyard – so the idea of 150 feet of lakefront feels like home to me. Add in the chance to enjoy a random boat ride, or just dip my toes in the water to relax, and I’m done.
The real deal is the house itself. The property has been completely renovated with sleek, modern fixtures and fittings while maintaining the cool, traditional atmosphere that I love.
The design is minimalist yet stylish – definitely “less is more.” The home also offers plenty of space for me and my family, as the four-bedroom house covers approximately 12,000 square feet. That is more than enough to entertain, live comfortably and even create art. Although the mansion may look like a perfect vacation home from the outside, I can envision myself living here full time in complete peace and, hopefully, peace.
And, as a lover of wine, crime documentaries and horror, don’t get me started on the dedicated wine cellar and home theater. — Richelle Hammiel
Have a list that you would like Inman to include in us Hot Sheet newspaper? Send it to listing@inman.com
