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| No. 1 |
Big Money
This year’s top real estate deal was $12.99 million, up from last year’s $5.9 million. Go figure.
The most expensive home sold in the Dallas-Fort Worth area in the past year was a Preston Hollow estate listed for $12.99 million– and the new owners paid cash.
A year ago, our search of homes sold in Dallas and its surrounding counties turned up the biggest residential deal at only $5.9 million– down from the previous year’s high of $11.5 million and the year before that of $30 million.
Our search of local homes sold between July 1, 2003, and July 1, 2004, shows that many multimillion-dollar deals were made, a much different story than just a year ago. Although 2000 is touted as the best year for local real estate, the terrorist attacks of September 11 and the war in Iraq bookend some slow times in the high-end market.
“The slowdown really didn’t have anything to do with money,” Dallas real estate icon Ellen Terry says. “It had to do with the uncertainty of the times. People didn’t feel like spending.”
But the high-dollar properties started making a comeback at the end of 2003.
“The market has picked up tremendously,” says Eleanor Mowery Sheets, who has two homes listed in the top 10. “We’ve sold everything we have in Highland Park. Yesterday, Nicky (her husband and business partner) and I were knocking on doors looking for new properties.”
What people want these days is land, specifically in the most desirable areas of Dallas– Old Preston Hollow, Highland Park, and University Park. Many are paying top dollar for land in these areas, then tearing down existing homes to design their own.
Of the homes that made our top 10 list, seven are in Dallas’ Old Preston Hollow, two are in University Park’s Volk Estates, and one is in Highland Park. And the hottest home style?
Mediterranean, as three of our top 10 exemplify.
Dave Perry-Miller, who has two homes on our list and also sold another property on Deloache that came in at No. 11, says activity in the high-end market picked up last fall and hasn’t stopped.
“Part of it is that sellers have more realistic expectations,” Perry-Miller says. “The buyers are very market-savvy and the houses that are selling are owned by people who are aware of what the market is really like. I was working until 5:30 p.m. last Christmas Eve– and was happy to do it.”
Here’s what several million dollars will buy you in today’s new and improved real estate market:
Note: The prices below were listed at time of sale and do not necessarily denote final sale price.
1. 8602 Jourdan Way (pictured above)
$12.99 million
Listing agent: Mary Jane Young (with Ebby Halliday at time of sale; now with Keller Williams Realty)
Selling agent: Robert Briggs (Briggs-Freeman)
Real estate listings show the most expensive home bought in the Dallas-Fort Worth area in the past year was paid for in cash. Architect Wilson Fuqua designed this Mediterranean-style stucco home, built in 2001 on a three-acre lot in Old Preston Hollow by Tommy Ford. With more than 15,000 square feet, it has five bedrooms, five full baths, three half baths, five living areas, three dining areas, seven fireplaces (some crafted from antique Italian marble), elevator, library, exercise room, sunroom, guest quarters, Ludowici tile roof, lake, gazebo, koi pond, waterfall, pool, and adjoining spa. The most interesting feature is its climate-controlled outdoor patio (which sends mist out of the floor when the temperature gets too high). The home sold in October after a little more than a year on the market.
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| No. 2 |
2. 5238 Deloache Ave.
$9.99 million
Listing & selling agent: Dave Perry-Miller (Prudential Texas Properties)
Perhaps the most exquisite view of this French chateau-style residence is from the backyard pool– a rectangular oasis with a spa, fountain, and John Watson moon lighting in the trees to set the scene. Built in 2001, the home is 15,236 square feet and sits on a heavily treed 2.15-acre corner lot in Old Preston Hollow. It has five bedrooms, six full baths, two half baths, three living areas (one with an antique Louis XVI-style bronze chandelier with lead crystal), two dining areas, marble-floored gallery, game room, library with Italian-marble mantle fireplace (one of four fireplaces in the home), elevator, and guesthouse. The estate sold the week before Thanksgiving last year, after more than seven months on the market, to a family in the same neighborhood.
3. 6700 Turtle Creek Blvd.
$9.25 million
Listing agent: Linda McMahon (Briggs-Freeman)
Selling agent: Betsy Stern (Briggs-Freeman)
This 1999 Tudor manor was built in University Park’s Volk Estates from limestone imported from Bath, England, by builder Tony McClung. The home, which sold last October, sits on a corner lot of almost an acre with vistas of Turtle Creek and Goar Park. The four-story, 11,541-square-foot home has five bedrooms, six full baths, two half baths, seven fireplaces, two dining areas, seven living areas, a wet bar, elevator, mahogany-paneled library, exercise room, media room, game room, wine cellar, gallery hall that runs the length of the home, guest quarters, basement media room, slate roof, next-generation lighting, sound, and security systems.
4. 3807 Miramar Ave.
$7.99 million
Listing agent: Eleanor Mowery Sheets (Coldwell Banker)
Selling agent: Doris Jacobs (Allie Beth Allman & Assoc.)
This Mediterranean-style estate, which sits on a double lot in the heart of Highland Park, was the home of Dallas Stars’ Mike Modano for four years. When Modano bought the home, he had an eye on adjoining properties, eager to create a grander estate. A year later, his neighbor to the west sold his property to Modano, who tore down the home to build a tennis court. The 1997 Miramar home was created by architects Turner Boaz Stocker and builder Cy Barcus. The home, with 11,435 square feet, has six bedrooms, six full baths, two half baths, six living areas, three dining areas, four fireplaces, exercise room, game room, media room, steam room, wine cellar, outside fireplace and pizza oven, guest quarters, fountains, cabana, hot tub, fountains, and pool. It sold in mid-February after just two weeks on the market to another single man from Dallas.
5. 9323 Preston Rd.
$6.70 million
Listing agent: Della Lively (Lively Realty)
Selling agent: Dave Perry-Miller (Prudential Texas Properties)
Not every home that has a clock tower and a soccer field. But this 1932 Tudor manor– built by the Lupton family and named Lupshire– is not average. Situated in El Parado, Lupshire sits on 3.85 acres that was actually a rural area when it was built. The compund is composed of five buildings– including gym, lodge, and two guest homes. The property, which is enclosed within a brick wall, also has a lighted tennis court, pool, fountain, gazebo, pergola-covered terrace, jogging path, English garden encircling a koi pond, and guard house. The 10,863-square-foot main house has four bedrooms, six full baths, three half baths, nine living areas, two dining areas, and six fireplaces. The estate sold in January, after almost 15 months on the market, to two doctors from the New York City area who loved the old charm of the estate.
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| No. 6 |
6. 6508 Turtle Creek Blvd.
$6.10 million
Listing agent: Joan Eleazer (Briggs-Freeman Real Estate)
Selling agent: Erin Mathews (Briggs-Freeman Real Estate)
This French-style stucco home in University Park’s Volk Estates was built by George Lewis in 1992 and sits on .86-acres, quite a large lot compared to most in the neighborhood. The 7,545-square-foot estate has five bedrooms, six full baths, one half bath, four living areas, two dining areas, four fireplaces, wet bar, dark room, elevator, wrought iron front doors, and lagoon pool with attached spa. It sold in mid-December after almost two months on the market.
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| No. 7 |
7. 9436 Meadowbrook Dr.
$4.99 million
Listing agents: Lee Trenholm & Trey Trenholm (Allie Beth Allman)
Selling agent: Nancy Haberman Dunning (with Ebby Halliday at time of sale;
now Briggs-Freeman)
This French chateau-style estate was built in Old Preston Hollow in 1997 on one acre. At 9,000 square feet, it has six bedrooms (with a see-through fireplace between master bedroom and bath), six full baths, two half baths, three living areas (one centered by a French mantle with antique mirrored trumeau), two dining areas, game room, library, and wet bar. Outside, the estate features guest quarters, heated pool, hot tub, cabana, playhouse (with one-of-a-kind artwork, slate roof, and turret), putting green, and koi pond.
8. 9635 Meadowbrook Dr.
$4.75 million
Listing agent: Ellen Terry (Ellen Terry, Realtors)
Selling agent: Stephanie Chaddick (Ellen Terry, Realtors)
This Old Preston Hollow estate– just down the street from No. 7 on our list– was inspired by Monet’s Garden at Giverny and has been featured in People and on Oprah, Inside Edition, and Good Morning America. The 1990 traditional-style home, which sold in April, is on 1.21 acres with a creek running through the property, English gardens, and a quaint arched bridge enticing visitors to the entryway– a freestanding cut limestone portal leading to giant wooden doors accented with beveled glass. The 8,600-square-foot residence has five bedrooms, seven full baths, one half bath, two dining areas, two living areas (one with a 22-foot ceiling with 24K Italian gold leafing), three fireplaces, wet bar, exercise room, media room, library, combined cabana/guest house, playground, and heated pool.
9. 8935 Douglas Ave.
$4.70 million
Listing & selling agent: Allie Beth Allman (Allie Beth Allman)
Built in 1935 on 4.74 acres in Old Preston Hollow, this Colonial-style brick home was remodeled in the ’80s and ’90s. The 8,925-square-foot estate has six bedrooms, six full baths, one half bath, five living areas, two dining areas, sunroom, wet bar, eight fireplaces, library, exercise room, two wine closets, pool, lighted tennis court, party house, two-story guesthouse, spa, fountains, and two large apartments above the 10- to 12-car garage.
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| No. 10 |
10. 9700 Audubon Pl.
$4.40 million
Listing & selling agent: Eleanor Mowery Sheets (Coldwell Banker)
The Mediterranean-style stucco home was built by Nickey Oates in 2003 and is the only new one to make our list. The 10,400-square-foot estate sits on a corner lot in Old Preston Hollow with just over one acre and has five bedrooms, seven full baths, one half bath, three living areas, two dining areas, game room with wet bar, library, wrought-iron staircase, white-planked hardwoods, four fireplaces (one with hand-cut marble from Israel), 20-foot-ceilings, exercise room, two circular drives, four-car garage, and pool. It was sold to a Highland Park family in September after two months on the market.
