They say a man’s home is his castle, and for most of us, that’s just a figure of
speech designed to make us proud of our leaky, two-bedroom apartment.
When it comes to the ultra-rich and powerful though, many of them take this saying extremely
literally, transforming their homes into extravagant palaces fit for royalty.
But not everything is as it seems.
You could walk right past and not even notice the opulence behind the front door.
Ready to take a peek inside?
Let’s get it on!
HIDDEN IN PLAIN SIGHT Las Vegas may be the city of sin, but that’s
only on the main drag – things tend to look much more ordinary as you head out from the
city centre and out into suburbia.
Take this classic Californian style bungalow built in the 70s for example.
It looks like nothing special from the outside, but it’s hiding a secret – an $18m underground
dwelling that also doubles as a panic room and fallout shelter.
To say these homeowners are prepared is an understatement.
There’s a whole other house beneath the dirt, complete with a backyard full of astro-turf,
a landscaped pool, fake trees, and even lawn furniture.
The walls have been painted to mimic the surrounding environment, and the ceiling’s filled with
stars at night time and fluffy white clouds in the daytime.
Intelligent lighting perfectly matches the weather conditions above ground.
Who needs fresh air when you can bring the outdoors, indoors.
KERET HOUSE Some people adore wide-open spaces, but for
this guy it’s more a case of the more claustrophobic the better.
The Keret House in Poland is officially the world’s narrowest home, measuring just 36
inches at its skinniest point and 48 inches at its widest.
It has all the things you’d expect in a home, a bedroom, bathroom, kitchen and living
area, only on a miniature scale.
It was built as an exhibit at the Polish Modern Art Foundation and is fully serviceable, and
even available to rent out to visitors for short stays.
The house itself is jammed in the void space between two buildings, in an area so small
you wouldn’t be able to swing a cat in there.
The narrow laneway was previously used as an illegal dump for rubbish and broken unwanted
furniture, until it got a new lease on life.
It’s shaped like a giant upright triangle, with an interior of stark white, and extremely
minimalist furnishings.
And no, it probably doesn’t meet building code.
INVISIBLE HOUSE We’ve all seen the shimmering mirage of
deserts in films.
The sands play tricks on the eyes, and what looks like a refreshing oasis actually turns
out to be nothing at all.
This home is the exact opposite.
The director of the classic hit American Psycho covered his Joshua Tree California home entirely
with full length mirrors, making it blend in with the surrounding rocky outcrops.
Looking from above, it looks like a skyscraper’s fallen onto its side.
But from ground level, you’d walk right past it, completely oblivious unless you knew
where to look.
Once you get inside, you can see what the advantage is to being surrounded by mirrors
– away from prying eyes.
The interior is all open plan, including the sprawling master bedroom, living room, bathroom
– even the pool.
There’s an uninterrupted view of the surrounding countryside everywhere you look, it’s like
going camping – only it doesn’t suck, and there are no bugs in your food.
WATER TOWER If you want the best views of Huntington Beach
– you need a vantage point.
This water tower was built in the 1940’s, and served as a storage facility for a number
of years.
Luckily for this homeowner, the decision to demolish it was voted down in the 1980’s.
Now, the basic dwelling built 30 years ago has undergone an extensive renovation and
is truly something to behold.
This one-of-a-kind home required 70 tradesmen and 3 months to complete, and now boasts panoramic
views across all 3 levels.
The interior has a very rustic feel, and is jam packed full of the woodgrain of exposed
timber.
A nostalgic vintage spiral staircase connects the levels, with the lower levels housing
4 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms, and the entire upper level reserved for entertainment – complete
with couches lining the entire circumference and a beautiful lead-lined skylight.
GRAIN SILO A Phoenix Arizona couple originally bought
an old grain silo off Craigslist as a cheap alternative to a garden shed.
But suddenly they had a lightbulb moment, and their new acquisition soon turned into
an idea for a new home.
Fans of tiny living will have seen people make homes out of shipping containers and
all manner of unorthodox materials.
But a grain silo?
This is a first.
Spread out across 2 levels, the silo actually has 366 square feet of space and is more spacious
inside than its corrugated iron-clad outside suggests.
All in all, it took 18 months to turn the abandoned farmyard structure into a pint-sized
abode.
Downstairs is an open plan kitchen, dining and living area, with the upstairs hiding
away a master bedroom and ensuite.
Although you may be fooled from the outside, it's pretty fair to say that the inside does
it justice.
CAVE LAIR If Batman gets the Bat Cave, then this Moab
Utah native has the green light to build his very own subterranean lair.
Simply referred to as the Cave House, it really doesn’t look like much on the outside.
There’s a tiny shack and a cool glass viewing panel moulded into the face of the rock.
For 25 years the occupants have pretty much lived off grid, growing their own food and
pumping water from a nearby pond with turbine driven electricity.
The cave itself is man-made, though you wouldn’t pick it.
Once inside however, you can get a full appreciation for the sprawling rabbit warren of what is
over 5,000 square feet of prime, rocky real estate.
The walls tell the tale of a residence that has been rough-hewn straight out of the layered
limestone around it.
These people aren’t savages though – and have a dish installed so they can catch up
on the news of the world via the internet beamed directly down from the satellite.
DUBAI SEAHORSE Dubai truly is the land of ultra-luxury.
It’s a place where there’s a culture that tries to constantly outdo itself in terms
of ingenuity and unique buildings.
The floating Seahorse villas are no exception.
Located in one of the many man-made islands that form the famous artificial archipelago
peppering in the Persian Gulf, the Heart of Europe resort has a total of 125 of these
floating residences that cost a cool $12m each.
The upper section resembles an architecturally designed home, complete with kitchen, living
room and entertainment areas that lead to an outside timber deck with a built-in pool.
But the main attraction is the master bedroom in the lower level.
Whether you’re laying back in bed or relaxing in the bath, you’re treated to a wall-to-wall
view of the surrounding coral reef and schools of fish making their way past your window
– just like an aquarium, minus the tourists.
GOOSE CREEK TOWER A log cabin in the woods is a nice thought,
and perhaps a dream that may one day become a reality for those looking to retire to a
quieter life.
But not this Alaskan.
What began as a simple 40 foot by 40-foot log cabin has slowly grown into a towering
monolith poking its head up 185 feet above the treetops.
Goose Creek Tower is 7 stories of progressively smaller and smaller log cabins stacked on
top of one another, ending in a single penthouse room right at the very top.
It looks like something out of Doctor Seuss, a seemingly impossible feat of structural
engineering that we’re told is 100% sound and not going to blow over in a strong breeze.
Small staircases and ladders connect the many levels, with the owner having lofty ambitions
to go up even higher – only he can’t, as he’ll hit federal airspace at 200 feet!
ROTATING GIRASOLE Not only does the toilet water spin the other
way around down under in Australia, but it seems the houses do too.
In the nation’s capital of Canberra, The Girasole House stands out as the world’s
largest rotating house.
Powered solely from our closest star’s life giving rays, this 56-ton home does a full
rotation every 10 minutes, and can also be custom set to follow the sunshine around as
the Sun makes its way across the daytime sky from dusk till dawn.
Warm in winter, cool in summer, or anything in between – your choice.
In fact, the house is so well planned and energy efficient that it takes about the same
energy as a light globe to power this rotation.
It was awarded a 6-star energy rating when it was built in 2013, as the 4-bedroom, 2-bathroom
home incurs virtually no energy or water bills thanks to the 24 solar panels that adorn its
roof, and the 32,000-gallon water tank in the backyard – bringing off grid living
to the heart of suburbia.