Other than the very creative photo featured above, most of the pictures on this listing are your typical multi-million-dollar beachfront fare.
What really makes this listing stand out (other than the $23M price tag) is the public agent remarks. Here’s an excerpt, slightly reformatted to better fit the form:
If you’re not living on the edge, you’re taking up too much room.
Space gluttons and possessors missing intimacy in bloom.Fashion above the fray and vulgarity of wealth display.
Privacy, senses heightened, walking on water everyday.Behold the surround and ever changing interplay:
Cumulus, clear blues, cliffs, caves, sea rocks and ocean spray.Power on the point, perched above cove cradled bluffs, surf and sands.
Bathing in the soulful infinity of the sun’s warm hands.All around Herons, Gulls and Egrets seek the sky.
Adoring trees offer branches and watch them fly.
Joyful dolphins jumping, involuntary sigh.
Now that is an agent that is actually earning their commission.
Also of note: The location of the listing is marked as an “undisclosed address,” but from the photos it is pretty easy to spot the home on Google Maps, placing it at 31885 Circle Dr., Laguna Beach, CA 92651
Poetry *and* more than 2 dozen shots of the view? OK, we get it… this place is idyllic. (Anything with a $23M asking price damn well *ought* to be idyllic.) Yes, a humdinger of a view… to the outside. But what about the view to the inside? There’s precious little info, but if you’re serious about plunking down that much for a house you’re not likely to rely on an online listing. Nope, private showing is the way to go… dammit (for us).
What we see of the interior is decent. Nothing awe-inspiring, nothing egregiously horrid. The mixture of the 1950s structure (ceiling planking over open beams with canted window walls) and traditional details (arched wall openings and mural, tiled fireplaces with flanking caryatid columns) is a bit strange, but hey – this is eclectic Southern California.
As to decor, the range of warm orange tones throughout complements the blue-green of the ever-present ocean view, *the* advantage of most of the interior spaces. Seeing as how its a mid-century modern structure that frames them, I’d personally do away with the odd details and redecorate with a more modern look, something less fussy to avoid a tug of war for visual focus.
Still, I’d love to spend time in anyplace, regardless of decor, with the views, weather, and lifestyle this one offers. Too bad I don’t have a spare $23M.
It’s incredible, yes. I love it, it’s amazing. Yet…the RE agent is…well…just silly.
The listing pictures are actually a nice combination of pictures taken in the day and at night. They (rightfully) emphasize the view. The deck railings are clear, which is a really good choice for emphasizing the view. The bedroom windows are gorgeous and do a lovely job of showing the view.
The value of the house is almost entirely in the location (and the accompanying view).
The listing agent could be smoking peyote and babbling like the oracle at Delphi, it doesn’t matter. The person buying this house is a person who phones their real estate agent and asks the agent to find them a beachfront house with a nice view. They aren’t combing listings themselves…they have people for that.
I was also impressed with the clear railings. After seeing those, anything else seems a dreadful thought. Speaking of dreadful thoughts, I’m afraid my immediate reaction to the through-the-water shot was “Rocks! Rocks! Watch out for the rocks!” to which some imaginary chorus simpered, “What rocks?” leading to an *ahem* rock-solid mental “There are ALWAYS rocks!”
And there they were. Quite a lot of them, with this surprisingly comfortable looking house perched on top. Though I would, like Emerald, dial back the orange a bit. Chancy color, orange.
@Samme – Of course… they have “people” to do those things for them. I suppose once you have that much money the idea of being damn sure you’re getting your money’s worth isn’t nearly as important, eh? Pay the “people” enough and you know they’ll find you something that’s acceptable. Still, I have to see a place for myself before I can decide whether to move in. Maybe that doesn’t matter as much, either, when you own several homes.
You’re quite right about the clear railings. They aren’t original to the home but, hey, they work really, really well. But while I think there’s probably no such thing as a bad photo of the view, I still think that 28 out of 35 pics being of the view is a bit much. But of the few interior shots, I like do the swirl pattern in the bedroom carpet. It’s reminiscent of the wave action down below.
@anodean – Speaking of rocks, I was wondering if these folks were just lucky to get colorful wildflowers blooming amongst the rocky outcrop just over the railing or, if not, how the heck a gardener would plant them.
BTW, I actually like the use of orange tones, especially outdoors. I’m not sure about the cream/red-orange marble floors, though. They’re pretty busy. Maybe if they did change out the furniture for items that are more modern (i.e., simpler style, clean lines, solid colors) it wouldn’t be a problem.
@Emerald63:
how the heck a gardener would plant them.
…on a bungee cord, of course. Not that I’m offering – not without a good look at the proposed caretaker quarters first, anyway. :D