Ever wonder how much money historically significant real estate would sell for? The thought has occasionally crossed my mind over the years (basically, every time I see a picture of Monticello, Thomas Jefferson's old haunt).
Now I no longer have to wonder, thanks to a fun exercise undertaken by the folks at Realtor.com. They asked several housing experts how much it would cost to buy homes belonging to four of America's Founding Fathers. Here's the breakdown:
Mount Vernon
George Washington played an active role in turning what started as a one-and-a-half-story house into an 11,000-square-foot, 21-room home set on more than 7,600 acres of land. Some of the estate has been sold off over the years, but the current home still has about 500 acres of prime real estate on the banks of the Potomac River.
According to the experts, the property could be worth between $75 million and $100 million without taking into account that it belonged to the first president of the United States. Add that little tidbit to the equation, and the price could jump to nearly $500 million, by some estimates.
Monticello
Thomas Jefferson's estate wouldn’t command the same price as Washington's, but it would still rank at the top end of the luxury market in Virginia.
The 11,000-square-foot home features 43 bedrooms and sits on 2,500 acres of land — mostly woods and farmland. The property is also located in a less expensive county for property taxes and land values, compared to Mount Vernon. Experts estimate that Monticello might fetch anywhere from $50 million to $125 million.
Some intangibles could bump that price higher, though: The home is a UNESCO World Heritage site, and an image of the residence adorns the back of the nickel. Those factors could raise Monticello's value as high as $400 million.
Old House at Peace Field
This house is quite modest compared to the estates mentioned above. Founding Father John Adams bought the 75-acre property in 1787, and it stayed in the Adams family until 1927.
Today the home sits on just five acres of land in Quincy, Mass., just outside of Boston. If you were to look for comps in the area, the home might fetch $2 million to $4 million. But the fact that the property was home to not one but two U.S. presidents — John Adams and his son, John Quincy Adams — bumps the estimated price tag up to anywhere between $25 million and $40 million.
Hamilton Grange
New York City real estate typically comes with a hefty price tag, regardless. Alexander Hamilton, who helped create the U.S. Constitution, bought 32 acres of land in Manhattan in 1800. If the property hadn't been divided over the years, it could be worth billions today, by one expert's estimate.
As it stands, Hamilton Grange encompasses only three acres of land — although it's still expensive land. The 5,000-square-foot Federal-style home would probably go for $4 million to $7 million based on land values alone. Add in the Hamilton connection and the popularity of a certain Broadway musical, and the price tag could reach up to $50 million.
What all these properties demonstrate is that a home's value can sometimes be determined by more than its square footage, number of bedrooms and bathrooms or land footprint. Location matters, of course, but sometimes intangibles like owning a piece of history are worth more than the home itself.
