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In Puget Sound, $1 million doesn’t get you a luxury home anymore.

Sure, you can buy a 4,000-square-foot view home in Mukilteo, complete with a pool and indoor home theater. Or a 3,250-square-foot home on 3 acres in Woodinville. Or a new McMansion on a regular-sized lot on the Sammamish Plateau. Maybe a 1,300-square-foot condo in Belltown or Bellevue.

But luxury you won’t get. Nowadays, a luxury home will cost double, even triple, that in some neighborhoods, agents and appraisers say. The luxury price threshold is more like $3 million.

At the end of November, 110 single-family homes and eight condos priced at more than $3 million were listed for sale in King County, and 10 single-family homes but no condos above $3 million were for sale in Snohomish County, according to the Northwest Multiple Listing Service.

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Are you ready for the world’s first billion-dollar home? In this age of economic crisis, the idea of such extravagance feels like its bordering on sinful. Well, apparently to Mukesh Ambani, the fifth richest man in the world, and his wife Nita, if you’ve got it, flaunt it. The head of Mumbai, India-based petrochemical giant Reliance Industries is building the world’s largest and most expensive home: a 27-story skyscraper in downtown Mumbai that will be 50 feet high with 400,000 square feet of interior space, all with a cost nearing $2 billion. They contracted the services of architecture firms Perkins + Will and Hirsch Bedner Associates, the designers behind the Mandarin Oriental, based in Dallas and Los Angeles. Once finished, the Ambani home, called Antilla, is set to have six stories of parking lots, a lobby with nine elevators, a ballroom, a health level with an ice room where guests can escape the Mumbai heat with man-made snow, a four-story open garden and entertaining spaces for the business guests.

Image Source: www.bornrich.org
Luxurious condos are also on the rise. While the ownership of these are centered more around a buyer looking for a quality lifestyle, extravagant amenities, and great locations, there are many that are willing to pay the price. In Florida last year, a 4,800 square foot condominium was sold for $4.65 million dollars. In 2005, California experienced a 90% jump in condominiums priced over one million. There were 1,677 condo sales, all in the one million dollar price range. Many of these luxury condominiums are located in areas of wealth and many have top-notch views. Amenities in such luxury condos may include quality furnishings, such as appliances, granite counter tops, and window treatments. Many luxury condo buyers like the fact that the properties are secure and feel their items of wealth are protected in this type of environment and they don’t have to pay the added cost of security. Condo hotel developments are on the rise in larger cities, as well. This type of luxury living affords one the opportunity of living in their own condominium with all the amenities of hotel living, such as room service, maid service, and concierge service. Research shows the average condo hotel buyer to be between the ages of 35 and 50 years old and many simply are purchasing them as both an investment property and vacation property.

Tagaytay Highlands complex is located at the heart of the farming territory of Plantation Hills, it is an all wood home that one may find in the country of Finland. They used interlocking square-shaped wood made from Nordic pine(first of its kind in the Philippines), made from the toughest core of Nordic Timber and known to withstand extreme weather conditions including heat and humidity that the Philippines experience all year round. With these kind of log home, Tagaytay Highlands took advantage the cool, provincial breeze and a mixture of traditional living and convenience provided by the Highlands and Midlands golf and country clubs. It also represents a healthy, natural and luxurious way of contemporary living. (Source:myhome magazine)

With catch phrases such as “paradise in the city” and “resort living”, the Bay Garden Mactan Tower, Federal land’s condominium development in Metropolitan Park along Roxas Boulevard is one instance of what might be called the “green development” trend. Not only are its outdoor spaces landscaped, but its units were also thought out as extensions of the paradisaical theme. Its three bedroom Unit K makes a contemporary resort ambiance, the color scheme used were eggshell white for the walls and earth toned teak parquet and accessories made of natural materials, suggesting a calm union with nature. Upon entry, one takes in the flowing space from the foyer to the dining and living areas and to a view of Manila Bay beyond. With the sea at your window and nature’s element enhancing your dwelling, living in the city surely means living green.(Source:myhome magazine)
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(source:http://www.condo.com.ph/condo.php?ID=55)

What kinds of rooms might go into a luxury home? The possibilities are as varied as lifestyles.

I recall a luxurious mansion in Houston�s lovely River Oaks that had, in addition to every other conceivable room, a luggage room. It was a sensible space that accommodated the traveling owner�s large collection of leather suitcases, trunks and garment bags. When a trip was planned, the butler would retrieve the appropriate luggage and assist with the packing.

When expense and space are not restrictive issues, the floor plan of a luxury home can truly reflect the lifestyle of its owner.

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