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massachusetts real estate

The George Nichols House, Estate of the Day

Filed under: Estates

george nichols house
It's hard to resist the urge to cover a house in Salem, Massachusetts on Halloween. The historic town on the Massachusetts North Shore has become a Halloween headquarters. It's also got some beautiful old real estate. The Boston Globe highlighted one example as their house of the week and I'm picking up another today. The George Nichols House was built in 1816 and is located in Salem's McIntire Historic District on Chestnut Street, a street which features many fine Federal period homes. This one has nine bedrooms total and is topped by a widows walk. The home has been beautifully restored but has newer details including a media room, wine cellar and lap pool. A separate brick carriage house offers parking as well as an apartment. No ghosts or witches here (although hose taxidermied birds in the library are a wee bit creepy), just a beautiful brick home. This home is listed at $1.8 million with Merry Fox Realty.

[Thanks, Chris]

Historic New England Peninsula Up For Sale

Filed under: Estates

codman point
Luxist reader Chris led me to a Boston Globe story on a prime piece of Massachusetts land for sale. Codman Point is a private waterfront compound located at the head of Buzzards Bay. It is on the market for the first time in 137 years. Back in 1872 the Codman family bought the 25-acre peninsula for just $800. They are making quite a return on their investment since it is now listed for $7.7 million.

The property has four homes, a deepwater dock, tennis court and boathouse. When the Codman family bought in 1872 the peninsula had a small hotel that provided shelter to fishermen. Two of the houses were designed at the turn of the 20th century by architect Guy Lowell. The Point House has eight bedrooms and faces the ocean but has no heat because it was to be used as a summer home. The other Lowell house is the Bungalow, another unheated home which features a wraparound porch.

The peninsula includes five beaches and in the past the extended Codman clan would spend entire summers there. But times have changed, the family is spread out and most people don't summer like that anymore. While the property could remain intact as private compound it is more likely that it will be bought by someone who could divide it into seven or eight different lots which is a bit of a shame. Having grown up on Cape Cod, I know just how little relatively unspoiled land remains in southeastern Massachusetts.


Gallery: Codman Point

Morris Island, Estate of the Day

Filed under: Estates


While places like Cape Cod and the Hamptons get absolutely jampacked in the summer months there are always enclaves where you can still capture the peace and beauty that drew people to these locations in the first place. Today's home is located in the town of Chatham on Cape Cod in a very private and prestigious neighborhood. The house, which was built in 2003 and designed by Francis Sullivan, is perched high above the shoreline for optimum views of the Atlantic and Monomoy Islands. The six-bedroom home has an impressive great room with stone and wood architectural touches, gourmet kitchen,large first-floor master suite, billiards room, and a lower level level filled with every amenity imaginable. The property is landscaped with lawns and lovely gardens and is listed at $12.95 million which makes it the priciest house on the market in town.

For more prime properties and lush locations, see Luxury Homes and Mansions.

Gallery: Morris Island

Aerosmith By The Shore, Estate of the Day

Filed under: Estates, Celebrity Shopping


The band Aerosmith is much beloved in Boston and over the years the band has bought some great real estate in Massachusetts. The Wall Street Journal's Private Properties column reported Aerosmith drummer Joey Kramer has put his beautiful waterview home in Marshfield Hills on the market. Marshfield Hills is located on the South Shore and Kramer has himself an expansive 17-acre spread that includes views of the Atlantic Ocean and over 300 feet of frontage on the North River. The grounds include a pool and spa, guest house, , three detached garage buildings (Kramer is a partner in a specialty car dealership), a small fish pond, and open manicured lawns with views and access to the water.

The four-bedroom main house was built in 2003, has over 6,300 square feet of living area. It includes a gym, sauna, three-season porch, and a recording studio and features intricate wood carvings on the doors and mantelpieces. It is listed at $4.99 million.

For more prime properties and lush locations, see Luxury Homes and Mansions.

Most Expensive Zip Codes: 02554, Estate of the Day

Filed under: Estates


For the next couple of weeks we will be checking out some homes in the most expensive zip codes in the United States, up today, 02554. This zip code is is on the island of Nantucket off the coast of Cape Cod in Massachusetts. While not the best place to wait out a long winter (it's a 30-mile ferry ride from the Cape) it is a very popular place to spend the summer months. This zip code has a median price of $1,550,000 and an appreciation rate of 321% since 1990.

Today's home is a newer build but it has many of the qualities associated with Nantucket homes includes a shingled exterior, plenty of clean white walls and blue accents, a widow's walk and views of long sandy beaches and the Atlantic Ocean. This nearly two-acre property is located in the Squam area of the island and is actually two houses on one property, a four-bedroom main house, and a two-bedroom guest house with a pool and spa. This property is listed at $11.75 million.


Hyannisport Tower, Estate of the Day

Filed under: Estates


When I saw that this one was up for sale, I was excited. When my family used to live on Cape Cod, I've often passed by this house on the way to the Hyannis Yacht Club. On sunny days I often saw a man painting on outside on the observation deck of the tower. This home is set at a bend in the road in Hyannisport and faces Nantucket Sound. The nearly 8,000 square-foot home is on enviable piece of land with 300 feet of private beachfront. The home, which was built in 1910, is in need of a bit of a renovation but it's a treat to see the artist's works everywhere. The studio is messy, as all good studios should be, but it looks like great space. The home is listed at $8.95 million.

Gallery: Hyannisport

West Newbury, Estate of the Day

Filed under: Estates


This rather interesting home in West Newbury, Massachusetts has a sprawling idiosyncratic style. The photos of the home reveal all sorts of quirky details including a wooden arch in the master bedroom that helps cordon off a small sitting area. Rounded arches are a dominant theme in the home, many of the doorways are curved. The woodwork is beautiful with intricate details on the carved columns, detailed moldings and arches. There are four bedrooms and over 18,000 square feet of space, much of which seems to be given over, on the first level, to large open spaces stuffed with couches and small tables. I'm a sucker for a stuffed library and this home has a lovely open one with glass doors. Other details include an indoor pool and a summer kitchen. The 7.56 acres also include a a 4200 square foot antique Colonial, 2500 square foot post and beam saltbox and a buildable lot. It is listed at $9.5 million.

The Concord House, Estate of the Day

Filed under: Estates


The Concord House in Concord, Massachusetts is a gorgeous piece of architecture created by Machado and Silvetti Associates. This 8,000-square-foot home has the type of clean lines that bring joy to the modernist heart. The five-bedroom home has a great feeling of spaciousness with the rooms placed around an L-shaped form and sharing exterior and interior courtyards. It is listed at $6.25 million. After the jump, modern and yet cozy.

Swallow Cave, Estate of the Day

Filed under: Estates


Today's estate is in one of my favorite Massachusetts towns. Nahant is a rocky coastal town north of Boston. It has a dramatic coastline of sharp promontories and sweeping ocean vistas. The home shown here is Swallow Cave which was built in the late 1930s for John Roosevelt, son of Franklin D. Roosevelt, and his wife Ann Clark. This Mediterranean-style villa sits on  two waterfront acres with views of the Atlantic Ocean, Harbor Islands, and the Boston Skyline. The home has seven bedrooms and details that include antique pine floors, a media room, wine cellar, and a four-car garage with one-bedroom apartment. There is an oceanfront pool with cabana, a small vineyard and orchard, and a private beach with your own tiny rocky island to swim out to.  It is listed at $5.9 million. After the jump, a summer inside a classic.

Boston Harbor Penthouse, Estate of the Day

Filed under: Estates


Today the Boston Marathon is going on so I decided to choose this Boston penthouse as our estate of the day. This harbor penthouse has amazing views from every room. The 4,500 square foot space has four bedrooms, two fireplaces and two decks. The living and dining rooms have walnut floors and the eat-in kitchen has a wood-burning fireplace, green marble countertops, private balcony and panoramic views. The master suite has a cathedral ceiling and the master bath has both a  steam shower and Jacuzzi tub. The home also includes a paneled library, a home theater, a garden room with a soapstone sink and a wine storage area. There are three parking spaces and a marina spot for your boat. The penthouse is listed at $9.25 million.

Famous Fitzgerald Mansion For Sale

Filed under: Estates

A piece of American history is hitting the auction block on Tuesday. The Boston Globe reports that the summer home of Mayor John F. "Honey Fitz" Fitzgerald, the father of Rose Kennedy will be auctioned off through Commonwealth Auctions. The house, located in the town of Hull was sold by Honey Fitz in 1921 but J.F.K. did spend the first summer of his life there. The 15-room mansion has a view of the Boston skyline and has a classic white-gabled look. The home is up for auction because the current owner Jamie Edelkind, used forged documents to buy and renovate the house. He was sentenced to five years in prison for wiring $580,000 in cash from a refinancing to his wife in Norway before he defaulted on a $2.3 million loan. It's historic but so far there hasn't been a lot of interest. The home does not have beach access. The home is a lovely old classic but real estate prices in Hull are often lower (a quick scan of Realtor.com reveals several large old grand houses selling for under $2 million) and the housing market in Massachusetts has recently turned a tad sluggish.

[via Born Rich]


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