10 of the World's Most Luxurious Houses

[sethy]

1. Antilla, Mumbai - The first Billion dollar home

Mukesh Ambani, the fifth richest man in the world and head of the Mumbai based petrochemical giant Reliance Industries is estimated to be worth somewhere in the region of $43 billion. The vast variation of materials to be used in its build has tremendously added to its overall cost. The meticulous planning that has gone into this architectural design is astounding and once the 27 -story tower is built it will certainly become a spectacular site for all eyes. Hirsch Bedner Associates are the designers behind this project.

[sethy]

2.Updown Court, England - The most important private residence to be built in England since the 19th century
Updown Court is situated only 25 miles from London, and through a pair of large sophisticated iron gates, one can see a palatial construction of immense scale and beauty. The property, however, is best known for its price tag: more than 85 million British pounds (+$150 million U$, with 103 rooms, five swimming pools and 24-carat-gold leafing on the study's mosaic floor. There's a squash court, bowling alley, tennis court, 50-seat screening room, heated marble driveway and helipad. Eight limousines will fit in the underground garage.

[sethy]

3.Versailles, Florida - The largest family home ever built in the US

This 30 bedroom mansion boasts its own bowling alley, roller skating rink and Olympic sized swimming pool to make it the largest family home ever built in the US. Time share mogul David Siegel and his former beauty queen wife Jacqueline began building the huge estate three years ago.As well as 30 bedrooms the home would have 23 bathrooms with spectacular views over Lake Butler, about 20 miles from Orlando. The hand-built windows for the house cost more than £2m and other luxuries include a ballroom and a children's theatre. There is a garage with enough space for 20 cars, three swimming pools, a large boat house, formal gardens, and a one-story gatehouse with an apartment. There is also a baseball field, two tennis courts, a 60 foot by 120 foot Grand Hall with a 30-foot stained glass dome, two grand staircases, a 37 foot by 30 foot kitchen, 10 satellite kitchens, a two-story wine cellar and a rock grotto with three separate spas behind an 80-foot waterfall.

[sethy]

4.Fleur De Lys, Beverly Hills – Mariah Carey's palace

Mariah Carey apparently had no problem scraping together a nice down payment on this palace in Beverly Hills. The Fleur De Lys is among the world's most expensive estates with an asking price of $125 million. Maria Carey's new digs were built by a Texan billionaire on 5 acres; it is 41,000 square feet of pure diva luxury and will also be modeled after the most extravagant home of its time: the Palace of Versaille, the former home of Marie Antoinette.

[sethy]

5.Hearst Mansion, Beverly Hill –The Godfather Mansion

This Beverly Hills mansion has been advertised for sale at $165m (£81.4m), making it one of the most expensive residential property listed in the US. The former home of US newspaper tycoon William Randolph Hearst has 29 bedrooms, three swimming pools, tennis courts, its own cinema and a nightclub. He has decorated the property with statues brought north from his famous Hearst Castle in San Simeon and with life-size paintings of Davies. Mr. Hearst bought the H-shaped mansion in 1947 for about $120,000.

[sethy]

6.Acqua Liana, Florida – The most luxurious eco mansion

Frank McKinney, known as the real estate “artist,” has built a 15,000-square-foot “eco-mansion.”Inspired by trips to Bali, Fiji, Tahiti and Hawaii, the three-story, 15,000-square-foot, 7-bedroom, 11-bath mansion features floating sun terraces, a waterfall spa with a fire feature in the water and an arched aquarium wet bar. Green features inside the one-off mansion include enough solar panels to cover a basketball court generating enough energy for two or three average-size homes. A water system that collects enough run-off water to fill the average swimming pool every 14 days and environmentally conscious lighting reduces electricity consumption by 70 per cent. There is enough reclaimed wood to save 10.5 acres of Brazilian rain forest.

[sethy]

7.Villa Leopolda, France

The magnificent $750 million Villa Leopolda in Villefranche-sur-Mer was built for King Leopold II of Belgium in 1902. The estate is so big that it requires 50 full time gardeners. The grounds cover 20 acres of garden and visitors can stroll amongst 1,200 olive, orange, lemon and cypress trees. In 2008, owner Lily Safra.

[sethy]

8.The Manor, Los Angeles – Aaron Spelling dream house

His wife Cindy dubbed Aaron Spelling's 56,000-square-foot LA mansion “The Manor”. Built for him in 1991 it has 123 rooms for his family to choose from. Nothing was spared in the creation of this home, with an indoor skating rink, multiple pools, three kitchens, sports courts, private orchard, and a bowling alley. In 2007 Candy Spelling, estranged mother of Tori Spelling, decided that her 57,000 square foot mansion was just a tad bit large for her and her pooch and decided to sell it and turned the mansion into the most expensive estate (in terms of current listings) at that time.

[sethy]

9. The Manalapan Residence – the ultimate oceanfront estate home
Set upon 5.5 acres, with 520 feet fronting direct Atlantic Ocean-to-Intracoastal waterway property, The Manalapan Residence triumphantly blends Old World elegance and classicism with 21st century facilities. Some of the amenities of this 3-story ‘beach house' includes 67,672 square feet, 14 bedrooms, 24 bathrooms, 18 car garage, 6,140 sq. ft. master bedroom suite, movie theatre, casino and club room with aquarium wet bar, gymnasium with beauty salon, shark tank, 2 elevators, bowling alley, tennis court and a go cart track.

[sethy]

10. Barbie Malibu Mansion – a life-size mansion inspired by Barbie's dream house

In honor of Barbie's 50th birthday celebration, interior decorator extraordinaire, Jonathan Adler, decked out a real-life 3,500-square-foot pad overlooking the Pacific Ocean to look like the blond doll's outrageous home. He lined Barbie's bedroom with wall-to-wall pink carpeting emblazoned with her initial. The closet is filled with 50 pairs of pink peep-toe heels while her kitchen is stocked with cupcake-making ingredients. An in-house museum features 25 vintage Barbie dolls on display.