Apart from the view in #7, which I do covet,but which is not really decor, I hate them all.

They are just one more proof that taxes should be raised on the very rich. For their own good, you understand - it's tragic to see the ultra rich struggle through life as prisoners of bad taste.

But, seriously, I do hate them all. I thought for a minute about that white kitchen. Maybe if you stripped out all the junk on the counters and got rid of the god-awful smoked glass doors on the upper cabinets, you could make it work. But for $29,000,000 I would expect something better than 'I could make it work.'

money can buy happiness, as in experiences (like travel). and decorating materials, which we all appreciate here.

I was thinking about this very topic today and I decided that I would much prefer "good" over "big." My parents live in a large newish McMansion type house and it is just so bland...it's not really a "home" IMO. We lived in smaller homes while I was growing up that had so much more personality.

I'm wondering if there isn't some latent envy here disguised as disdain.

Most of these places are pretty fabulous - particularly the Uber-Modern house in Montecito that appears to have been influenced by Mies' Barcelona Pavillion

I have seen the same in a few notable homes in the area. Bigger rooms often seem to mean "more clinical-looking" or "in the (impersonal) style of a hotel lobby." Smaller rooms apparently call for over-the-top details to compensate for the perceived inadequacy of their size. In either case, it would make me not want to be at home, so what would be the point in having a house at all?

The view in #7 is pretty fabulous.

Donna Decorates Dallas.... there I've said it...

I think the same thing when I watch reality tv and see celebrity houses. Sometimes they have the tackiest houses. Being rich does not mean you live in a house I would want to live in...well at least without extensive renovations. Ok, I do want most of those huge windows. Wow. (except number 3)

Nos. 3, 5 and the views in no. 7 for me, please.

Yeah, I'm with bep sf. I like the majority of the white kitchen (but the parts of it I don't like I waaaay don't like), the bathroom, that modern house with a wall of windows, and that bedroom overlooking the ocean.

I hate that last picture and the modern square kitchen.

Glad I hit this post before it turned too much into an ugly, hate-on-the-rich fest. (From a far, far from rich person)

If I could I would write the check for #7 and not feel even the slightest tinge of guilt over it.

I don't think these homes are so tacky. A few posted are high concept and with that comes a large price tag. I guess because it's not "vintage" modern design styled in that manufactured Anthro-style repeatedly promoted on AT, that means that people that appreciate a different style lack taste.

If everyone lived in small, quaint little homes with old world details and had Eames lounge chairs in their living rooms, the world would be a VERY boring place.

A middle-class person taken from a random sampling wouldn't exactly have kickass taste either -- hence the proliferation of McMansions and Ethan Allen furniture.

I think the biggest problem these rooms have is that they're just way oversized.

I'll take #7, decor and all, while everyone else is expressing disdain about it.

ArchDarling: Agreed! Look at HGTV's Rate My Space site.

Although none of those rooms reflect my personal aesthetic, only one of them is bad, IMO (the plaid & chintz cabin). I think this post sounds like sour grapes. "If I can't have it, it sucks."

In #3 you can see folks showering under the dual heads from the driveway. Group suds-up, anyone? File under: Creeptacular.

Author here. Just to clarify: with 2 exceptions, the images I selected are of homes I LIKE. But it took a loooong time to find them!

"I'm wondering if there isn't some latent envy here disguised as disdain."

Hahaha! Of course you are, bepsf.

All I can say:

Tax the rich, good or bad taste.

Most of these aren't all that bad, but that CT one is absolutely horrendous. Someone needs to be slapped for that atrocity.

Most of these aren't bad. Just super expensive.

#7 - reminded me instanrly of Game Of Thrones eyrie....the moon door!

er....instantly.

I've never been a fan of mansions. At least, not to live in; they're fun to tour and awesome for a luxury vacation. But I can't imagine actually LIVING in anything like most of these places on a day-to-day basis... it would get overwhelming.

I do covet the kitchen in #2, though. That's one thing I *would* love to have: a huge, luxurious kitchen. (And a big, well-landscaped yard, while we're at it).

All the other ones just look kind of gratuitous to me. But the only two that I HATE are #'s 3 and 8. Yikes.

I must be missing something. Most every picture just made me think a few things should be removed from the room and then it would be fine. These rooms/homes have good bones, and nice furnishings/fixtures in general. Yeah, those smoky upper cabinets, the hanging nipple light, and the giant stone island are not good (IMO anyways), but they aren't in hideous rooms.
To me, this series of rooms looks more like something from Designstar (?)- made/styled by someone who needs a bit more restraint and polish, not someone who doesn't have a clue.
Is it the square footage putting people off? I can see how that might be tough to swallow for some these days, especially if you have to forgive the owners having money, space, AND ugly things.
Except for that last photo. I really think that room it hideous, it made my throat clench.

Besides #6 and #8, they are all pretty fabulous. Even #8 is just a badly photographed room. The rest of the place may be magnificent. #6 looks plain but again I can't tell if it's the photography and you can't tell the scale and finish of the rest of the home.

Plus, believe it or not, you can't directly compare dollars to dollars even in the super high end. It is and will always be about location, exclusivity (aka supply to demand) and access to amenities at every segment of the housing market. You can't compare a $6M home to a $4M home if they are in completely different states or areas.

I'd take #7 if I didn't know the home was going to come crashing down in a mudslide during the next heavy rainfall. I know that neighborhood well, and always shake my head at the stupidity of building in such a dangerous way.

Money can buy options and options make you happy!

Are we still chasing the ilusion of the glory of wealth while people die in poverty and war? Ugh. I am tired of it! Let's do something different!!

"It's becoming clear that unless we redefine the meanings on some materially-inclined words such as Power, Wealth and Leadership, society will continue to be governed by old social sphere. Examples of new meanings:

Leadership = Ability to empower & serve others
Wealth = Measured by how much has been given out instead of accumulated
Power = Measured by no. of shared voice; the higher the no., the more powerful" (Soon Kam)

‎"Rather than colossal economic reform which had been attempted many times, perhaps the world's economists should now look at a simple fact, that is how to transform the hearts of men. The reason is this, selfish economy system has its origin in one's heart." ( Soon Kam)

I have a really nice soap box I made myself. I'm stepping down off it now... ;oP

What #3 needs is a cheap barstool wrapped in rope. #5 needs walls painted turquoise up almost to the top, with a ragged edge, like there wasn't enough paint to cut in around the ceiling.

I've seen Glass Pavilion (#3) a bunch of times and I love it from an aesthetic and minimalist POV, but can't imagine living in a space quite so open. As an FYI, the house is in a grove of trees in the middle of a 3.5 acre estate, so no chance the neighbors are going to see you showering together. The wildlife is another story...

Off to gape at the website.

Thanks for naming another website I can waste tons of my laid-off teacher butt on during my unemployed phase.

#3- Even if you were not on 3.5 quiet acres- I still covet you.

None is my style exactly but I do not think they are ugly.
I agree with what fatskinnygirl said.

Number 7 is outrageously FABULOUS. But I'll wait until they lower the price another $19,000,000. :)

Why did the builder of #7 slap a humongous concrete monstrosity on top of such a beautiful natural feature? I have nothing against concrete nor modern architecture. But that sucker is hideous. Where's the restraint? 11,000 sq ft? Were they trying to break a record for the most concrete used in a residential building?
But what really gets me is that if you look at the accompanying video, there is no finished kitchen. For $39,000,000 you get a parking garage with a parking garage and no finished kitchen.
No wonder it's in foreclosure.

I like my small home. I just wish it came with a view like #7.

But the fact that it's in foreclosure says it all.

I do really like the bathroom in photo #4.

No need to look too far from DC for some seriously expensive places. Check out the one in old town that we recently wrote about. $6,000,000 for a truly historic home in Old Town Alexandria. http://www.oldtownhome.com/2011/7/12/Brother-Can-You-Spare-6000000-for-the-Lord-Fairfax-House/index.aspx

Here's the listing on Redfin http://www.redfin.com/VA/Alexandria/607-Cameron-St-22314/home/11863940

One odd thing I've noticed about very expensive houses is that they're often just normal, middle-class houses on steroids. They're much bigger, have more toys and use some high-end materials, but under that they're basically just the same houses that average people are building.

I find it very frustrating to drive past local houses that sell for seven or even eight figures and notice that they're just double or triple sized versions of ordinary houses. If I had $10,000,000 to drop on a house, I'd want it to be exciting and beautiful, not just vast and expensive.

@mxjohnson: thanks for the laugh! which home needs the stripped down lamp with bloody rags tied on? ;)

I've always been perplexed by this: I live in the Kansas City metroplex. In the south Overland Park area, we have lots of "world headquarters" for a bunch of companies, and that part of town has scores of multi-million $ monstrosities that are all bunched close together, painted gray, have a surprisingly "builder basic" interiors, and are frankly boring compared to Kansas City's historic neighborhoods, where you can also find million-dollar homes with 1930's character, charming landscaping, and absolutely unique interior details. For the life of me, I do not understand this! Why the yucky suburban million dollar neighborhoods?

I've been in one Beverly Hills mansion. I couldn't even begin to imagine how much it's worth, but I was left with one conclusion: This wasn't really what I'd call the pinnacle of design. The furnishings were very traditional, very much scaled to the size of the rooms, but there wasn't really ever a wow factor. It was... wealth porn, if that makes any sense.

I read that people who live in huge houses use just a few rooms in one wing for daily life, so their used home area is about average unless entertaining. I've visited some huge houses and would feel uncomfortable, even lonely, living in one. It would be like wandering in a gallery, museum, or other public building, impressive rather than homey. Besides, live-in house servants needed to keep it nice would reduce privacy, which is an essential distinction between home and a cage or the street. I'd rather buy a small house on a big piece of land and restore it to establish a private wildlife preserve.

I've much despised the "McMansions" out there, with 200,000SF, and no useful space. Money buys you more stuff, more space, and a longer driveway...not style...

CM, I'm glad I saw your later comment, because from the copy in your post it is in no way clear that the rooms pictured are among the best you could find. Reading implied that these were examples of rich people lacking taste. I happen to think that #8 is a great example of lack of taste in the way that patterns are combined.

Gaidig: yeah, actually the clarifying sentence appears to have been accidentally omitted or edited out, prob my fault! I think I will add it back in before I come across as a true moron!
-Catrin