This North Carolina Home Is Fully Renovated — Except for the Secret Speakeasy in the Basement

If you’ve got a $2 million budget and you’re looking for an elegant estate with historic charm in spades, you’ll probably love this gorgeous home built in 1925 located in Asheville, North Carolina, which recently hit the market for $1,995,000. The single-family home has been meticulously cared for and updated with plenty of enviable features, but it’s the secret speakeasy in the basement that is understandably piquing interest among potential buyers.

High ceilings, original moldings, a kitchen that would be any home chef’s dream — this 7-bedroom, 3.5-bathroom 6,350-square foot estate has clearly been cared for with love and attention to detail. The current owners discovered the secret speakeasy hidden in the home’s basement just under a decade ago during a renovation, deciding to update it to make it a full upscale watering hole fit for any Prohibition-era fun.

Listing agent Janet Whitworth told Realtor.com that when her clients purchased the home, “The basement was just junk. It was a mess. They found some very secure doors, and the windows had been blacked out. There was a buzzer that would ring, and still works, from the main level kitchen down to the bar — which could indicate that it was there to warn anybody down there.”

The owners repaired and restored the bar, creating a jovial pub that is now in full working order. Whitworth added, “They created a British pub-type atmosphere down there. It looks to me a little bit like if you’re in New York City — how you can look down into those pubs off the street.” Whitworth has even heard rumblings that the bar served as an actual speakeasy when the home was built in the 1920s.

“It’s a rumor and not substantiated, but there’s belief in the community that it could have been a speakeasy during Prohibition for the guests of the Grove Park Inn,” a nearby inn and golf course in the area. 

Aside from the truly unique basement dwelling, the owners have lovingly restored nearly every room of the house, making it any buyer’s dream. “It had been neglected and then sat vacant for a number of years. It was in very sad shape, but the potential was there, and these buyers saw that potential and restored it beautifully,” said Whitworth.