A French Chateau Was Just Listed For $455 Million. Would Become The World’s Most Expensive Home

ByJoseph Gibsonon April 25, 2024inArticles›Celebrity Homes

A French chateau just outside Paris could become the most expensive single residence on the planet if it finds a buyer anywhere close to its recently unveiled asking price. Chateau d’Armainvilliers, which has a fascinating history that includes stints of ownership by the Rothschild banking family and the King of Morocco , has been placed on the market with an asking price of $455 million.

The Chateau d’Armainvilliers, 30 miles outside Paris, sits on a beautiful expanse of almost 2,500 acres and dates all the way back to the 12th century when it was constructed as a stronghold. Centuries later, it was partially destroyed during the French Revolution, and eventually, it was brought to much of its current state by the Rothschilds. Then, in the 1980s, it was purchased from that famous family by King Hassan II of Morocco. After King Hassan II’s death in 1999, it stayed with his son until 2008, when it was sold to its present owners for €200 million, less than half of the €425 million it’s being listed for now.

It’s an incredible piece of property that has to be seen to be appreciated, but some of the chateau’s most striking features among its 100 rooms and three levels include three elevators and 17 bedroom suites, each with their own individual themes. The grounds are also home to other structures, including a hair salon, car park, stables for horses, staff quarters, and more. There are also significant underground facilities underneath the chateau, which were installed by King Hassan II.

As for the title of the most expensive home in the world , it may be some time before we know for sure, as sales of properties like this tend to be private and confidential. However, it could be secured for significantly less than its asking price and still beat out the Chateau Louis XIV , which currently holds the top spot. Chateau Louis XIV sold in 2015 for $300 million. The buyer was Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman .

You can see Chateau d’Armainvilliers in the drone video below starting at the 3-minute mark. Our embed is hopefully already queued to that point:

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Saudi Prince Buys Russian Billionaire’s Yacht, Kicks Him Off The Next Day

ByJoseph Gibsonon October 31, 2016inArticles›Billionaire News

Right now, Saudi Arabia is in the midst of an economic crisis, being dealt with in part through austerity measures imposed by the country’s government. But that government’s deputy crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman , evidently still has some fall-back funds in the coffers, since he recently made a big ticket purchase that’s understandably making waves in his own country and throughout the world.

According to The New York Times , bin Salman made a surprising impulse buy sometime last year, one that’s only now becoming public knowledge. While on vacation in France, he caught a glimpse of Serene , the 440-foot mega yacht owned (at the time) by Russian vodka billionaire Yuri Shefler . In a matter of hours, bin Salman made an offer and the yacht was then his, having paid about $550 million for it. By the following day, Shefler, whatever guests he might have had on board and all his things were gone, and bin Salman was the one true owner of the Serene.

Phil Walter/Getty Images - 1

Phil Walter/Getty Images

The sale is bound to be a controversial one, particularly within the context of the state of Saudi Arabian politics, in which not only have belts have been tightened throughout the Saudi government, but bin Salman himself has amassed levels of political power that are historically unprecedented for a deputy crown prince. But in his defense, Serene is a pretty irresistible piece of craftsmanship, in addition to ranking among the biggest superyachts in the world. Back in 2014, it was good enough for Bill Gates and his family, who rented it at the rate of $5 million a week, and it has a GSE Trieste VAS 525/60 submarine and a Eurocopter EC-145 on board. So if you, like Prince Mohammed bin Salman , were going to get yourself into potentially hot political water by splurging on a yacht, this would be the one to do it with.

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