Wanna see what a “farmhouse,” looks like here?

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Sometimes I think it’d be fun to drive or ride around and take pics of all the 10,000-20,000sf “farmhouses,” around here. There are dozens spanning a few cities, because ultra wealthy people bend & break land use laws to construct them. Some have helicopter pads etc.

This one is about a 25 min drive from where I live and is definitely one of the most elaborate & opulent - maybe even number 1. I saw a post that it just sold this weekend.

Anyways, check it out.. must be a blueberry farmer for sure.

https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/4552-19 ... a-di-fonti

Wow! That looks more like a resort of some kind than a house.

I wouldn't want to live in a house like that. Doesn't impress me in the least.

My priorities are different than people like that. Even if I was a millionaire many times over I wouldn't live in a mansion like that.

Rich people do tend to brag about their wealth. That's been my experience anyway in a career that's included sales and often required me to meet with people some of whom owned palatial high valued homes. Brag, brag, brag. Here's the other thing: Almost to a person such people that I met with were the least hospitable whereas people who lived modestly were generous in making you feel welcome and cared for in their abodes.

I use my grandmother's litmus test for judging a home.

"If it were rainy and miserable, is there a cosy room where I'd want to curl up with my cup of tea?"

I don't see that in the farmhouse, so I vote no.

Also there are far too many windows for me. Windows = sunlight and glare.

Yeah, I thought it looks like a hotel too: no real warmth that I’d want in a home.

I also thought: what nutter builds an Italian villa in Canada?
Have they not heard of designing to fit the local climate for comfort and longevity?

Almost every country in the world is represented here in terms of blended nationalities, ethnicities, and languages. There are multiple construction & landscape styles mimicked from around the world.

Personally, I like the aptly names “West Coast,” style of home facades (red cedar, large industrial windows, stainless steel etc) and post & beam “chalet,” style homes modelled after architecture here in Whistler.

But rich people have built all kinds of wild stuff here. There’s a place in Ocean Park that’s all stone - damn near British castle looking, that took more than a decade to build.

Then there’s Chip Wilson’s $60-70M waterfront mansion in Point Grey.. mostly concrete, complete with helipad. (But of course!)

But, that’s not to say there aren’t some absolutely stunning places with international influence. And let’s be honest here, Japanese or Chinese styled Feng Shui gardening and landscaping looks

Some of the oldest mansions have British influences because that’s who built them, then as wealth changed there’s a fair number with Italian influences, and now they’re mostly built with Asian tastes in mind. OR Indian influences (or perhaps more likely Indo-Canadian than actual Indian), which is common for run of the mill typical farm mansions owned by first/second generation Indo-Canadians.

But the richest of the rich have whatever they like designed and built regardless of where they’re from.

Not my style of living, either, but they are rather neat to see when driving by.

If I lived in BC I'd build an a-frame with a nice view.

Depends on where in BC, I suppose.

In the densely populated lower mainland, there are Very Fee a-frames because it barely snows here at all.

But head way up North East and I bet they’re fairly common.

But not here anywhere near Vancouver. That’s part of why Billionaires come here - we have the most moderate climate in the entire country.

Meh, this is in my neck of the woods.
They ruined a perfectly good cave.
Micheal Jackson almost bought it.
It’s fun to visit but I wouldn’t want to live in it.
https://www.uniqhotels.com/beckham-creek-cave-lodge

That house cave reminds me of this scene from Rugrats

Lol/\
I wouldn’t want a giant house, relatives would try to move in.

lol. That's my greatest fear - that someone will have to move in with me!

My first thought was "Wow, that sounds pretty cool!" Then I saw the pictures, and it was not left as natural as I thought it would be and couldn't help but think of all the neat rock formations they probably destroyed and the bats and other critters they left homeless. If I made a cave-house, there would be at least one room dedicated to bats. I've recently become obsessed with bats and would adore to have a colony living right in my home (or more accurately, to be able to live right in their home). I'd leave much of the area intact and have a completely natural path from the entrance to the bat room(s) to try to keep the bats as happy as possible. The bat room(s) would also be where bats were already living, so they wouldn't be displaced. The bat room(s) would be left completely natural and I would try to be as undisruptive as possible if I went in for a peek (which I might not even do, to keep them as natural and undisturbed as possible -I'd still see them from time to time as they came in and out, and of course I'd be delighted if the occasional bat decided to visit "my" part of the cave, there would be a way that they could get there if they wanted to).

Oops, sorry for the ramble

I too would never want to live in a huge, opulent mansion no matter how much money I had. I just want enough space for me, my dog, and two cats that I will probably adopt when I move into my own place. Having much more space than that would be excessive for me, and having too much space would make me nervous, plus it would be more upkeep (though I suppose the people rich enough to build mansions also hire people to do the cleaning and stuff for them).