Home and Auto Mansionmania Tournament: Round 1, Heat 11

**Rain Man** · 10-13-2021, 10:43 AM

Mansionmania continues. I'm going to show you the most expensive homes in every state and a few territories, with a few extras thrown in from the largest states to get the tourney up to 64. It'll be a single-elimination tournament.

You will choose among each pair of houses with the following assumptions:

The purchase price for you is $0.
All maintenance, utilities, property taxes, and cleaning is included.
You must live in the home for the rest of your life.
You can't travel more than 100 miles from home (via google maps drive time) other than 1 two-week vacation each year.
You get $250,000 per year as a living allowance
You get an additional living allowance at the cheaper home, which will be valued at 1% of any cost difference annually. I will note this amount in the poll.
You get the furnishings. If unfurnished, you get an allowance that will give you mid-grade furniture in every room.
You get any vehicles in the garage. But only the garage - nothing parked outside.

I encourage you to click on the maps in the listings to see the general location and neighborhood.

Also, I will only enter contestants if they have a sufficient number of photos to judge, as determined by me.

Your entries in this heat are:

District of Columbia:

https://www.realtor.com/realestatean...8_M50379-76631

Missouri:

https://www.realtor.com/realestatean...5_M70579-02384

ClevelandBronco · 10-13-2021, 10:57 AM

This whole exercise has reminded me that there are very few places in which I’d ever want to live.

DJ's left nut · 10-13-2021, 11:02 AM

I'm not gonna lie - I kinda hate that DC house.

But holy hell, that might be the coolest location we've had thus far. You're right next to the Naval Observatory and sandwiched in between a dozen genuine embassies.

I far prefer that Missouri house. Better home, better property. It's a really nice place.

But I can't get over how neat that location is for the DC house and my annual stipend should give me enough to take care of some of the interior design choices that are...uh...iffy.

It's just so damn unique. Gotta go with the DC house.

**Rain Man** · 10-13-2021, 11:04 AM

This is an interesting one.

DC house - Man, that's a jewel box of a home. Check out the plasterwork on the ceiling. That is a home that is worthy of my dignified presence. It's in suburban DC if there is such a thing, and it's a great location to see a bunch of cool museums and exhibits. The downside is that the bedrooms seem to be furnished from a secondhand store, so I'd have to upgrade with my stipend, which will cost some money. But that's not a big deal at all. The home is also clearly meant to be more of an entertaining space than a home, and it's a bit formal. But I could deal with that. DC location? Eh, I'm not an East Coast guy, but I could deal with DC in that house.

Missouri - Damn horses again. But I digress. You have to start with the pool, which is pretty impressive. I think it may even have one of those beach entrances where you just wade in, and I've always thought those were cool. I like the indoor basketball court even though I don't know what I'd do with it. It's on 20 acres, which is nice, and the public parts of the house are a nice style. At 20,000+ square feet, I have room to stretch my legs. The downside: suburban St. Louis is not where I want to spend the rest of my life, and that's a big deal. St. Louis has bad mojo for me, and I don't want to make Cracker Barrel my night out. The house is so big that it's got some silly stuff like the bowling alley and two separate weight rooms, so the architect clearly just ran out of ideas. And is that an American ninja setup and mini-ferris wheel in Picture 44?

I fully expect Missouri to win this in a landslide, and that house will compete well, but I'm going with DC. That's too much pomp and circumstance to pass up, and I can while away my days in DC pretty happily.

**wazu** · 10-13-2021, 11:06 AM

If I wanted to hold royal balls and pretend I'm president I'd go D.C. But I don't. The Missouri house looks like an infinitely more fun place to live day to day. The D.C. house looks like something you should wear a tuxedo in at all times, along with top hat and monocle.

DJ's left nut · 10-13-2021, 11:07 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rain Man

I fully expect Missouri to win this in a landslide, and that house will compete well, but I'm going with DC. That's too much pomp and circumstance to pass up, and I can while away my days in DC pretty happily.

Right?!?

I mean I presume the purchase of the home comes with a lifetime pass to every snootie insider party and dark smoke-filled room in town.

I would have the theme from the Air Force One soundtrack playing in every room in the house every time I walk in.

I'd change my name to Jack Ryan and just feel 10 feet tall and bulletproof. It's just friggen cool.

**Rain Man** · 10-13-2021, 11:08 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ClevelandBronco

This whole exercise has reminded me that there are very few places in which I’d ever want to live.

I'm learning a few things here.

1. Once a house gets to a certain size, features no longer matter. It's more about aesthetic.

2. When you can get a house that has every conceivable feature, the location really becomes the differentiating factor.

**Rain Man** · 10-13-2021, 11:10 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DJ's left nut

Right?!?

I mean I presume the purchase of the home comes with a lifetime pass to every snootie insider party and dark smoke-filled room in town.

I would have the theme from the Air Force One soundtrack playing in every room in the house every time I walk in.

I'd change my name to Jack Ryan and just feel 10 feet tall and bulletproof. It's just friggen cool.

I figure they'd all come to you and ask to hold their insider parties at your place. So you'd have to be invited.

It would be cool to have a house like that just so that you can invite people over for your fantasy football draft and watch their jaws drop.

**Rain Man** · 10-13-2021, 11:10 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by wazu

If I wanted to hold royal balls and pretend I'm president I'd go D.C. But I don't. The Missouri house looks like an infinitely more fun place to live day to day. The D.C. house looks like something you should wear a tuxedo in at all times, along with top hat and monocle.

I'd probably dress like George Washington every day.

DJ's left nut · 10-13-2021, 11:11 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rain Man

I figure they'd all come to you and ask to hold their insider parties at your place. So you'd have to be invited.

It would be cool to have a house like that just so that you can invite people over for your fantasy football draft and watch their jaws drop.

After 2-3 years of living there I would have absolutely convinced myself that I could legally have people killed.

I might even be right.

DJ's left nut · 10-13-2021, 11:12 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rain Man

I'd probably dress like George Washington every day.

I would definitely learn to play the fife.

Or maybe just hire someone to follow me around with said fife playing jaunty marching tunes for me.

**Rain Man** · 10-13-2021, 11:14 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DJ's left nut

After 2-3 years of living there I would have absolutely convinced myself that I could legally have people killed.

I might even be right.

Oh, yeah. I'm sure that dozens or hundreds of authorized hits have been approved from that library.

mr. tegu · 10-13-2021, 11:19 AM

How does one realistically eat nachos in pajamas while watching football in a house like that DC one?

burt · 10-13-2021, 11:20 AM

NO DC for me. DC makes KC look like a kindergarten by comparison in crime. Cides, I like the land...

Hoover · 10-13-2021, 11:22 AM

Both of these places are ****ing weird.

I would go less crazy in Missouri

View Poll Results: Which one do you pick?
District of Columbia + $265,000 annual stipend	19	31.67%
Missouri + $250,000 annual stipend	41	68.33%
Gosh, I can't decide.	0	0%
Voters: 60. You may not vote on this poll

10-13-2021, 10:43 AM
Rain Man Seize life. Be an ermine. Join Date: Jul 2001 Location: My house Casino cash: $-492449 VARSITY	Mansionmania Tournament: Round 1, Heat 11 Mansionmania continues. I'm going to show you the most expensive homes in every state and a few territories, with a few extras thrown in from the largest states to get the tourney up to 64. It'll be a single-elimination tournament. You will choose among each pair of houses with the following assumptions: The purchase price for you is $0. All maintenance, utilities, property taxes, and cleaning is included. You must live in the home for the rest of your life. You can't travel more than 100 miles from home (via google maps drive time) other than 1 two-week vacation each year. You get $250,000 per year as a living allowance You get an additional living allowance at the cheaper home, which will be valued at 1% of any cost difference annually. I will note this amount in the poll. You get the furnishings. If unfurnished, you get an allowance that will give you mid-grade furniture in every room. You get any vehicles in the garage. But only the garage - nothing parked outside. I encourage you to click on the maps in the listings to see the general location and neighborhood. Also, I will only enter contestants if they have a sufficient number of photos to judge, as determined by me. Your entries in this heat are: District of Columbia: https://www.realtor.com/realestatean...8_M50379-76631 Missouri: https://www.realtor.com/realestatean...5_M70579-02384
Posts: 145,279

10-13-2021, 10:57 AM	#2
ClevelandBronco I'm with the banned. Join Date: Sep 2006 Casino cash: $5658955	This whole exercise has reminded me that there are very few places in which I’d ever want to live. __________________ "Faith and reason are like two wings on which the human spirit rises to the contemplation of truth ..." – Pope Saint John Paul II
Posts: 28,113	1 0

10-13-2021, 11:02 AM	#3
DJ's left nut Sauntering Vaguely Downwards Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Columbia, Mo Casino cash: $-670901	I'm not gonna lie - I kinda hate that DC house. But holy hell, that might be the coolest location we've had thus far. You're right next to the Naval Observatory and sandwiched in between a dozen genuine embassies. I far prefer that Missouri house. Better home, better property. It's a really nice place. But I can't get over how neat that location is for the DC house and my annual stipend should give me enough to take care of some of the interior design choices that are...uh...iffy. It's just so damn unique. Gotta go with the DC house. __________________ "If there's a god, he's laughing at us.....and our football team..." "When you look at something through rose colored glasses, all the red flags just look like flags."
Posts: 66,735

10-13-2021, 11:04 AM	#4
Rain Man Seize life. Be an ermine. Join Date: Jul 2001 Location: My house Casino cash: $-492449 VARSITY	This is an interesting one. DC house - Man, that's a jewel box of a home. Check out the plasterwork on the ceiling. That is a home that is worthy of my dignified presence. It's in suburban DC if there is such a thing, and it's a great location to see a bunch of cool museums and exhibits. The downside is that the bedrooms seem to be furnished from a secondhand store, so I'd have to upgrade with my stipend, which will cost some money. But that's not a big deal at all. The home is also clearly meant to be more of an entertaining space than a home, and it's a bit formal. But I could deal with that. DC location? Eh, I'm not an East Coast guy, but I could deal with DC in that house. Missouri - Damn horses again. But I digress. You have to start with the pool, which is pretty impressive. I think it may even have one of those beach entrances where you just wade in, and I've always thought those were cool. I like the indoor basketball court even though I don't know what I'd do with it. It's on 20 acres, which is nice, and the public parts of the house are a nice style. At 20,000+ square feet, I have room to stretch my legs. The downside: suburban St. Louis is not where I want to spend the rest of my life, and that's a big deal. St. Louis has bad mojo for me, and I don't want to make Cracker Barrel my night out. The house is so big that it's got some silly stuff like the bowling alley and two separate weight rooms, so the architect clearly just ran out of ideas. And is that an American ninja setup and mini-ferris wheel in Picture 44? I fully expect Missouri to win this in a landslide, and that house will compete well, but I'm going with DC. That's too much pomp and circumstance to pass up, and I can while away my days in DC pretty happily. __________________ Active fan of the greatest team in NFL history.
Posts: 145,279

10-13-2021, 11:06 AM	#5
wazu ... Join Date: May 2002 Location: Kansas City, MO Casino cash: $-1507705 VARSITY	If I wanted to hold royal balls and pretend I'm president I'd go D.C. But I don't. The Missouri house looks like an infinitely more fun place to live day to day. The D.C. house looks like something you should wear a tuxedo in at all times, along with top hat and monocle.
Posts: 30,650

10-13-2021, 11:19 AM	#13
mr. tegu Forever Royal Join Date: Mar 2012 Casino cash: $-1708700	How does one realistically eat nachos in pajamas while watching football in a house like that DC one?
Posts: 26,491	2 0

10-13-2021, 11:22 AM	#15
Hoover Rufus Dawes Jr. Join Date: Aug 2000 Casino cash: $-1961821	Both of these places are ****ing weird. I would go less crazy in Missouri
Posts: 18,016

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