Anyone who is extremely online is probably aware of the popular Instagram account called Zillow Gone Wild. With over a million followers, its purpose is to find the most bizarre real estate listings currently for sale. Most of its posts are over the top or just plain odd. An all-black octagonal home in Lincoln, Illinois, went viral last December after being shared by the page, which dubbed it “the goth house.” While we all have our own tastes when it comes to residential design, after looking at some of the decisions made at the following properties you might ask yourself: How or why did this happen? But that’s why the account has become such an internet sensation. Just remember while browsing through the photos of these homes…the weirder the better.
4 Cambridge Dr, Oak Brook, $733,000
It doesn’t look like much from the outside, but once you step through the front door of this home in Oak Brook, prepare to be blown away. Mirrors are everywhere. And not just on the walls and ceilings but also on random pieces of furniture like the bar and billiards table in the recreation room. The kitchen itself is truly perplexing. Mirrors on the fridge, dishwasher, countertops, cabinets…how do they keep it clean? You also have to wonder how the photographer managed to not capture themselves in any of these pictures. The four-bedroom, five-bathroom house is currently contingent — because apparently there is someone else out there who wants to live in a 1980s movie.
801 Provencal Dr, Burr Ridge, $1,500,000
Back in February, this seemingly normal five-bedroom, five-bathroom home in suburban Burr Ridge received the Zillow Gone Wild treatment on Twitter for a number of reasons. With its hand-painted wall art ceilings, Versace wallpaper, and an outdoor pool in the shape of Millennium Park’s famous Cloud Gate sculpture, you can see why. As you go from room to room, you’ll notice a number of different patterns and textures on the walls and ceilings that are rather perplexing. Then there are all the murals throughout the space, like the sky above the foyer and the Last Supper replica in the dining room. Comments described it as “Catholic Church meets ugly Vegas hotel” and “Someone went to the Venetian and just couldn’t get enough.”
4353 W Hollywood Ave, Chicago, $899,500
When a listing says “truly a one-of-a-kind property,” they probably had this Sauganash home in mind. When I recently shared it on Twitter, someone replied “That house looks like three chess pieces in a trench coat.” Could it be the mishmash of cladding and styles? With its random parapet and turret entryway, this four-bedroom, four-bathroom mini-castle looks like it should come with a moat. Unfortunately it does not. Although the inside isn’t as baffling as the crenellated exterior, I think we can all agree the price tag of almost $900,000 is the truly shocking part (it last sold 15 years ago for $330,000).
1100 Eunice Ave, Joliet, $745,000
Statesville Correctional Center was known for the now-shuttered roundhouse with its panopticon layout in which the prison cells circle an armed tower in the middle. I’m not sure many people knew there was a second round house in the Joliet area until this unique property first hit the market a year and a half ago. There are definitely questions to ask about the frosted glass (front?) door and the bed in the middle of what looks like something between a stage and basketball court. There also don’t seem to be any walls or window treatments. If this three-bedroom, four bathroom circular home wasn’t random enough for you, it also comes with a 900-square-foot log cabin. Because that makes complete sense.
6515 N Kilbourn Ave, Lincolnwood, $2,995,000
This five-bedroom, seven-bathroom home in Lincolnwood repeats the same themes of the earlier Oak Brook residence I shared above. More shiny than mirrored, although the kitchen island is questionable and there are floor-to-ceiling wall mirrors in the bathrooms. It also comes with a game room and movie theater plus an indoor pool right off the main bedroom. But what I really want to know is how many windows does one actually need? My apologies if this is your taste in residential design, but it looks more like an office complex than a real house. It’s selling for almost $3 million.