Eerie Beauty: Stunning Abandoned Dream Homes Across America and Beyond

When you’re searching for a new place to live, it can sometimes feel like all the great homes are taken. Thankfully, however, there are still some formerly gorgeous homes out there — they just need a little (okay, major) TLC. Through a series of mishaps and/or tragedies, countless once-spectacular houses across America, and around the world, have sadly been left to the elements. Read on for mansions and dreamy abodes that also happen to be abandoned.

Related: Once Popular Tourist Hotspots That Are Now Totally Abandoned

Cape Vincent, New York

After making his fortune in the typewriter business, William O. Wyckoff hired architect William Miller to build what is now known as The Carleton Island Villa. In 1895, after spending one solitary night at the new home, Wyckoff died of a heart attack (just a few months after his wife died of the same cause).

After the Wyckoff family lost its fortune, General Electric took over the property and planned to make it a spot for company retreats. World War II started before they could make good on those plans, and the home was eventually left to decay. That could all change in the near future, however, as a developer purchased the home in 2022 with plans to restore it to its former glory and open it as a bed and breakfast.

Related: The Strangest Home in Every State

East Dunbartonshire, Scotland

Built in the late 1830s, Lennox Castle was designed by architect David Hamilton, who’s been called “the father of the profession.” After being used as a residence for a wealthy Scottish family, it was sold in 1927 to the Glasgow Corporation and remade into a hospital for individuals with learning disabilities.

The hospital, which officially opened in 1936 was known for being overcrowded and understaffed. Patients were said to be malnourished and mistreated. In 2002, the hospital was shut down, and a fire damaged the building in 2008. Though some of the grounds have been repurposed, the damaged hospital building remains untouched.

For more fascinating real estate stories, please sign up for our free newsletters.

Los Angeles

In 1959, Dr. Harold Perelson bludgeoned his wife Lillian to death with a ball-peen hammer. He then attempted to do the same to one of his three children, but his eldest daughter survived a blow to the head, escaped, and called for help, sparing the other children. Perselen then took a fatal dose of sleeping pills. The home was sold a year later but only used for storage by the owners. The home remained uninhabited and virtually untouched for decades.

The home was sold again in 2016, partially renovated, then sold again in 2020. In 2022, the home was once again listed after a full renovation, this time for $5.5 million but taken off the market later that year. The home and its true crime story are the subjects of a podcast called The Los Feliz Murder Mansion.

Beijing, China

Known as “Beijing's most celebrated haunted house," Chaonei No. 81 has a mysterious backstory. No one quite agrees on who built it, when it was built, or why, though the Catholic church is said to have been involved in some way. It’s said to be haunted by the ghost of a military wife whose husband abandoned her, but there is no record of that.

After serving as inspiration for the 2014 3D horror film “The House That Never Dies,” Chaonei No. 81 has been the subject of even more attention. The current owner, the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Beijing, closed the gates to the building after the release of the film, citing structural issues. In 2017, following extensive renovations, the building reopened and was listed as a rental property for a mere $1.4 million a year. It’s unclear whether there have been any takers.

Elkins Park, Pennsylvania

In 1897, construction was started on Lynnewood Hall, which was designed by architect Horace Trumbauer for Peter A.B. Widener, one of the richest men in America at the time, and supposedly owned more Rembrandt paintings than anyone aside from Buckingham Palace among other works by old masters. Widener lived there for fifteen years, before dying at the age of 80.

After being sold in its state of grandeur by the Widener family in 1944, the 110-room mansion was used as a school by a religious organization that started to sell off much of the interior. Though uninhabited for decades, an agreement to purchase the property was recently reached by a group of young investors who plan to restore the home and surrounding gardens to their former glory as a cultural site open to the public.

Fregene, Italy

In the late 1960s, a coastal city called Fregene became the favorite getaway spot for those in nearby Rome. During this time, Casa Sperimentale was built between 1968 and 1975 as an experimental holiday home for the Perugini family. A few years later, the concrete treehouse-like structure was used as a filming location by Federico Fellini.

After the builder passed away in 1995, this eclectic, experimental domicile fell into disrepair and is now abandoned. It’s rumored that there are plans to restore the property and use it as an events space, though in 2020 it was listed as in danger of collapse.

Lake Como, Italy

Villa de Vecchi, sometimes called “Red House” or “Ghost Mansion,” has also been called “The Most Haunted House in Italy.” It was built in the 1850s as the summer home of Count Felix De Vecchi, the head of the Italian National Guard. He hired architect Alessandro Sidioli for the project, who died a year before the villa was completed. This was seen as a bad omen.

In 1862, the Count arrived home one day to find the body of his wife who had been brutally murdered. His daughter was also missing. He searched for her, to no avail, and died by his own hand a year later. The house has passed around between owners since then and amassed spookier and spookier stories since then (though many of the ghost stories may have originated from pranks played by the grandson of the Villa’s gardener to deter uninvited visitors). In 2002, an avalanche destroyed every home in the vicinity, except for the Villa, which remained untouched.

Memphis, Tennessee

Also called “Prince Mongo’s castle,” Ashlar Hall is located smack dab in the middle of Memphis, Tennessee. Real estate developer Robert Brinkley Snowden built the three-floor, 11,000-square-foot mock castle in 1896 as a home for himself and his family. Opulence was the name of the game with eight bedrooms, five bathrooms, and six bars.  

After Snowden’s death, the home was passed down to his family members but was eventually sold in 1957, due to the enormous upkeep expenses. For several decades, the home became a restaurant and was added to the National Register of Historic Places, helping to save it from demolition.  In 1990, it was sold to Robert “Prince Mongo” Hedges, known for his eccentric behavior and unexplained wealth, who used it as a sort of R-rated event space. After several brushes with the law, he gave up ownership of the building. In 2017, a new owner began renovating the castle.

Cold Spring, New York

On New York’s Hudson River is a 6.5-acre island called Pollepel Island. On it, lies Bannerman Castle, built by Francis Bannerman who built it in the early 1900s as a summer residence and storage space for his arms business, based in Brooklyn. It was an idyllic retreat for the family, with stunning gardens, thanks to the work of Mrs. Bannerman.

In 1967, the island was given to the Taconic Park Commission. Two years later, a massive fire destroyed much of the castle. Today, it remains fairly untouched, though a trust has been set up to raise awareness of the space and perhaps one day restore it to its former grandeur.

Minxiong Township, Taiwan

In 1929, businessman Liú Róngyù built a three-story baroque-style mansion for his family of nine. In the 1950s, the family abandoned the mansion. Though no one is certain of the reason, there are rumors of ghosts and an affair with one of the servants that ended in a tragic death. It also could have had to do with the political changes in the area — Japanese colonial rule had just come to an end.

Thanks to its dramatic past, the Liu Family Mansion — also known as the Minxiong Haunted House — has been an attraction for ghost-seekers for decades. Surrounded by a grove of trees, much of the brick building is now covered in roots and vines. While obvious vandalism is rare in Taiwan, there is some spray paint and artwork on the interior walls, though the floors have since rotted away.

Warren Township, Missouri

Like many of the buildings on this list, the Ha Ha Tonka Castle was built by an eccentric businessman, who intended it as a residence. Robert McClure Snyder started construction in 1905 but died in one of Missouri’s first car accidents two years later, and never saw the final structure. His sons took over the project and finished construction in 1922.

The castle was never independently named, but began to be called Ha Ha Tonka Castle, which as Roadside America explains, was “either an Osage phrase meaning ‘Laughing Waters’ or an exotic-sounding nonsense term coined by the landowner who sold Snyder the property.” After passing hands a few times, a fire destroyed much of the property in 1942. Since then, the state bought the property, opened it as pubic park, and has worked on restoring it.

Rhinebeck, New York

Meet the property that inspired the phrase “Keeping up with the Joneses.” Built in 1853 by Elizabeth Schermerhorn Jones, aunt of Edith Wharton and cousin of the Astors, it was known for being massive and imposing, with a total of 24 total rooms. Supposedly, the neighbors felt newly small in comparison and the now-common phrase was supposedly born.  

Edith Wharton spent several summers at Wyndclyffe Castle in her childhood and did not have the most flattering things to say about it, calling it “Grimly comfortable.” She called it Rhinecliff in her work, saying “I can still remember hating everything at Rhinecliff.” After the death of Jones, the Great Depression, and two world wars, the castle had fallen into disrepair by the 1950s. It’s now been abandoned for over 70 years, and photography-inclined trespassers have documented entire sections of the mansion that have crumbled. The home was purchased in 2017 with hopes of restoring it.

Guatapé, Colombia

Many of the mansions on this list faded away with time. Finca La Manuela has a much more dramatic story. This 20-acre property, complete with a pool, soccer field (that doubled as a landing pad for helicopters), and tennis court, was one of the residences of drug lord Pablo Escobar, said to have been the wealthiest criminal in history.

La Manuela, named after Escobar’s daughter, is said to have been his second favorite house. In 1993, the home was bombed by a rival cartel. Escobar was killed eight months later. Now the home is left to treasure hunters and the elements. It’s apparently common for visitors to play paintball in the ruins.

London, England

The Bishops Avenue, also known as Billionaire’s Row, is known as one of the wealthiest areas in the world. It is the home to publishing magnates, royalty, and real estate tycoons. Most houses are the size of hotels. But, in 2014, The Guardian reported that of the 66 homes located here, 16 have been abandoned for decades.  

Even the homes that aren’t abandoned aren’t always in use. Many of the homes are only used for a few months of the year, and function mostly as a way to avoid taxes. Many are registered to shell companies in tax havens. One resident called this area "one of the most expensive wastelands in the world.”

Farmville, Virginia

Unlike many of the properties on this list, what’s now known as Dunnington Mansion started out as a simple brick home. A farmer named Richard Woodson, sometimes called Baron Woodson, built this as a four-room home for his family in the 1700s. It passed hands within the family over the years, and a few modest improvements were made.

In 1860, the home was sold to Captain John Knight, who gave it to his daughter India and her husband Walter Grey Dunnington, a local businessman who’d made it big in tobacco. They decided to lavishly renovate the home, taking it from 4 rooms to 14, and hiring craftsmen to give the inside an ornate look in the style of the Romanesque Revival. In 2000, the home and property was sold to a local development company with plans of developing a championship golf course. Unfortunately, despite decades of prior care, the mansion was left to rot when money dried up. Local investors bought the property in 2021 and restoration efforts are underway.

Rajasthan, India

During the 18th and 19th centuries, Shekhawati was one of the main hubs of trade along the famed Silk Road. The local Marwari people had a booming economy based on spice and textile trade. As early as the 17th century, wealthy merchants began building spectacular mansions, locally known as havelis, were adorned with elaborate and colorful frescos (paintings on wet plaster), and the tradition only grew as the area became wealthier.

These frescos, dating back hundreds of years, document the lives and imaginations of their former residents. Unfortunately, as trade moved away from the region, many of the thousands of havelis were neglected or outright abandoned. While there are efforts to preserve and restore these historic painted mansions, many have been torn down and others are at risk of demolition as well as increased rain damage due to climate change.

Union Springs, Alabama

Construction started on the Rainer-Lewis House in 1902 and finished in 1904. It was intended as a grand Neo-Classical Revival mansion, complete with twelve rooms, four Corinthian columns in the front, and a stained-glass window inside. There’s some question over who built it and why, but for many, it symbolized the grandeur of the South.

In 1967, owner Sterling Price Rainier died. The home has been vacant since then, though it was sold in 2012, but was once again abandoned. The home remains in decent condition, considering its long vacancy. Supposedly a contractor has since purchased the home and intends to restore it. A wedding dress and tuxedo are said to be hanging next to each other on the wall as if a wedding was called off and then time stood still.

Evanston, Illinois

On the shores of Lake Michigan, you’ll find an almost 5-acre estate formerly owned by Harley Clarke, who made his wealth in the utility game. At one point, he was the president and treasurer of five (!) individual power companies, and he also served as the president of Fox Film. The 16-room, limestone mansion, built in the English Tudor style, housed Clarke and his family for many years.

Unfortunately, owning an 18,500-square-foot home with six chimneys did not shield Clarke from the devastation of the Great Depression. The family sold the home in 1949, and it remained in use until 2015. The city of Evanston has since debated whether to restore the now-abandoned property or simply demolish it, and recent plans to turn the mansion into a literary center seem to have fallen through.