By Zillow
7 Montagel Way, Shoal Creek, Alabama
For sale: $17.9 million
You would expect that someone who owned a home with guitar-shaped landscaping to be an avid guitarist, or perhaps a collector, or at least some sort of music buff.
The owner of this prime piece of Alabama real estate is none of the above, but Larry House, the former CEO of MedPartners, a physician management company.
"The guitar was just a whimsical, great idea," explains listing agent Pam Ausley. "You know he just thought it up; he didn't make a lot of it, but it's gotten a lot of attention."
According to Ausley, the guitar-shaped grounds are just "a small part" of a house she likens to Versailles.
The home was built and designed by House in 1997 for a reported $26 million. House hired International Fine Arts Conservation Studios, which also worked on the Buckingham Palace, to install much of the detailing.
Listed for $17.9 million, the home has 55,000 square feet of living space and features high-end finishes like marble floors, mahogany floors and doors as well as gold and silver leafing and hand-painted frescoes.
The home sits on 27 parklike acres and has equestrian trails, four pastures, indoor and outdoor arenas as well as a six-stall barn with attached living quarters. Located just 25 minutes outside Birmingham, and two hours from Atlanta, Ausley describes the surrounding Shoal Creek area as a mix between a national park and a resort with access to some of the best golfing in the country.
With 15 bedrooms, 22 bathrooms, a 13-car temperature-controlled garage, a 25-seat home theater, a full-sized commercial elevator, and a 2,000-bottle wine cellar, Ausley says the home has gotten a little too big for House.
"Their kids are grown, and they’re just ready to do something different," she said. "He knows it's not the best time to sell; he's just ready."
Even with current low mortgage rates, this Shoal Creek home has a pretty pricey monthly payment. According to data from the Zillow Mortgage Marketplace, with a 20 percent down payment on a 30-year-loan, the monthly payment will be $75,044.
