Slideshow: 18 photos of the $17-million Vaughan palace that real estate watchers can’t stop talking about

Slideshow: 18 photos of the $17-million Vaughan palace that real estate watchers can’t stop talking about

More real-estate porn

For the past week, the $17.8-million “Versailles of Vaughan” has been Ontario’s most talked-about property. The wonderfully cheesy taste of the two GTA entrepreneurs who built it is delighting press both at home and abroad, and no wonder: the lavish mansion is a 24,000-square-foot tribute to more-is-more opulence. Here, five of the most outrageous details about the mini palace, plus a photo gallery so you can see it for yourself.

1. It was made as a wedding prop

Some couples splurge on an ornate cake or flowers, some build a Rococo chateau. The owners had their dream wedding at the house a year ago, with guests dressed in 18th-century Venetian costumes like the ones in the master bedroom. “I know this sounds corny, but we built the home to have our wedding kiss on the balcony,” the bride told the Toronto Star. (Uh, corny was not necessarily the word we were thinking of.) A few months later, they put the house on the market.

2. It has a heated Ferrari room

The “boy toy room,” as the bride describes it, includes a wall of mirrors, mural of a race track, and a black-and-white checkered floor. It’s the best of seven indoor parking spots, while the driveway fits 30 cars.

3. The Sistine Chapel-worthy ceilings were hand-painted

Artisans sculpted and hand-painted the many, many scenes on the ceiling, according to agent Michelle Anne Schipper’s listing, which also points out that the entry gates are gold-plated and describes the house as a good place to “entertain royalty and heads of state.”

4. There are three kitchens

And 12 bathrooms. And an indoor pool with two-storey windows and two change rooms. And a mini banquet hall.

5. It would cost upwards of $75,000 a month to live here

The annual taxes top $35,000, and even if you put 20 per cent down, the mortgage would still be in the vicinity of $70,000 a month. And that’s not even counting the army of housekeepers you’d need to keep all that gold polished and all those chandeliers dust-free.