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Yours for £106m: three-bed detached (don't worry, the garden's enormous)

Lewis Smith
Thursday 28 July 2011 00:00 BST
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Size isn't everything, it seems, not even when it comes to property porn. This barn conversion has just three bedrooms yet is being marketed as the most expensive home in the world.

But it does have a few extras, as might be expected for a house with a price tag of $175m (£105m). Not least, 1,750 acres of grounds in the shadow of the Rocky Mountains in the United States.

The three-bedroom home is the owner's residence of the Jackson Land and Cattle Ranch in Wyoming. Along with meadows and hills, it comes with a four-bedroom guest building, separate accommodation for staff and an equestrian centre. The price makes each acre worth about $100,000.

It has been put on the market by Richard Fields, who made his money from casinos and is the chief executive of Coastal Developments, which finances resorts, entertainment venues and gaming businesses. He has decided that he no longer has enough spare time to enjoy the ranch properly and has decided to sell up.

Mr Fields has experience selling a three-bedroom property for an eye-watering sum. In June 2008 he bought a three-bedroom apartment for $13.5m in one of New York's most sought-after buildings. Six months later, he off-loaded it for $27m.

For anyone with a spare £106m to invest, the Wyoming property comes complete with permission to divide the land into 35 separate plots on which more houses can be built and sold. Among the selling points is that the ranch is close to Jackson Hole, one of the premier skiing resorts in the US.

It was put on the market just a day after the nearby Walton Ranch went up for sale for $100m – or $54,000 an acre.

Jonathan Pierce, the agent appointed to sell the Jackson Land and Cattle Ranch, described it as "the absolute finest property in the absolute finest resort community in the country". He added: "You can fish and ride and hunt and you're still only three minutes from downtown Jackson Hole. You can't match the physical beauty and splendour of our valley. And you have the most unique property for sale."

Recent sale suggest the owner may have to accept a lower offer. Only a few days ago Formula 1's Bernie Ecclestone splashed out a reported $85m to buy his daughter, Petra, Spelling Mano, a 123-room Los Angeles mansion with at least 27 bathrooms, space for 100 cars, a bowling alley and a beauty salon. It had gone on the market for $150m.

Pricey properties

* Beverly House, also known as Hearst House, is the most expensive in the world, according to Forbes magazine. Built in 1926, the former Beverly Hills home of William Randolph Hearst was later used in The Godfather. It is worth $165m (£100m), with a living area of 75,000sq ft. It has 29 bedrooms,40 bathrooms, three swimming pools and a cinema.

* Updown Court in Surrey is the most expensive dwelling in the UK, at £75m. It sits within 58 sprawling acres of landscaped grounds, formal gardens and woodland, has 103 rooms, five swimming pools, a bowling alley and a cinema. It is currently owned by Leslie Allen-Vercoe, 67, who renovated it and listed it for sale recently.

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