New Jersey might not scream royalty to you, but real estate agent Michael Graves assures Yahoo! Homes that his listing in Saddle River, New Jersey, is truly a "palatial estate." (We'd add: at least of the William Randolph Hearst castle-owning variety.)
Appropriately enough given these pretensions to royalty, we first spotted the 25,000-square-foot Jersey estate on the website of the United Kingdom's Daily Mail.
The newspaper bills it as "The incredible $19 million New Jersey mansion with a swimming pool in the living room," and although Graves cautions that the Daily Mail exaggerates to claim the pool is in the living room -- because, after all, the house already has a living room -- it's certainly safe to say that the indoor watering hole is a focal point:
The tiled expanses on either side of the floor-to-ceiling window are two 24-foot "water walls" that send water cascading down into the pool. The inset infinity hot tub is heated by geothermal energy -- "in a way, it's like a hot spring," says Graves -- and spills warm water into the rest of the pool to help maintain a comfortable temperature. The home's grand entry hall opens onto the pool, and a balcony in the master bedroom suite overlooks it. (You can see floor plans and more pictures of the estate in our slideshow; click here or on the photo above to check it out.)
Is it too much of a reach that we see an ever-so-slight resemblance to the Roman Pool at Hearst Castle? See what you think:
To see more photos of the house and learn more about its lavish amenities -- such as a massive hand-carved cherry-wood kitchen, five spiral staircases and 2-ton marble pillars -- visit our slideshow.
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Note to readers: If money (and maybe taste) were no object, what dream feature would you want in your home? Yahoo! Homes readers, inspired by such fabulous real-life features as a penthouse slide, have told us about the secret rooms, video-equipped basketball courts and even foam play pits they fantasize about. Tell us about yours -- or if you're a designer or contractor, help us determine whether some of these dreams are really so far-fetched after all. Check out our blog post on dream features for ways to respond.


