Casco Bay Island Compound
Medieval Castle in the Midwest
Gaudy Gilded Age Mansion
Location: Fort Washington, Pennsylvania
Price: $30,000,000
Most homebuyers would consider the $30 million price tag on this suburban Philadelphia estate an astronomical sum to pay for a property, but not credit card tycoon Dennis Alter. He spent an estimated $80 million to build and furnish this 40,000-square-foot house. Alter, whose fortunes rose and fell with those of the troubled credit card issuer Advanta, famously engaged in a lawsuit against New York-based designers-to-the-stars Stephen Sills and James Huniford, alleging they bilked him out of $6 million by overcharging for antiques. Now the home they quibbled over, a modern mansion on 70 acres that includes such extravagances as an indoor tennis court, is on offer for $50 million less than Alter spent building it. Chances are none of Advanta's former customers, many of whom claim the company did some scamming of its own, will shed a tear should this sprawling estate see further price cuts before it sells.
- The Alter Estate [Christie's]
- Dennis Alter and the Tragedy of Advanta [Philadelphia Magazine]
- Decorators in the Haute Seat [NY Mag]
- The Complete House of the Day Archive [The Atlantic Life]
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