While underground houses are commonly associated with doomsday survival or remote mining, Stuff reports that such type of residences seem to be the latest trend in Britain's prestige real estate.
To prove how far the market for underground luxury home has come, a subterranean mansion has been proposed for construction in Trafford, located in the north-west part of England. Two English firms, NC Homes and Huntsmere, are developing this estate to be named "Perdu," which will cost £2 million or $4.5 million NZD.
Underneath a well-trimmed lawn is a two-storey circular pad with three bedrooms. Perdu has features which are similar to any typical mansion as it has a complete living area, bedrooms, kitchen and workout space. Triangular and wedge-shaped rooms wind around a central atrium. For some adventure, a water slide is located inside the master bedroom that leads to an indoor swimming pool. To make sure that there will be enough natural light that will get inside the house, a passage that is dome-shaped in the center lets the sunlight in.
The mansion has for itself strong eco-credentials with its water harvesting, solar tube hot water system, and ground source heat pump features. The developers of Perdu went underground, as the land for this project falls under a conservation area with restrictions on the height of new properties.
According to the Daily Mail, the first underground luxury house was unveiled in the Cheshire neighbourhood in 2009. Named "Earth House," it descended 50 feet from the ground.
The Stuff also shares that another underground home in North London is currently on the market for £4.5 million or $10.3 million NZD. It is a three-bedroom, three-bathroom home with its living room built so deep its ceiling is seven meters high.
A semi-underground house owned by architect Jack Wooley can also be found in London. The "Spiral House" has a single wall which coils into the center of the site to form this home.
