BootJack Ranch is one of of the most expensive ranches we've seen in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado. This ranch is located in the southern San Juan Mountains and ranges over 3,100 acres of meadows, forests, lakes and streams. The main house is a 13,800 square foot residence made of rustic logs, timber and stone. The home is decorated in classic Western luxe with including a dining room fixture shaped like a canoe and fireplace screens that feature the ranch brand.

The property includes multiple guest cabins, a separate lodge, offices and manager's housing that can accommodate over 50 guests. The most extravagant feature on this property is the 12,000 square foot spa and aquatic center that seems more like a resort pool than one for private use. The ranch is a private residence but has also hosted concerts sponsored by Music in the Mountains and a retreat for missionaries and business leaders. This amazing expanse is listed at $88 million.

I don't have great pictures or a lot of details on this one but it's special enough to cover based on size alone. This is the home of the Craven family, who owns Craven Original, a company that creates fine home gardening products and pottery. The home is an Italian-style villa on a whopping 1,410 acres at the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains in a small town north of Atlanta, Georgia. There are currently seven homes on the property. It took the Craven family 28 years to collect the property which is also home to 850 cows, 450 of which have calves. There are 20 barns and sheds for hay storage. The property includes miles of fencing and gates spread out over three counties. The land also includes five ponds and three miles of Chandler Creek that could maintain a 250 acre lake to produce power and water for municipalities. The land itself is zoned for 2400 plus homes, golf course, retail center or can be left as a horse and cattle ranch.

The main home is 18,000 square feet and is built on a grand scale with 16 to 32 foot ceilings and 317 arches and a 540,000 artistically laid brick, tile roof, two eight-foot by 16-foot chandeliers in the great hall. All the architectural details such as cupolas, balustrades, fountains and statues were sculpted and cast by Craven Original. Much of it such as the ironwork was manufactured by members of the Craven family. I'm told that the property is appraised at $49 million, but is available for $31 million.

If you want a lot of space for your dollar the Midwest is often the best place to be. Check out today's home in Hartland, Wisconsin. This mansion has 18,000 square feet of space including a home theater, seven bedrooms and heated floors that include marble, bamboo and slate. The home is wired for the latest in state-of-the art technology and also has a 17th Century wood panel fireplace from England that flows into the gourmet kitchen with granite counters. Outside there is a sports court, a nine-car garagae, indoor and outdoor pools and fountains. It is listed at $6.75 million.

[Thanks, Don!]

This contemporary villa located in the European playground of St Jean Cap Ferrat was created by designers Lazzarini Pickering and is a stunning contemporary residence which has beautiful ocean views. The home is located on the exclusive Avenue de Rothschild in this Mediterranean resort of the wealthy. There is a large main villa with views along the French Riviera and living areas on three floors. The main villa can be purchased separately or with two smaller three bedroom guest houses and a staff apartment. The property also includes gardens, a terrace, swimming pool, wine cellar and parking for two cars. This home is listed at $23.5 million.

Beaumere has an enviable spot on the water in Larchmont Harbor (in Larchmont, NY, thanks,designer38305495) with water on three sides. The home sits on over four acres and has 6,720 square feet of space with an additional 2,261 square-foot two-bedroom guest apartment. The property includes an in ground swimming pool with 2 cabanas each equipped with dressing room and new bath with adjoining kitchenette and bar, a carriage house with a large garage, a grass tennis court and a gazebo that overlooks the long private dock. The home was listed at $25 million in mid 2007, had gone down to $22 million by the time Elite Choice covered it in December and now is listed at $18 million.

[Thanks, Steven!]

Celebrity couple Paul Bettany and Jennifer Connelly are the latest to say bye bye Brooklyn and head to a posher address. Curbed reports that the pair have picked up a Tribeca penthouse that was listed at $6.995 million. Their new home is rather modern and bright, a far cry from their old home in Brooklyn. The nine-bedrom home on Prospect Park West is a turn-of-the-century limestone dowager. The home on a corner is full of the details you'd expect in a home of the time period, elaborate, polished wood carvings, plaster ceiling details and herringbone wood floors. There are fireplaces in the living room, dining room and kitchen as well as in three bedrooms. The servant's quarters on the top floor includes four small bedrooms, a full bath and a storage area. It has ben updated with central air and there is a large garden in the back of the house. There are no kitchen pictures and I do wonder if three and a half baths is enough for a home that is over 5,000 square feet and has nine bedrooms. Also if the furnishings in the Brooklyn house belong to the couple I think I can see why they want to move, Calder mobiles and flokati rugs don't quite suit this home. Curbed reports that the couple bought in 2003 for $3.7 million and are now listing for $8.5 million through Sotheby's.

I wish I had more than six pictures to show you of this one. This Newport Beach beauty is on a double lot on the sand at Peninsula Point. It was deigned by Michael Collins to showcase an impressive modern art collection. The home is actually two homes, a five-bedroom house and a two-bedroom guest house. The grounds include a pool, spa, koi ponds, oceanfront terraces, a beachfront lawn, cabana, pool bar and many additional amenities. The homes have an open floor plan with large "disappearing" wood and glass doors. The guest house has a subterranean level designed for entertainment and lounging, with media capabilities, bar and a saltwater aquarium window affording dramatic underwater pool views. This home is listed at $29.5 million.

Think the McMansion is just an American idea? We've definitely exported the concept. Check out today's home in the luxury Emirates Hills section of Dubai. This villa has seven bedrooms and 24,500 square feet of space. Some only in Dubai detailer include an underground garage and a room just for your driver, a professional service kitchen with Tandoori oven and a formal dining room with silk wallpaper and an ornate inlaid table. The home also has home theater, a gym and a a massage area with a Jacuzzi, a gym, cinema, sauna and steam room. This home is listed at $21 million.

[Thanks, Ben!]

Last week our Sunday estate was the home of a former "ER" actress, this week we've got another TV actress, Mel Harris, most famous for her role as the winsome and whiny Hope on the show "thirtysomething." The LA Times Hot Property column reports that Harris has listed her Pacific Palisades property, a charming four-bedroom Country English-style home. She has owned the home for five years and it has been remodeled with a new marble-countered kitchen and bathrooms. There are older details to love such as the Batchelder tile fireplace in the living room and the beautiful beams and archways. The new master bathroom is a bit too over the top for a house of this scale and graciousness and the travertine tile in the kitchen seems like it would be a better fit for a Florida flip than for this older Californian. The home was originally listed at $4.347 million but is already down to $4.197 million which still seems like a lot of cash for 4,5000 square feet even in the pricey Palisades.

We've seen some expensive homes in the Hamptons but if there's anything I've learned in years of covering the high-end real estate market, it's that there is always another even bigger place around the corner. This home in Southampton Village has nine bedrooms, four floors and +13,500 sqft of living space. The home was the last project of renowned builder Kurt Andresson and famed New York Architects DAquino Monaco. It sits on approximately 11 acres of which six are Peconic Land Trust natural preserve lands with 1,000' oceanfront and 1000' pond front. On particularly winning detail is a two story enclosed gazebo with beautiful ocean views. The property also includes a sunken tennis court, gunite pool and Jacuzzi, pool house, two-car garage with h garden/potting area and second floor storage, private walkway to beach and pond with wooden dock. This home is listed at $80 million which puts it at the top tier of Hamptons real estate.

What else would you find on castle ridge road but a castle? This castle is located in Tuckasgee, North Carolina is a four-bedroom palace tucked in to the Smoky Mountains. The home has a great hall, chef's kitchen with butler's pantry, wine cellar, art studio, pub/movie room, office and a hidden, secret room. The four bedrooms are each suites with fireplaces, separate sitting areas, large bathrooms. and balconies. The home is on eight acres which includes English-style gardens and multiple outbuildings. Vintage style details include the turret tower, spiral staircase, handpainted murals, stained glass, vintage pine floors and a 400-year-old Normandy mantel. There is also an additional 43 acres with a horse barn and tack room available. One man's castle might be another man's white elephant but it's right for a knight. This home is listed at $4 million.

Rentals in the Hamptons are already getting scarce but those with the money can buy this historic waterfront estate on Quantuck Bay and offer the perfect summer vacation for family and friends.

Henry Bacon, once with McKim, Mead & White, and best known for his design of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington D.C.,was commissioned to design this historic shingle-style manor. In an extensive three-year renovation in the mid 1990s, the architectural details, floors and fixtures were carefully restored and all the luxuries of modern-day living were added.

The 10.37 acre estate is completely private, bordered on the front by 64 century-old European pruned Catalpa trees. The back border stretches across more than 1,000 feet of waterfront, complete with deep-water dock.

The main residence is around 16,000 square feet on three floors with nine bedrooms, nine full and two half baths, six original fireplaces and 5,000 square feet of hand-pegged mahogany decks and brick & bluestone terraces. There are water views from 22 of the 24 rooms.

The grand entry foyer has a three-story hand carved staircase that leads through the reception gallery to a formal living room with a fireplace as well as a banquet-sized dining room with a fireplace and murals recreated from the works of William Merritt Chase and Childe Hassam, who painted in the area more than a hundred years ago.

Other living areas include a billiards room, a sunroom and a chef's kitchen with a large dining area surrounded on three sides by water views. The ground floor also has a pantry with espresso bar, an office, two powder rooms and a large laundry room. The downstairs cantina has a temperature & humidity controlled wine cellar.

In addition to the sprawling 1,000 square foot master suite, which has two large mahogany decks plus his & her baths and dressing rooms; the second floor has a center hall with adjacent office with covered mahogany deck, a living room and three bedrooms with baths.

The third floor has an oversized living room with a mahogany deck and vaulted ceiling, five bedrooms and four baths, an exercise room, a walk-in cedar closet and a laundry room.

There is also an original 2,000 square foot poolside carriage house covered in century-old grape vines that has been updated to include his & her baths and dressing rooms and a full service kitchen. Other buildings include an oak paneled guest cottage, oversized four car garage and a two-story three-bedroom and bath gardener's house with a separate driveway. The grounds include recreation and meditation areas, a Lord & Burnham greenhouse, a Har-Tru tennis court and a heated gunite pool with waterfall spa all set amidst acres of expansive lawns and gardens . It is listed with Mark Roter (631 288 5233) and Marcia Altman (631 288 5004) Co-Exclusive Brokers Brown Harris Stevens, Westhampton Beach for $39 million.

NeighborhoodScout.com has used their matching function to find neighborhoods that are "discount equivalents" of some of the hot and pricey communities we recently covered in our Most Expensive Zip Codes estates.

The Neighborhood Scout sees the Wesley Heights area of Washington D.C. as an equivalent to the Lakeshore Drive area of Chicago. In that area of Chicago, the median house value is $1.955 million. Wesley Heights has a median of just $1.63 million. Both areas offer easy access to the heart of a city and are full of lovely traditional homes. Today's home has five bedrooms and a classic style that reminds me a little of the Chicago home we found for the most expensive zip code's feature. It has a graceful staircase, formal dining room, large shuttered windows and a big kitchen with adjoining eating area. The property includes gardens, outdoor entertaining area and a putting green. This home is listed at $2.395 million.

NeighborhoodScout.com has used their matching function to find neighborhoods that are "discount equivalents" of some of the hot and pricey communities we recently covered in our Most Expensive Zip Codes estates.

The Neighborhood Scout chooses Breckridge, Colorado as a cheaper way to live the skiing life than Aspen, Colorado. In Apsen, the median house price is $1.6 million but in Breckenridge the median is just $618,892. Breckenridge is a ski resort that is rapidly growing in popularity and amenities. We recently covered One Ski Place, the large condo complex planned for the area.

In Aspen we looked at a huge property that is listed at $58 million. Today's home is far more modest but has a lot to offer for the snow aficionado. This home is located in the Timber Trail ski in, ski out community. From this house you can ski straight to the Colorado or Rocky Mountain quad chairs. The home has seven bedrooms including three master suites and seperate kid's quarters with boys and girls bunk rooms, bathrooms and their own den. There is also an in-home cinema and the great room has massive full round log beams. Apres ski relaxing includes a spa room and a hot tub by the outside fireplace. This is the most expensive home currently on the market in Breckenridge and it is listed at $5.895 million.

NeighborhoodScout.com has used their matching function to find neighborhoods that are "discount equivalents" of some of the hot and pricey communities we recently covered in our Most Expensive Zip Codes estates.

The Neighborhood Scout chooses Southwest Harbor, Maine as a seaside equivalent to the pricier island of Nantucket. On Nantucket the median house value is $1.56 million but Southwest Harbor has a median house value of just $266,936. The two locations have much in common including a quaint New England charm and island beauty, you just trade in Nantucket for Mt. Desert Island. It's a little colder and doesn't have as much of a reputation as a summer getaway but it has some beautiful properties.

Today's home is actually on Greening's Island and has views of Mt. Desert Island. This shingle-style cottage was constructed in 1932 and sits on 9.75 acres of meadows and woods reaching all the way to the granite ledges. The property has western views of Southwest Harbor and Manset villages, and North to the views of Somes Sound and there is 1,544+/- feet of shore frontage. The property includes a shared dock and the "Captain's Cabin" a special retreat near the dock. It is listed at $2.65 million. A bargain compared to the shingled home we recently featured on Nantucket which is listed at $11.75 million.