This Wonderfully Shaped Mushroom House Simply Needs a Buyer To Take a Bite

This unusual house in South Jersey resembles a mushroom hugging the earth. The domelike dwelling is available at the affordable price of $295,000.

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It’s difficult to describe this home. Does it look like a mushroom? Perhaps it reminds you of the fabulous Flintstone House in the San Francisco Bay Area?

“It’s completely unique. I’ve never seen anything like it,” says the listing agent, Jeffrey Connell. “The roof is almost like the Opera House in Sydney.”

The house is closer to a dome shape than the iconic sail design in Australia, and it is now available for the reasonable price of $295,000.

Built in 1972, the two-bedroom, one-bathroom home on Longwood Drive in Forked River, NJ, measures about 1,400 square feet.

“Your first impression is that it defies your sense of a normal house, because it has a soaring two-story area where the main living space is,” Connell explains.



Exterior of home in Forked River, NJ

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Exterior

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Entry

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Interior

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Interior

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The top level of the cedarwood dome also houses a master bedroom loft area. A metal spiral staircase links the two floors. The only bathroom is on the main level, near the second bedroom.

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“It might be too different for some folks, but in the overall scheme of things, it’s really kind of fun,” Connell says. “You’re essentially living in a tree fort, with that master bedroom on top.”

This getaway spot looks down on the rest of the house.

Master bedroom

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Master bedroom

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Bathroom

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Kitchen

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Kitchen

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The kitchen is open, and Connell told us it could use an update. Alternatively, a buyer who enjoys a pop of color may find it perfect the way it is.

The burnt-orange cabinetry would be difficult to replace today, Connell says, adding, “I don’t know anybody who makes anything like that anymore.”

Deck

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Hot tub

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Front deck

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Just off the kitchen is one of the house’s two decks.

“You have plenty of room out there,” Connell says. If you’re making food outside or entertaining, he adds, “It all kind of flows rather well.”

The back deck also boasts a hot tub.


Exterior

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The other deck is in front, with a detached two-car garage nearby.

There is also an unfinished basement, which Connell says could be good hobby space or used for storage. However, finishing it out might be difficult.

A circular foundation was built under the house, he explains, to hold up the middle of the house. That means that in the basement, this support structure occupies the middle of the space.

Bedroom

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Bedroom

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Exterior

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This part of South Jersey, near the shore, is close to several lakes, in what was chiefly a summer community back in the 1960s and ’70s, Connell says. In the past few decades, it’s become more of a year-round residential area.

The current owner bought the property in 1995 and has lived there with his wife and child.

Connell believes that the home, like an antique car, is most likely to attract a buyer looking for something eye-catching and unique.

“Some people gravitate toward that kind of a fun or different style,” he says. “I’d like to see somebody come down here and say, ‘This is really me,’ and kind of settle in.”

He feels that it’s the kind of home that would be difficult to remodel without ruining its aesthetic.

“I just hope that somebody is going to fall in love with it and keep it the way it is,” he adds.

Dining area

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The post This Wonderfully Shaped Mushroom House Simply Needs a Buyer To Take a Bite appeared first on Real Estate News & Insights | realtor.com®.

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