The mirror-clad facade of The Invisible House creates the illusion that the house disappears into the desert landscape.
Brian Ashby
The modern glass architecture is located on 67.5 acres just steps from Joshua Tree National Park. The living space spans nearly 5,500 square feet with three bedrooms, four bathrooms, and a 30-foot indoor pool, according to the sales listing.
“This is one of the coolest homes in the world,” said co-listing agent Aaron Kirman, CEO of AKG Christie’s International Real Estate.
Kirman told CNBC the $18 million listing is all about breathtaking modern architecture and the illusion created by the 10,500 square feet of wrap-around plate glass on the home’s exterior.
The house was designed by film producer and current owner, Chris Hanley, and Frank Gehry associate, architect Tomas Osinski. The glass and steel structure is 225 feet long, 25 feet wide, and 21 feet tall.
Inside, there are smooth concrete floors and steel beams that criss-cross 12-foot ceilings. Those mirrored glass walls on the outside of the house are transparent from the inside, offering panoramic views of a rock-filled landscape. The home’s west-facing glass wall slides open to reveal a symphony of boulders, tangled shrubbery, and stoic trees.
The minimalist design surrounding the 30-meter indoor pool makes a dip through the living room to one of the bedrooms even more opulent.
View of the indoor pool and the panoramic view framed by floor-to-ceiling glass panels.
Brian Ashby
According to Kirman, it is impossible to find real estate for such unique architecture in a remote desert town with only thousands of inhabitants.
“So let’s be clear, there are no compositions. We’re not buying this house based on Joshua Tree,” he said.
According to co-listing agent Matt Adamo, the highest price ever achieved for a house in Joshua Tree was $3.5 million. So a sale anywhere near the asking price of the Invisible House would shatter the local record.
The closest compositions, Kirman said, are houses built by Richard Neutra, John Lautner and Rudolph Schindler — “some of the great architects of the past.”
The mirrored facade of The Invisible House reflects the desert sunrise.
Brian Ashby
The $18 million price tag of The Invisible House is nearly $3,300 per square foot, putting the Joshua Tree residence above some of the most expensive listings in Los Angeles – on a per square foot basis – where the top 10% of all single-family homes that sold on average just under $2,400 per square foot during the first quarter, according to the Elliman report.
And even before a possible sale, the modern desert house, that has your own Instagram account and has about 35,000 followers, is already a money maker.
The house is regularly rented to guests on Airbnb and for production shoots.
“In 2021, this house generated more than $1.4 million in total revenue,” Adamo told CNBC, about 15% of which came from production.
The Invisible House in Joshua Tree, California is a 22-story mirrored horizontal skyscraper. The unique property was recently listed for sale for $18 million.
Airbnb
The the house’s Airbnb listing rentals begin at $2,500 per night and include a small on-site guest house. Adamo said the rate of production is even higher, with previous rentals reaching $1,000 per hour or even $12,000 for a full day.
In between those two rental itineraries, the realtors told CNBC that the home has hosted quite a few notable guests, including musicians and actors such as Ariana Grande, Demi Lovato, Lizzo, Diplo, and The Weeknd, as well as a long list of social media influencers.
“When you do the math, you buy significant architecture, uniqueness, lands, plus the opportunity to monetize that,” Kirman said.
In the four months since the house hit the market, it hasn’t seen any buyers, but both realtors are confident the record-breaking asking price will deliver the highest-priced sale Joshua Tree has ever seen.
“I feel like $18 million is 100% the right price,” Kirman said.
“Don’t think of this as a house. It’s a work of art and look what art is sold for.’
Here’s a look inside the invisible house:
Giant wind-borne boulders rest at the entrance to the house. Once inside, visitors are greeted by a dramatic 100-foot long indoor pool.
The home’s west-facing glass wall slides open to the desert landscape.
Brian Ashby
Next to the pool and in the center of the kitchen is an oversized island with high quality cabinets, manufactured in Italy by Boffi.
The sleek kitchen features a marble-clad island with Italian-designed base cabinets, but no overhead cabinets that would obscure the panoramic view.
Brian Ashby
The home’s two guest bedrooms feature king-sized beds perched on platforms of black and white striped marble built into the wall.
A guest bedroom with a built-in marble platform and a king size bed.
Brian Ashby
Two caissons lift the home’s master bedroom high above the desert floor, providing dramatic panoramic views from a king-sized bed perched on a platform made entirely of glass.
Listing agent Aaron Kirman (L) and Ray Parisi of CNBC discuss the caissons that lift the master bedroom of the Invisible House above the desert floor.
CNBC
The open floor plan of the master bedroom features a stainless steel rain shower and king size bed that sits on a full glass platform.
Brian Ashby
The room’s open layout includes an oversized soaking tub, floating dual sinks, and a stainless steel rain shower with a glass wall framing a scenic view.
The bath and floating sinks of the master bedroom.
Brian Ashby
The glass enclosed shower in one of the house’s guest bedrooms.
Brian Ashby
The minimalist bathrooms feature showers clad in stainless steel.
The guest bedroom’s minimalist ensuite bath features cement floors and a stainless steel shower.
Brian Ashby
The roof of the off-the-grid estate is covered with 92 solar panels that store energy in 3 Tesla batteries.
The roof of the Invisible House is fitted with a series of solar panels that provide the house with electricity, heat and hot water.
CNBC
A stone’s throw from the main residence is a one-bedroom prefab guest house with its own kitchen and bathroom, bringing the estate’s total room count to four bedrooms and five bathrooms.
The invisible house in the distance and the one-bedroom guesthouse in the foreground.
CNBC