Woah: Tucked inside this otherwise modest time capsule house — a 1900 single-owner home now for sale in Grand Rapids — is a 1929 Kimball 2,300-pipe pipe organ — a feature that is valued at up to a million dollars. I can’t imagine anyone would ever guess. Thanks to reader Lucas for this hot tip — and click on through for the answer.
Update March 2015: Sold! Read the story here.
Inside: a 2,300-pipe pipe organ
From the listing:
This is TRULY a once in a lifetime opportunity. This home features, most magnificently, a 2,300 pipe, wind powered pipe organ. It’s 32 ”ranks” provides more musical ability than most churches have installed. This most certainly is RARE OPPORTUNITY. If purchased and installed brand new, this would cost between $800 THOUSAND and ONE MILLION dollars. The addition was constructed solely to house this gorgeous piece of professionally installed craftsmanship. Oh yes, the rest of the home is extremely well maintained with many updates and features, 1 bedroom, 1.5 bath, hot water heat, 2 car heated and cooled garage, underground sprinkling, enclosed front porch and back porch, insulated windows and includes the stove, refrigerator, washer, dryer, and pipe organ.
Ummm…. I watched… I don’t understand where the 2,300 pipes fit, exactly. I guess, since there is just one bedroom — the rest of the house is taken up by the pipe organ.
Certainly a sweet modest house by any other measure. What a delight!
Thank you, Mark Douglas Real Estate, for permission to show these photos and the video, all taken by Mark Douglas.
Link love:
Mike says
I used to work on these things. They are amazing instruments. Most of these organ/home combinations were owned by famous organists, so I wonder……Who owned this home?
Alice says
I love thinking about this. An avid musician – most likely who lived alone or with another musician because no one else would want to reside in the house while that organ was cranked up – nestled in his/her little abode with one big honking dream instrument.
Alas, having been an organ journey a few years back, we learned that many pipe organs are being given away free of charge because they are expensive to maintain and because fewer people appreciate the sound or are learning to play them. there is even an organ “graveyard” of sorts where one could pick up a nice pipe organ for next to nothing, but of course there’s the transport, the installation, the space, the tuning, the maintenance…
Thanks for sharing this Pam – truly a peek into a unique lifestyle!
bella says
The owner must have been a really big fan of this instrument since he didn’t even play it himself.
Dietz123 says
Wow, now that is one version of the American Dream I’ve never seen before. Buy the home in cash, quit your job, and spend all day playing with your organ. 😉
pam kueber says
😉
Kaycee says
Here’s the plan. Let’s buy the house, sell the organ, and live for free!!
Karen says
I agree that some church or someone would want that organ, then you would have a bigger space and no mortgage!!!
Dori Lucas says
Easier said than done. Not many people in the market. We are selling my father’spipe organ, which is much larger and worth more than this one. Our price is $35,000.00…..no takers, yet!
Allen says
Question is does the house come with someone to play the organ for me on demand. I could have my own living sound track! This is a beautiful organ installation. I hope someone that plays buys the house.
Robin, NV says
Just read the listing description. I think it should read “All appliances stay including the stove, refrigerator, washer, dryer, and pipe organ.” Hah! 😀
Chris P says
I suspect that the “windows” with wood columns in them that don’t appear to go anywhere (see photos 3 and 5 in the slide show on the listing) are connected to the addition to let the sound from the organ into the house. It also looks like the keyboard for the organ is in its own little room – maybe it used to be a second bedroom?
MBJ says
How fascinating! There has to be a good story behind this. Thanks for posting.
midmichigan says
A very nice home indeed. Kinda brings you back to a literal meaning of neighbors yelling, “Hey; pipe down in there!”
Kate says
Yeah really, I wonder how much the neighbors can hear it when it is being played. Yowza!
Robin, NV says
That was my first thought – I bet the guy who had them installed was really popular with the neighbors!
I love this but, umm …. Who? Why? How?