The Weekly Blend is your ‘weekly’ source covering real estate news that you just may have missed. Our hard at work Weekly Blend crew scours the web, newsgroups and forums looking for obscure, bizarre, interesting and informative real estate (or real estate related) stories. If you have one you’d like to share please feel free to share it in our comments section or tweet about it using the hashtag #WeeklyBlend. So brew yourself a fresh cup of coffee and enjoy these stories…maybe even share them with friends or colleagues. Happy reading!
Here are my weekly picks:
Are you a fan of architecture? These Airbnb homes are sure to get your attention.
And if architecture isn’t your thing then check out the craziest Airbnb listings available. Tugboat anyone?
And if none of those appeal to you, you can always spend the night in this historic British Chapel.
If it’s a new work space you’re looking for, check out this London treehouse (it comes equipped with free Wi-Fi).
Royal LePage has released their 2015 Recreational Property Report for Canada.
From the outside, these stackable units look exactly like an apartment building. Inside, each fully-furnished 980 sq. ft. suite has two bedrooms, two full bathrooms, and in-suite laundry. Did I mention they’re work camps?
This $23 million Toronto mansion in the woods was inspired and designed by math.
The Blend moves from million-dollar mansions to thousand-dollar homes. A guy from Ottawa has just built the most cost-and-energy-efficient dream home entirely out of old shipping containers he purchased for $3,400 each.
Is Puzzle Parking the future of parking garages? Residents of The Eddy in Ottawa seemed pleased with it.
It’s the world’s first Kickstarter hotel & artist residency. Restoring history & uplifting community with inspired accommodations in Joseph, Oregon. By the time you’re reading this, the campaign will be over.
Charlie Birnbaum won’t let New Jersey take his home. Read and watch about one man’s fight against eminent domain in Atlantic City. (VIDEO)
Heading overseas? Here are eight must-see Budapest buildings … and one song about Budapest.
Happy anniversary to Minto: Ottawa’s biggest homebuilder celebrates 60 years.
It’s made of cans and old tires and can grow tomatoes in the winter: Take a tour of Alberta’s first earthship. (VIDEO)
77 different ways cities around the world have designed the letter “M.” Recognize any?
Who doesn’t love a good “sheep-should-be-used-for-lawn-maintenance” story? It’s already been done in Saskatchewan, Atlanta, and throughout Europe. Now a French shepherd wants to see Montreal adopt this type of lawn work.
Many of us, at one time or another has called them home and now Business Insider takes a look at how college dorm life has changed over 110 years.
What to do with an abandoned stadium? One Detroit resident turned the Silverdome into a BMX bike park. (VIDEO)
Antarctica here we come with nine chill-out outposts at the bottom of the world. (Warning: contains strong language)
A Huffington Post blog post – with reference to a World Bank Report – discusses how urbanization in Africa is affecting real estate.
Myanmar is slowly re-establishing itself on the international stage and author Ben Bansal is documenting that country’s architecture in his soon-to-be-released book, “Yangon Architectural Guide.”
Are idle home builders holding China’s economy back?
During construction, tenants at 101West 78th Street in NYC will have their rents waived after their landlord tried to convert their building into a condominium.
Think locally. Invest globally. The Wall Street Journal provides a list of the top 20 most affordable Latin American cities for real estate.
Take a tour of Chicago’s skyline … done in LEGO.
Maybe you’re like me and have always wanted to know exactly how water towers work. Well, now you’ll know.
Luxury homes with secret tunnels? I’m in.
From below ground to above in trees: read about Foster Huntington who left a job in New York’s fashion industry to move into a treehouse. (With video)
Hailey Fort is only 9, and she’s already building mobile shelters for the homeless and raised more than $11,000 to build more. And this man builds tiny houses for the homeless in Los Angeles. (VIDEO)
Acqua Liana is the first ultra-luxury home to obtain triple “green” certification through the U.S. Green Building Council, the Florida Green Building Coalition, and Energy Star for Homes. And it’s absolutely gorgeous.
Old buildings in the heart of Colombo, Sri Lanka have been converted into one of the first carbon neutral hotels in Southeast Asia. (VIDEO)
More recycling! This time we go from an old building in Sri Lanka to a waterpark built inside an old airship hangar in Germany.
Travelling to Prince Edward County this summer? Try staying Drake Devonshire, “Canada’s coolest boutique hotel.”
A prime time reality show in Britain is already looking like it’s a hit even before production and “class” has something to do with it.
Durango, Colorado is home to the first Cannabis Resort called CannaCamp. Activities include art classes, cannabis yoga, and endless showings of Dazed and Confused and the Harold & Kumar films.
Say the magic word “Abracadabra” and just like that, an Oregon house once owned by Steve Miller has been added to the National Register of Historical Places.
Still music related but a little closer to home: Nestled in Quebec’s Laurentian Mountains, the former Le Studio, where Sting, Rush, David Bowie, Keith Richards, and more recorded, now exists in a significant state of disrepair.
Follow up to the above story: Le Studio can be yours for $18,000.
If you hate having neighbours and enjoy playing your music loudly then this house off the south coast of Iceland is ideal for you.
Or, if a single house on an island isn’t your thing, read about the man who is spending two months in a lighthouse people say is haunted.
What’s behind your renovated walls? A school in Oklahoma discovered some super cool 100 year old chalk board drawings.
Some houses, like this one in Vancouver, will go for millions over asking while others, like this one in Portland, went for a slice over asking (actually, it went for the whole pie). Or, you can buy this Westmount house and get a Maserati with it.
No biggie, it’s just a house on a cliff in Australia.
An Australian law firm is bucking tradition and filling their office with light … which is inspiring two Canadian law firms.
The Atlantic has put together a pictorial list of 25 unusual homes from around the world.
Nearly 20 years after Gianni Versace’s death, his home remains a tourist attraction and is up for lease.
