- 7819 Bryonwood Dr. [HAR]
Nothing will slip by in the shadows of this 3-bedroom, 2-bath single family home at 3022 Triway Ln. The 1976 Spring Shadows residence has been stripped to the studs and remodeled; the 2,313-sq. ft. home is now filled with recessed lighting and fixtures. The price dropped from $499,700 to $449,700 after its first day on the market last October.
A natatorium nestles in the center of this $17.9 million home, once owned by Italian-born Cullen oil-heir Baron di Portanova. The 1968 house was expanded to more than double its size in the 1970s to enclose the backyard after the baron was unable to buy a famous Manhattan club for his wife as a birthday present. The 21,500 sq. ft. mansion has also reportedly hosted an extensive cast of characters, including a helicopter drop-in by James Bond (as played by Sir Roger Moore). The home contains 8 bedrooms, 9 full baths, and 3 half baths, and was listed on HAR in 2014 for 4 days; it was relisted in May of 2015 with a $1 million price drop.
A piece of Americana comes standard with this 1921 collaboration between architects Harrie T. Lindeberg and John F. Staub, who would later go on to design Bayou Bend. This Georgian-style home north of Rice University contains a copy of the wallpaper mural Views of North America by Jean Zuber (which can also be found in the Diplomatic Reception Room of the White House).  The $18-million pricetag nets you 5 bedrooms, 5 full baths, and 3 half baths.  The 12,808 sq. ft. home is listed on the National Registry of Historic Places and comes surrounded by a pool, a carriage house with an additional apartment, and plenty of leafy greens to cover the view from across-the-street Hermann Park.