Make California Post a Preferred Source There’s no place like home — especially if it’s a grandiose, historic estate located in the heart of America. And even better if it comes at a bargain price.
In the tech bro paradise that is San Francisco, a generous (well, generous by most accounts) $1.99-million budget nets you an updated condo in a decent neighborhood, or a single-family home on the smaller end of the scale that may still need upgrades.
In Los Angeles, the same hot cash injection gets you a solid but unremarkable home in places like revitalizing Mar Vista or hipster-beloved Silver Lake.
Meanwhile, in Topeka, Kansas, that exact price delivers the breathtaking Woodward Collection.
It’s a historic estate composed of three fully furnished homes totaling more than 14,600 square feet of theatrical living space, multiple bedrooms and bathrooms, four additional parcels of land, a heated pool, expansive landscaped gardens, and one of the most dramatic, romantic private libraries in the Midwest — perhaps in the entire US.
Indeed, the star is the 1923 Gothic English Tudor at 1272 SW Fillmore St., long called “Topeka’s Most Artistic Home.” Built for Chester and Frederica Woodward and listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the 8,646-square-foot estate was constructed with hand-hewn timbers and stone brought over from England.
Its centerpiece is a bookworm’s delight: a two-and-a-half-story library measuring 26 by 52 feet, inspired by Sir Walter Scott’s library at Abbotsford.
Floor-to-ceiling stained glass, English brown oak shelving, a carved stone fireplace, an upper gallery and even the original safe for rare books remain intact.
For years the property has operated as a beloved bed-and-breakfast and event venue. According to Sage Sotheby’s International Realty listing agent Anthony West, current owner Elizabeth Taylor (no, not that one), who created and fostered the Woodward Inns, put it simply:
“Development of the Woodward Inns has given me the chance to provide the foundation for some of life’s most cherished events for so many couples and families. It really IS all about LOVE at the Woodward.”
The homes come fully furnished, with original details, a slate roof, leaded glass — and the kind of vintage craftsmanship California long ago replaced with stucco, Spanish Revival, greige interiors and particleboard.
And Topeka, the capital of Kansas, is not exactly playing hard to get.
Through the Choose Topeka program, newcomers who land a qualifying job with a Shawnee County employer and buy a home can receive up to $15,000 in relocation cash. The initiative has drawn interest from high-cost coastal states, including California.
So, while $2 million on either end of California buys you a respectable but ordinary place to live, the same money in Topeka delivers a turnkey historic compound that not only will have you feeling like a captain of industry or belle of the ball, but also offers you a potential revenue stream in the form of an event space for hire or fully operational bed-and-breakfast.
Whether any California coastal elites will make the leap into Sunflower State real estate remains to be seen, but the library alone is enough to make a certain kind of coastal word nerd start looking at flights to the Midwest.
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