The Hudson Valley hamlet of Snedens Landing has no shortage of impressive homes: A storybook cottage recently featured in NYC&G, plus a handful of former celebrity residences—actor Bill Murray, Uma Thurman and Ethan Hawke, and the late Mike Wallace (by the way, his son, Chris Wallace, recently listed his stately D.C. home). However, one particular Snedens Landing home just broke records, changing hands for $26,125,000.
The seller was NYC-based interior designer Sara Story. She listed the Gilded Age mansion earlier this year for $28,500,000. While the home sold a bit under the asking price, it is now the most expensive single-family home ever sold in Rockland County and the second-highest sale in 2024 across other New York counties, including Long Island/the Hamptons (Nassau and Suffolk counties) as well as Orange, Putnam, Columbia, Ulster, and Sullivan counties.
The 8,040-square-foot Victorian Gothic-style abode, dating back to 1874, sits on a riverfront 13-acre estate. The designer preserved period details, while giving the home new life with invigorating patterns, clean lines, dazzling yet well-edited finishes. But, Story didn’t just dress the residence up. Renovating it and bringing it back to a state of glory was an intensive but welcome project. In 2016, the designer told Architectural Digest that when she first saw the home “there were mushrooms growing inside, the front door was nailed shut, the shutters were dangling from their hinges, and the grounds were completely overgrown. And I loved it.”
Story purchased the home (which is on the National Register of Historic Places) in 2011 for $4.35 million, according to Mansion Global. And, it’s safe to say she’s now a pivotal piece of the Hudson Valley gem’s evolution. David Sanders of Christie’s International Real Estate represented the unknown buyer. Richard Ellis of Sotheby’s International Realty held the listing.
