A new family is moving to the iconic “Home Alone” house – and they didn’t even have to face Kevin McCallister’s booby traps to get inside.
Listing agents Dawn McKenna and Katie Moor of Coldwell Banker Realty confirmed that the Winnetka, Illinois property sold for $5.5 million, seven months after it first went on the market for $5.25 million.
“We’re thrilled with the way this home captured everyone’s attention and hearts due to its well-deserved place in cinematic history and the timeless holiday memories it evokes,” they told People in a statement.
The property’s previous owners, Tim and Trisha Johnson, purchased the property in 2012 for $1.585 million and extensively renovated and expanded the house in 2018. The property actually went under contract in December, but the sellers and buyers negotiated an agreement to ensure that the Johnson family could stay on the property for one final holiday season.
The mansion was first built in 1921 and sits on a half-acre lot, according to the Zillow listing. It is 5,700 square feet, with five bedrooms and six bathrooms. There is also a fully-equipped gym, two laundry rooms, a heated three-car garage, a basketball court, a movie theater and a bar on the property. The house underwent extensive renovations and expansions in 2018 – though many of its most iconic features remain intact.
“The current owners took the utmost care in maintaining the architectural detail and integrity of the home’s most memorable and recognizable spaces,” the listing reads. “The gracious foyer and unforgettable entry staircase, as well as the formal living and dining room spaces, all remain largely unchanged in form and structure.”
The buyers’ agent, Lori Nieman of @properties Christie’s International Real Estate, told Mansion Global that the renovations played a significant role in her clients’ decision to purchase the home.
“Like everybody else, they love the significance of the home and its place in cinematic history. They understand that and embrace that,” she said. “That said, the home and all the wonderful renovations and the expansion of the home also played into their decision.”
The buyers will be the third family to reside in the home, since “Home Alone” premiered in 1990. The Abeshendian family purchased the property for $800,000 in 1988 and remained there until the Johnsons bought the house in 2012.
While the film’s premise relies on the fact that Kevin (played by Macaulay Culkin) is isolated in the red-brick Georgian Colonial, while his family visits Paris, the Abeshendians actually lived on set during the duration of the filming.
During the months-long shoot, the cast and crew became close to the property’s actual residents, including daughter Laura Abendshien, who was a little girl during filming.
“They would spend time in the house when they weren’t filming their scenes. Macaulay Culkin used my room to study with his tutor, and his brother [Kieran Culkin] wasn’t filming as much, so he would just hang out in my room,” she told This Morning in 2020.
Click through to see what the iconic property looks like today.
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