What in the World is an Iceberg Home?

Instead of adding floors on top, the rich are making use of the basement. Here’s what you need to know about the iceberg home.

There are a variety of luxury homes around the world and their uniqueness varies. From the sprawling mansions featured in Architectural Digest’s YouTube to more special ones like Robert Downey Jr.’s Binishell home, the homes of the rich all vary in simplicity and luxury. But a new trend is on the rise, and we really should have seen it coming since the ultra-rich Bruce Wayne himself is a fan of these types of homes. Welcome to the iceberg home.

[Hero image: Aston Chase]

What to know about the iceberg home

What is an iceberg home?

This is called an iceberg home because much like an iceberg, there’s more to it than meets the eye. This type of home is structured to look like any other house, at least on the ground level. However, that’s quite literally just the tip of the iceberg as this home expands downwards with sprawling basements that have multiple levels free for the owner to use in any way they want like having a subterranean pool or a cave to serve as a headquarters for fighting crime.

When did the iceberg home become a thing?

News of the iceberg home can be traced all the way back to the early 2010s. The Guardian reported back in 2012 that the enormously wealthy were making “luxury bunkers” in the areas of Kensington and Chelsea in London.

Are there any iceberg homes currently existing or being made?

There are a few known iceberg homes out there in London. There were plans that revealed a subterranean leisure centre and garage in a villa in Holland Park in London. Another plan revealed a basement that would show off the owner’s car collection—and also house a five-story Ferris wheel. British artist Damien Hirst also has plans to put a swimming pool and art gallery underneath his home in Regent Park. 

Is the iceberg home a good idea?

A luxury below-ground manor sounds like a great idea and clearly many of the rich are in the process of getting theirs built, but their neighbours think it’s a nuisance. The same report by The Guardian states that foundations have gotten weaker and the construction is disrupting. However, that seems to be the least of the negative impacts since The Telegraph reported back in 2017 that a house collapsed after attempting to make one of the subterranean manors 

This doesn’t seem to stop those who want to construct their own iceberg home. An article published by Robb Report just a few days ago interviewed Zoltan E. Pali, the co-founder of architecture studio SPF:a. He said that the trend has now made its way across the pond and many are looking into getting their own, which would cost upwards of a million dollars in Los Angeles.