Expansive Lake Tahoe Estate Hits the Market for the First Time in 60 Years

A lot has changed since an estate with stunning views of Lake Tahoe’s pristine waters was last on the market 60 years ago. Not the least of which is the price tag. The 4.29-acre estate is listed with an asking price of $35 million.

The property sits on the massive lake’s western shore in a community called Rubicon Properties along Tahoe’s Rubicon Bay. The lakefront home pulls together a trio of land parcels purchased in the 1960s by Wellington Smith Henderson and his wife, Harriet Walker Henderson, the Wall Street Journal reports. The sweeping estate was the family’s vacation home.

“This property’s size and expansive lake frontage are unusual and valuable,” Trinkie Watson, who represents the property for Chase International Real Estate, tells Observer. “The land is level up to the edge, where it drops down to the lake, so it’s very usable. It’s also in an area that is peaceful and quiet, providing nice privacy.”

Two of the serene plots have houses built on them, while the third remains undeveloped. With all that land, the property cuts a striking figure with impressive views of the surrounding landscape as well as the famously blue lake. 

The 3,848-square-foot main house was built in 1949, 11 years before the two-bedroom guesthouse, which has 892 square feet of living space. The primary guest house also sports its own lake-view deck and staircase leading down to the waterfront. 

Another guest house was developed from a detached two-car garage. It was converted into a 500-square-foot, two-bedroom guesthouse with a bunk room. That structure sits near the main house, while the other guest cabin is further away, offering plenty of privacy in the heavily treed property.

The primary dwelling, with six bedrooms and five bathrooms, is situated on a bluff surrounded by pine trees and a gorgeous lake view. Despite the home’s position near the edge of a slope, the listing says the majority of the property is on level ground suited to building. 

The one-level home boasts a mid-century design with a cabin-like feel with wood-paneled walls. While it was built many decades ago, it has had recent updates to the kitchen and bathrooms. Though, the listing says that its original cabinetry was left intact.

The great room has as its centerpiece floor-to-ceiling windows that bring the pine trees and lake into the design, alongside its stone fireplace. It provides an indoor/outdoor living feel, with the room flowing into the spacious outdoor terrace. That outdoor space features a covered dining area, plenty of seating, and its own stone fireplace. From that patio, guests can descend a ramp to the more than 660 feet of shoreline that include a dock, boat house, lakeside seating area and moorings. 

The property’s alluring greenery can also be enjoyed from its grass court, which is designed for sports such as volleyball, croquet, horseshoes, or other outdoor activities. The five grandchildren of the Henderson family have decided to sell the home because they do not visit it often anymore, Joan Henderson told the Wall Street Journal.