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3. Villa Leopolda, France — $750 million
Named after its previous owner, King Leopold II of Belgium, (again he appears in this list, he was one wealthy real estate aficionado!) this property is the most expensive private residence in Europe. Was designed by Ogden Corman Jr. an American architect and was built between 1929 and 1931. The architect borrowed the style from the Belle Époque. The home has seen numerous elite owners in the French Riviera and has also been used as a film set, for Alfred Hitchcock’s 1995 “La Main Au Collet” (To Catch a Thief). Lily Safra (nicknamed ‘The Gilded Lily) was the socialite widow of Lebanese-Brazilian banker Edward Safra, and she inherited the property after his death in 1999. Lily passed away aged 87 in July 2022 and her descendants now own the villa. There are 80,000 square feet of space, a huge swimming pool, and luxuriant gardens that apparently require the work of more than 50 gardeners every day. Villa Leopolda has 11 bedrooms, 14 bathrooms, a commercial greenhouse, a helipad, and an outdoor kitchen.