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This $750,000 suburban home is so controversial, real estate sites have censored the listing. Take a look inside the '50 Shades of Maple Glen' home
This $750,000 suburban home is so controversial, real estate sites have censored the listing. Take a look inside the '50 Shades of Maple Glen' home
Katie CanalesFeb 13, 2019, 23:50 IST
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The listing of a four-bedroom home in suburban Pennsylvania, currently for sale for $750,000, attracted attention last week on social media when one of its unique features came to light.
Its basement is renovated into a sex playroom complete with a caged bed, aerial swing, whips, and other BDSM (which stands for bondage, discipline, sadism, and masochism) sexual aids.
The home's listing agent, Melissa Leonard at Coldwell Banker Preferred, has dubbed the home "50 Shades of Maple Glen" in homage to the popular erotic romance novels and films.
Leonard told Business Insider that she's never seen anything like this in her life.
It's stirred up controversy in the real estate community, so much so that shortly after the home was listed, the listing service took down the verbiage and photos depicting the room.
Leonard said neighbors also asked her to take the listing down.
Take a look inside the home and its subterranean sex chamber.
But within 24 hours of posting the home, Leonard told Business Insider that the listing service removed the verbiage and photos of the playroom because it was deemed inappropriate.
So now the listing is described as a "one of a kind suburban home" — which is still pretty accurate, let's be honest.
Leonard said that as far as home add-ons go, a full-floor sex playroom is not common.
"I've never seen this in my life," Leonard told Business Insider.
Leonard said that "most realtors take out what makes homes unusual," but she and the owner wanted to embrace the property's unique feature.
But as a result, Leonard said the neighbors are not thrilled about it.
In fact, she said they weren't even aware of the sex playroom's existence or proximity to them until the listing went viral last week.
"They're very angry," Leonard told Business Insider.
According to Leonard, the neighbors are afraid that the sex play pin will attract someone who's only into that kind of lifestyle.
She said they even implored her to take the images down before the listing service eventually did.
But Leonard said she's simply doing her job by showcasing the home as the owner intended.
"I don't think they really have the right to be upset," Leonard said about the angry neighbors.
Especially, she said, since the basement can be renovated back into something more standard if the prospective owners choose.
"It can just be a typical home if someone wants it to be that way," Leonard told Business Insider.
But since the home comes fully furnished, the buyers would first inherit the room as is before making any changes if they wish.
As far as the owner is concerned, Leonard said he's excited about the publicity the home has garnered, despite the residents' ire.
The suburban town has a population of 6,837 people.
It's about a 40-minute drive from Philadelphia ...
... and an hour and 40 minutes away from New York.
It's definitely not the first place you'd think you'd find something like this.
Leonard said she didn't know the designer who came in to construct the playroom, but the owner, who is accustomed to that particular lifestyle, knew who to turn to.
The rest of the home is conventional and elegant.
There are four bedrooms in the home — five, if you count the one in the basement ...
... and two and a half bathrooms.
It has a gym for more, ahem, conventional exercise.