South Florida Sun-Sentinel (Sunday)
Feast your eyes on ‘IHOP mansion’
Nine-bedroom house on 7.5 acres could be home sweet home
Now that’s a whole lot of pancakes. A
16,313-square-foot mansion in Southwest Ranches owned by the son of a major franchisee of IHOP restaurants has hit the market, priced at $7.25 million.
The nine bedroom house, at 5550 Hancock Road in Southwest Ranches, sits on 7.5 acres.
It features 11 full baths, four half baths, a five-car garage, elevator, four fireplaces, three offices, a library and staff quarters. And just in case you think you need to leave the property for entertainment, the property has an exercise room, dance studio, yoga/ massage room, a two-lane bowling alley, a
12-seat theater and an 800-square-foot bar area.
Outside, there are two ponds, a lighted tennis court, a gazebo with barbecue and a resort-style pool complete with a waterfall, slide, hot tub and deck spacious enough to hold hundreds of guests, said Mark A. Kaminsky, a real estate agent with Coldwell Banker Residential Real Estate in Weston, who holds the listing along with his colleague Kevin O’steen.
“It’s got a little bit of everything and isn’t missing anything,” Kaminsky said. “It’s a hotel-like experience when you’re in the backyard.”
The owners are Nathan and Jacqueline Finkel, who bought the land on which the house is built in 1999. The house was completed in 2001.
Nathan is the son of Abe Finkel, an early franchisee of IHOP restaurants who ran the southeast region of the brand. Nathan inherited his father’s share and grew the chain to more than 200 locations. He sold most of his portfolio about seven years ago.
Kaminsky said the Finkels are selling because they are empty-nesters and plan to downsize.