Sometimes, it doesn’t pay to dream big. Case in point: a fraudster was caught attempting to sell a Frank Lloyd Wright-designed home on Zillow.
The Frank Lloyd Wright Building Conservancy, which maintains the legacy of the iconic architect, reported that a Jan. 15 listing of the Wright-designed Walser House in Chicago claimed that it was “for sale by owner” with an asking price of $350,000.
“The house is owned by Fannie Mae, which is not currently offering it for sale,” said the Conservancy in a social media post. “This fake listing, possibly aiming to defraud a well-intentioned potential purchaser, highlights the critical vulnerability of this important house. We removed the listing from our Wright on the Market page immediately on learning this, and are making efforts to stop the dissemination of the false listing.”
The Walser House was built in 1903 and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. However, has been unoccupied and unmaintained since 2019, when the property’s last owner died. The property, which is an advanced state of dilapidation, has been in foreclosure since 2023 and carries a reverse mortgage that is greater than the home’s value, which was appraised at $65,000. A foreclosure sale was held on Dec. 1, but the minimum bid level of $240,000 was too high for local preservation groups that estimated it would cost over $2 million for restoration services.
“We urge Fannie Mae to negotiate with interested parties that have the vision and resources to restore the Walser House and return it to productive use,” said the Conservancy.
The identity of the fraudster attempting to sell the property has not been determined.
Photo courtesy of Frank Lloyd Wright Building Conservancy
