Tiffani Sherman, provided by
People driving on Creek Loop in San Antonio, TX, may think this unassuming home is part of a neighborhood park. It isn’t, but it does hold a secret.
“The piece of property is absolutely gorgeous, and it’s basically like being in your own park. The house is just a traditional house, but the cavern is what makes it really special,” says listing agent Lori Largen, with JBGoodwin Realtors®.
Yes. A cavern. Under a house. The home is pending sale a month after it was listed for $875,000.
Down a set of stairs, you’ll find a huge cavern about 30 feet below the Earth’s surface. The main cavern measures about 30 by 26 feet with 9-foot-tall stalagmites. Another chamber is 7 square feet with walkable tunnels between the two spaces.
“My clients absolutely love the cave, and they love to show it off,” Largen says. “It’s very inspiring.”
San Antonio Board of Realtors
San Antonio Board of Realtors
San Antonio Board of Realtors
The current owners discovered the natural wonder as they were clearing the land to build their house in 2004. They have since spent over $87,000 excavating, improving, and lighting the space.
“They noticed a space near a hole and kept hearing a sucking or blowing sound. If you dropped leaves by this hole, they would just go up in the air 2 or 3 feet,” Largen explains. “They thought that was kind of interesting and kind of indicative of a cave.”
They asked folks at the nearby Natural Bridge Caverns to come and take a look at their property. The experts from the nation’s largest known commercial caverns confirmed the existence of a cave. Other caves in this area are estimated to be between 100,000 and 2 million years old.
The owners “started excavating it in 2016. They had built their house [in 2006],” Largen says. “They always knew it was there, and they decided it was time to dig it out.”
Amanda Terry/ Twist Tours in San Antonio
Amanda Terry/ Twist Tours in San Antonio
Folks from nearby universities and amateur geologists helped with the excavation, Largen says.
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“They made an entrance because thousands of years ago, an earthquake sealed the cave. So they opened it back up,” she says. “They weren’t sure how big it would be.”
What they found was huge and might also be even bigger.
“Underneath the large room, geologists think there’s another room two to three times larger than the [current] larger room,” she says. The owners “knew they were going to move, so they didn’t want to spend the money to excavate that other room.”
Amanda Terry/ Twist Tours in San Antonio
Amanda Terry/ Twist Tours in San Antonio
Amanda Terry/ Twist Tours in San Antonio
Amanda Terry/ Twist Tours in San Antonio
The house above ground offers 2,745 square feet of living space, including four bedrooms and three bathrooms. There’s also a four-car garage.
The lot of 2.56 acres features landscaping, a gazebo, and a large deck.
“The buyers are a young couple with two young boys, and they love the house, they love the property, and the cave was an added bonus,” Largen says.
Largen says setting the price was challenging because there aren’t other properties with private caves.
“I couldn’t really include the cave because it’s not part of the residence,” she says. “The appraiser gave it credit for an underground storm shelter.”
Amanda Terry/ Twist Tours in San Antonio
Amanda Terry/ Twist Tours in San Antonio
The post What Lurks Beneath This San Antonio Home? Private Caves Are Conversation Pits Like No Other appeared first on Real Estate News & Insights | realtor.com®.
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