‘House for Sale’ Classics We Can’t Forget
A salute to the quirky, historic, poignant stories of properties (and their owners) across New England and through the decades.
By Yankee Editors|Jul 01 2025|
Back in 2015, our “House for Sale” columnist paid a visit to this 1880s farmhouse once owned by the family of a noted New Hampshire politician — but the real wow factor came from the original Moses Eaton stenciling inside.
Photo Credit: Jennifer Bakos“Yankee likes to mosey around and see, out of editorial curiosity, what you can turn up when you go home hunting. We have no stake in the sale whatsoever and would decline it if offered.”
This homey disclaimer, which longtime readers can probably recite by heart, appeared alongside hundreds of the real estate profiles that Yankee has published as its beloved “House for Sale” column. Otherwise, the properties that Yankee featured were as different from one another as could be. Whether it was the unusual history of the home or the heartfelt story of its owners, there was always something memorable that made properties in “House for Sale” much more than cookie-cutter sales listings.
For Yankee’s 90th anniversary, the September/October 2025 issue featured an ode to “House for Sale” by former This Old House producer Bruce Irving, in which he recounts the history of the column that was famously credited only to “The Yankee Moseyer.” Bruce’s article got us at Yankee thinking of some of our favorite examples from across the years, which we’ve begun collecting here. Maybe you, too, have read a “House for Sale” that you can’t forget—if so, please let us know in the comments. We’d love to hear about it!
The Best of Yankee’s ‘House for Sale’
• TOWN for Sale! (1971)
• Garland Mill Forever (1973)
• How to Get Back on the Track (1975)
• Kokad-jo, Maine—It’s All Yours (1981)
• ‘To Live in a Lighthouse’ or ‘To Run a Country Store’ (1982)
• Chasing Sunbeams at Hidden Wells (1990)
• The New England Farmstead (2015)
• The 241-Year-Old Colonial Home That’s Never Been Sold (2015)
• The House at Allen Cove (2017)
• Bringing Home the Beacon (2021)
