Home Alone's McCallister Family Is Wealthy and in the One Percent

Table Of Content

• Rob McCallister's Brownstone house
• How much was the Home Alone house worth in 1990?
• Behind the scenes
• Locations in the house
• Homes for rent in Los Angeles, CA
• The “Schitt’s Creek” mansion in Toronto is for sale (again). But you’d need Rose family money to afford it
• The McCallisters Are One Percenters; Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago Determines Wealth of ‘Home Alone’ Family
• Decades later, ‘Home Alone’ fans are still casing the iconic house

Some curious tourists went as far as knocking on the front door, or even venturing into the backyard in hopes of catching a glimpse of the tree house. It then sold in 2012 for a reported $1.585 million, closing the chapter on the Abendshiens’ 25-year residency. He noted that in Hughes’ teen films — including “The Breakfast Club,” and “Pretty in Pink” — class tensions are also often prominent and drive the story forward. Shoplifting was “significantly more common” among people with family incomes over $70,000, according to a 2008 article published in the American Journal of Psychiatry. Head over to The New York Times’ website to read its full breakdown of the McCallister family’s income. As for Peter, Kevin’s dad, it’s been assumed that he likely worked in the business industry.

Rob McCallister's Brownstone house

My decor and wall-covering choices for Home Alone changed the color palette of the nation for the upcoming decade,” Cauley tells AD. According to an article by House Beautiful, the most popular paint colors ahead of the film were subtle mauve, denim blue, light turquoise, and barely-there pink. And after the film’s release, in 1991, Benjamin Moore’s most popular color was Arroyo Red, a deep reddish-brown color. It seems as though it wasn’t only the holiday spirit that rubbed off on fans. “To me, with respect, fans who argue about the parents’ income, or house cost, should, instead, simply enjoy the movie,” she said. Eve Cauley, the set decorator for “Home Alone,” was responsible for decor such as the furniture and wallpaper inside of the McCallister home, which was filmed on built sets in a local high school.

How much was the Home Alone house worth in 1990?

The scenes of the foyer’s grand staircase and the living room were the real-life Home Alone house. There were, however, some tiny changes made to facilitate some scenes in the film. Oh, and the back door down the set of stairs outside – that actually wasn’t real. A backhoe was brought in to dig up that part of the property so that a fake door and steps could be added in.

Behind the scenes

Too bad, since the Abendshiens lived there for 20 years and we’re pretty sure their daughter would have loved to keep it for herself. If you’re wondering where to find it in real life, the real Home Alone house’s address is 671 Lincoln Ave, Winnetka, IL (though we’re pretty sure the owners would rather not have fans lingering outside, so please respect their privacy). The story of eight-year-old Kevin McCallister — who, accidentally left behind by his family during the holidays, is forced to defend his home from two dimwit burglars — is arguably the best Christmas movie of all time. The Winnetka house that Chris Columbus hand-selected as the McCallister house was perfect in every sense of the word, except for one small hiccup—the interior wasn’t big enough. “Film sets must be large enough to have room for the camera, as well as the actors, in addition to the furniture,” explains Cauley, the movie’s set decorator. And with the revival of ’90s nostalgia and the trends that come with it, there’s no better time to do a deep dive into the Chicago-area home where it all began.

The home is located at 671 Lincoln Ave in Winnetka, Illinois and was used primarily for exterior shots. Because the production found it too small for equipment, only a few interior scenes were filmed there. The kitchen, along with the main staircase, basement, attic and most of the first floor landing were filmed on location in the real house, thus making them the home's only interiors to be featured in the film. Most of the house's interiors were recreated or duplicated on a soundstage built in the gymnasium of former campus of New Trier Township High School. An example of this is the enlarged version of the staircase and main foyer of the real house.

Homes for rent in Los Angeles, CA

Monica and Chandler Actually Moved Into the 'Home Alone' House - Collider

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Even more intriguing, it caught the attention of Daren Janes, a user who claimed to be the art director on Friends. He shared the behind-the-scenes scoop, revealing that the house was a set, and the exterior was provided by Pacific Studios, initially designed for Home Alone due to its ideal appearance through the door and windows. Fans lauded Westwood’s keen observation, as Janes’ comment earned over 103,000 likes and nearly 400 comments.

The “Schitt’s Creek” mansion in Toronto is for sale (again). But you’d need Rose family money to afford it

All with a little help from old man Marley and his wicked brother Buzz’s pet tarantula, of course. If you’ve ever revisited the Home Alone films for a dose of nostalgia, you probably asked yourself at some point “how much is the Home Alone house worth? ” Well, after an extensive redecoration, the original owners of the property put up the Mcalister house for sale in May 2011.

The McCallisters Are One Percenters; Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago Determines Wealth of ‘Home Alone’ Family

Abendshien expressed her surprise at the enduring legacy of her family’s home, mirroring the unexpected popularity of the Friends two-bedroom apartment, transformed into a rental space in collaboration with Booking.com in 2021. The New York City flagship offered fans “The Ultimate Sleepover at The Friends Experience” for a symbolic $19.94, paying homage to the sitcom’s debut year. For the tourists who come from all over the world to see the house, the visit is a chance to reenact the movie and make memories of their own. Aline Tomaz, 10, came with her family from Minneapolis after her father, Alexandre Tomaz, showed them the movie.

Friends fans think Chandler and Monica moved into the Home Alone house - The Tab

Friends fans think Chandler and Monica moved into the Home Alone house.

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Decades later, ‘Home Alone’ fans are still casing the iconic house

Kevin’s treehouse was also specifically built for the film and ended up being taken down after filming wrapped. Situated on the North Shore of Chicago, the neighborhood boasts suburban charm that practically begs to be made into a Christmas movie. The home itself was built in 1920 in the Georgian colonial style—perfectly symmetrical. According to Zillow, the home now boasts 5,398 square feet, 10 bedrooms, and 5 baths. While Hollywood productions and TV series alike tend to use existing homes only for exterior shots (with interior scenes normally being shot on soundstages), quite a few scenes of the holiday flick were actually filmed on location. Despite debuting in November 1990, interest in the Home Alone house remains enduring.

Financial experts revealed that in 1990, affording the McCallister family home would have been feasible only for the top 1% of Chicago households, with an income around $305,000 (equivalent to $665,000 in 2022). Andersen could realize her dream for one night; in one of its regular stunts, Airbnb has listed the “Home Alone” house for a brief rental. But for 11-year-old Noah Irizarry, who lives in Old Man Marley’s house, it’s more than that. She bought Kevin’s hat for her son and had him push a grocery cart at the Grand Food Center in Winnetka where Kevin buys the milk, eggs and fabric softener (a list she rattles off by heart).

Laura Abendshien recounted her experience living in the suburban Chicago home at 6 years old while the movie was filming. "We stayed in the house pretty much the entire period, which was about four or five months," she said. "In order to avoid appearing onscreen, we would have to crawl around the window line from room to room."

In 2012, the real-life McCallister home in Winnetka, Illinois sold for $1.585 million, a relative bargain compared to its original listing price of $2.4 million. Now, the property’s value is estimated to be over $2,000,000, but it hasn’t been listed for sale since 2012. Just looking at the photos takes us back to the oh-so-familiar house of the McCallisters, filled with its red and green furnishings, charm, character, and over-the-top Christmas decorations. Nevertheless, the owners made sure to redecorate before listing the house on Airbnb, painstakingly recreating many of the original details and the signature interior style. And while only four lucky fans got to enjoy the memorable stay, the house’s brief stint on Airbnb gave us a peek inside — and a good idea of how the iconic property has changed over the years. The McCallister house became a character in its own right, with its picture-perfect exterior and festive décor now being synonymous with holiday cheer.

Home Sweet Home Alone, the 2021 reboot of the classic holiday movie, was mostly filmed in Canada. Max Mercer’s house is in Longueuil, Quebec, a popular suburb of Montreal located about 15 minutes away from downtown Montreal. The set team ultimately decided to build the entire interior of the home in the gymnasium of New Trier High School, also in Winnetka. At that time, there were few film studios in Chicago, and John Hughes lived north of the city.

It is unknown whether the interiors – which bear no resemblance to the original house – were shot at this home, a different residence, or on a set. In fact, the house is one of the few properties that are blurred on Google Maps, an initiative that was likely taken by the owners to discourage fans from showing up uninvited. Silvers wasn’t the only one who had the smart idea to visit the house ahead of the holiday season. “There were quite a few cars parked on the opposite side of the street so as not to interfere with picture taking. Everyone was smiling ear to ear, taking pictures, pointing to the different windows.” She eavesdropped on fellow fans asking, “Was this the window Marv went through and stepped on the broken ornaments? ” and, “That’s the doorknob that burned the M into Harry’s hand, and the front door that Kevin McCallister slid through on his sled.” The movie magic is (and will always be) in the air on Lincoln Avenue.

News of a new Home Alone movie intrigued fans all over the world, who were all left wondering whether the remake could live up to the original. He said that a common mark of a Hughes film is dramatic tension fueled by conflict between young people and adults, which almost always resolves in favor of the younger person. A commonly cited data point on the family’s wealth is their Christmas trip to Paris. In fact, Winnetka isn’t just one of Chicago’s wealthy hot spots, but is one of the most expensive places to call home in the United States, according to a holiday-timed investigation by The New York Times. Only members of the top 1 percent could call 671 Lincoln Avenue home, and according to experts at the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago, the same standard applies today. In 2023, Kevin’s house is now estimated to be worth almost 371% more, coming in at a whopping $2.3 million (£1.8m).

Her mother, Andressa Tomaz, herded them in front of the fence for a family Christmas card photo as if the house was Macy’s Santaland. According to Bayna, most visitors start streaming in by late morning or early afternoon, though several will come late at night and yell “Kevin! ” She has watched hundreds of people slap their cheeks in a mock scream to mimic Culkin’s famous pose in the movie poster. Others do dance routines, and there’s been at least one saxophone player.