$18.5M Rye home: Straws Point now boasts top 2 highest-priced home sales in NH history

RYE — Straws Point has produced another member of the exclusive eight-figures single-family home club.

A five-bedroom, nine-bathroom residence on the Atlantic Ocean at 17 Straws Point has sold for $18.5 million, the second-highest-priced single-family home sale in New Hampshire history, according to Seacoast Board of Realtors statistician John Rice. 

In December 2022, the nearby home at 30 Straws Point sold for $25 million in an off-market closing, more than doubling the state record at the time, according to Rice. 

The waterfront Rye neighborhood has now claimed the top two spots in New Hampshire.

“I think this price point says more about the location and quality of the construction,” said Jim Giampa, co-owner of Carey and Giampa Realtors, whose firm brokered the transaction. “Just because a home is in the Seacoast region doesn’t mean it will command big dollars unless the location and property are exceptional. This area has plenty of room for buyers and sellers in all price ranges.”

The owner of 17 Straws Point originally listed the property last August for $25 million, attempting to fetch the same total as its former neighbors at 30 Straws Point. A listing price drop then brought the property down to $22 million. 

What is known about buyers of Straws Point homes in Rye

County deed records show the buyer of 17 Straws Point is Granite Shoals LLC. State business records do not identify the owner of the LLC, which was created at the start of May. Portsmouth attorney Douglas MacDonald is listed as its registered agent.

The seller of the estate was 17 Straws Point LLC, for which Michael Millward is the principal, according to state records.

More Seacoast real estate news: Newington home sells for record $5.25M while still under construction

A deed for the sale was filed with the county on Friday, May 17. 

A non-disclosure agreement prevented Giampa from identifying the buyers of 17 Straws Point. Giampa also represented the buyers of 30 Straws Point, Mary Lou and Peter LeSaffre, in late 2022.

“This is a really special home that was designed and constructed to take advantage of the amazing ocean views from Kittery to the Isle of Shoals to Cape Ann,” he said of the property. “Most of the custom features were crafted on-site by Houghton Builders so the quality of construction is extraordinary. It is equipped with everything you could want in an oceanfront estate (with) a gym, movie theater, wine cellar, infinity pool and more.”

The 17 Straws Point residence was built over the span of two years and was completed in 2018. The 10,000-plus-square-foot house contains a pool table, a wet bar, a fireplace, cathedral ceilings, a bathhouse, an outdoor patio and an elevator.

Rye property records show the town’s last assessment of the home valued it at almost $7.1 million.

Rice, statistician for the Seacoast Board of Realtors, cited New England Real Estate Network data to identify 17 Straws Point as the second-highest-selling single-family home in state history. He cautioned that those records do not account for properties sold by homeowners without the assistance of a licensed broker. 

Annual taxes on the property exceeded $48,000 in 2022, according to the listing. 

“Each room in this architectural gem showcases meticulous attention to detail, radiating sophistication and class,” the listing adds.

According to Rice, the current third-highest-priced single-family home sale in New Hampshire came in June 2023, when a Meredith residence on Lake Winnipesaukee sold for $14 million in an off-market deal.