What $20 million can get you in CdA’s booming luxury real estate market

Talis, a Latin word meaning of such kind, so excellent, so great or, simply, such, is a fitting name for the 11,000-square-foot estate overlooking Lake Coeur d’Alene.

At the top of a hill and behind a gate in Syringa Heights, the $19.5 million mansion for sale at 4579 E. Plum Road feels secluded and private on its 3.77-acre plot, yet it lies just 10 minutes away from downtown Coeur d’Alene. The price dropped by $1.5 million in late June.

The house took three years to complete, said Eugene Winter, the founder of Gold Star Construction of Liberty Lake and the builder of Talis. He’s seen Talis’ architectural plan come to life in Park City, Utah, and Jackson Hole, Wyoming, but the estate is the first of its floor plan in Idaho.

“It’s a kind of culmination of some influences that I’ve had over my career,” Winter said.

Every detail of the house is intentional, and the materials come together to create what Winter calls a “Mountain West” style. The house mixes luxury with nature, featuring woods from all over the world and natural stone from Montana. The trusses and other timber work were crafted in Winter’s shop.

The ultraluxury Talis, a 2026 build that has been on the market for two months, is indicative of a trend in Coeur d’Alene real estate. Multimillion-dollar homes, often used as resort or second homes, are leading the city’s market, said Keri McCombs, a real estate agent and co-owner of Re/Max Inland Empire.

The average home price in Coeur d’Alene is $607,842, according to Zillow. Houses near the lake typically cost upward of $1 million, but Talis’ price tag stands out among the $5- and $10 -million homes.

The city attracts clients from California, Oregon, Washington and even Europe. North Idaho appeals to buyers for more than just its beautiful landscape, McCombs said. Idaho offers privacy for buyers that nearby states fail to provide.

“Idaho is a nondisclosure state, which means that if someone wanted to buy, keep their name hidden off the property title, they could find a way to do it,” she said.

Privacy is a coveted feature for many of Coeur d’Alene’s potential home buyers, and luxury homes often provide the feeling of seclusion without being far from modern conveniences, such as airports, restaurants and stores.

States such as Idaho, Wyoming and Nevada are also attracting big-spending buyers from the West due to their appealing tax structures, said Chris Neu, a Sotheby’s real estate agent leading the sale of Talis.

“California, Oregon and Washington; they penalize high-income owners or people with estates and greater amounts of wealth,” he said. “They’re smart, and they will vote with their feet, and they are voting right now. They’re leaving those states with these large-value asset properties or wealth and coming here.”

Neu described the kind of buyer interested in estates like Talis as someone with a “quiet money” aesthetic. Potential buyers likely own multiple properties throughout the United States and will probably use Talis as a secondary home.

“They’re not the ostentatious type,” he said. “They don’t need the parties and the grand parades and all this stuff. They want to be a little bit more removed, which is part of the discrete nature of the home.”

Compared to other luxury second-home markets such as Telluride, Colorado; Jackson Hole, Wyoming; and Big Sky, Montana; Coeur d’Alene is still in the early stages of luxury development, making it cheaper to buy large properties as compared to other resort towns, Neu said. Buying real estate on Coeur d’Alene’s lakefront is an investment that will likely appreciate as development continues.

“We’re still 25% to 40% under what those markets charge, so if a person’s looking at a long game, like a 10-plus-year investment plan, you’re buying cheap right now, and it’s going to be a really good idea,” he said.

In the meantime, investors can enjoy the architectural feat that is Talis, or one of Winter’s other luxury properties he’s developing in the neighborhood, such as Aria and Roksana.

“Coeur d’Alene, as busy as it is and as much growth as it has had, I feel like it is just still being discovered,” Winter said.

Talis opens to an entryway with 30-foot ceilings akin to those of a palace. The foyer’s breadth overwhelms and mimics the vast lake it overlooks, which can be seen from the near floor-to-ceiling windows in the great room.

The house boasts six bedrooms and five and a half bathrooms. Separated into two levels, with the 5,500-square-foot upper level having a foyer, sitting room, catering-style kitchen, walk-in pantry, butler’s pantry/laundry room, dining room, bar, junior suite, study, powder room and a luxurious primary wing. The large primary wing features a walk-in closet, laundry room and en-suite bathroom with a soaking tub. The primary bedroom opens onto a private balcony with access to the outdoor living space overlooking Lake Coeur d’Alene.

The lower level features a laundry-utility room, living area, kitchen, a hidden room, two junior suites, a guest bathroom, a multipurpose room with a walk-in closet, a gym with a sauna and a wine room. The infrared spa in the gym is a few steps away from the temperature-controlled wine room, a key feature of the house.

Both the upper and lower levels have access to the backyard through either the patio or balcony and stairs. Much like the inside, the outdoor living space is grandiose.

The spa and saltwater pool are the main attractions backing up the edge of the property, with views looking down the hill out to Lake Coeur d’Alene. The patio is also heated in the winter for picturesque views of the snow-covered lakefront.