Silicon Valley's tech crowd thinks it's time for something new and modern.

Modern homes, that is.

Techies in the Palo Alto and San Francisco areas are reportedly buying traditional houses, ripping them down and building new sleek homes with clean lines in the architecture, according to Pui-Wing Tam and Nancy Keates of The Wall Street Journal. 

And the market for teardowns is hot.

Ken DeLeon, a Palo Alto Broker, told The WSJ:

"Homes are getting 15 offers each just to be torn down, with many bids $400,000 over asking. Mediterranean homes are now very out, and contemporary overall is in."

A slew of tech industry are following the trend, which only caught on in the around around 2010. To name a few:

• Facebook Chief Operating Officer Sheryl Sandberg is currently building a 9,200-square-foot glass-and-wood contemporary mansion in Menlo Park, Calif., after buying and ripping down a 2,900-square-foot house on the half-acre lot.

• Steve Lawrence, creator of Google Desktop, and Jim Miller, vice president of world-wide operations, have bought tear downs and re-built modern homes.

• Danis Dayanov, formerly of LinkedIn and current CEO of Talkatone, plans to build a 5,000-square-foot home in Los Altos Hills, Calif. He paid around $2.1 million for the home he tore down and the land.

Silicon Valley's love for all things modern has even extended to real estate.

DON'T MISS: YouTube Cofounder Steve Chen Lists His San Francisco Penthouse For $8 Million

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Each week we take a look at how much house you can expect to get at a specific price point. This week, we’re looking at homes priced around $900,000.

Santa Barbara, CA

115 Coronada Cir, Santa Barbara CA
For sale: $899,000

Sunshine, sand and beach! Santa Barbara real estate comes with all that and more, but usually at quite steep prices. This $899,000 home is 2,167 square feet and has 2 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms and access to a community pool and spa.

Atlanta, GA

310 Peachtree Ave NE, Atlanta GA
For sale: $899,900

Although it was built in 2012, this Atlanta home has plenty of the charms found in older homes, including a generous front porch and dormer window. The 3,300-square-foot home has 6 bedrooms and 4.5 baths.

Chesapeake, VA

1512 Bankbury Way, Chesapeake VA
For sale: $899,000

This 4-bedroom, 5-bathroom home is unusual in that each bedroom is a full suite with attached bathroom. The two-story home also has a finished attic and sits on a little over half an acre with a pool and plenty of patio space.

Naples, FL

1681 Golden Gate Blvd W, Naples FL
For sale: $899,900

Sitting on 2.5 acres in Naples, this Mediterranean-style home has recently been reduced in price by $75,000. Offering 3,608 square feet of living space, the home has 4 bedrooms, 3.5 bathrooms and an additional 1,900-square-foot guest house with 3 bedrooms and 2 baths.

Fort Collins

6076 Waterfront Dr, Fort Collins CO
For sale: $900,000

Love water sports? How about a Fort Collins home located on a private water ski lake? The custom-built home is a whopping 7,677 square feet on more than 3 lakefront acres with 4 bedrooms and 5 baths.

DON'T MISS: Colorado Couple Builds An Incredible Treehouse Village In Costa Rica >

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The world's skinniest house is ready to be lived in.

At just five feet wide and a total of 46 square feet, this Warsaw, Poland apartment just might be the thinnest apartment in the world, according to The Daily Mail.

The "house" was built in an alley between two other buildings by Polish architect Jakub Szczesny. It's so small you barely realize it's there. This apartment puts the ones Mayor Bloomberg proposed for New York City to shame.

In reality, this apartment borders on unlivable. There are no windows, the fridge has room for just two sodas, and residents must climb a ladder to reach the bedroom.

The kitchen table only has room for two chairs. And as for the bathroom, there's a toilet, and a shower that hovers almost directly over it.

This tiny abode is known as the Keret house - named after Israeli writer and filmmaker Etgar Keret, who has headed the art project and will live in the property, on-and-off, for six months.

Then, it will be rented out.

DON'T MISS: 10 Sleek Space-Savers That Are Perfect For A Tiny Apartment

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Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, an architect firm with offices here in New York, has proposed a futuristic-looking halo to be suspended between two buildings over Grand Central Station as part of an initiative to bring the travel hub back to its past glory, according to The Wall Street Journal.   

SOM's proposal was of a handful of plans submitted to transform Grand Central. WXY Architecture and Foster + Partners also submitted ideas.

The Department of City Planning wants to rezone the area around Grand Central, including parts of Park and Madison Avenues, to allow for new office towers and to create pedestrian space, the WSJ reported.

The redesign would help funnel pedestrian traffic and add a bit more glitz and glam to the structure.

The most striking thing about the halo is it would move up and down between the two new office buildings to give visitors views of the city from different heights.

Skidmore, Owings & Merrill's Sky Walk halo design is the flashiest of all the proposed plans.

The halo would give visitors a view of the city from different heights, similar to the London Eye, according to The Wall Street Journal.

The firm told The Wall Street Journal that the proposal was "technically feasible" but the bigger challenge would be to "ensure that the government and owners of potential new office towers could work together. "

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Ski season is just around the corner, and if you can afford it, it's a lot more fun to sleep in your own luxury chalet than a hotel room.

You can buy a grand ski house in Vermont for a (relatively) conservative $5 million, own the best home in Switzerland for about $71 million, or purchase in Park City for about $30 million.

A mansion known as "Elk's Crossing" in Aspen, Colo. is on sale for $31 million. The home spans 18,000 square feet.

Click here to see more photos of the home >

The home has six bedrooms, six bathrooms, and two half baths. The house is just three miles from Aspen and Snowmass.

Click here to see more photos of the home >

A $19.95 million estate in Aspen, Colo., known as Starwood, spans almost 14,000 square feet.

Click here to see more photos of the home >

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An enormous 27,000-square-foot home in Winnetka, Ill. on the North Shore of Chicago is on sale for $27 million.

The home has six bedrooms, six bathrooms, and four half bathrooms.

This walled and gated chateau was designed by renowned architect Richard Landry.

Welcome to Winnetka, Ill.

Upon driving up to the house, you're greeted by a large fountain.

The house is currently selling for $1,000 per square foot.

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Everyone needs a place to hang their hat, but not everyone has as great a selection of places as  hedge fund manager John Paulson, WSJ break it down for you in a video below.

He has two incredible New York City apartments and a lakeside Southampton estate called "Old Trees" that he bought for $41.3 million.

Check them out (via WSJ):

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For real estate agents looking to earn the coveted title of "best-selling" in their market, the strategies they should use are very different depending on where they work.

In some cities, it only takes a couple of dozen listings in the luxury market to earn the title of No. 1 (in terms of portfolio value), whereas in other places it takes hundreds of listings to compete for the top spot, according to The Wall Street Journal's Robbie Whelan.

How do brokers work their way to the top?

Whelan shared a few strategies they use:

• Luxury agents shroud most of their clients in a cloak of privacy. They wine and dine their clients to convince them that they are the best agent for the job.

• Agents in mid-size markets aggressively hit the online marketing world, and don't even necessarily attend every showing of a house because of the high volume of listings they have.

• Luxury agents generally take a 5 percent commission.

• Mid-size agents pursue families who are relocating, whereas luxury agents pursue clients looking for trophy properties. 

DON'T MISS: Some Real Estate Agents Will Go To Crazy Extremes To Sell A House

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If you want your own sprawling, full-floor apartment inside of glitzy One57, you better buy now or they may all be gone soon.

Of the 11 full-floor units inside the still-under-construction building, there are just a few left, Dan Tubb, the director of sales for One57, told The New York Post. The building did more than $300 million in sales alone this summer and has reportedly netted sales of $1 billion in total.

To purchase a full-floor unit, you'll have to lay out a minimum of $53 million, the base price.

The four-bedroom units start at $16.75 million, if you're looking to make a more conservative purchase.

DON'T MISS: A Sneak Peek Inside One57, The Super Expensive Apartment Building That's Being Built Near Central Park

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Contracts were signed on six apartments at under-construction 18 Gramercy Park last week, all above $14.5 million, according to The Olshan Luxury Market Report.

The 16-unit luxury condominium is being developed by Zeckendorf Realty, which is the same company behind 15 Central Park West and 515 Park Avenue.

The building also made news earlier this month when the penthouse sold for $42 million to Houston Rockets owner Leslie Alexander. The duplex penthouse spans 6,300 square feet, with 2,000 square feet of outdoor space, and is the most expensive sale ever recorded south of 59th Street, appraiser Jonathan Miller recently told The Wall Street Journal.

Eight apartments in the building are under contract, all to American buyers, the WSJ reported.

What makes 18 Gramercy Park so great? The building has a famous Gramercy address, boasts large units, a spa and fitness center, and has doormen and concierge services. Buyers also get a highly coveted key to the private park it overlooks.

Each residence in the building takes up a full floor and measures around 4,200 square feet, except for the penthouse apartment, which spans two floors.

DON'T MISS: 16 Things You Never Knew About The Most Exclusive Park In Manhattan

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Bal Harbour Shops, an open-air luxury shopping center in an upscale part of Miami, is the most lucrative shopping mall in the world based on sales-per-square-foot.

The mall currently sees sales of $2,555 per square foot, and is likely to approach $3,000 per square foot by year-end, an annual survey by the International Council of Shopping Centres showed. 

That stat puts Bal Harbour's sales at nearly seven times the ICSC-estimated $451-per-square-foot industry average.

Sales per square foot in Bal Harbour have increased every year since its opening in 1965, with the exception of 2001, because of the 9/11 terror attacks, and 2009, because of the economic downturn.

Some of the malls keys to success include:

• A large collection of luxury shops, including Bottega Veneta, Chanel, Gucci, Lanvin, Prada, Salvatore Ferragamo, and Valentino.

• Bal Harbour is family owned, giving its business more room to adapt quickly when the market changes.

• The mall's location in the Miami area gives it a steady flow of tourists as shoppers.

• The inside of the mall is rich with fountains, tropical plants, and other aesthetically pleasing fixtures to help make the shopping experience even more enjoyable. 

Bal Harbour beat Simon Property Group’s Forum Shops at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas and the Westfield Groups' Westfield Stratford in London, the second and third most lucrative malls in the world. They earned $1,750-per-square-foot and $1,600-per-square-foot, respectively.

DON'T MISS: Inside The 10 Coolest Shopping Malls On The Planet

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A classically beautiful mansion called Solana in Santa Barbara, is on sale for $57.5 million.

The home spans 20,000 square feet and sits on 11 acres of land, with 360-degree views of mountains and the ocean.

The land was bought in 1912 by Forrest Peabody of Arrow Shirt, and is considered a "historic" estate, according to the listing.

Welcome to "Solana." The property is gated in for privacy.

The listing calls this "one of the most significant private homes in California."

The current owners are asking $2,530 per square foot.

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Good old fashioned land has become one of the hottest investments in the world, as stocks disappoint, currencies go to war, and food prices soar.

Luckily, America has a lot of land.

Especially America's 100 biggest private landowners, according to the latest data from The Land Report.

The top dog on the list is, for the second year running, media tycoon John Malone, who owns 2.2 million acres—more than twice as much land as Delaware. He narrowly beat out fellow media tycoon Ted Turner.

#25 The Flitner Family owns 300,000 acres

David Flitner is a third-generation Wyoming rancher. He and wife Paula own the Hideout Lodge and Guest Ranch, a working dude ranch, in Shell, Wyo.

Data published with permission from The Land Report.

#24 The Nunley Family owns 301,500 acres

The Nunley brothers have been in the ranching business for more than 70 years, and specialize in the Santa Gertrudis breed of cow. They own holdings in Texas and New Mexico, including a major cow-calf operation.

Data published with permission from The Land Report.

#23 Pat Broe owns 310,000 acres

Broe's investment and asset management company controls over 100 companies in real estate, energy and transportation.

He owns land in many states. Broe's Hubble & Green Ranches in New Mexico cover 290,000 acres. His Colorado’s Great Western Industrial Park became a major source of the state’s green job growth in 2008.

Data published with permission from The Land Report.

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A beautiful French Chateau-style mansion in Studio City, Calif., is on sale for $6.995 million.

The home spans 7,600 square feet, has five bedrooms, six full bathrooms, and one half bathroom.

The property is just over three acres.

Welcome to the Sunshine Terrace estate.

Upon entering, you see a grand chandelier and a sweeping staircase.

The current owners are asking $920 per square foot.

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Brian Cohen doesn't want you to take his 16,000-square-foot mansion seriously.

You can tell what he means when you visit the labyrinthine Long Island mansion, where every hallway passes through an octagonal center atrium before leading off to a theater, wine cellar and other attractions.

Click here to tour the house >

"It's a little bit like Disneyland," said Cohen, who was the first investor in Pinterest. Currently, Cohen is the CEO of the New York Angels. "The house is meant for fun."

His Sands Point home, near Port Washington, N.Y., is currently on the market for $9.5 million.

Cohen custom-built the house, commandeering the project as his own general contractor. The opportunity presented itself after Cohen sold his company TSI Communications.

"There's a part of me in the house," Cohen said.

The house is equipped with a giant geothermal heat pump, computer-controlled lighting and sound systems, and more than 350 lights designed to prevent Seasonal Affective Disorder.

"It's my own giant laboratory," Cohen said. "I got to experiment. Try all these new things. In 2000, people would walk in an see our flatscreen TVs and just say 'Wow.'"

After 14 months of paying his contractors by the hour — an unheard of practice in the construction business — the house was complete. Cohen, his wife and former business partner Carol, and their three children moved in.

"The kids were giddy," Cohen said. "It's an extraordinary home to find yourself living in as a child."

But when the Cohens' youngest son, Max, left for Arizona State University, the home went on the market and Mr. and Mrs. Cohen moved to an apartment in the West Village.

"My wife and I are both city people, born and raised," Cohen said. "The suburbs are for families. I don't fall in love with things, I fall in love with people. Our house served its purpose ...

"We still use it these days for what I call 'Hallmark moments,' but change is inevitable. A one-bedroom apartment is really all my wife and I need."

Welcome to Sands Point. On the Cohens' two-acre property, there are six landscaping elements. When the family moved in, the town "jokingly" cited them with a landscaping ticket, Cohen said.

The outside of the home is meant to have more of a Hamptons feel, since it's so close to the water. The other homes in the area are more colonial looking.

Upon entering you see the giant staircase that wraps around the octagon atrium. Cohen said he constructed the home this way so as soon as you walk in the door, you can yell up to their children in their bedrooms.

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If you're envious of the iconic real estate that comes with being commander-in-chief of the United States, you now have a chance to live in the White House, too.

Well, sort of.

This $3.995 million home in McLean, Va., is almost an exact replica of the White House. The six-bedroom home just came back on the market after being price chopped from $4.65 million, according to Curbed.

The house boasts 12,000 square feet of living space, a 100-person party room, replicas of the Lincoln and State Rooms as well as the Truman Balcony, and even an "oval" room that could be used as an office.

History lovers might be rejoicing, but we find it very tacky.

DON'T MISS: The Largest Historic Homes In America

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The "Real Housewives Of Beverly Hills" star Adrienne Maloof has sold her house just a month after putting it on the market, The Wall Street Journal is reporting.

The deal on the Beverly Hills mansion is reportedly closing at $20 million, just $6 million less than the original asking price.

Maloof and her current husband Paul Nassif listed the home because the couple plans to divorce.

The house is a massive 20,000-square-foot abode, with eight bedrooms and 11 bathrooms.

The buyer is reportedly a Los Angeles businessman "who was looking in the neighborhood for a long time and liked the French chateau-style," according to The WSJ.

Tour The 20,000-Square-Foot Estate Of 'Real Housewife' Star Adrienne Maloof Here >

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Alicia Keys and her husband Swizz Beatz are reportedly under contract to buy Eddie Murphy's Englewood, N.J., home for $12 million, according to the New York Daily News.

The house, currently listed at $14 million, was on the market for seven years.The home was originally listed for $30 million.

The estate spans five acres of land and is just five miles from New York City.

The home has eight bedrooms, 10 full bathrooms, and four half baths.

There are quite a few surprises inside, such as a wooden spa and a bowling alley.

Welcome to Bubble Hill, in Englewood, N.J.

The home has a total of 32 rooms.

The decor seems a bit dated. We bet Keys will bring lots of style to the house.

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New York is often called the concrete jungle, but some Manhattan dwellers are giving that phrase new meaning with their exotic pets.

As of late, New Yorkers have been caught keeping jaguars, kangaroos, and wolves in their apartments, Caitlin Abdo of Real Estate Weekly is reporting.

Abdo writes:

It seems that if they can covertly transport the exotic pet into the building, they can remain there happily unless the animal becomes disruptive and draws attention to itself.

Overall, national pet ownership is on the rise. But leave it to New Yorkers to try and go bigger, better, and wilder than everyone else.

City Connections broker Mollie Bean told Real Estate Weekly she ran into a jaguar that the owner swore "doesn't bite" while showing an apartment. Another agent talked about trying to find a duplex for a client and his pet kangaroo.

For the record, section 161.01 of the Health Code of New York City bans the housing of a wild animal in residential buildings, but that doesn't stop most residents who have an affinity for wild pets.

DON'T MISS: Some Real Estate Agents Will Go To Crazy Extremes To Sell A House

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Media mogul John Malone owns land equivalent to twice the state of Delaware or 151 times the island of Manhattan.

Malone's 2.2 million acre empire is the largest private landholding in the country, according to The 2012 Land Report. His lands range from forests, dessert, islands, to ports.

And while many of the largest landholders in the country have held their land for decades, Malone acquired most of his land recently. Malone purchased the 290,000-acre New Mexico Bell Ranch in 2010 and over 1-million acres of Maine and New Hampshire wilderness in 2011.

Malone owns around 500,000 acres in Colorado, including the Greenland Ranch, shown here, off I-25 between Denver and Colorado City.

Source: Real Estate Ranch

In 1995, Malone purchased the 220-acre Mosquito Island, off the village of Port Clyde on Penobscot Bay in New Hampshire.

Source: Press Herald

Around 2002, Malone purchased an area known as the Frontier Forest, which spans 53,000 acres in Maine.

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