Are You ‘Shoe’ You Could Live in This Boot House, Pennsylvania?

Haines Shoe House, Pennsylvania, USA

The Haines Shoe House is somewhat of a roadside marvel in York, Pennsylvania, with visitors traveling from around the world to step inside this architectural phenomenon. Completed in 1949, the house is over 24 feet high and covers five stories. You can even visit the property's Tea Room, located in the shoe's heel.

READ MORE: Aesthetically challenging residences around the globe

They say that beauty is in the eye of the beholder and never has that phrase been truer than in the face of these challenging architectural choices. From the gaudy to the downright weird, we take a look at some of the most questionable houses found around the globe. But are they unique or ugly? Click or scroll through to find out...

Rock face home, Belgium

Ugly home hunter Hannes Coudenys started the blog Ugly Belgian Houses to document the architectural oddities that seem to flourish in his home nation. Just like this 'mountain' house, he's captured some incredibly challenging designs for a coffee table book of the same name. This is just the tip of the iceberg!

Old cement house, Chonburi, Thailand

For some, this might be the pink house of their dreams, but this old cement home in Chonburi, Thailand, is one that will definitely divide opinion. Even pink-lovers might think twice; the house is in a state of disrepair and needs a lot more than a lick of paint to transform it. 

Scaly house, Belgium

Another home courtesy of Ugly Belgian Houses. Although the front of this house looks pretty normal, the strange scale design on its side really makes it earn a spot on this list. We can’t help but wonder what the architect was thinking when they came up with this ugly addition to an otherwise normal-looking property.

Habitat 67, Montreal, Canada

Brutalist architecture has always divided opinion. Habitat 67, a remarkable housing estate in Montreal, was designed by architect Moshie Safdie as part of his McGill University thesis. The dedicated architectural landmark, which was highly celebrated locally, has gray and beige modules stacked on top of one another to form 148 residences. We have to say, this one has rather grown on us.

Haines Shoe House, Pennsylvania, USA

The Haines Shoe House is somewhat of a roadside marvel in York, Pennsylvania, with visitors traveling from around the world to step inside this architectural phenomenon. Completed in 1949, the house is over 24 feet high and covers five stories. You can even visit the property's Tea Room, located in the shoe's heel.

 

Pastel yellow home, San Francisco, California, USA

Located in San Francisco’s Sunset District, this eye-catching colorful home took looking sunny a little too seriously. The pastel yellow, pinks and blues make this gaudy house look like it came straight out of a cartoon show, but sadly not in a good way.

Parc Luna, New Jersey, USA

This quirky property is home to American multimedia artist Ricky Boscarino, who also designed the home. Luna Parc is located within the 8.5-acre wooded landscape of Sandyston, New Jersey, inspired by the Hundertwasser House in Vienna, Austria, and Gaudi’s Park Guell in Barcelona, Spain. The main 5,000-square-foot main building houses thousands of absurd and exotic artifacts for visitors to explore. The unique home is made up of a semi-private home, museum and workshop, which is open three days a week.

Mr. Toilet House, Suwon, South Korea

During his stint as Mayor of Suwon City in South Korea, Sim Jaedeok campaigned to improve local toilets. He became so obsessed with his crusade that he demolished the house he'd lived in for 30 years, and replaced it with this toilet-shaped property. Designed by architect Go Giung, the home was finished in 2007. Following Jaedeok’s death in 2009, his family donated the property to the city, turning it into a toilet-themed museum.

Hundertwasser house, Vienna, Austria

Built back in March 1986 in Austria’s capital city, Vienna, Hundertwasser house has become quite the tourist attraction. The Expressionist-style colorfully-decorated apartment building was designed by Friedensreich Hundertwasser and Joseph Krawina, also inspired by Gaudi, and has quickly become one of Vienna’s most visited buildings. Surprisingly, Hundertwasser residents can decorate around their windows however they choose. 

Sanzhi UFO Houses, New Taipei, Taiwan

What could be more normal than homes shaped like flying saucers? Known as the Sanzhi UFO Houses, these colorful pods were abandoned for years. Located in New Taipei, Taiwan, the futuristic properties were never completed. Some say this was due to the site being an ancient burial ground, while others attributed delays to financial loses. Either way, and perhaps for the best, the UFOs were demolished in 2010.

Castle home, Belgium

If you like your solitude, this house is guaranteed to keep the neighbors away. With its barred circular windows and red brick merlons on the roof, the home closely resembles a prison fortress, uninviting and pretty scary.

'Hitler House', Swansea, Wales

You may remember this end-of-terrace property from when it went viral in 2016. The so-called 'Hitler House' looks curiously like the German dictator thanks to its slanted roof and prominent door lintel, both of which have an uncanny resemblance to Hitler's iconic side-parting hairstyle and moustache. Located in Swansea, Wales, the property hit the headlines when it went on the rental market for just $112 per calendar month.

Flintstone home, Auckland, New Zealand

Located in the Mount Roskill suburbs of Auckland, New Zealand is this Flintstone-style home which was featured on a TV series called Ugly or Cute? You Decide! The peculiar property includes a four-bedroom, two-bathroom (one ensuite) home, plus the connected Prehistoric-style house, which comprises of another bedroom and bathroom. 

The Balfron Tower, East London, UK

Located in Poplar, East London, The Balfron Tower was designed by Hungarian architect Ernö Goldfinger in 1963. The tower block is a prime example of New Brutalist architecture, which swept Europe between the early 50s and mid-70s. Drab and unforgiving to some eyes, the tower covers 27 stories and is now Grade II listed for its historical value.

Blue-windowed home, Belgium

Another questionable Belgian home. The jagged bright blue windows and oddly-pointed roof resemble something straight out of a fairytale, but not in a good way. The layered roof of the garage alongside the main house is really the icing on the cake. 

Emoji house, Belgium

Another shocker discovered by the blogger behind Ugly Belgian Houses, this minimalist building has a curious resemblance to a modern-day emoji, which probably isn't the look the architect was aiming for...

A fusion house, Belgium

Another home that was captured by Ugly Belgian Houses is this unique property. A fusion between a garage and a rooftop apartment, it doesn't quite have the symmetry or glamor of a penthouse suite. 

Windowless home, Adelaide, Australia

This boxy brick property in Australia features no windows and is finished off with dull, off-white masonry. It's definitely a front-runner for one of Adelaide's ugliest houses. 

A sliding roof, Belgium

This lopsided property seems to be a failed attempt at modernist architecture. The roof looks like it is sliding out of place – does anyone else feel seasick?

The wonky house, Belgium

This angular, bulky and off-balance home looks almost like an optical illusion, with the main body of the building appearing to sink into the ground. It leaves us wondering what the architect was thinking...

Big Yellow Lemon Dome, Highway 395, USA

Located on Highway 395 in America, the Big Yellow Lemon Dome House is an iconic roadside attraction on the edge of the Eastern Sierra Nevada Mountains. With one bedroom, the submarine-style property also features a unique garden decorated with dinosaur skeletons and faux cacti. 

Futuro House, Le Havre, France

This flying saucer-inspired property was designed by Finnish architect Matti Suuronen. Known as the Futuro House, this prefabricated building is one of only 100 in the world. The pod is built from fiberglass-reinforced polyester plastic and measures just 13 feet in height and 26 feet in width. The house is now on show in France in Les Jardins Suspendus and, despite being an acquired taste, has garnered fans from all over the globe. 

Hang Nga Crazy House, Dalat, Vietnam

Unsurprisingly, this unique property in Dalat, Vietnam is also known as the Crazy House. Designed by architect Dang Viet Nga, the building is actually a guesthouse, drawn from Viet Nga’s vivid imagination.

Kubuswoningen, Rotterdam, Netherlands

Developers across Europe are always striving for innovative designs for large-scale housing projects. This particular scheme, located in Rotterdam, was designed by Piet Blom in 2013. Blom’s concept was to create a village in which every house represented a tree, uniting together to become a forest. We don’t know about you, but we think Blom perhaps couldn't see the wood for the trees...

Cat house, Belgium

We return to Belgium for another delight found by Ugly Belgian Houses. This obscure home may look a bit like a cat's face, but it certainly isn't as cute...

Flat-pack House, Ostend, Belgium

This home in Ostend is reminiscent of flat-pack furniture gone wrong. This property may look like one of Picasso's Impressionist paintings, but it certainly doesn't carry the critical acclaim!  

Grandma Prisbrey's Bottle Village, Simi Valley, California

Known as Grandma Prisbrey's Bottle Village, this unique home is built from numerous recycled and landfill objects, including dolls' heads and thousands of empty glass bottles. Located in Simi Valley, California, the village was the brain child of Tressa "Grandma" Prisbrey, who spent 20 years building her dream home. Rather surprisingly, the village has been labeled a historical landmark by the State of California and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Graffiti House, Kingston-upon-Hull, UK

This former council home is located in Kingston-upon-Hull, East Yorkshire in England. Local graffiti artists have taken the façade into their own hands, creating a unique canvas. The Bankside Gallery project was a way for Hull City Council to improve the visual draw of unsightly properties across the city. We'd love to see the before photos...

Hand-painted house, Indiana, USA

Flickr user Steve Baker captured this house with a controversial dwelling on his travels around Indiana. He said: “I thought I was a bad painter but this is one horrible paint job. Maybe the teddy bear and dinosaur helped with the painting. Maybe it's a statement.”

Brown house, Vancouver, Canada

Captured by a Flickr user in a Vancouver neighborhood, this huge brown residence certainly bears a confident footprint. It is positively hulking out compared with the other homes on the street. Also, the random window shapes are making us anxious...

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