Usually when a home is built to take advantage of the sun for energy, it features solar panels and energy systems. But in one dome-shaped home in New Paltz, New York, solar power is harnessed through a rotating feature much like the earth, except it comes with a remote control.

Dubbed Domespace, this 3,000-square-foot circular home is built on an electronically-controlled axis with the ability to rotate 360 degrees in just five minutes. The circular design is modeled after other eco-friendly homes such as huts and igloos. While the home doesn’t always have to be spinning, it does rotate each season to take advantage of the sun for all of its solar energy needs. Located only 90 minutes north of New York City, and in walking distance from the Mohonk Preserve, this attractive property is listed at $1.2 million.

But the rotation feature isn’t the only advantage that makes Domespace so appealing. This contemporary two-story home is eco-friendly and extremely comfortable. It features stylish bamboo floors, beautiful wood and stone cabinets, spacious rooms with 40-foot ceilings, and a central spiral staircase. It has three bedrooms, and two and a half baths. The second floor features the master bedroom, an office, and a balcony. The listing agent of the home, Anne Rajs, says it looks like a space ship. and that it is the “coolest home” she’s ever seen.

Although it is definitely one-of-a-kind in the U.S., this eco-friendly beauty was built using a kit from France. According to the French manufacturer, Domespace, there are nearly 200 of these homes built in France and abroad, including Switzerland, Germany, Spain, and Taiwan.

The new owners can enjoy living in an eco-friendly home with the ability to walk to the preserve, which holds 1,000 acres of hiking and rock climbing. At only $ 1.2 million, your new address can be 116 Canaan Rd, New Paltz, New York, 12561.

Although the more affordable homes listed on the market struggle to find owners, the luxury home market has improved in almost every city across the nation, including New York City. Own a luxury penthouse in Manhattan and you join an elite group of millionaires and celebrities with cold hard cash to throw down. This small pool of home buyers — mostly made up of foreign people — has the money to purchase coveted properties in the Big Apple equipped with full-service amenities, multi-floor layouts, impressive views and large outdoor areas.

Want to take a sneak peek at some of the most luxurious penthouses in Manhattan? Welcome to 535 West End Ave, New York, New York. Located in the desirable Upper West Side of Manhattan, this pre-war dwelling place perched on the 20th floor takes luxury living to a whole new level. The 13,800-square-foot penthouse features nine bedrooms, 11 full bathrooms, two and a half baths and additional living quarters for the staff. Full-service amenities include a gym, an indoor swimming pool and a game room. Unique to apartments in Manhattan, this penthouse also boasts a 2,000-square-foot rooftop terrace accessible by an elevator. The impressive terrace features a fireplace, a grill and a wet bar. Sounds good? This luxurious penthouse can be yours for a whopping $37.5 million.

And if 535 West End Ave. caught your attention, there are other posh New York penthouses on the market that deserve mention, too, such as the $37.5 million condo at The Plaza, a $44.95 million apartment in the Time Warner Center, and a $51 million penthouse on the Upper East Side of Manhattan. The Plaza Hotel penthouse is a triplex property overlooking New York City’s Central Park and features four bedrooms, a spiral staircase, a library and a private elevator with access to the Plaza.

Do you ever wonder where the nation’s wealthiest citizens spend their time? Or, exactly how much money they have? As we all know by now, President Obama is trying to make the rich cough up more in taxes, however, just how much are they paying now? If you’re really curious to find the answers to these questions, all you need to do is look it up using an IRS database of income tax data.

Although it does not reveal details, the IRS publishes the information into broad categories, with the top tier of income at $200,000 and higher. However, for many people, including politicians in need of income increases, this amount does not qualify as rich.

In an effort to find out more about the nation’s wealthiest citizens, Forbes.com scrutinized the data by putting a magnifying glass on the neighborhoods where the average income is around $1 million. The results revealed a series of tax returns from 64 extremely wealthy areas, including Fisher Island, yacht owners in Miami, and Manhattan.

According to the list, the wealthiest people ranked by income live in Fisher Island, with a high-bracket taxpayer amount of $3.2 million. The second richest place is Purchase, N.Y. at $2.2 million. Coming in at third place are two other New York City suburbs, New Vernon and Alpine, N.J. at $2.1 million. Finally, the fourth wealthiest place in the U.S. is Atherton, California at $1.9 million.

If you’re wondering what the estimated net worth of the wealthiest communities are, Forbes.com offers that information, too. According to the article, the top wealthiest community ranked by net worth is Fisher Island at $57 million per high-bracket return. Coming in at second place is Alpine, at $28 million.

Forbes.com also revealed where the wealthy get their money from. According to the article, nearly half receive their money from working, while the other upper-bracket people in the 64 wealthy areas receive their money from property, including stocks, bonds, real estate, oil wells and businesses.

Donald Trump continues to get his name in the headlines. He started out in the 1960s by taking it upon himself to turn a profit on an apartment complex in Cincinnati that had been foreclosed. He succeeded and left Ohio for the soon-to-be shinier glories of Manhattan. At the time, the financial crisis of the ‘70s had bestowed neglect and cheerlessness on much of the island’s real estate. But these dire circumstances would prove advantageous and immensely lucrative to The Donald, as he is more-or-less affectionately called. Trump would come to special public prominence a decade later thanks to his 1987 revitalization of Central Park fixture, Wollman Rink.

The properties he subsequently purchased through his company magnified his public profile, but his personal real estate deals have also garnered public praise and abuse. That’s something Trump seems to relish, especially because it benefits his business. Multi-million dollar licensing fees, anyone?

725 Fifth Avenue, or Trump Tower, is probably the first place Donald Trump calls home. The Tower’s three uppermost floors (or highest 30,000 square feet) comprise his apartment. He shares his building with one Saudi prince — with a correspondingly single floor allotted to him — and each year’s reigning beauty queen from the Miss USA, Miss Teen USA, and Miss Universe contests. Less prominent figures, of course, are also free to snap up a room or two of the building for themselves. Forbes magazine offers a $300 million value estimate of the property which has a Gucci store on location.

Other Trump properties of note:

• Maison de L’Amitié in Palm Beach, Florida: Purchased by Trump in 2004 for $41 million; renovated with $25 million (at Trump’s behest) by “The Apprentice” Season Three winner Kendra Todd; and sold for $95 million in 2010.

• Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida: A $10 million, 1985 Trump purchase that would host Michael Jackson and Lisa Marie Presley’s wedding celebration.

• Seven Springs Estate in Bedford, New York: Bought in 1995 for $7.5 million and site of one of Trump’s planned golf courses; residents objected and Trump turned it instead into a luxury homes development project — currently on hold.

• Trump National Golf Course in Rancho Palos Verdes, California: This Trump estate is selling for $12 million.

There you have it folks — just another diverse investment portfolio of the rich and famous. And long-form or short-form birth certificates, even if Trump doesn’t make it into the Oval Office, he’s likely to continue making headlines and excellent profits on personal and company-owned real estate deals.

This modern masterpiece in La Jolla, CA must be seen to be believed.  It is a beach front house designed by Wallace E. Cunningham, one of Architectural Digests Top 100 designers.  It is constructed from white concrete  and has floor-to-ceiling glass windows.  This 11,000 SQ FT property features 4 bedrooms and 5 baths and is located on the hills with panoramic view of the ocean in one of the prime areas in San Diego (La Jolla). It is on a 0.77 acre lot size.  It also has 4 levels,  black tiled infinity pool, 8 car garage, a theater and a guest house.  It took 5 years to built this property and it is listed for $25 million.

The property is nicknamed “The Razor” and it is located at:  9826 La Jolla Farms Way La Jolla, CA 92037

Below are some pictures.

It’s hard to imagine that the sale of a $35 million home could be considered a “bargain,” but that’s what the Wall Street Journal says the recent sale of former hotel heiress Leona Helmsley’s 40-acre estate in Greenwich, Connecticut has to be considered. After all, while the price tag was one of the highest ever for a home in the tony New York suburb, it’s still a fraction of the initial $125 million price for the mansion when it was first listed for sale in April 2008.

The 22,000-square foot manor house was built in 1918 and has features including a carriage house, walk-in vault and a koi pond. It was also a key element in the tax evasion trial of Helmsley and her husband Harry in 1989, when federal prosecutors charged that the Helmsleys illegally billed more than $8 million of remodeling work at the estate as “business expenses,” paying for work such as the building of a $1 million dance floor from their business and claiming it as a tax write-off.

Leona Helmsley would serve 18 months in prison before dying in August 2007 of congestive heart failure. The estate in Greenwich is one of many real estate holdings sold recently by the Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust. Another real estate holding recently sold by the trust was New York’s Carlton Hotel. The trust also owns a stake in the Empire State Building.

While the original $125 million price tag was extravagant even by Greenwich standards, the property is one of the gems of the area. Among its amenities are a reception hall with an 86-foot-long gallery, a master suite with an onyx bath and a wine cellar with tasting room.