The Upstater: A Guest House of One's Own

We’re not being greedy, but over at Upstater we have a special interest in properties with guest houses, the old two-for-one (or sometimes three- or four-for-one). This is partly because it’s one way to help cover the mortgage on an upstate New York vacation property (more on how to do that here), but it’s also because they’re so darn cute.

Take 49 Lafayette Street in Coxsackie, NY.

We dubbed this second empire Victorian a Secret Garden-esque getaway, with seven beds, three baths and over 4,000 square feet — a lot of house for the money (even though $599,000 is a lot of money for Coxsackie properties).

The house has a gorgeous curved staircase, hot tub, remodeled kitchen with all the name-brand appliances… and both a two-story barn/studio and an unfinished guest cottage. It’s on 3.75 acres right close to the Hudson.

49 Lafayette Street, Coxsackie. $599,000. GMAP

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This pad doesn’t exactly have a guest cottage — it’s a house that comes with a church — but it’s one of our favorite properties. The Cottekill house has drop-dead gorgeous interiors, beautiful hand-crafted wooden details.

The church that comes with it has been used as a pottery studio and also as a kind of community center, holding craft sales and such inside. The church is 1,000 square feet and the house is 1,900 square feet, and they’re attached by a breezeway. We’d love it if it had more land (there’s less than an acre) and if it were on more of a country lane, but those things can be forgiven in exchange for what you get for less than $350,000.

Cottekill Church. $349,000. GMAP.

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21 Balace Road in Sundown, NY is plenty spectacular without the guest house.

108 acres, mountain views, chef’s kitchen, lovely porches, beamed ceilings: it’s all there, plus a spring-fed, swimmable pond.

But it also has an adorable guest house and attached barn.

21 Balace Road, Sundown, NY. $1.35 million. GMAP.

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356 Ashokan Road in Kingston has plenty ro recommend it, including the price: $385,000.

It’s on a pretty, winding road close to desirable towns like Stone Ridge and Rosendale. This Catskills contemporary, built by its current owner, has central air, 5.5 acres, a first-floor studio… and the guest cottage behind it.

356 Ashokan Road, Kingston. $365,000. GMAP.