Rooftop pizza not included. After 52 years of ownership, the residents of this cult residence in Albuquerque, New Mexico, have decided to part with their home.
The selling price: four million dollars, despite the fact that the 180m sqm house is located in an area where houses are on average valued at between 350,000 and 400,000 dollars.
The significant difference in price is largely due to the international notoriety of this location – which has resulted in numerous visits by fans of the series.
“We average 300 cars a day. Come Balloon Fiesta [an annual event in Albuquerque], hundreds of thousands of come for balloons. Balloons go up, they come down. Where do they come? Here,” Joanne Quintana, daughter of owners Fran and Louis Padilla, told KOB4.
They bought the house in 1973 and lived there with their children until the “Breaking Bad” adventure began in 2006.
“I hope [the new owners] make it what the fans want. They want a BnB, they want a museum, they want access to it. Go for it,” she added.
The insistent visits by fans of Walter White, played by Bryan Cranston, and Jesse Pinkman, played by Aaron Paul, don’t seem to be letting up, even more than ten years after the end of “Breaking Bad.” A phenomenon that ultimately prompted the owners to part with this now iconic spot.
While the Padilla family would often greet and take photos with fans at the start of the series, the persistence of visitors has become increasingly problematic and even frightening: “Around 4:30 in the morning, the doorbell rang, my mom got up and opened the door, and it was a package,” addressed to Walter White, said Joanne Quintana.
The family ended up calling the bomb squad, says the American media. “This was our family home from 1973, almost 52 years. So, we’re going to walk away with just our memories. It’s time to move on. We’re done. There’s no reason to fight anymore,” she added.
Visiting the shooting locations of TV series has become a real trend for TV show fans. The phenomenon has been dubbed “set-jetting.”
And cinema fans are also getting in on the act. Shortly after the release of Tim Burton’s “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice,” the famous mansion opened its doors to fans for a one-off immersive experience.