Owner pays $500,000 to move entire 139-year-old house six blocks

The moving of an entire two-storey Victorian house has stunned onlookers as it was shifted to its new location six blocks away.

The green home with large windows and a brown front door, dubbed the Englander house, was loaded onto giant dollies and moved in the US city of San Francisco after 139 years at its original location.

Spectators of the move lined the footpaths on Sunday (local time) to snap photos as the structure rolled – at a top speed of 1.6km/h – to its new home.

The house’s journey has been in the planning stages for eight years, the San Francisco Chronicle reported.

Veteran house mover Phil Joy told the newspaper he had to secure permits from more than 15 city agencies.

Mr Joy said the move was tricky in part because the first part of the journey involves going downhill.

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“That’s always difficult for a house,” he said.

Along the route, parking meters were ripped up, tree limbs were trimmed and traffic signs were relocated.

The owner of the six-bedroom house, San Francisco broker Tim Brown, paid about AU$500,000 in fees and moving costs, according to the Chronicle.

He bought the six-bedroom home for AU$3.3million in 2013 and has been hard at work securing approvals for the ambitious project for years.

Photos of the pricey manoeuvre were captured in a series of incredible photos and videos, highlighting the difficulty of the operation.

At one point while taking a corner, some of the truck's wheels separated from the ground while its hinges twisted under the enormous weight.

Once settled into its new position, the home will be transformed into seven individual residential units, the Chronicle reported.

An apartment complex will be developed on the now-vacant land at its original property.

With Associated Press

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