‘Tis the season for holiday movies, including one of our favorites — National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation. (Yours, too?)
If you’re like us, you’ve seen this movie 500 times. It’s not the holidays without it! This year, we challenged ourselves to watch Christmas Vacation through a different lens — that of a real property appraiser’s.
Keep reading and get all your burning value questions answered. You’ll never watch the movie the same way again.
Disclaimer: Obviously, this isn’t a real appraisal, but we did consult a skilled appraiser for all the highlights.
How Much Is the Christmas Vacation House Really Worth?
According to our appraiser’s desktop appraisal (using all the property data we could find remotely), the Griswold family home would be worth an estimated $950,000 today.
Now, we didn’t have an actual floor plan to work with — only movie scenes. We also, obviously, couldn’t do a site inspection. But based on our movie observations and research, we’re thinking the home is about 2,500-3,000 square feet, has 4 bedrooms, 2.5 baths, a two-car garage, a backyard big enough for that dreamy pool, and nice curb appeal.
Thank you to Hooked On Houses for this excellent 2009 write-up on the house. It’s reliable intel.
Our figure is based on the estimated value of a similar home today in Northbrook, Illinois. (We know, we know, Zestimates aren’t great, but we’ll go with it.) Northbrook is the Chicago suburb where we think the Griswold home is located. More on that later.
In December 1989, when Christmas Vacation takes place, we imagine this home might have sold for around $120,000, the average price for a single-family home in the U.S. that year.
Now that we’ve answered the value question, let’s get some appraiser insight.
The Griswold Home is Worth Less At the End of the Movie
The house we see at the beginning of the film isn’t quite the same house we see at the end, thanks to all the hilarious hijinks. There are lots of repairs needed, notes our appraiser.
When appraising a home that needs repairs, appraisers will research and estimate the cost of all repairs necessary to bring the property back to its ideal market condition. This is known as the cost to cure. The cost to cure is then figured into a final estimated opinion of value.
We used this rundown of all the damages done to the Griswold home by the end of the movie. We then itemized those damages and researched the 2024 cost of repairing them.
The Griswold Home: The Cost to Cure
| Repair Needed | 2024 Average Cost to Repair |
|---|---|
| Replace an estimated 10 windows damaged by Christmas tree and SWAT team | $7,500 ($750 each) |
| Replace shingle roof that was stapled | $12,500 |
| Replace gable vent that Clark broke | $175 |
| Repair gutter Clark damaged | $387 |
| Replace interior door after Snot broke through it chasing a squirrel | $788 |
| Replace front exterior door damaged by SWAT team | $1,100 |
| Repair ceiling that Clark fell through from the attic | $1,063 |
| Replace door knocker broken by delivery man | $120 |
| Repair carpet under chair (poor kitty) | $200 |
| Replace newell post cap Clark sawed off | $50 |
| TOTAL | $23,883 |
The estimated cost to cure the Griswold house at the end of the movie? About $24,000 in 2024, and roughly $9,400 in 1989 (adjusted for inflation using this calculator).
The cost to cure reduces the value of the Griswold home to around $926,000 in 2024, or $110,600 in 1989.
You serious, Clark? Yes, we’re serious.
The 25,000 Twinkling Holiday Lights Don't Affect Value (Except For the Damage)
Another note from our appraiser is that the 25,000 imported Italian twinkling lights Clark so carefully staples to the home’s exterior technically don’t affect the value of the property. The lights are considered personal property, not real property.
However, there's likely physical deterioration of the roof and siding, thanks to the damage done installing the lights. That’ll reduce value. Planning to add twinkling lights to your home this holiday? Maybe don’t use as many — and stay away from the staple gun.
The Pool Wouldn’t Have Added Much in Value
That dreamy pool addition wouldn’t have added a lot of dollar value to the home. According to our appraiser, the value of a pool addition primarily depends on the type of pool, the quality of the pool, and the geographic region.
Our appraiser notes that the pool’s use would be limited, given its location in a region where snowfall is frequent. Clark's pool might get three months' use in a good year, which is considered limited for the cost of installation and upkeep.
What’s more, the pool doesn’t enhance the “social demand” of the market. The Griswold home is in a suburb within proximity to Lake Michigan, where swimming is available. The suburb also offers many recreational centers — likely with pools — so, a private pool wouldn’t add as much value.
We can conclude, though, that the family enjoyment factor would have been worth Clark’s bonus (and way more than the Jelly-of-the-Month club bonus).
Todd and Margo’s House is an Ideal Comparable Property
Our appraiser notes that Todd and Margo’s house is an ideal comparable (or “comp”) to use for nearby property sale research. But this would only be the case if the icy neighbors’ property had also sold in a reasonable timeframe to compare similar market conditions.
Todd and Margo’s house is an especially ideal comp to use if it sold after all the damages Clark caused. Those were pricey! (Yes, even with the carpet all wet, Todd.)
You Can't Use “Christmas” to Describe a Home
When we approached our appraiser, we had a simple-enough ask: “Can you appraise the Christmas Vacation home?” But not everything is that simple. It's always a learning experience in appraisal!
We learned quickly that using “Christmas” to describe a home (even an iconic one from a 1980s blockbuster) is a no-go.
Why?
The assignment's name is already a violation of the USPAP (Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice). The USPAP is, essentially, the guidance manual for all real property appraisers.
Specifically, using the term “Christmas,” and any other “pretext” or “coded” words to describe a home violates the updated USPAP ETHICS RULE. Appraisals should make no reference to a federally protected class, which includes religion.
So, with only a house number to go on (1326) and no street name, we’ve decided to call it the “Griswold home” for our purposes.
Christmas Vacation Bonus Trivia
Appraisal questions aside, we can’t sign off without offering a few fun facts about Christmas Vacation that you can break out at this year’s holiday party. All these nuggets were uncovered during our appraiser’s in-depth property research, so grab the popcorn and enjoy!
#1: How Do We Know the Home’s Location?
Our appraiser’s research found that the home’s location is likely in the same North Shore Chicago suburb — Northbrook — where screenwriter John Hughes’ lived as a kid.
For all the diehard John Hughes fans out there, the Christmas Vacation fictional suburb is likely called Shermer. This is the same fictional town where Hughes’ other famous Chicago-area flicks are set, including Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, The Breakfast Club, Home Alone, and Pretty in Pink.
#2: Christmas Vacation is Based on a Short Story
Christmas Vacation is based on a short story penned by John Hughes titled “Christmas ‘59.” The story was published in National Lampoon, an American humor magazine in print from 1970 to 1998. You can read Hughes’ story in full here. He also wrote “Vacation ‘58,” which inspired the original National Lampoon’s Vacation. Both are fun reads.
#3: The Griswold House Doesn’t Actually Exist
The house in Christmas Vacation doesn’t really exist! The house used was actually an exterior shell of a home built on a backlot at the old Warner Bros. Ranch. Unfortunately, the home — and several other famed TV and movie homes — were demolished in late 2023 as part of a Warner Bros. lot remodel.
(We know, how sad!)
We’ll just have to remember the Griswold home in all its glory on the silver screen.
Was That Fun? An Appraisal Career May Be For You
As a real property appraiser, you could be in your pajamas researching the sales (and odd history) of a home one day, collecting property data in the field the next, and calculating the estimated value for the home the day after that. All the while, you’ll become a sought-after expert in real estate valuation and learn all about your local market conditions. It all starts with appraisal education from The CE Shop! Get started today.
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