On July 9, 2026, qualified bidders will have the opportunity to purchase Hallmark Farm, a storied, equestrian estate sited on 185 acres in New York’s Hudson Valley, at a live, luxury auction sale to be held on the property site.
Previously listed for as much as $20 million, the property will now be sold to the auction’s highest bidder at or above a reserve price of $7.95 million. Veteran real estate auction house Platinum Luxury Auctions, which is also a New York real estate brokerage, is exclusively managing the sale on behalf of the property owner.
The estate is located in the affluent village of Millbrook in Dutchess County, New York, within a 90-min drive of central Manhattan. The farm’s manicured grounds, gently rolling hills and panoramic views of the Catskill Mountains create a compelling argument for any buyer who enjoys the bucolic countryside of the Hudson Valley, according to Trayor Lesnock, Platinum’s founder and president. “I’m sure I added at least an hour to my scheduled property visit with the seller, because I kept asking to stop the ATV at various points along the tour, so I could jump out and walk the grounds while taking in the views and imagining both the property’s incredible history and its promising future.”
The property’s past is indeed rich and colorful. “I noticed a familiar face in a candid photograph on a wall somewhere in the stables, but I couldn’t immediately place it,” Lesnock noted. “The seller looked and said, ‘Oh yes, that’s Luciano Pavarotti and I. He loved the natural acoustics here!'”
Years ago, before the commencement of the grand fox hunts that were hosted at Hallmark (the grounds are still outfitted with a classic, fox hunter trial course with obstacles like coops, hedges and jumping walls), a full orchestra would arrange on the lawns and perform a symphony, which was occasionally augmented with the blasting of canons and fireworks. And yes, Luciano Pavarotti, the global opera sensation, once sang there as part of the festivities.
Perhaps more impressively, the property—then part of a much larger tract—was once owned by the Carnegie family, primarily for use as an elk preserve for Margaret Carnegie, the only child of industrial titan Andrew Carnegie. “You can still see traces of the two, long stretches on the grounds they used for landing their private airplanes,” Lesnock said.
In addition to its fox hunting course, the farm’s grounds include eight large paddocks, four field shelters, a private pond with adjacent gazebo and multiple stations for clay pigeon shooting. Property structures include a main residence with three living levels, a 10-stall barn with upper-level apartments and adjacent garage/workshop, a carriage house, guesthouse and additional out-buildings for added storage.
Hallmark Farm is partially bordered by protected lands owned by the Dutchess Land Conservancy, protecting future generations from any encroaching development. The Conservancy is one of the nation’s most prominent land conservation organizations.
Millbrook, NY is known for its blend of beautiful, open spaces and exceptional privacy, arguably important factors for the numerous business moguls, financial executives and celebrities who reside there full- or part-time. It has long been regarded as a premier equestrian destination, and is home to the Millbrook Hunt, an elite, fox hunting club, the Mashomack Polo Club, Tamarack Preserve (a private, members-only club) and Orvis’s Sandanona, one of the oldest hunting and sport-shooting clubs in the country.
Previews of Hallmark Farm will continue through the evening of July 8th. Tours may be scheduled through Platinum’s project manager, Walter Cerini, by calling 888.576.6839. Luxury auction documents, photos and videography of the property are also available online at HudsonValleyLuxuryAuction.com.
