Mountaintop Farmhouse Retreat with Epic NYC Views Lists for $3.7 Million

A farmhouse-style home perched on 1.8 acres in the Watchung Mountains of New Jersey has come to market for $3,680,000, offering a view most buyers would associate with a much different lifestyle: the Manhattan skyline, laid out across the eastern horizon.

The property at 610 Johnston Drive can be found in Watchung, a Somerset County borough roughly 30 miles west of the city. It last sold in 2015.

"There are homes with beautiful views and then there are homes where the views become an integral part of the architecture, the experience, and the way you live," says listing agent Siu Wong of Kienlen Lattmann Sotheby's International Realty.

Expansive windows pull the skyline into the main living spaces, and a deck, patio and private backyard extend the vantage point outdoors. The floor plan is open and light-filled, with white oak floors running throughout.

At the center is a gourmet kitchen with high-end appliances and a large island. A main-level family room, anchored by a gas fireplace, opens onto the deck. Finishes lean rustic and cozy—hammered brass light sconces, a blue and white color palette, and plenty of natural wood and marble.

But the home is also strikingly modern, even if it's in an understated way: a whole-house speaker system is wired into every room, heated floors can be found in every bathroom, and a Tesla solar roof discretely offsets energy costs.

"Luxury here is found not only in what you see, but in what you feel," Wong says.

The stunning natural surroundings lend their own sense of luxury.

The Watchung Mountains are high enough to clear the surrounding valley and, on a clear day, deliver an unobstructed sightline to Midtown. What the elevation also delivers is separation—a wooded, low-density setting well outside the noise of the city it overlooks.

"Here, you don't have to live in New York City to feel connected to it," Wong says.

For a buyer, the calculation is pretty simple: the skyline stays within reach, and so does the quiet.