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    Mark Zuckerberg Quietly Added Another 1,000 Acres to His $300 Million Compound in Hawaii

    Mark Zuckerberg’s massive estate on the Hawaiian island of Kauai just got even bigger, pushing his real estate portfolio—now estimated at over $300 million—into truly billionaire territory.

    The Meta CEO quietly picked up another 962 acres of ranchland earlier this year, bringing his total holdings on the island to more than 2,300 acres. According to Wired, which obtained new planning documents and spoke with people close to the deal, the purchase was valued at more than $65 million and was made through a Hawaiian-sounding LLC. It’s Zuckerberg’s largest land buy yet and adds fuel to growing local concerns about the billionaire’s outsized presence on the island.

    Zuckerberg first started snapping up property in 2014, when he dropped around $100 million for 700 acres near the sleepy town of Kilauea. Since then, the estate—now called Koʻolau Ranch—has ballooned into one of the most elaborate private compounds in the country. Already, there are two sprawling mansions, a gym, a tennis court, several guesthouses and treehouses, a water system, and even a tunnel leading to an underground shelter reportedly the size of a professional basketball court and equipped with blast-resistant doors and an escape hatch.

    RELATED: A Secret Buyer Is Snapping up a Series of Million-Dollar Properties in Palm Beach

    The latest expansion isn’t just about creating an increased buffer of land for the Facebook tycoon and his family, and when one man’s private estate costs more than it does to run an entire Hawaiian island for a year, people are bound to ask, “What exactly is he building out there?” According to new permits, he wants to build three more structures on the property, ranging from 7,800 to 11,000 square feet—10 times the size of an average home in Hawaii. Two of the planned buildings are motel-like dorms packed with 16 bedrooms and 16 bathrooms, plus a 1,300-square-foot shared lanai. They’re projected to cost between $3.5 and $4 million apiece, and, like the rest of the compound, the new buildings will come equipped with a high-level security apparatus that includes cameras, keypad locks, and motion detectors throughout. Zuckerberg’s team describes them as “short-term guest accommodations” for family, friends, and staff.

    Zuckerberg’s Kauai ranch already has two mansions, several guest houses, a tennis court, and an underground shelter.

    Google Earth

    All this development, however, is raising some serious questions. Part of Zuckerberg’s land sits atop a known burial site. One local, Julian Ako, spent months negotiating with the estate’s team just to access and register his ancestors’ graves; his great-grandmother and her brother are buried there. The state later confirmed there’s a “high probability” of more remains nearby.

    Zuckerberg’s team and representative Brandi Hoffine Barr say the existing burial plot is fenced off and maintained. They also say workers are required to report any discoveries of ancestral bones. Still, many of the workers on the ranch have signed NDAs, making it unlikely they’d speak out even if they did find something.

    Zuck’s amassing of land comes as other billionaires—Larry Ellison, Jeff Bezos, and Oprah Winfrey, among them—continue to acquire huge parcels of land across the Hawaiian Islands. For locals, that trend is driving up prices and reshaping the islands in ways that feel irreversible. “Eventually Hawaii isn’t going to look like Hawaii anymore—it’s going to be a resort community,” Puali‘i Rossi, a professor of Native Hawaiian studies, told Wired.

    RELATED: Billionaire Ken Griffin Is Building Himself the World’s Most Expensive Home

    Zuckerberg, meanwhile, says he and his wife Priscilla Chan are focused on conservation, ranching, and farming, scrapping previous plans for 80 luxury homes on the site. Nonetheless, Zuckerberg’s total investment now exceeds $300 million, likely surpassing the $311 million annual operating budget for the entire island of Kauai.  

    Authors

    Abby Montanez

    Abigail Montanez is a staff writer at Robb Report. She has worked in both print and digital publishing for over half a decade, covering everything from real estate, entertainment, dining, travel to…

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    A Top Interior Designer Is Selling His Chic Hamptons Getaway for $5 Million

    A celebrated New York City-based interior designer is parting ways with the historic Hamptons getaway he reverently restored to honor its late 19th-century charms.

    Neal Beckstedt, whose clients include the fashion designer Derek Lam, has owned the rustic cottage in the heart of Sag Harbor for about a decade. Over that time, he modernized and expanded the modest structure while retaining many of its original details and all of its unique character. Averitt Buttry and Noble Black at Douglas Elliman hold the $5 million listing.

    The kitchen is fully updated, but carries on the rustic aesthetic of the circa 1890s cottage.

    Lena Yaremenko

    “This is a rare chance to own a designer’s personal Hamptons retreat—an intimate, impeccably curated home that’s as livable as it is refined,” Black told Robb Report. “Beckstedt’s signature warmth and modern sensibility shine throughout. It’s a masterclass in timeless design.”

    When possible, Beckstedt restored the home’s original structure, including window frames and glass, antique ceiling beams, and wide-plank wood floors. When elements couldn’t be kept in place, the team sourced exact material matches and dutifully recreated them, like for the hand-chopped cedar shake roof and plank cedar siding. Other materials like acid-washed marble floors and brass plumbing fixtures were selected to blend in with the abode’s original aesthetic.

    RELATED: First Look: Inside the ‘America the Possible’ Influencer’s $7 Million Hamptons Estate

    Knotty pine walls wrap around the main-floor great room, which includes separate seating and dining areas. Off to one side, a lounge area swathed in vintage French linen can alternatively serve as a study or even an extra bedroom. The kitchen is completely updated yet feels completely of a piece with the rest of the historic home. An AGA stove is the centerpiece of the space, which also incorporates a custom zinc sink, pine cabinetry, and maple wood countertops. A breakfast room and a distinct beverage area complete the kitchen suite.

    A heated gunite pool anchors the backyard, which includes several discrete lounge areas.

    Lena Yaremenko

    Upstairs, the primary bedroom sits under a vaulted ceiling and overlooks the back lawn, one of Beckstedt’s favorite features, while the primary bath is done up with green-glazed beadboard paneling and a hand-hammered copper alloy bathtub. Another bedroom and full bath round out the indoor offerings.

    Several distinct areas have been carved out among the grounds’ 8,000 square feet of exterior space. You can entertain friends on the dining terrace, go for a dip in the heated gunite pool, or kick back in the pergola-shaded sitting area. Complete privacy is provided by the chic, mature landscaping, which includes clipped boxwoods, aromatic roses, stately magnolia trees, and scores of other flora.

    “Honestly, I’ll miss everything,” Beckstedt said in an email. “But I’m also excited about the next chapter.”

    Click here to see all the photos of the Sag Harbor home.

    Lena Yaremenko

    Authors

    Tori Latham

    Tori Latham is a digital staff writer at Robb Report. She was previously a copy editor at The Atlantic, and has written for publications including The Cut and The Hollywood Reporter. When not…

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    Bette Davis’s Former Oceanfront Estate in Maine Hits the Market for $15 Million

    After she fell in love with fellow actor Gary Merrill on the set of All Above Eve and went on to marry him in the early 1950s, Bette Davis moved to a farmhouse in the coastal New England town of Cape Elizabeth, along Casco Bay on the southern coast of Maine, where they raised their adopted twins, Margot and Michael.

    No native to the Pine Tree State, the legendary two-time Oscar winner, who was born in the nearby Massachusetts town of Lowell and died in 1989 at age 81, was the first female lifeguard at Ogunquit Beach when she was 18 years old and performed in local venues throughout the years. She also filmed scenes for one of her final movies, The Whales of August, in the 1980s on Cliff Island.

    The ocean-view family room comes with a bar and wood-burning stone fireplace.

    Peter G. Morneau

    RELATED: Harry Connick Jr. Is Asking $12.5 Million for His Coastal New England Retreat

    Playfully dubbed Witch Way by Davis, the eight-acre oceanfront spread on Zeb Cove Road that the pair called home for around a decade until their divorce in 1960 is now up for grabs at $15 million. The listing, which includes a 7,600-square-foot main residence and a detached 2,000-square-foot carriage house built on the site in 2002, plus 1,200 feet of ocean frontage, is shared by Bill Gaynor and Sam Michaud of Legacy Properties Sotheby’s International Realty.

    “I have lots of good memories about our time at Witch Way, a beautiful property and a wonderful family home, right on the ocean,” Boston lawyer Michael Merrill, the couple’s son, told Portland Monthly magazine in a 2014 article, adding there were “two coves, a large front lawn, a barn, an enclosed area for goats and other farm animals and horses, vegetable gardens, berry bushes and a pond.

    A cozy fireside study is clad in cherry wood.

    Peter G. Morneau

    “Dad also had lobster traps in the coves, and there was a sandy beach very close by within walking distance,” he continued. “Dad did have a hockey team, Merrill’s Marauders, which played ‘pick up’ hockey against other groups of players on the pond. I was too young at the time to be involved in the hockey games. But we had a dinghy in the pond which I rowed around on.”

    Last sold in 2016 for nearly $3.8 million, with the carriage house transferred in a separate off-market deal for $1.45 million, the modern residence that today stands in place of Davis’s onetime digs is introduced via a double-height foyer featuring a floating staircase. An arched doorway leads to a bar-equipped family room anchored by a floor-to-ceiling wood-burning stone fireplace, with a mud room tucked off to the side.

    A cupola atop the house contains a reading room.

    Peter G. Morneau

    RELATED: A Famed Travel Writer Lists His Remote Island Retreat in Maine for $1.3 Million

    Among the other highlights are formal living and dining rooms, a cherry-paneled study with a full bath, and a curvaceous kitchen outfitted with a large center island, modern appliances, a sizable pantry, and a fireside breakfast nook. Upstairs, five bedrooms include a spacious primary suite sporting a sitting area, a balcony, a walk-in closet, and a bath with a freestanding soaking tub, while a cozy octagon-shaped reading room holds court in the top-floor cupola.

    Described in the marketing materials as having a “charming English countryside setting,” the picturesque grounds include covered porches and a classic bluestone terrace ideal for alfresco lounging and entertaining, as well as the aforementioned pond and a secluded rocky beach.

    Click here for more photos of the Cape Elizabeth residence.

    Peter G. Morneau

    Authors

    Wendy Bowman

    Wendy Bowman is a real estate writer at Robb Report. Before that, she was a freelancer for Modern Luxury and several other media outlets, where she primarily covered luxury properties for…

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    ‘The Sound of Music’ Composer Richard Rodgers Was the Original Owner of This $15 Million Connecticut Estate

    The owners of Richard Rodgers’s former estate are saying “So Long, Farewell” to the Fairfield, Connecticut, abode. The legendary composer behind a slew of enduring Broadway musicals that include The Sound of Music, Oklahoma!, and Carousel lived there from 1965 until his death in 1979, and during his tenure he was known to host other show business luminaries like Leonard Bernstein and Ethel Merman. 

    The current owners updated the residence quite a bit, bulking up the main house and expanding the property to almost 40 acres in total. Leslie Razook and Cyd Hamer at William Pitt Sotheby’s International Realty hold the $15 million listing.

    A Moroccan bar and lounge is one of the hidden amenities in the main home.

    Alan Barry

    The main residence, a collection of mansard-roofed pavilions, was originally a midcentury-modern delight but has been altered to become more squarely modern with seven bedrooms and seven baths in more than 9,000 square feet. A Sputnik-style chandelier and a white-veined black marble fireplace jazz up the former living room, while the formal dining room is wrapped in mirror-like black lacquer, and two blue refrigerators brighten up the grayscale chef’s kitchen. In the primary suite, a private study has a funky, Tetris-like geometric patterned ceiling, and the bathroom is swathed in printed black-and-white wallpaper. Additional indoor amenities include a library and a fireside den, as well as a hidden theater and a Moroccan bar and lounge.

    The pool is accompanied by a barn-style pool house that contains a full kitchen and bathroom, plus a gym on the second floor. And on the other side of the property sits a paddle tennis court that is heated for wintertime play. A two-level office pavilion is found in another private garden, and an updated stone gatehouse can serve as lodging for guests or staff. Adding to its sense of privacy and connection to nature, the estate abuts a 155-acre nature preserve.

    A serene pool anchors the backyard.

    Alan Barry

    Rodgers’s onetime home is among the most expensive listings currently available in Connecticut outside of the famously spendy town of Greenwich. That’s only befitting of the former home of the composer, who was the first-ever EGOT winner and whose name graces the Broadway theater where Hamilton is currently playing. And, as a Connecticut resident, Rodgers was in good company: The playwright Noël Coward owned a stately residence nearby, which hit the market for $10.3 million earlier this year and where Rodgers was known to pop by from time to time.

    And while Fairfield perhaps isn’t as well known as Greenwich, the town is home to a number of notable abodes: in just one example, a mansion modeled on the Vanderbilt family’s Vermont farm popped up for sale a few years ago for $7 million.

    Click here to see all the images of Richard Rodgers’s onetime Connecticut home.

    Alan Barry

    Authors

    Tori Latham

    Tori Latham is a digital staff writer at Robb Report. She was previously a copy editor at The Atlantic, and has written for publications including The Cut and The Hollywood Reporter. When not…

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    A Waterfront Compound on Washington’s San Juan Island Is Heading to Auction

    Several years after he had created the renowned Deer Valley Ski Resort in Park City, Utah, in the late 1980s, Edgar Stern Jr. commissioned noted mountain architect David Finholm to custom build an oceanfront residence on a craggy bluff high above the western shores of Washington‘s San Juan Island, near the charming coastal fishing village of Friday Harbor.

    The real estate developer, hotelier, broadcaster, and philanthropist, who passed away in 2008 at age 86, and his wife Pauline (Polly) went on to donate the property to the University of Washington. It was subsequently transferred for $3.3 million to Nevada-based banking mogul Ed Nigro and his wife, Lee, who put it back on the market in spring 2023 for almost $11 million. Now, after two years, some substantial price chops, and no takers, the Stern Estate is slated to go under the gavel next month.

    Elite Auctions is heading up the no-reserve bidding, with Lisa Turnure and Lisa Brooks of Coldwell Banker Realty holding the listing.

    A teak-floored corridor with hidden linen and china storage closets leads to the fireside dining room.

    Elite Auctions

    RELATED: This $79 Million Home by Architect Tom Kundig Is Poised to Set a Sales Record in Washington

    Spread across 14 acres stretching along nearly 1,000 feet of water frontage, the wooded property is spotlighted by a five-bedroom, eight-bath main home and a detached two-bedroom, two-bath guesthouse for a combined total of roughly 12,000 square feet.

    Inside the primary dwelling, an entry foyer and a corridor with ocean views flow to a soaring great room boasting a living area anchored by a wood-burning stone fireplace and a built-in window seat. The open kitchen is outfitted with purposefully distressed ebony-hued cabinetry and a large center work island. Elsewhere is an octagon-shaped dining room, plus an office, a library, an art gallery, and a media room, while a separate wing holds the primary suite and a guest apartment with an exterior entrance.

    The spacious kitchen comes with wood floors and titanium black granite countertops.

    Elite Auctions

    RELATED: Jeff Bezos Just Sold One of His Washington Homes for a Record $63 Million

    Ancillary structures include a glass-lined gazebo that serves as what listing materials call a “cigar building,” as well as a break room for grounds/maintenance workers and a shop building that’s currently being used as an auto/hobby space. Then there are the picturesque grounds, which are laced with meandering stone pathways, gardens, more than 1,400 trees, and a cantilevered deck ideal for spotting orcas and bald eagles.

    Several open houses will be held beginning July 27, with the auction set for Monday, Aug. 4, at 11 a.m. at the Seattle Tennis Club. Remote bidding is also available.

    Click here for more photos of the Washington residence.

    Elite Auctions

    Authors

    Wendy Bowman

    Wendy Bowman is a real estate writer at Robb Report. Before that, she was a freelancer for Modern Luxury and several other media outlets, where she primarily covered luxury properties for…

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    A Creative Couple’s 1920s Spanish-Style Home in L.A. Lists for $4.8 Million

    David Hoffman and Jaime Kowal doled out $4 million for a century-old Los Angeles home in early 2023. The couple—he a comedic actor who stars as Doug alongside his trusty sidekick LiMu Emu in the Liberty Mutual Insurance commercials, and she a professional photographer and designer—have now decided to part ways with the Spanish Colonial Revival villa in a desirable enclave of Los Feliz, asking a dash under $4.8 million. Lauren Reichenberg, Daria Greenbaum, and Molly Kelly of Compass share the listing.

    Originally built in 1926 by Howard & Howard Architects and nestled on less than a quarter of an acre, the Normandie Avenue property was thoughtfully restored and modernized by the couple during their two-year tenure. Securely tucked away behind walls and gates, the creamy stucco and terracotta-roof structure has five bedrooms and four baths in roughly 3,500 square feet across three sun-drenched levels rife with refinished white oak floors, coved ceilings, arched doorways, casement windows, and vintage light fixtures.

    A Batchelder fireplace anchors the living room.

    Gavin Cater

    RELATED: French Artist Claire Tabouret’s Hand-Painted Home in L.A. Lists for $3 Million

    From the street, a brick walkway passes through a fountain-clad courtyard before emptying at a covered vestibule. The olive-hued front door opens into a living room anchored by a striking Batchelder fireplace. Beyond that is a kitchen outfitted with shaker-style cabinetry, an eat-in island, and top-tier appliances, as well as a dining and sitting area, a guest bedroom, and a full bath.

    Two upstairs en suite bedrooms include the primary suite, which features a tiled balcony offering up a picturesque view of the Griffith Observatory, dual walk-in closets, and a bath flaunting a marble soaking tub notched into a windowed and arched alcove. The lower level holds two additional bedrooms, one of which is currently set up as an office, plus a screening room, a den, and a sauna.

    The Terremoto-landscaped grounds are spotlighted by an inviting cedar hot tub.

    Gavin Cater

    RELATED: A Filmmaker’s 1920s Spanish Colonial Revival Home in L.A. Lists for $6 Million

    The bottom floor flows outside to the Terremoto-landscaped grounds, where tiered gardens are laced with alfresco lounging and entertaining spaces and an inviting cedar hot tub. There’s also an attached two-car garage resting behind a gated driveway out front.

    Though there’s no word on why the pair has decided to sell, their departure seems bittersweet. “For us, Normandie was a warm and magical home—one that welcomed in beautiful views of nature, the mountains, and the Griffith Observatory,” Hoffman and Kowal told Robb Report. “Through every window and door, we were greeted with glimpses of iconic scenery, all while enjoying one of the most walkable neighborhoods and a truly special community.”

    Click here for more photos of the Los Feliz residence.

    Gavin Cater

    Authors

    Wendy Bowman

    Wendy Bowman is a real estate writer at Robb Report. Before that, she was a freelancer for Modern Luxury and several other media outlets, where she primarily covered luxury properties for…

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    Inside Ken Griffin’s $1.5 Billion Property Portfolio

    Hedge fund billionaire Ken Griffin is well known for snapping up real estate in jaw-dropping and record-setting deals. Among his most notable acquisitions is a Manhattan penthouse that set a national price record and, because his holdings go far beyond that one landmark purchase, solidified his place among the top buyers of eight- and nine-figure […] More

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    Inside Justin and Hailey Bieber’s $29,000 Vacation Rental in Mallorca

    Justin Bieber may have just released a new album, but that doesn’t mean he’s too busy to take a vacation.

    Last week, the Canadian pop superstar and his wife, Hailey, jetted off to Mallorca, where they shacked up in a lavish villa that goes for an average overall rate of 25,000 euros, or just under $29,000. The six-bedroom, six-bath spread is nested into the steep, rocky hillside above the picturesque cove Cala Llamp, with sea views from just about every room. Available via Vrbo, now you can make like the Biebers and stay in the home on your next European getaway.

    The breezy and comfortable, neutral-toned living room includes a fireplace and a bar.

    Vrbo

    Built in 2014, the villa spans more than 10,000 square feet across three levels. The entry hall leads into neutral-toned entertaining spaces. The modern main kitchen is accompanied by an additional utility room/prep kitchen; the airy living room is warmed up by a fireplace and includes a bar for pre- or post-dinner drinks; and the dining room table is surrounded by emerald-green chairs for a splash of rich color that mimics the gardens just outside.

    All six bedrooms come with a private bathroom, ensuring each guest discreet privacy. Additional highlights range from a wine cellar to a sea-view fitness room, meaning that you can look out on the Mediterranean while you run on the treadmill or ride the stationary bike. And, when you’re ready for a bit of relaxation, the spa area includes a sauna for sweating out the toxins and soothing tired muscles.

    The 50-foot pool bleeds into the mountainous horizon.

    Vrbo

    On the covered patio, there’s an outdoor kitchen and built-in barbecue with an adjacent table for alfresco meals. The lounge area is heated up by a gas fireplace, and you can cool down in the 50-foot zero-edge swimming pool.

    While the Beverly Hills-based Biebers seem to enjoy vacationing on the other side of the Atlantic, they don’t yet own any homes on the continent. The couple’s portfolio isn’t anything to scoff at, though. The $47 million dollar collection of homes includes a lakefront estate in Ontario, Canada, about an hour from where Justin grew up; a $25.8 million primary residence in L.A.’s guard-gated Beverly Park enclave; and a $16.6 million manse in the celeb-favored Madison Club golf community in La Quinta, California.

    Click here to see all the photos of the ocean-facing vacation rental.

    Vrbo

    Authors

    Tori Latham

    Tori Latham is a digital staff writer at Robb Report. She was previously a copy editor at The Atlantic, and has written for publications including The Cut and The Hollywood Reporter. When not…

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