Raphael Stevens

More stories

  • 225 Shares189 Views

    in Luxury

    Johnny Cash Built This Rustic Tennessee Home for His Son. Now It Can Be Yours for $6.25 Million.

    Sometime in the 1980s, country music icons Johnny Cash and June Carter Cash commissioned the late master builder Braxton Dixon to build a home for their son, Johnny Carter Cash. At that time, the younger Cash was just a teenager who eventually followed in his family’s legendary footsteps to become a Grammy-winning singer-songwriter, musician, and producer. Dixon—aka Nashville’s builder to the stars—also restored and updated an 18th-century log cabin on the thickly wooded 21-acre parcel in Hendersonville, Tennessee, about 30 minutes outside of downtown Nashville. 

    Known as Dogwood Estate, the property has just come up for sale with an asking price of $6.25 million. Erin Krueger and Mary Spotts of Compass hold the listing.

    The location of Dogwood Estate was hardly arbitrary; the elder Cashes had long owned a nearby spread, a six-structure compound also built by Dixon called Sycamore Homestead. In fact, the two properties share a driveway that passes over a wooden, Dixon-built covered bridge. 

    The rustic home was built in 1987 by the late master builder Braxton Dixon.

    Realkit / Compass

    The main house is set in a small clearing with two bedrooms and three bathrooms in nearly 4,300 square feet. Among its many rustic charms are exposed wood walls, yellow heart pine floorboards, stained glass windows from Europe, and Amish-built stone fireplaces.

    The great room includes an open kitchen with custom oak cabinetry that incorporates a charming built-in dining booth, while a huge three-season porch and an equally spacious adjoining screened porch both have treehouse-like views into the canopies of surrounding trees. Elsewhere, a den does double duty as an office with a long, built-in desk, and a massive fireplace anchors a lower-level family room. All three bathrooms are updated—one has a classic claw-footed tub—and the primary suite is a spacious retreat that includes a sitting area with a thirty-foot cathedral ceiling, a fireplace, and a roomy dressing area.

    The cabin, which dates to 1789 according to marketing materials, stands apart from the house. There’s a large room joined by a porch, along with a lofted area. There is not a kitchen or bathroom, so it’s perhaps best suited as a place for quiet relaxation or as a music studio or creative space.

    A 18th-century cabin on the property was also refurbished by Braxton Dixon.

    Realkit / Compass

    Johnny Carter Cash sold Dogwood Estate in 1993, and nearby Sycamore Homestead, which spans nearly six acres with six structures, has not been in the Cash family for quite some time either; the current owner bought Sycamore Homestead in 1992 and now has it on the market for $3.3 million.

    For more than 30 years and until they died within months of each other in 2003, Johnny and June Carter Cash made their primary home a 14,000-square-foot mansion on the shore of Old Hickory Lake in Hendersonville. Barry Gibb of the Bee Gees bought the 4.5-acre property in 2005, but the house burned to the ground in 2007 while undergoing renovations. Gibb built a new house, and the property has since changed hands several times.

    Click here for more photos of Dogwood Estate.

    Realkit / Compass More

  • 175 Shares129 Views

    in Luxury

    In Beverly Hills, an Extravagant William Hefner-Designed Mansion Sells for a Discounted $30 Million

    Almost four years after it first hit the market with an aggressive $40 million asking price—and was floated for rent along the way at a pricey $165,000 per month—luxury developer Adnan Sen of Sen Properties has officially sold his Hollywood Regency-inspired spec mansion in Beverly Hills for $30 million, still easily one of the priciest residential real estate deals inked in 90210 over the past few months.

    Per The Wall Street Journal, which first reported the sale, the buyer is real estate investor David Nagel—the CEO of Decron Properties, which has apartment, office and retail holdings in Arizona, California and Washington—and his wife Marnie, who forked over around $21 million more than Sen paid for the 1940s estate almost eight years ago, before it was leveled and rebuilt by noted architect William Hefner.

    A fireside living room is lined with majestic arched windows and glass pocketing doors spilling out to the park-like grounds.

    Noel Kleinman

    Hidden securely behind gates, on a corner parcel spanning almost three-quarter acres, the au courant spread was completed in 2020. Known as Laurel House, the property includes a main house and detached guesthouse—for a total of nine bedrooms and 14 baths in almost 16,000 square feet of modern European-style living space imbued with chic neutral and black interiors.

    Among the main-level highlights: a double-height foyer displaying a statement-making staircase, which flows to formal living and dining rooms spotlighted by large expanses of glass spilling outdoors. A fireside family room connects to the gourmet kitchen, which is outfitted with marble countertops, an eat-in island, top-tier stainless appliances, a windowed breakfast area and secondary catering kitchen; and elsewhere are two offices, plus a cozy den with a fireplace and wet bar.

    The 12-seat movie theater sits adjacent to a billiards room.

    Noel Kleinman

    An opulent upstairs master retreat comes complete with a fireplace, dual balconies, designer closets and a pair of baths sporting soaking tubs and other spa-like amenities, while the lower level is decked out with a “glam room,” 12-seat movie theater flanked by a billiards area and wet bar, glass-encased wine cellar with a tasting room and gym equipped with an infrared sauna.

    Outdoors, the private and grassy grounds are laced with mature trees and gardens, and host an eye-catching pool and spa with built-in seating, as well as an open-air cabana warmed by a fireplace, a barbecue setup, fire-pit, and several lounging and entertaining vignettes. There’s also a gallery-style garage that can accommodate up to 10 vehicles.

    The listing was held by Pate Stevens of The Agency; Dustin Nicholas and Jackie Feldmar-Cohenca of Nicholas Property Group repped the buyers.

    Click here for more photos of Laurel House.

    Noel Kleinman More

  • 213 Shares189 Views

    in Luxury

    A Tech Billionaire Dropped $12 Million on a Malibu Estate With Nearly 200 Feet of Beach Frontage

    In a beach town where home prices have topped $170 million on more than one occasion, It’s rare to find 1.5 acres of contiguous oceanfront land available to buy at an affordable price. But Jeff T. Green, the tech investor who was at one point Utah’s richest man, has indeed done just that. Records indicate the 46-year-old CEO of The Trade Desk was the buyer who recently scooped up a significant property in the far western reaches of Malibu.

    Of course, “affordable” is a relative term in this case. Green’s little splurge set him back about $12.3 million, certainly a huge sum of money but nothing out of the ordinary as Malibu beachfront prices go. For that chunk of change, Green received two side-by-side properties: one of them a 0.28-acre parcel with a 5,000-square-foot house, and the vacant lot immediately next door, which spans about 1.2 acres.

    Green—who sports a net worth of $4.6 billion, per Forbes—actually closed on the two-parcel estate at the tail end of 2022, although the transactions were not reported at that time. Since then, he has not moved into his new beachfront estate; the existing house, a large but dated modern-style structure built in the early 1990s, appears to be undergoing a big renovation. It’s still unclear what Green plans to do with the empty lot next door, which could easily accommodate an oceanfront mansion all on its own.

    Sited behind gates and greenery, the 1990s house and the vacant lot next door together span some 1.5 oceanfront acres.

    Google Earth

    Long owned by a non-famous businesswoman from Chicago, the current structure appears to be mostly unchanged since it was completed in ’93. Tucked behind gates, the notably boxy, tri-level residence will wow guests with its three-story foyer. There are beige stone floors throughout, plus numerous sets of sliding glass doors that spill out onto ocean-view terraces.

    Other highlights include a mostly all-white kitchen with tile floors and premium SubZero and Wolf appliances, plus a main level bedroom with ensuite bathroom. The home’s three family bedrooms are located on the second floor, including the spacious primary suite. Also on the second floor lies a separate but in-house apartment complete with a living room, fireplace, kitchenette, full bath, and separate entrance with a balcony just outside. This space would be ideal for a live-in staff member, or for an extended family member, guests or as a deluxe work-from-home office space.

    But the home’s third floor is what really impresses. Up there is a big sunroom, plus a 2,000-square-foot, open-air rooftop deck with stunning views for miles up and down the scenic Malibu coastline. And while some naysayers may decry this home’s location as being “too far” from the bustle and shopping destinations of Malibu’s downtown area, it should be noted that this area is far less crowded than downtown Malibu, and Green’s estate is blessed with more than 180 feet of sandy beach frontage.

    Green’s Thousand Oaks main residence, which he bought from Britney Spears in 2017.

    Google Earth

    Green, who appears to have split from wife Lynette a few years back, continues to maintain a main residence in Thousand Oaks, where in 2017 he paid Britney Spears $7 million for a sprawling Spanish-style estate behind the guarded gates of the exclusive Sherwood Country Club. More

  • 163 Shares169 Views

    in Luxury

    Actor Max Greenfield Is Selling His Revamped L.A. Beach House for $3 Million

    Back in 2020, while some folks were learning to speak another language or taking up a new hobby to bide their time during the pandemic, Tess Sanchez went a completely different route. The longtime wife of veteran actor Max Greenfield—probably best known for his role as Schmidt in the sitcom New Girl—decided to while away her spare time remodeling a “neglected and odd” beach house in the Los Angeles neighborhood of Pacific Palisades that the couple had picked up for $1.6 million in late 2019.

    “I was home all the time, for the first time,” the former Fox casting executive and mother of two told Sunset magazine in a 2022 article. “My kids didn’t know what to do with me. I got laid off at the beginning of quarantine in 2020. And I’m not good with idle time.”

    Armed with an ardent love for home-renovation shows, and help from K&M Contractors, Sanchez went on to convert the formerly cramped, dark space into a haven of natural light and beautiful textures, as well as to fully cover a façade emblazoned with a funky beach-themed mural with copious amounts of white paint. Now, a little more than four years later, the revamped cottage has popped up on the market again, this time asking a smidge under $3 million.

    A before photo shows the mural-painted house as it appeared prior to Greenfield’s purchase.

    Google Images

    Originally built in the late 1940s, the two-story structure rests amid a compact hillside parcel atop the sought-after and secluded Castellammare community, just steps from a pedestrian bridge leading to Will Rogers State Historic Park, and offers “stunning ocean and mountain views,” per the listing.

    Three bedrooms and two bathrooms are packed into just over 1,900 square feet of living space boasting white, cream and beige interiors complemented by hardwood floors, high ceilings and plentiful windows allowing for an abundance of natural light. Highlights include a stylish living room displaying an oversized wood-burning brick fireplace with a floating hearth, plus sliding glass doors spilling out to a fenced wraparound deck overlooking the Pacific.

    Also standing out on the main level is a marble-clad kitchen, which comes complete with hanging shelves, a wine cooler, an eat-in breakfast bar and a pass-through window opening to a seated bar on the deck. An adjacent dining area has a built-in buffet, while the primary bedroom suite’s bath is decked out with dual vanities.

    A laundry room, another bath and two guest bedrooms are sequestered on the lower level, including one with two sets of double built-in bunk beds and another that could easily double as a media room; and rounding it all out is a driveway and an attached garage that can accommodate up to two vehicles.

    In addition to their for-sale Pacific Palisades home, Greenfield and Sanchez still maintain a primary residence in L.A.’s Hancock Park enclave that they paid Emmy-winning television producer Scott Stone $2.8 million for back in 2014. More

  • 150 Shares169 Views

    in Luxury

    Married Skincare Entrepreneurs Drop $25 Million on a Lavish L.A. Spec Mansion

    An extravagant Tobe Morrow-designed spec mansion recently traded hands in the ultra-posh Brentwood Park enclave of Los Angeles. The seller was local developer Gil Charash of AMG Capital, who paid $8 million for the existing property on the site in summer 2022, then didn’t even get a chance to officially list the newly built place in its stead before it was snapped up in an off-market deal that reportedly set a price-per-square-foot sales record for the area.

    Property deeds show the eager buyers are Dr. Katie Rodan and her husband Amnon Rodan—she a dermatologist who co-founded the anti-aging skincare powerhouse Rodan + Fields, makers of the acne-management brand Proactiv, and he the former chairman of the company—who doled out a dab over $25 million for the six-bedroom, nine-bath home in early February.

    Completed this year, the Rodans’ new contemporary estate rests on an a little over a half-acre of land secured by gates and enhanced by an attached three-car garage. Roughly 8,000 square feet of two-level living space is adorned throughout with hardwood floors, high ceilings, designer light fixtures and large expanses of glass offering seamless indoor/outdoor environs.

    A lofty wood-beam ceiling tops the living area, which leads out to a covered terrace overlooking the grassy backyard.

    Lawrence Fitz-Simon

    Glassy arched double doors open into an attractive wood-paneled foyer, which flows to a fireside living room spilling out to a covered terrace. There’s also a formal dining room equipped with wine storage, as well as a sleekly designed gourmet kitchen that comes complete with an oversized eat-in island, top-tier appliances and an accompanying breakfast room.

    Elsewhere is a sumptuous master retreat featuring a fireside sitting area, private balcony, walk-in closet, and marble-clad bath spotlighted by an enclosed wet room sporting a soaking tub and shower; and topping it all off are the lushly landscaped grounds, which host a Pickleball court, swimming pool and spa, and numerous spots ideal for al fresco lounging and entertaining. There’s also a detached guesthouse on the premises.

    In addition to their new Brentwood Park home, the couple—who launched the Rodan Family Foundation in 2018—own at least two properties in L.A.’s Pacific Palisades area, including one that’s been razed and is now up for sale at $8.5 million with plans for a new Marmol Radziner-designed structure, as well as houses in Aspen and San Francisco. A year ago, they sold a 6,750-square-foot residence in the California town of Piedmont for $7.2 million, and they also are rumored to have recently paid actor Ben Affleck $28.5 million for another Pacific Palisades mansion that’s currently undergoing an extensive renovation.

    The listing was held by Maxwell Hutchison of Official and Conrad Adamczak of The Beverly Hills Estates; Lisa Kirshner and Dylan Elkin of Guide Real Estate repped the buyers.

    Click here for more photos of the Rodans’ Brentwood Park house.

    Lawrence Fitz-Simon More

  • 175 Shares189 Views

    in Luxury

    The Creator of ‘CSI’ Just Dropped $14 Million on a Hilltop Santa Barbara Estate

    All signs indicate that Anthony Zuiker, the $200 million man who created and produced the television juggernaut known as CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, was indeed the mystery buyer who recently dropped just over $14 million for a hilltop estate in Santa Barbara County. Zuiker scored a discount on the 5-acre property, which had originally been offered for $16.2 million when it hit the market last spring.

    Although the home has been said to be located in the perennially posh neighborhood of Montecito—and indeed, its address is frequently written as “Montecito, CA”—our research indicates it lies just a short walk outside that community’s borders. Instead, the property is technically sited in neighboring Summerland, a much lesser-known but still charming and unincorporated beach town about five miles south of Santa Barbara.

    Built in the late 1990s but completely renovated in 2022, the single-story compound sits atop a high knoll on a private street shared with 15 other homes, all of them luxe, multi-acre estates. Comprised of a sprawling main house, a detached guesthouse and a poolside cabana, the contemporary ranch-style spread features a total of four bedrooms and 5.5 bathrooms in nearly 10,000 square feet of sun-drenched living space.

    Sited on a Summerland hilltop, the 5-acre estate has a long driveway with room for upwards of a dozen cars.

    The roughly 8,000-square-foot main house is clearly designed for entertaining. Vast, open public rooms are nearly monumental in scale, while big windows and pocketing glass doors drink in the ocean views. Described as “epicurean” in the listing, the slickly modern kitchen has a huge island and custom cabinetry. There’s a formal dining room, a breakfast nook and a spacious covered loggia for al fresco dining and entertaining, all of them with stunning views of the blue sea.

    The primary bedroom suite conveniently adjoins a bespoke study and offers a private terrace with ocean views, a spa-style bathroom and a decidedly bespoke closet with long rows of glass-fronted cabinets. There are also two smaller bedrooms in the main house, one of them facing the mountains and the other tucked away behind the three-car garage. The estate’s fourth bedroom lies in the detached guesthouse, which also sports a full bathroom, living room and kitchenette.

    Out back, the sparkling pool hosts an inset spa; the poolside cabana, meanwhile, is tricked out with a media room and a home gym. The tropically-landscaped grounds pay more than a passing tribute to Hawaii, with all manner of palms, hibiscus, creeping vines and long grasses.

    Zuiker, 54, has been much in the headlines for his real estate doings in recent years. In early 2023, he paid $6 million for a strikingly contemporary mansion just outside Las Vegas, shortly before selling a smaller but still multimillion-house he owned in the same area.

    The procedural forensics crime drama expert also still maintains a $6.2 million waterfront home on California‘s Lake Arrowhead and has owned several homes in Malibu, too. Some months before he sold a Bali-inspired estate in 2019 to NBA star Chandler Parsons, he paid another NBA star, Kevin Durant, $12.3 million for an oceanfront home near Broad Beach. That place was sold, earlier this year, for just over $15 million to Roc Nation co-founder Jay Brown. More

  • 150 Shares169 Views

    in Luxury

    Extreme Guitarist Nuno Bettencourt Sells His L.A. House for Nearly $4 Million

    Four months after Nuno Bettencourt hoisted his longtime residence atop the Beachwood Canyon neighborhood of Los Angeles on the market for just under $4 million, the veteran Portuguese-American musician has officially handed the keys over to a new owner.

    Records show the 57-year-old lead guitarist of the iconic Boston rock band Extreme—who also regularly tours with pop superstar Rihanna—has sold the contemporary spread to a non-famous buyer for $3.7 million. Though that’s around $200,000 less than Bettencourt originally wanted, it’s still a healthy $1.6 million more than he paid for the place a little over a decade ago, back in spring 2013.

    Resting amid a hillside parcel spanning roughly one-third of an acre, and fronted by a trio of glassy side-by-side garage bays, the multi-level gray stucco structure was built in the early 1990s and has since been updated. Inside, five bedrooms and six baths are spread across a little more than 5,500 square feet of open-plan living space accented with rustic hardwood floors, vaulted ceilings, skylights and an elevator, as well as picturesque views of the Downtown L.A. skyline, Griffith Observatory, Hollywood Sign, Lake Hollywood and Pacific Ocean beyond.

    The soaring living room is spotlighted by a seated wet bar.

    Cris Nolasco/Nolasco Studios

    Highlights include a double-height living room sporting a wood-encased fireplace, seated wet bar and sliding glass doors spilling outside. There’s also an office space, a cozy den and formal dining room, plus a gourmet kitchen furnished with an eat-in island, top-tier stainless appliances and an accompanying breakfast nook.

    Elsewhere is a primary bedroom adorned with a sitting area, private balcony, walk-in closet and dressing area, along with a stylish bath that has a soaking tub, separate shower and sauna; and topping it all off are the show-stealing grounds, which host an upper deck holding a pool and spa flanked by a sundeck and an open-air cabana. A guesthouse that previously served as a recording studio can also be found on the premises.

    Some of the most breathtaking scenery in Los Angeles is available from an upper-level pool deck.

    Cris Nolasco/Nolasco Studios

    Extreme achieved its greatest success with the 1990 album Pornograffitti, which peaked at No. 10 on the Billboard 200 and went on to earn a double-platinum certification. The album featured the hit singles Hole Hearted and More than Words, the latter of which remains one of the most popular rock songs of all time with more than a half-billion streams and upwards of 633 million YouTube views.

    The group recently released its first studio album since 2008; Six was recorded at Bettencourt’s home studio and landed at No. 10 on Billboard’s Top Album Sales chart, with 12,500 copies sold during the first week.

    Cindy Lorimer and Peter Lorimer of PLG Estates repped both sides of the deal.

    Click here for more photos of Nuno Bettencourt’s Hollywood Hills house.

    Cris Nolasco/Nolasco Studios More

  • 138 Shares169 Views

    in Luxury

    Kirsten Dunst’s Former Manhattan Penthouse Hits the Market for $7 Million

    Two years after she was nominated for an Oscar for her role in The Power of the Dog, Kirsten Dunst is making her long-awaited return to the silver screen in the upcoming A24 action thriller Civil War. And just like that, the actress’s former New York City penthouse is back on the market. 

    Asking just shy of $7 million, the industrial-chic apartment at 533 Canal Street is perched on top of a pre-war co-op in lower Manhattan’s Hudson Square neighborhood. The Hollywood star, whose proverbial big break was the 1994 horror film Interview with the Vampire, splashed out a cool $3 million for the eighth-floor aerie back in 2007, The New York Post first reported. She sold up in 2018 for a profitable $4.4 million, and the apartment later had a brief stint as a $12,500-per-month rental.

    Kirsten Dunst’s former New York City penthouse is for sale.

    Travis Mark for Corcoran

    Dunst’s former home features oversized arched windows, soaring 11-foot ceilings, wide-plank hardwood flooring, and tons of exposed brick, and, according to the listing, which is held by Laura Weinkam of Corcoran, the two-bedroom, two-bath apartment recently underwent a top-to-bottom renovation.

    Among the abode’s newer features is an open chef’s kitchen equipped with state-of-the-art appliances, glossy marble countertops, and custom blue cabinets. Other highlights include the primary suite, which has been totally redone and sports a custom-designed wardrobe that leads to a windowed walk-in closet. There’s also an ensuite bathroom, kitted out with a free-standing, vintage soaking tub, a separate shower stall, custom mosaic tiled floors, and a towel warmer.

    The secondary bedroom, separated from the living room by sliding glass and brass panels, is currently configured as a library, but guests can still be accommodated with a Murphy bed that’s cleverly tucked within a wall of built-ins. Nearby is the second bathroom.

    The apartment has been renovated and features new wood flooring and custom cabinetry.

    Travis Mark for Corcoran

    The boutique building, which was originally built in 1911, has a history as the former venue for the infamous Canal Zone party of 1978. Conceptualized by Stan Peskett, Michael Holman, and Fab 5 Freddy, the shindig was held at Peskett’s 5,000-square-foot loft and was attended by the late Jean-Michel Basquiat, who was an unknown graffiti artist at the time.

    In the years since, the co-op, also known by its alternate address of 477 Washington Street, has attracted a fair share of other well-known celebrities. Most notably, it hosted former R.E.M. frontman Michael Stipe and director Gus Van Sant. Ex-brothers-in-law Casey Affleck and Joaquin Phoenix were also reported to have shared an apartment in the building, which sold in 2020 for $3.1 million.  

    Click here to see all the photos of 477 Washington Street, 8W. 

    Travis Mark for Corcoran

    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, dining, travel and topics…

    Read More More