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      ‘Avatar’ Actress Zoe Saldana Is Seeking $16 Million for Her Beverly Hills Home

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      After a little more than seven years of ownership, Zoe Saldana has put her traditional tennis court property in Beverly Hills up for sale. As first reported by The Wall Street Journal, the veteran film actress—probably best known for her roles in Star Trek, Avatar and Guardians of the Galaxy—is asking $16.5 million for the place she picked up from model/entrepreneur Kimora Lee Simmons for $8.7 million back in spring 2016.

      Tucked away on a gated and hedged parcel spanning over a half-acre, in the guarded Hidden Valley Estates community where other residences include Adele, Jennifer Lawrence, Nicole Kidman and Penelope Cruz, the three-story structure was originally built in 1974. Since remodeled, it features five bedrooms and seven baths in 6,400 square feet of living space boasting hardwood floors, imported polished stone finishes and designer lighting throughout.

      Steps pass through a manicured yard before emptying out at a columned front porch and yellow-hued door, which opens into a double-height entry foyer displaying a curving staircase. From there, highlights include a formal dining room surrounded by wainscoted walls, fireside living room adorned with steel-and-glass cabinetry and wood-clad family room, plus a bespoke kitchen outfitted with an eat-in island, top-tier appliances and a separate breakfast room. 

      A wood-paneled family room has French doors spilling out to a terrace.

      Jeremy Spann

      A spacious upstairs master retreat sports a fireplace, sitting area and dual closets, as well as a marble bath spotlighted by a large oval soaking tub; and elsewhere is a media room, lounge area and gym, along with grassy grounds hosting a pool and spa, an al fresco dining area with a barbecue and kitchen setup, and a lighted tennis court. There’s also a two-car garage on the premises.

      The property, also available for lease at $47,500 per month, is listed by Brett Lawyer of Carolwood Estates.

      Click here for more photos of Zoe Saldana’s Beverly Hills house.

      Jeremy Spann More

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      Halsey Buys a Spanish Colonial Revival Classic in Los Angeles

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      You could say Halsey is on a real estate roll. Three months ago, the “Without Me” singer sold her lavish estate near Calabasas for nearly $12 million; almost immediately following that, she paid $700,000 over the asking price for a gem of a house in Laurel Canyon. Now she’s done it again — dropping an impressive $5 million on an impeccably restored Spanish Colonial Revival house in Los Feliz.

      Located almost directly across the street from one of the most popular Griffith Park entrance points, the house was built in the late 1920s for restaurateur and civic reformer Clifford Clinton and designed by architect Arthur W. Larson. In 2011, the longtime Clinton family was awarded Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monument status.

      Although it’s located on a very busy roadway, the nearly 6,000-square-foot house sits behind tall fences and stucco-clad walls. Inside, a coffered wood front door opens to a magnesite-tiled foyer, to the right of which is a formal living room featuring a grand fireplace, a stained glass picture window, coffered ceilings, and French doors that lead to a tiled veranda. To the left of the foyer is a formal dining room with coved ceilings, another stained glass picture window, and peg and groove hardwood floors.

      Across the hallway is an stylish office that showcases a curved fireplace, hand-stenciled ceilings, gorgeous woodwork, leaded-glass windows, and coat-of-arms sconces. Further down the hall is the butler’s pantry with wood countertops, an original zinc sink, and original Deco tile in robin’s egg blue, the kitchen, outfitted with a snazzy La Cornue range and a refurbished original Frigidaire refrigerator, and a sunny magnesite-tiled breakfast room.

      Upstairs are four bedroom suites with glorious original-tile baths in a variety of hues, built-in vanities, and “wedding cake” ornamental plaster. Also on this floor are multiple cedar closet, including one containing a very early version of a fire extinguisher, a sunroom, and multiple Juliet balconies offering city views. The sprawling home also has a plush home theater with a starry-night-sky ceiling and seating for six.

      Exterior amenities include an colorfully-tiled swimming pool, a sun deck, a bath house, a dining pavilion, and a three-car garage. Halsey also scored a deal on the property, securing the 0.34-acre estate for $800,000 under the $5.8 million asking price. More

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      The ‘God Is a Bullet’ Producer Is Selling His All-New East Coast Traditional House in L.A.

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      Back in spring 2020, Michael Mendelsohn doled out $1.7 million for an early 1900s residence in Los Angeles. He then took it down to the studs, and spent the next three years completely remodeling and expanding the place.

      Now the Tinseltown producer—probably best known for the movies Reservoir Dogs, Lord of War, Cut Throat City, and most recently, God is a Bullet starring Jamie Foxx—has decided to try his hand at selling the newly reborn East Coast Traditional-style digs in Hollywood Hills with a significant jump in price, asking a speck under $4.3 million.

      Tucked away behind walls and gates, on less than a quarter-acre parcel within walking distance of Runyon Canyon, the wood-sided structure features a little more than 3,500 square feet of modern living space on two levels accented throughout with marble finishes and herringbone wood floors.

      Per the listing, held by Angel Kou of The Agency and Taryn Keyser of Compass, there’s also a separate guesthouse with its own living area, kitchen and bath that could easily serve as an office or a studio.

      A gourmet kitchen connects to a fireside family room, which has glass doors opening to a terrace.

      Especially standing out on the main level is a gourmet kitchen decked out with an eat-in island, top-tier Wolf and Sub-Zero appliances, and a walk-in pantry. An adjoining family room displays a fireplace flanked by built-in shelving, along with glass doors spilling out to a covered terrace ideal for al fresco entertaining with a built-in barbecue. Elsewhere is a living room boasting a brick fireplace, an office space and a chandelier-topped dining room.

      Five bedrooms include an upstairs master retreat outfitted with a fireplace, private balcony and walk-in closet, plus a luxe bath equipped with dual vanities, a freestanding soaking tub and glass-encased shower. Outdoors, the secluded backyard hosts a herb garden, as well as a sparkling pool and spa lined with waterfalls on one side and a sundeck on the other.

      Click here for more photos of Michael Mendelsohn’s Hollywood Hills house.

      The Luxury Level More

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      Simon Cowell’s Former Beverly Hills Estate Sells for Nearly $34 Million

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      Back in summer 2020, near the height of the Covid-19 pandemic, Simon Cowell sold his longtime Beverly Hills main residence for exactly $25 million. Three years later, the nearly 1-acre property has made real estate waves once again, transferring in another off-market deal for a whopping $33.6 million — one of the priciest deals ever closed south of Sunset Boulevard, in the so-called Beverly Hills Flats neighborhood. The latest transaction was first reported by The Real Deal.

      The unapologetically lavish property, which boasts a sublime location on the best block of a prestigious street, was acquired by Cowell way back in 2004 for just $8 million. The all-around mogul subsequently spent five years — and undoubtedly many millions of dollars — transforming the place into a high-tech fortress packed with custom amenities, including a wellness center and a million-dollar security system.

      Cowell sold the property in 2020 by Alon Abady, a Beverly Hills local who is managing partner at Waterfall Bridge Capital, a commercial and residential real estate investment firm. Abady, 53, flipped the estate at a substantial profit to Syailendra Bakrie, a businessman and member of one of Indonesia’s wealthiest families. Earlier this year, the 43-year-old’s younger sister Adinda Bakrie paid $21 million for a contemporary mansion elsewhere in the Beverly Hills Flats.

      Because the Cowell estate has never been publicly offered on the market, some of its various interior accouterments remain a mystery. But the “America’s Got Talent” judge had the property photographed and published many times over the years, and the traditional-meets-contemporary residential fusion boasts a black-and-white interior motif enhanced by copious amounts of marble and glass. There are at least five bedrooms and eight baths in nearly 10,000 square feet of living space.

      Some of the property’s numerous amenities include a solarium, movie theater, lap-lane swimming pool, pool cabana with a retractable roof, an at-home tanning salon, a state-of-the-art gym, two kitchens, and that wellness suite with spa and massage facilities, plus a steam room. For the hired help, there are maid’s and butler’s quarters, and a security detail can monitor the premises through the world-class security system, which includes retina scan authorization.

      Outside, the estate includes a sparkling pool, a detached pool house/guesthouse of some sort, verdant lawns, mature palm trees and a street-facing façade obscured by gorgeous native sycamores. A gated courtyard has parking space for at least a half-dozen luxury vehicles.

      Fully customized by Cowell, the nearly 10,000-square-foot house includes a bevy of high-tech amenities. More

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      Andie MacDowell Is Selling Her 1920s Storybook Tudor in Los Angeles

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      Though she bought it barely two years ago, actress Andie MacDowell has now decided to turn the page on her classic Storybook Tudor.

      The longtime L’Oréal ambassador and veteran actress has hoisted the property in the Eastside Los Angeles neighborhood of Silver Lake back on the market for a dash under $4 million—or $100,000 less than she paid for the place amid a fierce bidding war back in November 2021.

      Nestled on a compact parcel, and separated from the street out front by a landscaped yard dotted with towering cypress trees, the whitewashed structure was originally built in 1928. Recently remodeled, the two-story house features five bedrooms and four baths in a little more than 3,400 square feet of stylish, neutrally hued living space boasting blonde hardwood floors, gentle curves, high ceilings and lots of natural light.

      Upon entry, a formal living room attracts interest with its Palladian fanlight window and veined-marble fireplace.

      Charmaine David

      Main-level highlights include a spacious formal living room sporting a large Palladian fanlight window and wood-burning fireplace decorated with a stylish veined-marble surround, along with a formal dining room flaunting another large window and a ballon-like chandelier. An updated kitchen is outfitted with an eat-in island, a La Cornue range and Miele appliances tucked away behind custom panels, plus backsplashes and countertops matching the marble in the living room fireplace.

      In addition to Miele appliances hidden behind custom panels, the marble-clad kitchen also sports a crave-worthy La Cornue range.

      Charmaine David

      A curving staircase heads upstairs, where there’s a family/media room offering panoramic views of the Silver Lake Reservoir, along with a dreamy primary bedroom suite holding a sitting area, walk-in closet, and luxe bath equipped with dual vanities, an oval soaking tub, glass-encased shower and yet more of that beautiful marble that seems to be a running theme throughout.

      Outdoors, the fenced grounds are laced with native California plantings, and host a small pool designed by local landscape firm Terremoto. There’s also a two-car garage with a loft that’s been converted into the ideal space for relaxing and entertaining.

      Designed by local landscape firm Terremoto, the charming grounds include a small pool flanked by an ideal spot for an al fresco meal.

      Charmaine David

      In addition to her for-sale house, the 65-year-old South Carolina native also owns a vacation house in Montana. She sold a two-home compound in L.A.’s Highland Park neighborhood last year for $2.7 million.

      The listing is held by Natalie Trabin of Compass.

      Click here for more photos of Andie MacDowell’s Silver Lake house. More

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      Paul Anka’s Custom L.A. Home Hits the Market for $10 Million

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      Crank up the tunes and put your head on someone’s shoulder, because Paul Anka is looking to strike a very rich chord with his groovy Thousand Oaks home. And this place certainly has all the proper ingredients to make a real estate hit, including a state-of-the-art recording studio, billiard room, fully renovated eat-in kitchen, detached gym and an infinity pool.

      The heavily upgraded mansion won’t come cheap, of course, saddled as it is with a $10 million price tag. But that’s par for the course at guard-gated Sherwood Country Club, where the house is located — the enclave’s nationally famed Jack Nicklaus-designed golf course is lined with extravagant homes and multi-acre estates. Club members, who include Justin Timberlake, Sylvester Stallone and Tom Selleck, must first fork over a reported $300,000 initiation fee just to join.

      Anka’s estate is situated on “one of Sherwood’s largest privately gated lots,” per the listing, spanning nearly six contiguous acres. A long, gated driveway leads between rows of trees on its way to the nearly 8,000-square-foot house, which is privately tucked out of sight from the street and neighborly prying eyes. A vast motorcourt fronts a four-car garage and boasts ample room for high-end luxury rides including Anka’s Porsche Panamera and Mercedes-Benz G-Wagen, visible in listing photographs.

      Anka’s mansion was recently renovated and features ample motorcourt parking.

      Shawn Cordon

      Besides the aforementioned amenities, highlights of the French-inspired residence include an orange living room equipped with a fireplace and line with some of Anka’s numerous plaques, a butler’s pantry with marble countertops and built-in storage, a breakfast nook with views over the surrounding hills, a formal dining room that spills out to an al fresco patio, Astroturf lawns and four ensuite bedrooms. The upstairs master retreat includes a fireplace, showroom closet and opulent bathroom. Perhaps the estate’s most unique feature is a freestanding, glass-walled building that functions as a very lavish at-home gym, and the surrounding grounds are laced by ancient oaks.

      Records indicate the house was built in speculation in 2006; Anka bought it in 2007 for $4 million and likely spent another small fortune on bespoke upgrades in the 16 years since.

      Anka, 82, is perhaps one of the most successful songwriters of the 20th century. Widely known for crafting mega-hits for the likes of Michael Jackson, Tom Jones and Frank Sinatra, the Grammy-winner also took songs like “Diana,” “Lonely Boy” and “Put Your Head on My Shoulder” to the top on his own, and he wrote the memorable theme music for “The Tonight Show With Johnny Carson.” He’s now a member of the Songwriters’ Hall of Fame and has sold more than 10 million albums worldwide.

      Mary Ann Scott of Beverly and Company holds the listing with Team Nicki and Karen of Compass.

      Click here for more photos of Paul Anka’s Thousand Oaks estate.

      Shawn Cordon More

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      Greta Garbo’s Former Beverly Hills Home Returns to Market for $10 million

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      From the time she arrived in Hollywood in 1925, Greta Garbo bounced around from one rented home to another. So the story goes, in 1937, around the time of the release of George Cukor’s costume drama “Camille,” the Swedish-born actress briefly took up residence in a brand-new Beverly Hills home with her freshly divorced friend (and rumored boyfriend) Leopold Stokowski, the snowy-haired British orchestra conductor who went on to marry designer jeans pioneering American socialite Gloria Vanderbilt, aka Anderson Cooper’s mom. By most accounts, Garbo had moved on to another rented house by the time “Ninotchka” came out in 1939.

      Cleaved to a steep hillside in the coveted Crest Streets neighborhood, a low-key area with winding streets and no through traffic, Garbo’s former home has just been put back on the market with Markus Canter of Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices California Properties for $10 million. The current asking price is a substantial reduction from the $12 million asked when the property first popped up for sale with another agent affiliated with another brokerage in early 2022.

      The dining area overlooks the step-down living room.

      Joshua Spooner / Courtesy of Markus Canter Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices California Properties

      Though there are hints and whispers of the home’s original Jazz Age moderne stylings, such as the camber of the front façade that echoes the sweeping curve of the street, the home bears few of its original details since an extensive transformation in the early 2000s by HGTV-featured interior designer Nicole Sassaman. The home last changed hands in 2006, for almost $7.5 million, when Sassaman sold up to its current owner, a Nevada-based corporate concern connected to Russian film producer and tech investor Arcadiy Golubovich.

      There are five (and easily six) bedrooms and five bathrooms, plus a powder room, dispersed among the almost 4,700-square-foot home’s three stories. Configured to take advantage of the canyon-framed view of the downtown skyline, there are two fireplaces, one of them in one of the main-floor guest bedrooms, and a trio of balconies, one off the primary bedroom and another outside an ensuite office/bedroom tucked down a private staircase beneath the street-level two-car garage.

      The top-floor primary bedroom spills out to a private terrace with epic views.

      Joshua Spooner / Courtesy of Markus Canter Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices California Properties

      A petite, infinity-edge swimming pool and a large spa hug the back of the house with endless views over the city. In fact, it’s possible to open one of the sliding glass doors in the living room and step directly into the pool. Below the pool are a pair of grassy terraces, and below that, out of sight and shielded by great plumes of verdant foliage and retractable awnings, is an intimate alfresco lounge.

      Fiercely private, Garbo retired in 1941, at 36 years old and at the peak of her fame, and after be-bopping about for a dozen years, she finally settled in New York City, where she bought a three-bedroom co-operative apartment at the Campanile building in the swanky Beekman Place neighborhood, where she lived until her death in 1990 at 84 years old. Still owned by her family, the elegant fifth-floor apartment was listed last year at $7.25 million, but with no takers, it was removed from the market later in the year.

      Click here for more photos of Greta Garbo’s former home.

      Joshua Spooner / Courtesy of Markus Canter Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices California Properties More

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      Marilyn Monroe’s Famed L.A. Home Is Being Torn Down

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      It’s another sad day for fans of historic architecture and Old Hollywood lore alike. As first reported by the New York Post, the house located at 12305 Fifth Helena Drive in L.A.’s Brentwood neighborhood, a 1920s Spanish hacienda-style structure, may soon be demolished by its new owner.

      Despite its modest scale and unpretentious nature, the 2,600-square-foot bungalow gained worldwide fame in 1962 as the location of Marilyn Monroe’s sudden death. The walled and gated property was also the only house ever owned by the legendary actress, and in the six decades since the half-acre estate has become one of the city’s most famous local landmarks. Blogger Lindsay Blake previously published an in-depth post filled with numerous fascinating tidbits about the property, including how Monroe placed a plaque above the front door which read “Cursom Perificio” in Latin. Translation: “My Journey Ends Here.”

      Monroe’s Brentwood house is a sprawling single-story hacienda.

      Getty Images

      While the home’s exterior architecture remains incredibly alike how it appeared in 1962, the interiors have been significantly altered. Most notably, the kitchen and bathrooms have been modernized, and the estate’s formerly detached guest casita has been merged into the main house. Still, numerous original features — casement windows, terracotta tile floors, wood-beamed ceilings — happily hark back to Golden Age times.

      Out back, a brick patio spills out to a notably large swimming pool; beyond that, a grassy lawn is surrounded by mature trees, tall hedges and a citrus orchard. Out front, bountiful bunches of bougainvillea arch their way across the home’s façade, and there’s a two-car garage.

      The half-acre property sits just a quick jog south of Sunset Boulevard.

      Mercer Vine

      Teardowns have become increasingly commonplace in the area surrounding Monroe’s former home, as soaring property values and record-breaking sales entice developers to build ever bigger and fancier. That this particular property survived intact is a testament to the hacienda’s enduring charm, and to Monroe’s legendary status, of course.

      Back in 2014, Emerald Lake hedge fund manager Dan Lukas and his wife Anne Jarmain paid $7.3 million for the Monroe estate, and have lived at the property in the years since. Six months ago, however, the couple paid $13 million for a larger home in the same neighborhood.

      Mercer Vine

      Last month, Lukas and Jarmain quietly sold the Monroe house to a buyer who has not yet been publicly identified. That person paid nearly $8.4 million for the property, in cash, and almost immediately applied for a demolition permit. The L.A. Department of Building and Safety recently approved the request for a “plan check” of the proposed work, though an official permit has not yet been issued.

      But if similar situations in the recent past are any indicator of this property’s future, it seems likely that the Monroe hacienda will soon be added to a long list of historical real estate treasures that continue to be lost. More