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      Ashley Benson Sells Her Historic Los Angeles Villa for $8.5 Million

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      Barely one month after she put it up for grabs, Ashley Benson’s Los Angeles home has officially sold. The 1930s Los Feliz residence, tucked away within the famously star-studded Laughlin Park gated community, went for $8.5 million — lower than the “Pretty Little Liars” star’s $9.5 million asking price, but far more than the $4.5 million she paid for the place back in 2020.

      Records show the buyers are Scott Parra-Matthews, the longtime CFO of major food wholesaler Vesta Foodservice, and his husband Jairo Parra-Matthews.

      During her ownership, Benson gave the property a big and very thorough remodel. In addition to bathing each room in vibrantly decadent colors, she also ripped out and replaced the entire kitchen, renovated the bathrooms and generally gave the whole place a new and very contemporary lease on life. And even the outdoors didn’t escape the magic Benson touch — the Orange County native added a high wall that surrounds the entire property, installed privacy hedges and even replaced the old swimming pool with a newer and sexier pool, complete with a big raised hot tub. “No money was spared during the recent remodel,” the listing proclaimed.

      Designed nearly a century ago by prolific L.A. architect Arthur Rowland Kelly, best known for also penning the Playboy Mansion, the nearly 5,000-square-foot house was modeled after the Mediterranean-style villas that lace the French and Italian Rivieras. Despite its age, Benson is reportedly only the Laughlin Park home’s fourth-ever owner.

      While plenty of original charm remains, those Benson upgrades are very bespoke. Some of the more unusual amenities include a hair salon, a speakeasy “VIP lounge bar” and a wood-paneled master bedroom with its own kitchenette and boutique-style closet. The master bath features separate greenhouse-like stations for the shower/tub area and the toilet, respectively, and other in-house upgrades include a dropdown projector screen and a state-of-the-art Control4 smart home system.

      The cul-de-sac property is atypical in that is surrounded on three sides by a roadway, meaning that outdoor space is somewhat limited, but there is a big and new stone patio with ample space for al fresco entertaining, plus a grassy patch of lawn. One extra-special feature: per this listing, this house is perched on a knoll at the very highest point of Laughlin Park, meaning it lords over all the neighbors and sports 360-degree views that encompass the Griffith Observatory, the Hollywood Hills and Downtown L.A. skyline.

      Laughlin Park has long been a favorite haunt of Hollywood’s biggest stars. Current residents include Brie Larson, Natalie Portman, Angelina Jolie, Kristen Stewart, Ellen Pompeo and Will.i.am, though the enclave is perhaps most famous for having been home to Cecil B. DeMille, the American cinema pioneer, for nearly 40 years. More

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      ‘Hacks’ Star Megan Stalter Just Snagged Herself Some Midcentury L.A. Digs

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      During the past few years, Megan Stalter has transitioned from the Chicago comedy scene to a breakout role as “party fashionista slash silly rich girl” assistant Kayla in the Emmy-nominated HBO Max series Hacks. Most recently, she also landed her first leading film role in Hannah Pearl Utt’s indie comedy-drama Cora Bora.

      Now the 32-year-old comedian and actress is putting down roots in the hip Silver Lake neighborhood of Los Angeles, having doled out just under $2 million for some midcentury-modern digs with both an architectural and a celebrity pedigree.

      Records show Stalter paid slightly over asking price for her recently acquired property, which was originally built and designed by noted University of Southern California-trained architect Ray Otero in the mid-1960s for a member of trumpeter Herb Alpert’s Tijuana Brass band. Last sold back in 2001 for $515,000, and tastefully updated in the years since, the boxy white structure is notched into a sloped hillside parcel spanning less than a quarter-acre of land, and fronted by a gated driveway that opens to a covered parking area with room for two vehicles.

      The living room boasts a wood-burning fireplace and sliding glass doors that open to a balcony providing eye-catching vistas.

      Jilbert Daniel

      Reached via a steep staircase, the lofty home offers three bedrooms and two baths in almost 1,400 square feet two-level living space adorned throughout with high ceilings, the original wood paneling and even central air-conditioning. Walls of glass offer up picturesque hillside and city lights views, with the open-concept floor plan highlighted by a taupe-hued living room displaying a wood-burning fireplace with a stove-pipe chimney, and sliding glass doors spilling out to a balcony on one side and an enclosed al fresco dining patio on the other.

      An adjacent window-lined dining area connects to the galley-style kitchen, which is outfitted with quartz countertops, a light-gray subway tile backsplash and newer stainless appliances, including a Bosch dishwasher. There’s also an inviting primary bedroom sporting a stylish bath equipped with dual vanities and a glassy shower, plus another bedroom that doubles as an office space.

      Only helmed as of now by three owners during its nearly 60-year history, the property was listed by Tracy Do and Victor Montecinos of Coldwell Banker Realty. Kerry Kimble of The Agency repped Stalter.

      Click here for more photos of Megan Stalter’s new Silver Lake house.

      Jilbert Daniel More

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      Meghan Trainor’s L.A. Farmhouse Hits the Market for $2.4 Million

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      Meghan Trainor is cleaning house yet again. A little over two years after she sold a Toluca Lake estate to Modern Family star Julie Bowen for $6 million, the Grammy-winning singer has decided to offload another one of her Los Angeles property holdings. This time it’s a charming single-story farmhouse in the Valley Village neighborhood, listed for a smidge under $2.4 million.

      Purchased by Trainor for just $1.7 million in December 2016—shortly after it was newly built, and before she married Spy Kids actor Daryl Sabara—the single-story home rests on less than a quarter-acre parcel of land protected by security cameras. Inside, four bedrooms and four baths are spread across a little more than 3,400 square feet of open-concept living space boasting high ceilings, European wide-plan oak floors, Lutron lighting and surround sound throughout.

      Fronted by a grassy lawn and an attached two-car garage, the white wood-shingled structure is highlighted by a gourmet kitchen accented with custom cabinetry, an eat-in island, stainless appliances and an adjoining dining area, plus a family room displaying a gas fireplace flanked by custom built-in shelving and accordion-style glass doors spilling out to a covered patio.

      Elsewhere is a formal living room and luxe primary bedroom sporting a walk-in closet, as well as a spa-inspired bath equipped with dual vanities, a soaking tub and large rainfall shower. Per the listing held by Justin Paul Huchel of Carolwood Estates, the fenced backyard also has a large grassy area with more than enough room for a pool.

      Though she’s owned this house for nearly seven years, Trainor reportedly never made it her main residence. She currently lives in the upscale L.A. neighborhood of Encino, where back in 2020 she and Sabara splashed out $6.6 million for a glitzy mansion. More

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      Alfred Hitchcock’s Former L.A. Home Has Been Sold for $8.8 Million to a Dutch Media Mogul

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      When English filmmaker Alfred Hitchcock moved to Los Angeles to conquer Hollywood in 1939—he made “Rebecca” the following year, which earned him the first of his five Oscar nominations—he and his wife, Alma, and daughter, Pat, initially made their home in a spacious rented apartment on Wilshire Boulevard. 

      Several years later, after acquiring a 200-acre getaway near Scotts Valley in the Santa Cruz Mountains, the family set down permanent roots in Los Angeles with the purchase of an English-Country-inspired home just up from the West Gate entrance to the tony Bel Air neighborhood.

      The Bel Air home, where the “Psycho” filmmaker lived until his death at age 80 in 1980, came up for sale earlier this year for $8.25 million, and though out of step with current decorative trends, the immaculately maintained home drew multiple offers that drove the recorded sale price up to just over $8.8 million.

      Tax records show the home had long been owned by a local businessman who made his fortune in the lumber and building supply industries and list the buyer as a foreign corporate entity linked to Dutch media mogul Reinout Oerlemans, founder of the TV production company Eyeworks.

      The loggia overlooks the swimming pool and lushly planted grounds.

      Mary E. Nichols

      Originally created by Carlton Burgess, who also designed and built Jack Benny’s Beverly Hills home, Hitchcock’s former sanctuary was extensively renovated and expanded in 1983. Concealed behind a dense wall of trees and vegetation and situated on almost two-thirds of an acre, the primarily single-story home measures somewhat more than 7,500 square feet and has two (and potentially four) bedrooms and five bathrooms.

      Beyond the fountained front entry, the living room features an oversized fireplace and vaulted wood-beamed ceilings; the dining room overlooks flowering gardens; and the eat-in kitchen showcases hand-painted tiles and blue Brazilian granite counters. There are two substantial bedroom suites, one for guests with a white marble bath and the other for the homeowner with dual dressing areas and baths.

      There are two more rooms that can be converted to additional bedrooms, according to marketing material, as well as a “hidden upstairs office/guest room with plumbing in place” to add another bathroom.

      The grounds offer a gated entry, mature trees and flowering gardens, a spacious courtyard, and a huge loggia with an outdoor fireplace alongside a turquoise swimming pool. There’s also garaging for three cars and parking for many more, as well as a couple of storage buildings.

      Snapdragons add color to the edge of the swimming pool.

      Mary E. Nichols

      Steeped in Hollywood lore and ready for its next close-up, the property was listed with Ginger Glass at Compass, while Oerlemans was represented in the transaction by Rayni Williams and Branden Williams at The Beverly Hills Estates.

      If their former homes in Los Angeles are any indication, Oerlemans and his wife Danielle will likely embark on an extensive re-make of the property. The couple previously owned a spectacular, 33,000-square-foot Bel Air mansion—perhaps not coincidentally, it’s directly across the 15th fairway from their new property—that they sold in 2021 for $70 million to The Weeknd, who used the home as the set for his HBO series “The Idol.”

      Click here for all the photos of Alfred Hitchcock’s former home at 10957 Bellagio Road.

      Mary E. Nichols More

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      Rockstar Energy’s Founder Sells His Sprawling L.A. Estate for $25 Million

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      After more than three years of it bouncing on and off the market, energy drink mogul Russ Weiner has finally succeeded in unloading his Beverly Park mansion, one of two lavish estates he owns in the famously expensive and star-studded gated community. The 1.2-acre property sold for exactly $25 million to local businessman Tony Safoian, the CEO of Google Cloud-focused technology consultancy SADA Systems, and his longtime wife Lana.

      Built in 1999 for a now-deceased Russian businessman and designed by noted architect Richard Landry, the Tuscan-style manor sits behind gates and tall hedges. With 10,575 square feet of main house living space, plus a detached guesthouse, the resort-like place has more than enough room for grand galas and events.

      Weiner, 53, bought the house in 2015 for $18.6 million. With brief interruptions, the essentially unchanged property has been on the market since early 2020, with asking prices ranging from a high of $35 million to a low of $27.9 million. When Safoian finally came calling, the house was listed at $30 million.

      In addition to eight bedrooms and 10 bathrooms, interior highlights include an enormous foyer with dual staircases, limestone flooring throughout, a gym with an attached sauna and massage room, a chef’s kitchen with commercial-grade appliances and a mahogany library that includes a walk-in safe. Upstairs, the master retreat is itself the size of a small house, and packs in a spa-style bathroom, dual closets, a private office, private balcony and a “hidden” spiral staircase leading down into the library, per the listing.

      Outdoors, the grounds include two expansive lawns, one made of AstroTurf and the other containing real grass. There are also pathways traced by manicured boxwood, bright bunches of bougainvillea and olive trees. And al fresco entertaining is made easy with a loggia-covered dining area and a poolside outdoor kitchen with an outdoor fireplace, wet bar and built-in BBQ center.

      Safoian, 45, cofounded SADA Systems in 2000. In 2021, the North Hollywood-based tech company surpassed $1 billion in annual revenue for the first time; last year, it inked a $2.5 billion partnership deal with Google. Since 2015, Safoian has owned and occupied a two-story house in the Sherman Oaks neighborhood.

      As for Weiner, he now primarily resides in Florida but still owns a mansion in Park City, Utah, in addition to another Beverly Park home he’s owned since 2007 and an investment property in the Hollywood Hills.

      Beverly Park, long famed as the most expensive gated community in Los Angeles, boasts a number of high-profile residents behind its heavily guarded gates. While turnover has been heavy in recent years, Hollywood figures such as Eddie Murphy, Denzel Washington, Sofia Vergara, Adele, The Rock and Rod Stewart still call the enclave home. More

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      Restoration Hardware’s CEO Snaps Up an Oceanfront Malibu Mansion for $26 Million

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      Gary Friedman recently said the “housing market is collapsing” at 2008 levels, but that hasn’t stopped the famously candid and longtime RH chief executive from dipping his toe into the choppy real estate waters. In a deal that closed last week, Friedman paid $26.7 million for an oceanfront mansion in Malibu.

      The 66-year-old billionaire and his wife Bella Hunter actually scored a deal on their new vacation home, which sits on prestigious Carbon Beach — the long strip of sand also home to fellow billionaires such as Larry Ellison, Michael Milken and film producer Arnon Milchan. The new Friedman residence was originally offered a year ago at $40 million, though the price tag was slashed down to $30 million before the buyers came calling.

      The 0.36-acre lot and its 80 feet of beach frontage last sold in 1994 for just $1 million. The buyer, local philanthropist Mel Rosenthal, subsequently custom-built the current house. Completed in 1997, the boxy contemporary structure is clad in pale yellow stucco and features a gated motorcourt with garage parking for three cars.

      Inside, highlights include disappearing walls of glass that drink in the unstoppable ocean views, plus Portuguese limestone floors, a huge atrium skylight, a chef’s kitchen with granite countertops, a laundry room with a dog-washing station, an elevator and long gallery walls “suitable for a museum-quality art collection,” per the listing.

      Also on tap are five bedrooms, each with ensuite bathrooms and one that currently functions as an at-home gym. The 5,600-square-foot house also offers an upstairs master suite with a fireplace, bespoke closet, private balcony and a private office with a sink and beverage refrigerator.

      Out back, an oceanfront deck spans the full width of the house and sports ceramic tile floors, ample space for al fresco entertaining and a built-in barbecue center and hot tub. And while landscaping is sparse, typical of oceanfront Malibu properties, the front courtyard does offer several mature palm trees and lushly filled planters that lend the place a distinctly tropical vibe.

      With only one brief interruption, Friedman has been a top executive of the company formerly known as Restoration Hardware since 2001 and has a personal net worth of $1.8 billion, per Forbes. In addition to his new beachfront retreat, he also maintains a $37 million mansion in the mountains above Beverly Hills. Last year, the San Francisco native has sold a half-built Los Angeles estate for $24 million to an anonymous buyer. More

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      Nicollette Sheridan Is Selling Her French Country-Style Estate in SoCal

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      A sprawling Hidden Hills estate long owned by veteran film and TV actress Nicollette Sheridan has just popped up for sale with a nearly $16 million asking price—or almost $12 million more than the Desperate Housewives star and her ex-fiancé Michael Bolton paid Melissa Etheridge and wife Tammy Lynn Michaels for the place around 15 years ago, back in spring 2008.

      Originally built in the late 1970s and extensively updated through the years, the San Fernando Valley spread is “elegantly designed in Country French style,” per the listing, which is held by Mark S. Gruskin and Stephen Shapiro of Westside Estate Agency.

      Nestled behind a lengthy gated driveway, on an almost 4-acre hilltop parcel of land surrounded by equestrian amenities and riding trails, the ivy-clad structure has six bedrooms and seven baths in 7,500 square feet of living space punctuated throughout by vaulted wood-beam ceilings, and a mix of limestone and wide-plank French oak floors.

      Also on tap are plenty of snazzy amenities—a wine closet, tennis court, gym, freeform pool and raised spa, an outdoor kitchen boasting a pizza oven imported from Italy, and high-tech Control4, Nest, Ring and Aqua Link systems, just for starters.

      A seated wet bar and floor-to-ceiling fireplace hold court in the inviting family room.

      Marcelo Lagos

      Other standout features include formal living and dining rooms with French doors spilling out to a covered patio, plus a wet bar-equipped family room warmed by a fireplace. An adjoining gourmet kitchen sports Calacatta marble countertops, a central island, top-tier Viking and Sub-Zero appliances (including two built-in refrigerators), a windowed breakfast nook with built-in banquette seating, and butler and silver pantries.

      There’s also a wood-paneled office and an additional lounge area on the upper level, as well as a sumptuous primary bedroom that comes complete with a fireplace, sitting area, walk-in closet, and luxe bath hosting a pedestal spa tub, steam shower and sauna; and rounding it all out is a separate guest suite with its own stairway entrance, three-car garage and hefty monthly $1,132 HOA fee just for the privilege of calling the exclusive enclave home.

      In addition to a pool and spa, the grassy backyard hosts an outdoor kitchen equipped with a pizza oven imported from Italy.

      Marcelo Lagos

      The England-born actress, 59, began her career as a fashion model before landing her first TV acting job in the short-lived ABC drama Paper Dolls. She went on to star in the movie The Sure Thing, but her breakout role came as Paige Matheson on the CBS primetime soap opera Knots Landing, for which she earned two Soap Opera Digest Awards. She also received a Golden Globe nod for her work on Desperate Housewives, and most recently, she reprised Joan Collins’ part as Alexis Carrington on The CW’s Dynasty reboot.

      After dating Bolton for several years in the early 1990s, she and the Grammy-winning singer later rekindled their relationship and became engaged in 2006. Though he put his Connecticut digs up for sale at $11 million to move into the Hidden Hills property with her, the pair split just two days later. 

      Click here for more photos of Nicollette Sheridan’s Hidden Hills house. More

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      Halsey Buys the Beatles Sound Engineer’s Magical Los Angeles Hideaway

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      Halsey recently put her extravagant estate near Calabasas up for sale, asking $12 million. Previously owned by One Direction’s Liam Payne and sprawling across some five contiguous acres, that property has since sold for $11.6 million to an anonymous buyer.

      The “Without Me” singer appears to have radically altered her living situation; records confirm she’s paid $2.5 million to buy a small but stunning bungalow in L.A.’s musician-loved Laurel Canyon neighborhood. Nestled into the base of a rugged hill, the 1929 cottage was recently updated and heavily revised by Lauren Caris Cohan, a filmmaker and chief creative officer for the fashion brand Reformation. Before that, the 1,117-square-foot residence was long owned by music industry legend Geoff Emerick.

      Emerick, best known as an audio engineer for The Beatles, helped produce some of the most iconic albums in rock history — “Revolver,” “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band” and “Abbey Road.” And Emerick’s talents proved immensely popular with other industry folk, as he later worked with Elvis Costello, Kate Bush, The Zombies, and Paul McCartney’s post-Beatles group Wings.

      Walled, gated and set high above the street, the Laurel Canyon home is admirably private. A quaint stone-and-brick staircase leads to a hand-carved front door; inside, the two-bedroom structure includes a surprisingly large living room with a soaring ceiling, original oak hardwood floors, intricate iron detailing and an original wood-burning fireplace.

      Mixed in with all those vintage features are plenty of modern amenities, too. Most notably, the kitchen offers new Italian terracotta floors, top-of-the-line Bertazzoni appliances and brass fixtures. Elsewhere are two bathrooms, both slathered in Japanese ceramic tile, and a spacious rooftop deck with built-in seating and a gas fireplace.

      Out back, the half-acre lot is shaded by mature trees and is visually spruced up by a Mediterranean-style garden awash in lavender and bougainvillea. Those lush pantings surround multiple terraced patios ideal for al fresco entertaining, a petite plunge pool and even an outdoor shower.

      Halsey, 28, is new to the Laurel Canyon area but not to the Hollywood Hills. From 2017-2020, she lived in the nearby Beachwood Canyon neighborhood, where she owned an updated midcentury home situated almost directly below the famed Hollywood Sign. More