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      Charlize Theron Just Bought a $3.3 Million House in SoCal’s Studio City

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      Barely a month after she hoisted her mother’s Los Angeles house in a particularly celeb-packed pocket of the Hollywood Hills onto the market for $3.8 million, Charlize Theron has upgraded Gerda Maritz into a new home. Records show the veteran actress—who also owns three other properties in the Southern California area—just plunked down $3.3 million for some modern farmhouse-style digs in the desirable Colfax Meadows neighborhood of Studio City.

      Originally built in 2016 and recently updated, per the listing, the two-story property offers five en-suite bedrooms and six bathrooms in a little more than 3,300 square feet of open-concept living space adorned throughout with decorative wainscoting and crown molding, wide-plank wood floors and high ceilings. Numerous windows also provide plenty of natural light.

      Theron’s newly acquired residence sits on less than a quarter-acre parcel of land, at the end of a wide driveway that empties out at an attached two-car garage fronting the white wood-sided structure. From there, a walkway leads up to the glass-paneled front door, which opens into a living area nestled alongside a dining room boasting a coffered ceiling and built-in china cabinet. There’s also a cozy family room anchored by a fireplace bordered by custom shelving and sliding glass doors spilling outside, plus a gourmet kitchen outfitted with white oak cabinetry, a marble-clad eat-in island, and top-tier Miele and Wolf appliances.

      A floating iron-railed staircase heads upstairs, where a posh master retreat comes complete with a balcony, “diva” walk-in closet, and two-way fireplace that connects on the other side to a luxe spa-like bath equipped with dual vanities, a freestanding soaking tub and large glass-encased shower; and outdoors, the private and grassy backyard hosts a fire-pit, heated pool and spa, and an al fresco lounging and entertaining terrace bolstered by a built-in Hestan grill.

      A native of South Africa, the 48-year-old actress first gained notoriety after appearing in the films The Devil’s Advocate, Mighty Joe Young and The Cider House Rules, and went on to win a 2004 “Best Actress” Oscar for her portrayal of real-life serial killer Aileen Wuornos in Monster. Theron has since appeared in numerous movies and TV series, including North Country, Tully, Bombshell, The Italian Job, Mad Max: Fury Road and Atomic Blonde. Under Denver and Delilah Productions, she’s also produced The Burning Plain, Dark Places and Long Shot.

      In addition to her just-purchased abode, Theron also lays claim to another Studio City house she paid $2.6 million for in late 2022—reportedly occupied by another family member—as well as a 20-acre ranch in Ojai that she bought for $4.2 million in summer 2018 and her main residence, a 1920s Mediterranean-style villa in Hollywood Hills acquired for $1.6 million back in the late 1990s. As for her mother’s old Hollywood Hills home, that place is currently pending sale. More

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      A Jamaican Hideaway Featured in the Bob Marley Biopic ‘One Love’ Can Be Yours for $16.8 Million

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      Always wanted to live like a legendary reggae musician who sold more than 20 million records during his lifetime? Now’s your chance, because the blissful Jamaican retreat currently appearing in the newly released film One Love has just hit the market for $16.8 million.

      Featured prominently in the biopic, it’s at these cool digs that the late Bob Marley (played by Kingsley Ben-Adir) went to recuperate after he was shot during a 1970s assassination attempt. It’s also said to have been a favorite outpost of the Rolling Stones and Willie Nelson, and was written up in the book 1,000 Places to See Before You Die by Patricia Schultz.

      Nestled on a remote 26-acre parcel high atop Jamaica’s Blue Mountains—a UNESCO World Heritage Site laced with coffee farms, giant swallowtail butterflies and more than 300 species of birds—the boutique luxury resort in St. Andrew, near the Caribbean island’s capital city of Kingston, is being offered by the U.S. marketing team of Ivan Hernandez, Leslie Cooper and Alex Miranda at Compass.

      Each cottage boasts four-poster beds and private verandas overlooking serene gardens and picturesque views.

      Navarone Morgan

      Known as Strawberry Hill Hotel, the charming white wood-framed and shingle-roof dwelling is currently owned by Island Records founder Chris Blackwell, who acquired the property in 1974 and subsequently enlisted local architect Ann Hodges to restore the premises in the ’80s after damage from Hurricane Gilbert.

      Originally built in the 18th century, Strawberry Hill actually began its life as a coffee plantation and strawberry farm that was gifted by the Royal Family in 1780 to Horace Walpole, the 4th Earl of Orford and son of Prime Minister Robert Walpole. The site went on to serve as a naval hospital for foreign officers in the late 18th century, then belonged to several well-known Jamaican families before ultimately going to Blackwell.

      A serene lagoon-style swimming pool is ringed by palms and exotic blossoms.

      Navarone Morgan

      Today, the establishment is part of Backwell’s Island Outpost hotel chain, and boasts 13 Georgian-style cottages adorned with plantation shutters, fretwork fanlights hand-crafted by local artisans, mahogany four-poster beds and French doors spilling out to private verandas. There’s also a restaurant and bar, an indoor/outdoor spa with five treatment rooms, infinity-edge swimming pool, a yoga pavilion, meandering pathways leading to hidden pergolas, a helipad, and per the listing, the opportunity for the new owner to add 16 more villas.

      Click here for more photos of Jamaica’s Strawberry Hill Hotel.

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      The Menendez Brothers’s Murder Mansion in Beverly Hills Just Sold for $17 Million

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      It is perhaps one of the most infamous homes in true crime history. But for all the darkness that surrounds it, the Los Angeles mansion where Erik and Lyle Menendez murdered their parents today bears no remnant of the grisly crime for which it is known. Lavish and well-maintained, the Mediterranean-style mansion sits behind carefully clipped hedges and sycamore trees on a lovely, sunny street in the Beverly Hills Flats neighborhood.

      The home’s macabre history also failed to scare well-heeled buyers away. After putting it up for sale at the end of last year, longtime owner Samuel Delug has just unloaded the place for exactly $17 million—a discount off the nearly $20 million ask, but still more than quadruple what the local businessman paid for the house back in 2001. The new owners, per records, are the Lahijanis, a wealthy Iranian family based in Beverly Hills.

      Inside, the palatial home boasts a two-story foyer with limestone floors, a wood-paneled billiard room, a living room with Palladian windows and a den with a wet bar. It was in that very den, as many true crime aficionados know, where wealthy businessman Jose Menendez and his wife Kitty were shot dead with a pair of 12-gauge shotguns in August 1989.

      The Menendez family had been renting the Beverly Hills house while they waited for construction on their dream home in Calabasas to be finished, and the resulting publicity generated by the murders catapulted the house into the international spotlight. In 1993, the 90210 manse was bought by Murder, She Wrote co-creator William Link, who sold the place in 2001 to Delug.

      Built in 1927 but radically remodeled in the 1970s and again in the mid 1980s, the Mediterranean-style mansion also offers seven bedrooms and nine bathrooms in about 9,000 square feet of living space, all of it set on a half-acre lot with a backyard swimming pool and detached guesthouse.

      Other notable home amenities include backyard rose gardens, a wine cellar with a tasting room, a wood-paneled office,and an enormous primary bedroom with black-and-gold carpeting, plus dual bathrooms and dual showroom closets. The two-story guesthouse contains an upstairs bedroom with a private balcony, plus an attached one-car garage accessed via a discreet alleyway that runs behind the property.

      Amy Vertun of Rodeo Realty held the listing; Jordana Leigh, also of Rodeo Realty, repped the buyers. More

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      Flea Relists His Offbeat Compound North of Los Angeles for $7 Million

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      Back in early 2022, after having picked up a $14 million spread in the steep mountains above Beverly Hills—and already owning a petite hideaway in the exclusive Malibu Colony gated community—Michael “Flea” Balzary decided to hoist his funky architectural digs tucked away in the La Crescenta foothills of Los Angeles onto the market for $9.8 million. Now, a little more than two years later, the Red Hot Chili Pepper bassist’s pedigreed property in the unincorporated community near Glendale has once again resurfaced for sale, per TMZ, this time asking a speck under $7 million.

      That’s still a lot more than the $4.3 million Balzary paid contemporary artists Lari Pittman and Roy Dowell for the place in 2018, but it does include an 875-square-foot addition that was installed on the land in 2021, as well as a pool and cabin that were tacked on in 2020.

      The seven-sided main home is wrapped around a central courtyard.

      Lauren Engel/Cameron Carothers

      Sited about 20 miles north of Downtown L.A., amid a “curated succulent garden” bordering the Angeles National Forest, the hilltop compound is sequestered down a lengthy driveway and features two primary dwellings—a glassy main house designed by L.A.-based architect Michael Maltzan in 2009, plus a 1950s home specially crafted by noted modernist architect Richard Neutra for his secretary Dorothy Serulnic and her husband George.

      Also on the premises are a striking accessory cabin clad entirely in redwood, an outdoor movie pavilion, and sweeping mountain and city lights views from every vantage point. As for the main home, commissioned by Pittman and Dowell, it includes an impressive seven-sided structure wrapped around a central courtyard, along with the aforementioned recent Maltzan addition. Featured in Architectural Record, it’s garnered a trio of awards from the American Institute of Architects.

      A curvilinear penny-tiled bathroom is a focal point of the primary house.

      Lauren Engel/Cameron Carothers

      Particularly standing out inside is a primary bedroom sporting a curvilinear penny-tiled bath, and the space also holds an office, a den and tons of built-in storage space; outdoors, a Johnston Vidal lap pool stretches 50 feet, while an open-air movie pavilion is outfitted with a wind screen and catering kitchen.

      Known as the “Dorothy Serulnic Residence,” the original abode packs two bedrooms and a full bath into 1,350 square feet of restored living space boasting walls of glass and a stone fireplace. Neutra-designed built-ins can be found throughout—think a sofa system sporting a record player and concealed speakers, along with numerous desks, shelving systems, a dining room table, sliding breakfast nook and vanity.

      “The property is literally your own midcentury space station right here in Los Angeles,” says Branden Williams of The Beverly Hills Estates, who shares the listing with Rayni Williams of The Beverly Hills Estates, and Sherri Rogers and Anthony Stellini of Compass.

      Click here for more photos of Flea’s Los Angeles compound.

      Lauren Engel/Cameron Carothers More

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      A Retired MLB Pitcher’s Former Missouri Estate Has Hit the Market for $14.5 Million

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      A sprawling 104-acre Missouri estate built by MLB legend and World Series MVP Cole Hamels has hit the market for $14.5 million. However, the vast spread’s massive residence has a curveball up its sleeve—it’s not quite finished yet. 

      According to Mansion Global, the pitcher, who retired last year, began construction on the mega-mansion in West Branson back in 2016 while he was playing for the Texas Rangers. Hamels and his wife later put the property up for sale in 2017 but ended up handing the spread over before it was completed to Camp Barnabas, a Christian summer camp for children with disabilities. The baseball player’s former home was later purchased in February 2021 by its current owners, Samuel and Simona Bodea, the owners of SS Express, an Arizona-based trucking company.

      The former Missouri home of retired MLB pitcher Cole Hamels is up for sale.

      Lighthouse Photography/ReeceNichols

      “The current owners bought the home from Camp Barnabas and did major renovation work over the past three years,” listing agent Jim Strong of Berkshire Hathaway’s ReeceNichols told Mansion Global. Measuring a whopping 36,000 square feet, the stately compound features a main house and a separate guest dwelling. Since the Bodeas moved in, they’ve transformed the 14-bedroom, 15-bath main residence into a luxury event space to accommodate weddings or corporate outings. Currently, the couple resides in a five-bed, six-bath annex.

      Among the updates made over the years by the Bodeas are adding underground plumbing, installing new electrical systems, and putting in a sinuous, tiered infinity swimming pool. On the main floor, the kitchen alone measures a commodious 2,000 square feet. 

      The property features a shaded boat dock with three slips.

      Lighthouse Photography/ReeceNichols

      “Everything in the home is automated, including the water,” Samuel told the listing site. “There are no taps or valves here, you just talk to the house and say, ‘Kohler, start a shower at 70 or 100 degrees [Fahrenheit],’ then jump in.” Of course, there are other custom touches too, including exposed beams, barrel ceilings, and wood-trimmed casement windows and doors.

      As it stands, Samuel told Mansion Global that the estate is almost finished, but the new owners are welcome to pick up where he and his wife left off. “Someone could definitely still make it their dream home if that’s what they want,” Samuel said. “No dream is too big or too small for this place.“ 

      Click here to see more photos of Cole Hamels’s former home.

      Lighthouse Photography/ReeceNichols

      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…

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      Billionaire Marc Andreessen’s Longtime Silicon Valley Estate Just Popped Up for Sale at $33 Million

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      Marc Andreessen currently lays claim to more than $255 million worth of properties in Malibu, including a 13-structure Paradise Cove compound and an adjacent $34 million property, plus another $44.5 million home on nearby Escondido Beach. So, now that he spends a significant amount of time in the seaside SoCal city, it’s not entirely surprising that the tech/crypto/venture-capitalist billionaire has decided to hoist his longtime Northern California residence onto the market.

      The asking price is a tad over $33 million, or roughly double what the co-founder of Netscape and venture-capital firm Andreessen Horowitz and his wife Laura Arillaga—the only daughter of late Silicon Valley philanthropist and multibillionaire John Arrillaga—forked over for the place a little more than 17 years ago, back in early 2007.

      Completed in the mid-1990s by custom builder Colin Whiteside, but extensively renovated over four years during the couple’s tenure, the gated 1.5-acre spread in the affluent Silicon Valley enclave of Atherton includes a main Tuscan-style mansion, plus a guesthouse and separate office/studio—for a total of five bedrooms and seven baths in a little more than 12,400 square feet.

      The stucco and terracotta-roof structure is showcased by balconies and a terrace lined with carved balustrades.

      Bernard André

      A circular driveway fronts the primary residence, which is distinguished by an expansive terrace lined with carved balustrades and topped by balconies. Once inside, a foyer displaying herringbone-style cherry floors and a sweeping staircase greets and flows to three-story living space highlighted by an elevator to all levels, seven fireplaces, and high-tech home-automation, security and surveillance systems.

      In addition to a living area boasting soundproof suede walls, automated window shades, a concealed projector and retractable cinema screen, other highlights include a formal dining room served by two kitchens outfitted with a suite of top-tier Bosch, Hestan, Kitchen-Aid, Miele, Sub-Zero and Wolf appliances, as well as a family room that opens to a covered terrace sporting a built-in barbecue, den with an adjoining office, recreation/media room, mirrored gym, and an upstairs lounge that connects to a sumptuous primary bedroom decked out with a private balcony, dual walk-in closets, and a luxe marble-clad bath spotlighted by a spa tub and curbless shower.

      A hallmark of the residence is a commitment to media needs, complete with both visible and concealed screens in nearly every room.

      Bernard André

      Outdoors, the manicured grounds are laced with a mix of natural and synthetic grass lawns. specimen trees, gardens and fountains, and host an arbor-covered media lounge. As previously mentioned, the premises also contain a one-bedroom, one-bath guesthouse with its own kitchen and living area, and an office/studio with a kitchenette and full bath. There’s also a three-car garage with a fourth bay that’s been converted into an office and catering space.

      Besides his Malibu and Atherton properties, Andreessen—whose net worth is currently estimated at $1.9 billion—also reportedly owns a $36 million vacant lot just outside Las Vegas.

      Click here for more photos of Marc Andreessen’s Silicon Valley estate.

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      Winnie Harlow Seeks $3.7 Million for Modern Farmhouse-Style L.A. Estate

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      About 3.5 years ago, Winnie Harlow celebrated the purchase of her very first house with an Instagram post that racked up hundreds of thousands of likes. But with her red-hot career continuing to soar, it’s perhaps not surprising that one world’s most in-demand fashion models is already moving on from her suburban Los Angeles residence. Newly up for grabs and offered at a hair under $3.7 million, the decidedly luxe home is sequestered in the San Fernando Valley neighborhood of Tarzana.

      Back in September 2020, during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic, Harlow dropped millions—$3.3 million, to be exact—on that aforementioned Tarzana home, a spacious modern farmhouse-style new spec build with nearly 4,300 square feet of living space. The mostly flat property includes a relatively big backyard with covered patios, a barbecue center, fire-pit and a saltwater pool with waterfall features. At the far rear of the lot lies a a big grassy lawn that could easily accommodate a future sports court and small guesthouse, should the next owner choose to add them.

      Built by a developer on speculation in 2020, the spacious residence is a quintessential “modern farmhouse.”

      Google Earth

      Behind gates, the residence features an attached two-car garage and front door that opens directly into a living room equipped with clerestory windows and a fireplace. Oak floors imported from Europe flow into the open dining room, which connects to a chef’s kitchen with stainless Thermador appliances, a walk-in pantry and breakfast nook.

      Open to the kitchen area is the family room, which offers a linear stone fireplace and wet bar with a beverage refrigerator, plus a walk-in wine closet that’s fully temperature-controlled. Pocket sliding doors allow the indoor living area to effortlessly spill outside, and entertaining is a proverbial breeze — the entire property has surround sound technology, security cameras and smart-home technology for peace of mind.

      All five of the bedrooms feature ensuite full baths, and the main floor also features a powder room. Upstairs, the primary suite offers high ceilings and balcony views of the entire backyard, plus is complemented by a luxe stone bathroom and dual closets with wall-to-wall custom built-ins.

      A native Canadian, Harlow was discovered by Tyra Banks and catwalked to public prominence in 2014 as a contestant of the 21st season of America’s Next Top Model. The 29-year-old is now one of the world’s top social media influencers, with over 10 million followers on Instagram alone, and a runway/print model who has shot campaigns for Fendi, Nike, Swarovski, Marc Jacobs and Steve Madden, to name a few. She’s also appeared on the cover of Vogue, and starred in music videos alongside the likes of Beyonce and Eminem. More

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      A Tech Magnate Is Asking $85 Million for His Extravagant Beverly Hills Compound

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      Around 24 years ago, in December 2000, Jim Demetriades began piecing together a lavish compound with a single house that he and his then-new wife Nancy had picked up for $8.4 million. Never on the market before, the veteran tech entrepreneur’s incomparable spread dubbed “Villa Theos” has now popped up for sale in the desirable Beverly Hills Post Office area of Los Angeles, asking an impressive $85 million.

      As first reported by The Wall Street Journal, the gated collection of red brick and stucco structures cost tens of millions of dollars to assemble, and includes the since-renovated main home and several ancillary buildings—for a total of 13 bedrooms and 16 bathrooms in 28,000 square feet, all of it resting on two parcels of land spanning over 2 acres, and boasting choice amenities ranging from a bowling alley and nightclub, to a shooting range and subterranean man cave/bunker accessible via a tunnel.

      “Jim and I really sat down and thought, ‘OK, if we could have anything we wanted—the sky’s the limit—what would we want?’ And we just went for it,” Nancy told WSJ.

      The resort-like grounds are spotlighted by an infinity-edge swimming pool.

      Anthony Barcelo

      The result? A primary dwelling spotlighted by a formal living room flaunting a reclaimed wood-beam ceiling, wet bar and an antique fireplace imported from France, plus a luxe primary bedroom that comes complete with a separate fireside sitting room and dual baths. Surrounding it are multiple guesthouses and office spaces, along with a recently completed “coach house” featuring an Old West-themed nightclub sporting a disco ball, velvet couches and a custom 50,000-watt speaker system with subwoofers built into the ceiling.

      But that’s not all! There’s also a 20-seat movie theater, bowling alley, shooting range, gym and classroom setup for the couple’s five children who are now grown, as well as a subterranean man cave/emergency bunker equipped with bulletproof doors and a 4,500-bottle wine cellar. Last, but definitely not least: the resort-worthy grounds, which overlook picturesque city lights and ocean vistas, and host some 140 fruit trees, several spots ideal for al fresco lounging and entertaining, an infinity-edge swimming pool and even a chicken coop.

      A 4,500-bottle wine cellar is one of the many amenities dotting the property. 

      Anthony Barcelo

      According to WSJ, the Greece native and Pasadena-raised founder and CEO of Kairos Ventures—a venture-capital firm that invests in groundbreaking startups and research in the technology, and life and physical sciences arenas—and his former actress wife are selling because they are “faced with the prospect of becoming empty-nesters sooner than expected.”

      The listing is held by Drew Fenton of Carolwood Estates and Kurt Rappaport of Westside Estate Agency.

      Click here for more photos of Villa Theos.

      Anthony Barcelo More