Newsletter: Hot Property: A one-two political punch
You can’t even escape the election season when you’re reading about real estate. Two houses involving big names from the presidential contest have made the rounds recently on the celebrity housing circuit. First up was a home once owned by Republican nominee Donald Trump. Then came word that former Democratic hopeful Bernie Sanders bought a place on the lake in Vermont. This week, we bring you political-related housing news using some of the candidates’ favorite phrases.
– Neal J. Leitereg and Lauren Beale
A tale of two candidates
One of the best mansions in Beverly Hills, a Greek Revival-inspired house on North Rodeo Drive, is on the market at $29.995 million. You couldn’t find a better mansion. We know mansions.
And it comes with one of the most well-known next-door neighbors, presidential candidate Donald Trump — who previously owned the estate himself.
Trump actually flipped the for-sale estate seven years ago. He had bought the house in 2008 for $10.35 million and, a year later, lost a little off the top, selling for $9,500,095.
Built in 1981, the grand two-story has a symmetrical, wide front lined with slender columns. Windows flanked with green shutters span the length of the exterior. We think the posh place looks pretty presidential. You couldn’t find a more presidential house in Beverly Hills. We know Beverly Hills.
Inside, some 15,000 square feet of polished space boasts a chandelier-topped, marble-lined foyer and all the bells and whistles.
A Beverly Hills home that Trump sold for a loss in 2009 is up for sale for $29.995 million. (Marc & Tiffany Angeles | Inset: Los Angeles Times)
On the other side of the country, Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders and his wife, Jane, dropped $575,000 on a lakeside home in North Hero, reported the Burlington Free Press. Let us just say this: The second home has a pebble beach and Lake Champlain views that extend to the Green Mountains.
Second of all, the 1920 cabin was expanded in 1986, when a log home was added to the original structure. There are three bedrooms, two bathrooms and a screened porch. A guest cottage has an additional bedroom, a bunk room and a bathroom for a total of 1,883 square feet between the two structures.
Let us be very clear. As we understand it, the 1.13-acre property has 500 feet of lakefront.
Cancel the fan tour bus
Singer-songwriter Josh Groban has finalized the sale of his Malibu estate in a $3.75-million deal outside of the Multiple Listing Service.
Now if you are thinking Malibu as in sandy coastline and endless ocean views, think again. The Tuscan-style, 3,300-square-foot house sits on about two heavily wooded acres with mountain views. A lighted tennis court, a swimming pool with a raised spa, walking paths, lawns and patios complete the picture.
Fun features include a wine cellar, a gym, a music room/studio and a game room with a wet bar.
Groban, 35, lost a little off the top, too. He had owned the place for more than a decade and bought it for $4.125 million.
Groban parted ways with his scenic home in Malibu for $3.75 million. (Simon Berlyn | Getty Images)
Plenty of character
“How I Met Your Mother” actor Jason Segel has met a buyer, who paid $1.525 million for his Griffith Park-area home. He no longer needs the 1930s two-story because he bought a 1920s Mediterranean-style place nearby in March for $2.25 million.
While his old house looks like a modest rambler from the front, the multi-level home opens to rooms with vaulted ceilings and several balcony-style decks. Brick steps off the back porch, which has a wet bar and mini-refrigerator, lead down to patio space.
The freshly painted interiors feature updated bathrooms, an expansive walk-in dressing room/closet and French doors.
We’re thinking the new buyer will want to put some money into the kitchen, which appears to have older cabinets and counters. Overall, it’s a very sweet crib.
His own best neighbor?
Comic and reality competition judge Howie Mandel is increasing his real estate portfolio — within one building.
He recently bought a pair of condos in downtown Santa Monica in separate, off-market deals for a total of $4 million. Last year, he bought a two-story penthouse with an elevator and a full-floor private garden in the same building for $5.3 million.
The larger of the two recent purchases features steel beams, an industrial vibe stainless steel kitchen island, 14-foot ceilings, a loft and exposed brick. A wall of windows looks out on the rooftops of surrounding buildings.
The smaller ground-floor condo features exposed steel beams and mahogany wood floors.
Mandel, 60, has been a judge on “America’s Got Talent” since 2010 and hosted “Deal or No Deal” from 2005 to 2009.
Mandel paid a combined $4 million for two condos in downtown Santa Monica. (Realtor.com | Getty Images)
Fishing in Beverly Hills
Australian entrepreneur and film producer Andrew Banks, who is a panelist on the television series “Shark Tank Australia,” is trolling for a buyer for his Beverly Hills mansion. The asking price is $17.495 million.
The 10,522-square-foot house, big even by 90210 standards, sits on about half an acre of grounds sporting a manicured look.
The remodeled European-style mansion opens to a dramatic two-story foyer with two curving staircases, clerestory windows and a chandelier. Name an amenity and this place probably has it.
Elevator? Certainly. A gym/yoga studio? Yep. A grand swimming pool with a spa? Hook, line and sinker.
Banks looks to turn a tidy profit on his Beverly Hills home, now listed for sale at $17.495 million. (The Agency)
Cowboy’s recent interception
Orlando Scandrick has a new place to store his spare cleats. The Dallas Cowboys cornerback has snagged an estate in a gated Tarzana neighborhood for $2.8 million.
It’s a great catch. The French-château-inspired home is suited up with outdoor amenities. There’s a built-in barbecue, a fire pit and a lighted basketball half-court. The saltwater swimming pool has a spa and a water slide.
The party continues inside the roughly 6,400-square-foot home, which features a family room with a walk-in bar, and an oversized kitchen with two islands. The master suite opens to a balcony overlooking the pool.
Scandrick, 29, missed all of last season due to injury. The veteran defensive back signed a one-year extension last year worth $9.5 million that will keep him with Dallas through the 2019 season.
Scandrick bought the French château-inspired home in a gated Tarzana community for $2.8 million. (Ariel One | Getty Imges)
Knee-friendly feature
San Diego Chargers tight end Antonio Gates would like to unload his Hollywood Hills West contemporary for $2.999 million.
The four-story home’s 4,400 square feet of interior space are looking good with an aqua-tinted fireplace, an updated kitchen with a wine cooler, a media room and swirling chandelier atop the two-story entry. An elevator serves each level.
Outdoors, the rear patio area includes a swimming pool with a spa. A terrace off the front takes in mountain views.
Gates, 36, is the Chargers’ all-time record-holder for receiving yards (10,644) and touchdown catches (104). Plus, he’s just eight TDs shy of Tony Gonzalez's record for the most scores by a tight end in NFL history.
Gates is looking to catch a buyer for his home in Hollywood Hills West. (Realtor.com | Associated Press)
From the back issues
Twenty years ago, actress Annie Potts was embarking on the renovation of a 1924 Tudor-style house in Los Feliz. How fitting for one of the stars of the sitcom “Designing Women.” Potts, who was gearing up for the drama series “Dangerous Minds,” had purchased the place for $1.4 million. The unusual house, built for sisters, had two kitchens and two dining rooms.
Ten years ago, Kathy Valentine of the all-female Go-Go's put her San Fernando Valley house on the market at nearly $2.2 million. The rock group bassist was relocating to her hometown of Austin, Texas. The home in the Longridge Estates area of Studio City had five bedrooms and about 3,700 square feet of living space.
What we’re reading
— The Thomas Mann house by mid-century great J.R. Davidson: L.A.'s next big teardown? Los Angeles Times Architecture Critic Christopher Hawthorne reports that the International Style house, built in 1941, is being marketed as a teardown in Pacific Palisades. The asking price is $14.995 million.
— Move over Manhattan. If Angelenos want to rent an ultra-luxury flat for as much as $25,000, they need only look as far as the 283-unit Ten Thousand building. Sitting on the border of Century City and Beverly Hills, the new Los Angeles apartment tower features high-rise views and drool-worthy amenities, reports Bloomberg. Among the lures: a chauffeur-driven Rolls-Royce, in-house Botox and latte brewed to order before tenants even ask for it.
— L.A.’s move toward creating permanent housing on skid row has been seeing some fallout: In the process, the homelessness problem has gotten worse, reports The Times’ Doug Smith. Available beds are being lost. The 220-room Panama Hotel, for example, is being converted to a 72-unit permanent housing facility.
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