Mark McGrath sells Hollywood Hills home
“Oh, there’s no place like ____ for the ________.”
That’s one holiday song you may not be hearing this season from “Don’t Forget the Lyrics!” host and Sugar Ray singer Mark McGrath, who has sold his home in the Hollywood Hills for $1.25 million, above its asking price, the Multiple Listing Service shows.
The buyers are artist Alexandra Nechita and her boyfriend, Suh-Tahn fashion designer Dimitri Tcharfas.
The renovated 1931 country English-style house has a step-down living room with a vaulted ceiling and fold-away glass doors that open to a patio with city views. The breakfast room is a turret with a beamed ceiling and built-in seating. The house has three bedrooms and two bathrooms.
A waterfall spa is the focal point of the saltwater pool. The built-in barbecue has a Viking grill.
McGrath, 42, was a co-host on “Extra” (2004-08). He bought the property in 1995 for $365,000, public records show. It was listed at $1,199,000.
Romanian-born Nechita, 25, is a cubist painter who gained the nickname of the Petite Picasso as a child prodigy.
Wendy Kjorness of Keller Williams Realty’s Sunset office was the listing agent, while Justin Mandile and Mary Swanson of Sotheby’s International Realty, Beverly Hills, represented the buyers, according to the MLS.
Ad giant plans to get away
TBWA\Chiat\Day advertising guru Lee Clow, co-creator of Apple’s “Think Different” campaign, has purchased a vacation home at the Terranea Resort in Rancho Palos Verdes for $2.2 million.
The newly built, furnished ocean-bluff casita includes a terrace, indoor and outdoor fireplaces, three bedrooms and two bathrooms in 2,040 square feet of living space. The kitchen has granite slab countertops and Viking and Fisher & Paykel appliances.
Clow, also known for his work on the Energizer Bunny and the Taco Bell Chihuahua, lives on the Palos Verdes Peninsula and plans to use the second home as a place to host family and friends and to write.
Connie Blankenship of Hilton & Hyland, Beverly Hills, represented Clow.
Calabasas sale is out of the park
Former major league pitcher Bret Saberhagen has sold his gated Calabasas home for $2.4 million.
The compound includes a single-story Tuscan-style villa and two guesthouses on 1.2 acres. The main house, built in 1969 and renovated in 2008, has a home theater with a 90-inch screen and eight recliners, and a wine cellar that can seat 12. Four bedrooms and six bathrooms lie in 5,300 square feet of living space.
Outdoor amenities include a cabana with a fireplace and television, a swimming pool with spa, a wet bar and a putting green.
Saberhagen, 46, a two-time American League Cy Young Award winner, played for the Kansas City Royals, the New York Mets and the Boston Red Sox. He said he plans to move closer to the ocean.
Dana Olmes and Patte Gilbert of Ewing Sotheby’s International Realty had the listing. Thomas Clements of Sotheby’s International Realty, Malibu, represented the buyer.
Venice gets its own Iron Chef
Iron Chef Michael Symon has a new place to cook: a two-story loft in the Dogtown Station mixed-use development in Venice.
The 1,850-square-foot town house he bought has floor-to-ceiling windows and a patio. The two-bedroom, two-bathroom unit was listed at $1.1 million. The sales price was not available.
Symon, 41, will be using the space as his Los Angeles residence while filming “The Next Iron Chef,” on which he is a judge, and his new show, “Food Feuds.” He is a Cleveland restaurateur and the author of “Michael Symon’s Live to Cook: Recipes and Techniques to Rock Your Kitchen.”
Dogtown Station is a gated development with 35 lofts. Symon’s transaction was negotiated by Andy McMullen of SCO Advisors and owner Bob D’Elia of RAD Ventures.
Landry design: $16.5 million
Update: Norm Zada, the former Stanford professor and hedge fund manager who created Perfect 10 magazine, has sold his compound in gated Beverly Park for $16.5 million.
The Richard Landry-designed main house has 12,000 square feet of living space. A glass-and-steel bridge connects it to the 8,000-square-foot guesthouse. The 6.89-acre estate includes two pavilions, a paddle tennis court, a waterfall and a swimming pool. The property includes 10 bedrooms plus a maid’s room; 18 bathrooms; and a gym.
The compound came on the market last year at $24.5 million.
Brian Adler of Westside Estate Agency, Beverly Hills, was the listing agent. Joshua Altman and Matt Altman of Hilton & Hyland, Beverly Hills, represented the buyer.
