Hot Property newsletter: Real estate, a great American pastime
No matter their season or length of schedule, sports figures are a perennial part of the celebrity housing sphere. Our leadoff hitter this week is a Dodgers champion. Joining him in the batting order are two ever-present housing flippers, a “Poltergeist” mainstay and a jazz musician of note.
Our Home of the Week is a Midcentury gem designed by architect-to-the-stars Hal Levitt. Among the standout features: a bridge walkway to one wing of the house that spans the swimming pool. The 1.4-acre estate, listed at $26 million, includes a guesthouse surrounded by lush gardens and mature trees.
Once you’re done reading about these deals, visit and like our Facebook page, where you can find Hot Property stories and updates throughout the week.
— Jack Flemming and Lauren Beale
Safe at home in Encino
Fresh off a World Series victory, Dodgers star Mookie Betts has treated himself to a new house. The four-time All-Star just dropped $7.6 million on an Encino mansion owned by UCLA football coach Chip Kelly.
A foyer with herringbone floors and a sweeping staircase sets a dramatic tone upon entering the home. The two-story modern farmhouse has about 9,300 square feet with nine bedrooms and 10 bathrooms.
A cabana sits beside a custom swimming pool with a spa and a nearby conversation pit. A guesthouse and sports court complete the property.
Betts, 28, was drafted by the Red Sox in 2011 and spent six seasons with the team. He joined the Dodgers in 2020 and helped the team win its first World Series in 32 years.
Another one under their tool belts
Two of Southern California’s most prolific house flippers, talk show host Ellen DeGeneres and actress Portia de Rossi, have sold their Montecito compound for $33.3 million.
The Bali-inspired estate encompasses nine acres containing a low-slung main home, a spacious guesthouse, a security office gym and an infinity pool overlooking the Pacific.
A library, a dramatic great room, four bedrooms and 10 bathrooms are within the 10,674 square feet of living space.
DeGeneres, 62, has hosted the Grammys, the Academy Awards and the NBC game show “Ellen’s Game of Games.” De Rossi, 47, played Chairwoman Elizabeth North on the show “Scandal.”
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Poltergeists were not included
Oscar-nominated actress JoBeth Williams and her husband, film director John Pasquin, just sold a home overlooking the links of Bel-Air Country Club for $18.5 million.
The 2.5-acre estate centers on a Mediterranean-style villa designed in the 1950s by Gerard Colcord — a noted architect whose hundreds of Southern California residences have been home to stars such as Bob Newhart, Dean Martin and Nicolas Cage.
Spread across 7,473 square feet are seven bedrooms, eight bathrooms, an indoor-outdoor living room, a formal dining room, a center-island kitchen, a billiards room and a library with a fireplace. In addition to the main residence, there’s a guesthouse, staff quarters and a swimming pool.
Williams, who starred in “Stir Crazy” and “Poltergeist,” and Pasquin, who directed the films “The Santa Clause” and “Jungle 2 Jungle,” were asking $30 million for the home in January.
It’ll feel good to sell
Jazz musician Chuck Mangione — who received a Grammy nomination for his 1977 single “Feels So Good” — has listed his New York City home near Central Park for $2.25 million.
The corner unit, located in a prewar, red-brick co-op on the Upper West Side, features two bedrooms, two bathrooms and living spaces with gallery white walls. A 40-foot terrace takes in views of the city.
The kitchen contains a breakfast bar, and the primary bedroom has walls of built-ins and a custom bathroom with a clawfoot tub.
Mangione, 79, has released 30 albums since 1960 and won two Grammys, including one for the opening song he composed for the 1978 drama film “The Children of Sanchez.”
From the archives
Thirty years ago, rocker Axl Rose was in the throes of remodeling a house in Hollywood Hills. He picked up the two-bedroom, 2,000-square-foot house for $800,000, then suffered a bad case of buyer’s remorse. People magazine quoted the Guns N’ Roses frontman as saying: “This is not what I wanted. I didn’t work forever to have this lonely house on the hill that I live in because I’m a rich rock star.”
Twenty years ago, Jenna Elfman of “Dharma and Greg,” and her husband, actor Bodhi Elfman, bought Madonna’s Hollywood Hills home for about $4 million. Madonna had owned the house about four years before purchasing a Beverly Hills home for $6.5 million and a London home for about $16 million.
Ten years ago, Linda Evans of “Dynasty” fame listed her house in the Beverly Hills Post Office area for sale at $3.295 million. The one-story ranch house, built in 1937, sat on a half-acre behind gates and contained 3,900 square feet of living space.
What we’re reading
A French Riviera residence once owned by the late actor Sean Connery is for sale at $35.4 million, reports CNN. Ocean views, a circular saltwater swimming pool and 10,700 square feet of Belle Epoque-style interiors are among the features. The main bedroom occupies one entire floor.
Two of Frank Lloyd Wright’s Usonian-style houses are on the market, reports Architectural Digest. The Carr House, in Glenview, Ill., was built in 1950. This is the first time the nearly 3,000-square-foot monument to wood and stone has been publicly listed for sale. The three-level Armstrong House, in Ogden Dunes, Ind., dates to 1939 but was expanded in the 1960s. It’s listed at $1.195 million.
