Hot Property Newsletter: Summertime, and the livin’ is easy
The seasons changed, and suddenly it seems like wannabe sellers are outnumbering buyers. Among those hoping to find a match made in escrow are an NBA superstar, an R&B singer-songwriter and a tennis great.
A Moorish Revival-style masterpiece in Hollywood Hills West takes center stage as our Home of the Week. The 1920s house is awash in ornamental details, with a distinctive keyhole-arch motif throughout the nearly 5,100 square feet of interiors. The asking price is $3.995 million.
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— Neal J. Leitereg and Lauren Beale
Alley-oop potential
NBA superstar Russell Westbrook, who last year shelled out $19.75 million for a newly built home in Brentwood, has put his other place in the Beverly Crest area up for sale at $5.995 million.
The two-story contemporary, once owned by “Keeping Up With the Kardashians” personality Scott Disick, is largely devoted to open-plan space. The master suite takes in city-to-ocean views from the second story. There are five bedrooms and 5.5 bathrooms in all.
The landscaped grounds of more than a third of an acre hold a swimming pool.
Westbrook, 30, bought the house from Disick in 2015 for $4.65 million. The Oklahoma City Thunder point guard has made eight All-Star teams and in 2017 was named the league’s most valuable player.
On the trail of a buyer
“Whiskey Cavalier” and “True Detective” actor Josh Hopkins has listed a ranch-style home in a leafy Sherman Oaks neighborhood for $1.549 million.
The rambling single-story, built in 1955, combines original wood details and exposed brick within the nearly 2,200 square feet of updated interiors.
Among the three bedrooms and three bathrooms is a master suite with vaulted ceilings and French doors that open to a patio. A saltwater swimming pool, a hot tub and a built-in grill complete the backyard.
Hopkins, 48, has also appeared in the series “Quantico” (2015-16), “Cougar Town” (2009-15), “Private Practice” (2009) and “Swingtown” (2008).
He’ll serve up his digs
Former tennis pro James Blake, who in recent years has been an analyst for the Tennis Channel and CNN, has listed his place in Encinitas for sale at $1.995 million. His current job has taken him to Florida, where he is tournament director for the Miami Open.
The 2016-built Coastal Plantation-style home features a family room with a fireplace, a dining area and a kitchen with an island that seats four. The 3,273 square feet of living space also includes four bedrooms, 4.5 bathrooms and an optional fifth bedroom or office.
The backyard contains a covered dining patio, a fire pit and a play area.
Blake, 39, attained a world career-high singles ranking of No. 4, retiring in 2013.
Going for a song in Chatsworth?
R&B singer-songwriter Brian McKnight has put his longtime home in a gated Chatsworth community up for sale at $1.799 million.
The Mediterranean-style house contains a vaulted-ceiling living room, a dining room, a wet bar, five bedrooms and six bathrooms within more than 7,200 square feet.
A swimming pool with a spa, a built-in barbecue, patio space and a putting green fill out the grounds.
The multi-platinum singer, 50, has released 12 studio albums to date, most recently “Genesis” in 2017, and has sold more than 25 million albums worldwide. He previously hosted his own TV show, “The Brian McKnight Show.”
‘RuPaul’ judge selects a buyer
TV personality Ross Mathews, a judge on “RuPaul’s Drag Race,” has sold his Palm Springs getaway for $598,000.
Although built in 2011, the house has a Midcentury Modern vibe with such design details as an angled butterfly roof and a lime green front door. Walls of glass, concrete floors and vaulted ceilings bolster the ambience inside the 1,818 square feet of interiors.
The two bedrooms have glass doors and open to the backyard, where there’s a saltwater swimming pool.
Mathews, 39, has appeared on “Chelsea Lately,” “Hollywood Today Live” and the soap opera “Days of Our Lives.” He gained notice starting in 2006 with his role as “Ross the Intern” on “The Tonight Show With Jay Leno.”
Where a publisher hung his hat
A Beverly Hills Post Office area estate once owned by newspaper publisher David Whitmire Hearst has come on the market at $13.5 million.
Hearst, one of five sons of newspaper magnate William Randolph Hearst, joined the Los Angeles Evening Herald-Express in the late 1930s and became publisher in 1950. He was an executive in the Hearst Corp. until his death in 1986 at 70.
The former Hearst estate centers on a hacienda-style home dating to the early 1930s. A grand entry featuring original tile work sets the tone for the classic residence. Two master suites and two staff rooms are among the five bedrooms and seven bathrooms.
Outside, 1.5 acres of park-like grounds contain gardens, mature trees and a swimming pool surrounded with brick.
From the archives
Ten years ago, actor Charlie Sheen and then-wife Brooke Mueller listed their 1927 Mediterranean in Los Feliz at $3.697 million. The Sheens had spent a year restoring and decorating the gated villa, which featured four bedrooms and 4.5 bathrooms within its 4,179 square feet.
Twenty years ago, actor Nicolas Cage listed a Hollywood Hills home at just under $2.2 million. The 5,300-square-foot-plus house had five bedrooms, a circular library, a wine cellar and a humidor.
Thirty years ago, comedian Louie Anderson sold a two-bedroom, two-bathroom Hollywood Hills house that was on the market at less than $600,000. He had bought the two-story, contemporary-style home about two years earlier.
What we’re reading
Some forward-thinking congregations in the Bay Area are stepping up and creating affordable housing, reports the Mercury News. St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Walnut Creek is building 44 apartment units on a site once used for homeless daytime services.
A Lake Tahoe estate said to have been frequented by members of the Rat Pack is for sale at more than $25 million, reports Architectural Digest. Among the 1960s stars to have graced the 22,288-square-foot home were singers Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin and Sammy Davis Jr.
