Welcome back to the real estate newsletter this week documenting a market in Southern California where a half-finished mansion made a fortune and a university set a record for the sale of its president’s mansion.
The half-finished mansion belonged to none other than NBA star Kevin Garnett, who never managed to complete the 11,000-square-foot venue that took up its picturesque Malibu area. That didn’t stop him from selling the house for $ 16 million, however.
And the record-breaking mansion was owned by the University of Southern California, which has used the famous Seeley Mudd Estate as the seat of its presidents for the past 40 years. The pandemic forced the school to make some cuts and the 14,000-square-foot home had to make way. The good news is that USC got their money’s worth, selling it for $ 25 million and breaking a price record in San Marino.
Two other properties made headlines in the past few days. On the resort’s Coronado Peninsula, a 134-year-old Victorian building resembling the iconic Hotel del Coronado went on sale a few blocks away for $ 24 million. And in the Arizona desert, action star Steven Seagal raised $ 3.55 million for his ultra-private property in a gated community with bulletproof windows and lifelike statues.
As LA’s commercial sector continues its post-pandemic thaw, many eyes are on one of the city’s most iconic neighborhoods: Hollywood. The area has seen some casualties in the last year, including the Paley Restaurant and ArcLight Hollywood, but it’s set to make a comeback as pedestrian traffic is slowly returning.
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Athlete passes a half-built house
The coastal property comprises three parcels of seven acres centered on an 11,000 square foot home.
(Hilton & Hyland)
Basketball Hall of Famer Kevin Garnett made $ 16 million in Malibu selling a half-finished mansion he’d been shopping around for the past three years.
That’s $ 3.9 million less than the price he was asking, but still a significant improvement over the $ 6.4 million he paid for the property in 2003.
When Garnett bought the stretch of coast, it owned a six bedroom villa. Now it houses an 11,000 square meter exhibition space that is still under construction. The structure itself is there, but Garnett left the interiors unfinished so buyers can complete it with their own personal style.
USC Presidential Mansion makes history
The seven-acre site is housed in a 14,000-square-foot American colonial mansion surrounded by extensive lawns and English rose gardens.
(Compass)
USC’s presidential mansion, which housed the university’s presidents for more than 40 years, traded for $ 25 million. That’s $ 500,000 more than the asking price, making it the most expensive home sale in San Marino history.
When the residence went on sale for $ 24.5 million earlier this year, it was the first time it hit the market. Records show that it was signed less than a month after it was recorded.
The piece of Trojan history is also a piece of American history. The property, named after its client, the Seeley Mudd Estate, sits on seven acres of land donated by US Army General George Patton and the railroad mogul Henry Huntington, who founded the Huntington Library of San Marino a few miles away.
It has served as the seat of the USC presidents since 1979, and the grassy lawns and rose gardens surrounding the 14,000-square-foot mansion have been the backdrop for many of the school’s dinners, galas, and Christmas parties.
A Victorian building from 1887
The Queen Anne Victorian, built in 1887, is led by an architectural staircase that spirals through four living levels.
(Brenda Sienkiewich / Model Image Media)
One of San Diego County’s finest examples of Victorian architecture can be found on the resort’s Coronado Peninsula, where 134-year-old Baby Del was sold for $ 24 million.
The 19th century residence is built in the same style as the famous Hotel del Coronado, a historic beachfront resort that bears the title of the country’s second largest wooden structure, just a few blocks away.
The Queen Anne Victorian was built by Harriett Livingston in 1887, a year before the Hotel del Coronado was built. It was in the Sherman Heights neighborhood of San Diego until 1983 when architect Christopher Mortenson picked it up and trucked it to its current location near the beach in Coronado by truck and barge.
One of the largest private estates on the peninsula, it has been declared a San Diego Historic Landmark and has a land tax reduction under the Mills Act.
Martial artist sells his dojo
The 12 acre property is centered on a 9,000 square foot home made of stone, copper, and glass.
(Stephen Garner)
Steven Seagal served his mission in the Arizona desert, selling 12 acres of bulletproof property outside of Scottsdale for $ 3.55 million. That’s $ 150,000 more than he asked for.
The action star martial artist – whose credits include films like “Above the Law”, “Hard to Kill”, “Driven to Kill” and “Today You Die” – owned the house for about a decade. Records show he spent $ 3.5 million on the property in 2010 and put it back on the market two years later, dangling it for sale every few years before it finally found a buyer.
The modern home is built into a hillside and is located in the gated community of Carefree Ranch Homesteads. For additional protection, the floor-to-ceiling windows are bulletproof with uninterrupted views of the surrounding valleys and mountains.
Hollywood is preparing for a comeback
Alex Cannon, left, of Houston, photographs his girlfriend Emilee Williams of Victoria, Texas, posing with a street performer disguised as Freddy Krueger on Hollywood Boulevard.
(Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times)
Hours before “Hamilton” opened at the Pantages Theater last year, the performances of the Broadway hit were canceled as edicts to prevent the spread of a highly contagious new coronavirus that caused a cascade of suffering for the Hollywood neighborhood, writes Roger Vincent .
More than a year later, boom, bankruptcy, and hopes of another boom tell the story of Hollywood today as the neighborhood struggles to recover from the pandemic and its economic aftermath.
High-profile victims of the COVID era include the upscale Paley restaurant in Columbia Square on Sunset Boulevard and ArcLight Hollywood, the cinema complex that included the landmark Cinerama Dome Theater.
Many others persevered. “Miraculously, many corner shops have survived,” said Kris Larson, president of the Hollywood Partnership business improvement district.
What we read
Wondering where all the houses went? Baby boomers have a lot of them and they don’t let go. The New York Times reports that aging boomers suspicious of nursing homes hold on to their homes for much longer than their previous generation, causing inventory shortages and price hikes across the country.
Hearst Castle is still closed to the public, but if you’re dying to get inside, Airbnb offers virtual tours of the iconic property. For $ 20, a California State Park guide will take you on a 75-minute walk around the grounds, according to CBS Los Angeles.