I wish I had more than six pictures to show you of this one. This Newport Beach beauty is on a double lot on the sand at Peninsula Point. It was deigned by Michael Collins to showcase an impressive modern art collection. The home is actually two homes, a five-bedroom house and a two-bedroom guest house. The grounds include a pool, spa, koi ponds, oceanfront terraces, a beachfront lawn, cabana, pool bar and many additional amenities. The homes have an open floor plan with large "disappearing" wood and glass doors. The guest house has a subterranean level designed for entertainment and lounging, with media capabilities, bar and a saltwater aquarium window affording dramatic underwater pool views. This home is listed at $29.5 million.
Last week our Sunday estate was the home of a former "ER" actress, this week we've got another TV actress, Mel Harris, most famous for her role as the winsome and whiny Hope on the show "thirtysomething." The LA Times Hot Property column reports that Harris has listed her Pacific Palisades property, a charming four-bedroom Country English-style home. She has owned the home for five years and it has been remodeled with a new marble-countered kitchen and bathrooms. There are older details to love such as the Batchelder tile fireplace in the living room and the beautiful beams and archways. The new master bathroom is a bit too over the top for a house of this scale and graciousness and the travertine tile in the kitchen seems like it would be a better fit for a Florida flip than for this older Californian. The home was originally listed at $4.347 million but is already down to $4.197 million which still seems like a lot of cash for 4,5000 square feet even in the pricey Palisades.
It's the season for worrying every last deduction you can possibly take on your taxes. As you are sweating those last minute details here's a story to make your blood boil. The San Francisco Chronicle reports that Oracle CEO Larry Ellison will get a $3 mllion tax break because his Japanese-style home in Woodside, California is "functionally obsolete."
Ellison's Octopus Holdings LP bought the 23-acre site in May 1995 for $12 million and then sent to work on a nine year project constructing his version of Xanadu, a lavish 8,000-square-foot home based on a Japanese emperor's 16th century estate. Ellison seems to have a taste for all things Japanese, he also bought a home in Atherton in 1987 and turned it into a Japanese-style palace with seven bedrooms, a traditional tea house, bath house, gardens, a koi pond and waterfalls on 2.8 acres. That home was quietly put on the market in 2005 for $25 million. The property website for that home is here.
According to the Chronicle, the assessor's office based its January 2005 valuation of Elllison's Woodside home on reproduction costs, the $166.3 million it should have cost to build the home. The construction actually cost more than $200 million. But attorney William Bennett representing Octopus Holdings argued that the property was worth only $64.7 million at that time and in the two tax years, since entitling Ellison to a $3 million rebate on taxes paid. The appeals board agreed and so the $3 million will come from San Mateo county's property taxes paid this year. Of that $3 million it is estimated that nearly $1.4 million would have gone to schools in the area .
Ellison's home decline in value is shocking in an area that boasts very expensive real estate thanks to the Googleaires, people who made their fortune at Google and invested in big homes locally. The reason for the dip in value is essentially that Ellison created a home that no one else would want to buy. The home is said to suffer from "significant functional obsolescence" because the Japanese architecture, elaborate landscaping and over improvements to the property have made it a home that is costly to maintain and has reduced value to to others.
Ellison, who has a net worth of $25 billion according to Forbes, has turned his attentions to Southern California in recent years. In 2005 he picked up five lots in Malibu's pricey Carbon Beach area for a reported $65 million and is said to be looking into buying an NFL franchise for Los Angeles.
As the Chornicle article points out, perhaps the only good news out of this may come from the fact that it draws attention to the fact that homeowners can have their property values reassessed. With the declining real estate market in many regions some people may be in a situation where their property is being over-assessed but they are not aware of it.
[Thanks to Uncle Roger and Lana for calling our attention to this one]
I have no idea who Stan Winston is but I think I'm in love. Celebrity Big Time Listings picked up on the Wall Street Journal's Private Properties piece (no link online yet) on Winston's Malibu beach house which is listed at $11.95 million. Turns out Winston is an esteemed makeup and special effects artist who has nabbed himself four Oscars in the course of his long career and he has created one stunning Malibu getaway. The home website calls it the Perfect Beach House. They aren't kidding although this home doesn't really have a beach house vibe. This home is drop-dead, smack-yourself-in-the-face gorgeous. The art in the place doesn't exactly give me the warm fuzzies but everything else is so spot on. I could even learn to love the rather institutional second bathroom. The home is cheek by jowl with other homes clustered on the beach and you don't get a pool, just a secluded outdoor hot tub which offers privacy but not much of a view.
The Turtle House a unique house in the Enchanted Forest of Big Sur is a beautiful, if small, home. The name comes from the design, a hexagonal center with four arms that stretch out into the forest next to a creek and a head that has a hot tub. Despite the sylvan location this home is wired with the latest technology including wi-fi, a security system, a home theater and a Lutron lighting system. There is also a hydraulic lift in the garage that holds four cars. The home has a warm floor heating system and uses a propane furnace. Water comes from a gravity, spring-fed water system. The home is just 1600 square feet and is furnished with pieces that were custom designed and built for the home by Morris Sheppard/Sheppard Design. The living room includes a wood stove on a granite hearth and the study/library has two desks back to back with views and a fax machine. The gourmet kitchen has a Wolf stove, All-Clad cookware, a microwave, dishwasher, and granite counters and the dining room is cantilevered over the creek. No need to bring your own bed, the master bedroom has a platform queen bed meant to match perfectly with the skylight above. It is listed at $8 million.
Today's home is a walk through Southern California history. The home in the gorgeous beachfront area of La Jolla, California was once owned by actor Cliff Robertson. Robertson is probably best known to modern audiences as Uncle Ben in the Spiderman movies but he also won an Academy Award for Best Actor for his performance in "Charly" (based on the book Flowers for Algernon). Robertson bought the 1922 Spanish Colonial in 1963. He restored it and named it Casa de la Paz (house of peace). Real estate developer Ronald Baldwin and his wife Amie bought the home from Robertson in 2005 for $14.5 million (but Mr. Big Time has unearthed the fact that Robertson originally asked $25 million for the home). The eight-bedroom compound has around 6,100 square feet of living space on 1.4 acres. It includes a main residence with multiple fireplaces and a one-bedroom guest house with a kitchen.
The home was designed by and home to Philip Barber for whom La Jolla's Barber Tract (where this home is situated) was named. The home is a registered historical site and therefore qualifies for a tax break. The sellers haven't changed the property but they were planning to. They have massive renovation plans that are in the final stages of review by the city and the Wall Street Journal reports that the two-year process cost about $500,000 in architectural design fees. The addition would turn the main house into a five bedroom, 9205 square foot home with a den, exercise room and sauna. The plans also including adding an oceanfront pool. The home was listed at $28 million but is now $22.5 million. Any guesses on a final price? I'm guessing under $20 million. .
We picked this link up thanks to a tip directing us to the Socket Site conversation regarding this San Francisco listing. This 1880s home has been turned into a really unique modern dwelling. The decor in this house is very House & Garden, cheery, with touches of the artistic and whimsical. The home has three bedrooms, a living room that opens to a small garden and patio, a dining room, library, family room and an office. There is also a separate one-bedroom apartment and a garage. This home is listed at $3.699 million. The folks at Curbed SF reveal that the current owner paid $3.5 million over a year ago. The renovation here is absolutely gorgeous but the size of the home and the jumble of rooms may put some buyers off. After the jump, color glorious color.
The listings of Suzanne Perkins are always those that inspire daydreams. Last time, we checked out the amazing Terra Bella. Now, this home in Carpinteria, California has a bit of a more contemporary style. The home overlooks the Pacific and has a wide open floor plan with lots of glass showing off the amazing views. The home has five bedrooms including a 1,300-square-foot master suite. The home also includes his and hers library/offices and a state-of-the-art kitchen. Down by the shore there is a beach pavilion for enjoying the water. The home is filled with designer furniture, the sort of pieces that are instantly recognizable giving the home an almost predictable fabulousness. A few days ago, I was admiring a twisted wood table in a high-end furniture store, it was no surprise to see not one but two of those pricey tables used on the beach pavilion. This home is listed at $24 million. After the jump, and of course, there are Warhols.
As the Real Estalker Mama who unearthed this listing said, this home should probably not have the name of Chateau Provence. The home, belonging to Prison Break actor Stacy Keach, does not remotely resemble anything French. Instead it is a five-bedroom home in a gated community in Calabasas. It's a bit of a bore on the outside but the interior is actually a little more interesting than your standard suburban deluxe home. It has light hardwood floors instead of the ubiquitous tile floors and the use of skylights and high ceilings insures that there is plenty of light.
The thing is, this home looks like is being lived in by renters. The home was supposedly remodeled this year but the decorations and the placement of the furnishings seem as if they were placed by someone who was just passing through. There was talk on the Real Estalker website on whether or not this was a flip or not but that rather cluttered office-like room with the keyboard in it is definitely not staged. It is listed at $2.295 million which is a lot for a home with no pool. After the jump, a giant rosary as wall art?
Today we are checking out Casa del Cielo, a beautiful estate on the Arroyo banks in Pasadena. The home was designed by architect Sylvanus Marston in 1923 in the Spanish Revival style. As the Wall Street Journal reported the home belongs to producer Gale Ann Hurd and screenwriter Jonathan Hensleigh, two people with a penchant for action/adventure movies who have a sedately lovely home. They bought the house for $5.2 million in 2001 and have renovated and restored the home while keeping its uniquely exotic style. The home has seven bedrooms, a gourmet kitchen, ornate fireplaces, ceilings with murals and pressed metal tile details,a bar, billiard room, super fantastic library, media room, gym and wine cellar. The home's three acres include gardens, terraces, a lagoon, fountains, pools, a tennis court and a guest house. This home is listed at $15 million. After the jump, their movies may be over the top but their renovation instincts are just right.
If you want to be a rancher in Southern
California, it will cost you. For the first time since the 1930s, the Jamala Ranch in Western Santa Barbara County
is on the market. The ranch offers prime acreage located near the scenic coast around Jalama Beach and Point
Conception.The ranch is over 15,500 acres of rolling hills and valleys, a spread of more than 20 square miles. The land
includes many natural features such as the Jalama Creek which runs along the southern border of the property. There are
142 acres located along the ocean bluff top (the ideal spot for a dream house with a view). The ranch is part of the
Rancho San Julian, a 48,000 acre Land Grant from the Mexican Government dating back to 1837. The Jalama Ranch has
primarily for cattle ranching and farming and represents a rare chunk of unspoiled coastal California land. The ranch
has four existing ranch homes, one guest house, three barns and multiple corrals and arenas. It is listed at $45
million. More shots of the prime land after the jump.
