Los Angeles’ biggest home sales of 2019 hit the $150-million mark

It was a year of one-upmanship for Los Angeles’ high-end housing market. Trophy estates in prized Westside pockets twice shattered the county (and state) price record, while markets such as Hollywood Hills West showed that big things may be in store in 2020 after recording their highest sales in about a decade.

Of the top single-family home sales, more than 30 surpassed the $20-million mark in 2019, according to Property Shark. Among those were six sales north of $70 million and three sales of $100 million or more. Here’s a closer look at L.A. County’s biggest sales of the year.

$150 million — Bel-Air

Once offered for as much as $350 million, the legendary Chartwell estate of late Univision founder A. Jerrold Perenchio sold in December to media heir Lachlan Murdoch for $150 million — roughly a 57% discount from the original asking price. Still, the nine-figure transaction was among the highest prices ever paid for a home in the United States and a new high-water mark for California.

Known to television viewers as “The Beverly Hillbillies” mansion, the Sumner Spaulding-designed French neoclassical-style chateau sits on 10 acres surrounded by manicured gardens, a tennis court, a 75-foot swimming pool and a pool house. A separate guest house was designed by noted architect Wallace Neff.

Also trading in the deal was the former home of President Reagan and his wife, Nancy, which sits behind the main estate.

Drew Gitlin and Susan Gitlin from Berkshire Hathaway Homeservices California Properties; Drew Fenton, Gary Gold and Jeff Hyland of Hilton & Hyland; and Joyce Rey, Jade Mills and Alexandra Allen of Coldwell Banker Global Luxury were the listing agents. Fenton also represented the buyer.

$119.75 million — Holmby Hills

Formula One heiress Petra Ecclestone held the L.A. County and California price record for about five months after the 56,500-square-foot mega-mansion known as the Manor sold in July for $119.75 million.

Originally built for producer Aaron Spelling and his wife, Candy Spelling, the mansion sits on a 4.7-acre parcel where crooner Bing Crosby once had a home.

Entered through an immense foyer, the residence has 123 rooms, including 14 bedrooms and 27 bathrooms. Features include a hair salon and massage parlor, a nightclub with a custom aquarium and a tanning room. A one-lane bowling alley lies in the basement level.

Outdoors, the manicured grounds are filled with rose gardens, orchards, statuaries, fountains and koi ponds. A swimming pool, spa and tennis court also lie on the property.

Ecclestone bought the estate from Candy Spelling eight years ago for $85 million. She now resides in Brentwood.

The listing was held by a trio of brokerages: Kurt Rappaport and Daniel Dill of Westside Estate Agency, Jade Mills of Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage and David Parnes and James Harris of the Agency. Jeff Hyland of Hilton & Hyland represented the buyer.

$100 million — Malibu

Ron Meyer, the entertainment executive and talent agent who co-founded Creative Artists Agency and now serves as vice chairman of NBCUniversal, sold his compound in August for $25 million less than the $125 million asking price.

The compound, reached by a long, gated driveway, sits on a three-plus-acre bluff overlooking the ocean and was once owned by Motown Records founder Berry Gordy. In addition to a striking contemporary-style main house, the property includes two guest houses, a north-south tennis court and a spa house. A staircase at the edge of the property leads to the sandy beach below.

The main house, designed byCharles Gwathmey, features soaring walls of glass, high ceilings and clerestory windows. Living spaces include a two-story library, a gym and a home theater. There are six bedrooms and 7.5 bathrooms in nearly 13,700 square feet of space.

Despite the nine-figure sale price, it is unclear how much Meyer may have pocketed in the deal. Since 2014, the executive took out multiple mortgage loans on the property totaling in excess of $100 million, including more than $84 million from Hankey Capital, the investment company headed by local billionaireDon Hankey.

Meyer acquired the property from fellow CAA founding partner Michael Ovitz in the 1990s, The Times previously reported.

Kurt Rappaport of Westside Estate Agency represented both buyer and seller, a limited liability company, in the deal.

$94 million — Bel-Air

Handbag mogul turned speculative developer Bruce Makowsky sold his contemporary tour de force — a 38,000-square-foot showplace he calls “Billionaire” — in November for 62.4% less than his original asking price of $250 million.

The grandiose mansion, built on a one-acre lot where Michael Strahan once had a home, became America’s most expensive listing when it originally hit the market in early 2017. It had been listed at $150 million prior to selling.

Encompassing four stories, the mega-mansion spares no expense, with three kitchens, five bars and a Louis Vuitton-outfitted bowling alley. The movie theater is equipped with seating for 40, and a candy room is filled to the brim with sweets-filled cylinders. Two wine cellars are stocked with hundreds of bottles of Champagne and other fine wines.

Three levels of decking create an additional 17,000 square feet of outdoor living space. A motorized movie screen sits beside the swimming pool.

Branden and Rayni Williams of Hilton & Hyland and Shawn Elliott of Nest Seekers International Realty held the listing. Ben Bacal of Revel Real Estate represented the buyer.

$75 million — Bel-Air

Ardie Tavangarian, founder of Los Angeles-based design and development firm Arya Group, sold a contemporary showplace in July for $13 million less than the asking price.

Completed this year, the three-story mansion has about 25,000 square feet of living space, 20,000 square feet of outdoor decking/patios, a 40-foot-long fire feature and a rooftop deck. There are nine bedrooms and 15 bathrooms including a master wing complete with two custom dressing rooms.

A showroom-esque glass garage features a car elevator for stacking vehicles. Other amenities include a movie theater, an art studio and a multiroom spa.

Views extend from the cityscape to the ocean.

Branden Williams, Rayni Williams, Jeff Hyland and Judy Feder of Hilton & Hyland were the listing agents. Jon Grauman and Mauricio Umansky of the Agency represented the buyer.

$72.5 million — Beverly Hills

Uber co-founder Garrett Camp, fresh off the launch of his company’s IPO, shelled out $72.5 million in June for a newly built Beverly Hills mansion in a deal finalized off-market.

Details and photos of the property are scarce, but satellite images and records show that the estate features a 12,119-square-foot residence with seven bedrooms and a newly added guesthouse.

The estate, which spans more than an acre in the Trousdale section, previously traded hands in 2014 for $13.7 million — not a bad return for the developers.

$45 million — Bel-Air

An acre-plus estate designed by Tag Front architects sold in May for $3 million less than the asking price. The buyer, a limited liability company tied to a Saudi Arabia-based individual, also paid $7.2 million for a neighboring property —the modernist Hammerman Residence designed by Richard Neutra.

The larger estate, completed this year, features 20,000 square feet of polished living space, a tennis court and a 12-car garage. A curving zero-edge swimming pool with a baja deck and a spa runs along the edge of the property. Views extend from the Getty Museum to the ocean.

Dressed in Portuguese limestone, marble and walls of glass, the multi-level mansion holds seven bedrooms, 10 bathrooms, a wine room and a 20-seat home theater. A floating-style fireplace bisects the open-plan common area, which has a wet bar.

A separate wellness wing holds a sauna, steam room and soaking tub.

The property, once the site of a John Byers-designed traditional home, previously changed hands six years ago for $7.45 million.

Branden Williams and Rayni Williams of Hilton & Hyland were the listing agents. Florence Mattar of Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage represented the buyer.

$42.75 million — Beverly Hills Post Office

A multilevel mansion developed by private equity investor and lifestyle entrepreneur Max Fowles-Pazdro sold in October to a limited liability company for $3.75 million less than the asking price.

Set behind artistic gates, the 24,000-square-foot mansion has five kitchens, two wine rooms, eight bedrooms, 11 bathrooms and seven powder rooms. Plaster walls, chevron-patterned oak floors and silk and cashmere wallpaper are among interior details. A biometric fingerprint reader is used to unlock the pivoting front doors.

The mansion sits on a 43,000-square-foot lot where late poet-songwriter-singer Rod McKuen once had a home. A zero-edge swimming pool, an outdoor theater, a bocce ball court and gardens make up the grounds.

Stephen Resnick and Jonathan Nash of Hilton & Hyland were the listing agents. Patrick Fogarty, also with Hilton & Hyland, represented the buyer.

$42.5 million — Beverly Hills

Of the celebrity movers and shakers, no two were more active in 2019 than Grammy-winning musician Adam Levine and Emmy-winning talk show host Ellen DeGeneres. And so it was fitting when the two A-listers came together to consummate a real estate deal in May when Levine and wife Behati Prinsloo sold their Beverly Hills home to DeGeneres and wife Portia de Rossi for $42.5 million.

Built in 1933, the traditional-style home was once owned by “Will & Grace” creator Max Mutchnick and, before him, tennis star Pete Sampras and actress Bridgette Wilson.

Some 10,000 square feet of renovated living space includes two kitchens, multiple wet bars, a screening room and a gym. A total of five bedrooms and 12 bathrooms includes a separate guesthouse.

Outside, the acre-plus estate holds a paver patio with a built-in barbecue and a fire pit. An oval-shaped swimming pool sits below the patio area. There’s also a tennis court and a putting green.

Kurt Rappaport of Westside Estate Agency handled both ends of the deal.

Levine and Prinsloo bought the house in 2018 for $33.9 million. Earlier this year, the couple bought the onetime Pacific Palisades home of Gregory Peck and Brian Grazer from Ben Affleck and Jennifer Garner for $31.95 million.

$39.865 million — Bel-Air

Bel-Air saw its first big sale record in January when a limited liability company tied to Ross Perot Jr. bought an estate in a deal completed off-market, according to sources not authorized to publicly comment on the deal.

The roughly 1.4-acre property centers on a classic Georgian Traditional-style home of more than 7,000 square feet. The two-story house, styled by former White House interior designer Michael S. Smith, features six bedrooms, seven bathrooms, a country-inspired chef’s kitchen and a master wing.

Accompanying the main house on the grounds is a lighted tennis court, a swimming pool and a motor court. A two-bedroom guest house sits near the pool.

$35.5 million — Hollywood Hills West

In December, Hollywood Hills West saw its biggest home sale since 2012 when a modern spec mansion built by developer Jeff Thomas sold for $35.5 million, down from the asking price of $43.9 million.

Spanning three stories, the ultra-modern home has luxury flourishes inside and out. Automated walls of glass open outside, where a 163-foot infinity pool culminates in a waterfall that cascades down to an atrium garden.

Inside, 20,000 square feet of gleaming living space boasts custom lighting fixtures and a sleek design palette of glass, tile, wood and stone. A massive indoor-outdoor living room, a formal dining room, a chef’s kitchen and a spacious office are among the living spaces. Other amenities include a wine cellar, a glass elevator and a wellness spa.

Exiting through disappearing glass walls, a series patios surround an outdoor pool. Next to the pool, a 15-foot television rises from the ground.

Jason Oppenheim of the Oppenheim Group and James Harris and David Parnes of the Agency were the listing agents.

$34.65 million — Beverly Hills

Eyemart Express founder Doug Barnes and his wife, Molly, sold their contemporary mansion to a limited liability company for about $20 million less than the original asking price of $55 million.

The multistory home, built on speculation in 2014, sits behind gates on about an acre of grounds. Some 14,200-plus square feet of living space includes seven bedrooms, 11 bathrooms and 11 fireplaces. The master suite alone measures about 3,200 square feet and features three fireplaces.

A game room/home theater has rows of recliner seating and custom uplighting. A wine wall sits behind floor-to-ceiling glass doors off the dining room area.

Outside, landscaped grounds hold a saltwater swimming pool, a cabana and lawn. At night, the outdoor space comes alive with a computerized waterfall and light show.

Ginger Glass of Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage was the listing agent. Jimmy Heckenberg of Rodeo Realty represented the buyer.

$33.5 million — Brentwood

Oaktree Capital Management co-Chairman Bruce Karsh, who last year paid $68.822 million for the Holmby Hills estate of late Paramount Pictures Chairman and Chief Executive Brad Grey, in April sold his home on Oakmont Drive to a limited liability company for $8.5 million less than the asking price.

Set on about two acres of grounds, the gated estate centers on a pristine Georgian Regency-style home dating to 1940. Designed by architect James Dolena, the classic two-story features herringbone-patterned wood floors, Corinthian columns and a foyer entry with a sweeping staircase.

A total of six bedrooms and nine bathrooms lie within 8,617 square feet of living space, which was styled by former White House interior designer Michael Smith. In the open-plan kitchen, which adjoins the family room and garden-view breakfast nook, a massive roof lantern bathes the space in natural light.

The property also has an oval swimming pool, an art studio, staff quarters and a racquetball court.

Linda May of Hilton & Hyland was the listing agent. Fred Bernstein of Westside Estate Agency represented the buyer.