Divorcing Donald and Shelly Sterling go off-market in latest home acquisition

Former Los Angeles Clippers owners Donald and Shelly Sterling, who are in the process of divorcing, have bought a home in Beverly Hills for $18.382 million in a deal that closed outside the Multiple Listing Service.

The seller was Tom Whalley, the former chairman and chief executive of Warner Bros. Records, property records show.

Set on 1.59 acres, the corner-lot estate centers on a Tudor-style main house built in 1952. Rolling lawns, two patios, a swimming pool, a guest/pool house and a wide motor court make up the gated grounds.

About 7,000 square feet of open living space has a den, a library/study, three fireplaces and a wet bar. There are five bedrooms and six bathrooms.

Whalley bought the house in 2001 for $5,150,050, according to public records.

Dustin Nicholas of Nicholas Property Group represented the Sterlings.

Donald Sterling, 81, has historically employed a buy-and-hold strategy with his real estate holdings, which includes over 100 properties in the greater Los Angeles area. In the last year, he has purchased two additional Beverly Hills homes for $5.16 million and $1,567,500 as well as an investment property in Koreatown for $846,000.

Shelly Sterling wrested control of the Clippers last year in order to sell the team to former Microsoft Chief Executive Steve Ballmer. After attempts by Donald Sterling to block the transaction, the $2-billion sale closed in August 2014.

Almost a year to the date of the sale, Donald Sterling filed for divorce from his wife of 60 years, citing irreconcilable differences.

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