Britney Spears looks to get in tune with a home buyer; she's asking $8.995 million - Los Angeles Times
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Britney Spears looks to get in tune with a home buyer; she’s asking $8.995 million

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Oops, she’s at it again.

Pop princess and Las Vegas headliner Britney Spears has put her home in the Lake Sherwood area of Thousand Oaks up for sale at $8.995 million. Not the 21-acre spread she picked up last year, but rather another property in the affluent Ventura County area.

Built in 2010 and since updated, the Spanish-style house of roughly 8,500 square feet has dazzling contemporary appeal. Dark wood floors, elaborate chandeliers and a glass-enclosed wine cellar are among the show-stopping details.

Amenities of note include a game room, a movie room, two offices and a lavish cook’s kitchen with a pair of marble-topped islands. A long corridor topped with groin vault ceilings opens to a massive great room.

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A total of five bedrooms and seven bathrooms are spread across separate children, guest and master wings. His and hers bathrooms replete with oversized steam showers, two walk-in closets and a gas fireplace highlight the over-the-top master suite.

Sliding walls of glass invite indoor-outdoor entertaining and open to a wide covered patio with an al fresco dining room, a fireplace and a circular wet bar. The swimming pool spa was redone during Spears’ ownership and has a beach entry, a spa and a cascading waterfall feature.

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Lawns, gardens and a seven-car garage fill out the scenic grounds of more than an acre.

The 34-year-old singer bought the single-story home four years ago from former hockey pro Russ Courtnall and his wife, actress Paris Vaughan, in a deal that closed off-market.

Rami Elminoufi of Beach City Brokers holds the current listing.

Spears gained fame in the 1990s and remains one of the bestselling singers of all time. Her eight albums include “... Baby One More Time” (1999), “Oops! I Did It Again” (2000) and “Britney Jean” (2013).

She has performed the show Britney: Piece of Me at the Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino since 2013.

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Ex-Laker looks to court a buyer

Five-time NBA champion Derek Fisher is ready to make a change to his home court. He’s put his estate in gated Hidden Hills up for sale at $6.995 million.

Offered as a pocket listing, the traditional-style home sits on more than an acre with an outdoor kitchen, an entertainer’s patio and a swimming pool and spa. A two-stall horse barn and a detached guesthouse complete with a full kitchen and living room are also within the grounds.

Fisher bought the house in 2009 for $5.5 million and then spent six figures to customize the property, said Kofi Nartey of the Agency, who holds the exclusive listing.

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“[Fisher] essentially bought the house new and then put hundreds of thousands [of dollars] into additional touches and renovations,” said Nartey, who noted custom-painted interiors, dark Hickory wood floors and an immaculate chef’s kitchen.

The kitchen — with two islands, marble countertops and warming and cooling drawers — flows into a vaulted great room that opens to the grounds through pocket doors.

Other features of note include a two-story foyer with a sweeping staircase, a custom home theater, a wood-paneled den and an elevator. Modern chandeliers top the formal living and dining rooms.

A total of six bedrooms and eight bathrooms are within more than 9,400 square feet.

Lawns, mature trees and a wide flagstone patio fill out a sprawling backyard setting. A four-car garage sits off the side of the home.

Fisher, 41, paired with Kobe Bryant in the Lakers backcourt on multiple championship teams coached by Phil Jackson. Shortly after retiring in 2014, the former point guard was hired by Jackson to be the head coach of the New York Knicks, a position he held until February.

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He cut an off-market deal

Filmmaker James Wan went off-script in a recent transaction, selling his home in the Bird Streets area of Hollywood Hills West for $13.125 million in a deal that closed outside the Multiple Listing Service.

Built in 1962 and since updated in a more contemporary style, the 7,550-square-foot home provides a textbook example of the indoor-outdoor lifestyle that has become synonymous with Southern California.

An artful entry topped with a series of skylights opens to an open floor plan that seamlessly flows between a chef’s kitchen, breakfast area, a den and a living room with a wet bar. Walls of telescoping glass doors wrap the exterior, bringing outdoor living areas and panoramic views inside.

The master suite has a fireplace and a spa-like shower for a total of six bedrooms and 6.5 bathrooms. A detached guest house sits adjacent to the main residence and has a full kitchen and living room. There’s also a separate gym.

On the grounds, an outdoor kitchen complete with a pizza oven opens to a kidney-shaped swimming pool and spa. Expansive decks and a patio with an outdoor fireplace complete the setting.

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The sale is quite a windfall for Wan, the director-producer known for the “Saw” film franchise. Records show he bought the house two years ago for $9.75 million.

Andrea Shink of Teles Properties represented Wan in the transaction. Gayle Weiss and Rochelle Atlas Maize of Nourmand & Assoc. repped the buyer.

In addition to his work on the “Saw” films, Wan, 39, directed “Insidious” (2011), “The Conjuring” (2013) and “Furious 7” (2015). Among his current projects is the upcoming DC superhero flick “Aquaman,” due out in 2017.

Recruitment is nearly complete

“Quantico” creator and producer Josh Safran was quick to attract interest for his uncommon house in Hancock Park. Listed for sale in March for $3.295 million, the English country-inspired home went under contract in about 10 days.

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That should come as no surprise — there’s an arresting charm about the property.

Vaulted ceilings with stenciled beams, leaded glass windows and a round entry ground the place in its 1929 origins. Yet unexpected ogee arches, the type with a point on the top, add an exotic vibe inside. The living room features a new gas fireplace, built-in bookshelves and French doors that open to a courtyard.

The updated kitchen has a farmhouse sink, subway tile, stone counters and stainless-steel appliances. A formal dining room, a den with a fireplace, a media room, a breakfast room, four bedrooms, three full bathrooms and a powder room are also within the 4,200 square feet of living space.

A swimming pool with a spa sits beside a two-story pool house with a sleeping loft.

Before the crime drama “Quantico,” Safran was a producer and writer for “Smash” and “Gossip Girl.”

He bought the gated house six years ago for $2.75 million, public records show.

Jeff Yarbrough of Keller Williams Beverly Hills is the listing agent.

Hollywood estate is upbeat

The Hollywood Hills estate containing the late jazz legend George Duke‘s Le Gonks West recording studio hit the right note with a buyer, selling for $2.35 million.

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Looking like something straight out of the 1970s, the studio has a control room, a live room with sound isolation booths, office space, a bathroom and its own entrance. But it’s not all business. There’s also a lounge and a wine cellar. Duke bought the property in 1978 for $355,000.

Set on the lower level of the house, the 1,400-square-foot studio counts Jeffrey Osborne’s “On the Wings of Love” and Deniece Williams’ “Let’s Hear It for the Boy” among the many hits made there.

The one-third acre of wooded grounds centers on a 1925 residence with coved ceilings, inlaid wood floor accents, stained-glass windows, archways and wrought-iron gates and railings.

A living room with a fireplace and balcony, a media/theater room with a bar, a formal dining room, a kitchen with a breakfast nook, three bedrooms and three bathrooms complete the living areas. The top two levels of the home have more than 3,400 square feet of living space.

The keyboardist-singer-composer-producer, who died three years ago at 67, was known for blending rock and funk elements in his jazz pieces. During his five-decade career, Duke made about 30 solo albums and collaborated with Al Jarreau, Stevie Wonder and Frank Zappa, among other musicians. He won a Grammy in 2000 for producing the Dianne Reeves album “In the Moment — Live in Concert.”

Chris Pauloski of John Aaroe Group was the listing agent. Steven Dubin of Teles Properties represented the buyer.

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