The so-called formerly homeless billionaire has scored himself yet another L.A. home.
Nicolas Berggruen, the notoriously nomadic investment titan who was once known for his lack of a permanent address, has shelled out more than $40 million to buy the former home of socialite Edith Mayer Goetz in Holmby Hills, The Real Deal has learned.
The seller is Gary Wilson, the former chairman of the board of Northwest Airlines, who put the 2.2-acre property on the market for $45 million earlier this year.
Wilson acquired the main property from the Goetz estate in 1990. The 11-bedroom, 20,000-square-foot Georgian Revival-style main house dates back to the 1930s and features a screening room where Goetz, daughter of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer co-founder Louis B. Mayer, debuted movies to her friends pre-release. She and her husband, movie producer William Goetz a hosted a blowout party there celebrating his acquisition of Universal Studios.
Jeff Hyland and Drew Fenton of Hilton & Hyland shared the listing with Aaron Kirman of John Aaroe Group. Linda May of Hilton & Hyland represented the buyer.
The house was designed English architect Gordon Kaufmann and later revamped by celebrity designer Billy Haines.
When contacted by The Real Deal, Hyland said he was delighted to have sold the property to someone who shared Goetz’s love of art and architecture and would carry on the social tradition of the house.
Meanwhile, Berggruen is reportedly in the midst of building a new headquarters for his international think tank, the Berggruen Institute, in the Santa Monica Mountains. He purchased 450 acres of land west of the 405 Freeway in the Sepulveda Pass for $45 million from community developer Castle & Cooke.
Though he once eschewed a permanent home in favor of staying in hotels, Berggruen has since acquired homes in New York and L.A.