This week showed signs of a bright market despite the gloom. Celebrities spent big in Brentwood, while others sold their beachfront properties. In Orange County, the week wasn’t as pleasant. The seller of Richard Nixon’s former home dropped the asking price again on the so-called “Western White House.”
Viet Dinh, Fox Corp.’s chief legal and policy officer, bought a home in Brentwood for $19.5 million. The former U.S. Assistant Attorney General and his wife, Jennifer Ashworth Dinh, acquired the 16,200-square-foot mansion in Lower Mandeville Canyon. The seller was Stephen Walbridge, a strategic adviser at Savills, and partner at Santa Monica-based multifamily developer Dynamic Development Company. The home includes nine bedrooms, 15 bathrooms, a wine cellar, gym, media room, spa and an elevator. Outside, there is a swimming pool and 925-square-foot guest house.
Also in Brentwood, Westside Estate Agency co-CEO Kurt Rappaport picked up the second of two properties needed to create a new mega-mansion. The broker-turned-developer spent $11.75 million to acquire a 1-acre property on Highwood Street. David O’Connor, former CEO of Madison Square Garden Co., was the seller. Rappaport plans to combine that parcel with an adjacent 2-acre spread he purchased in July, when he spent $16.25 million. Once completed, the compound will include a 13,000-square-foot main home, two guest houses, a screening room and spa.
Elizabeth Luster
In Malibu, the heir of a legendary cosmetics company sold her home for $19 million. Elizabeth Luster sold the pad to an entity controlled by an anonymous trust based in South Dakota. She is the the adopted daughter of Freda Factor, the oldest daughter of Max Factor, founder of the eponymous cosmetics empire. The post-modern house has four bedrooms and 30 feet of beachfront, as well as a separate unit above the garage.
Celebrity chef Bobby Flay has served up $6.5 million to purchase a contemporary, 3,820-square-foot home in the Bird Streets. The newly built home hit the market in October for $8.9 million, Variety reported. The residence includes four bedrooms and four and a half bathrooms, as well as swimming pool and outdoor grilling area. Flay is the star of Food Network’s “Beat Bobby Flay,” and owns several restaurants.
In Orange County, Richard Nixon’s former estate got another price cut. The home, dubbed the “Western White House,” is now on the market for $57.5 million, down from an original ask of $75 million. The owner, Allergan Pharmaceutical’s founder Gavin Herbert, most recently listed it at $63.5 million. The 9,000-square-foot main house has seven bedrooms, along with a two-bedroom guest house, a swimming pool, tennis court and manicured gardens.