Alamo’s Fieldhaven Estate Sells at Near-Record Price

A recent mansion sale in the East Bay nears the all-time price record for Contra Costa County.

The Fieldhaven Estate, spanning 21 acres at 7 Country Oak Lane in Alamo, sold for $21.5 million after being on the market for more than two years, the San Francisco Chronicle reported. The trade comes after the owner shaved down the price almost $14 million from its original ask of $35 million when it hit the market in 2023.

The 22-bedroom, 10-bathroom property has been up for sale twice since it was built in 2012. David Duffield, co-founder of PeopleSoft and Workday, built Fieldhaven in 2012, reportedly to the tune of $135 million. It listed in 2016 for $39 million but failed to secure a buyer, according to the Chronicle. Billionaire finance executive J. Taylor Crandall bought it from Duffield in 2020 for $19 million and went on to spend $7 million on upgrades, according to Marilee Headen, a Compass agent who handled the previous sale and the most recent one. The unnamed buyers are an East Bay family who will likely use the estate to host gatherings, Headen said.

Fieldhaven boasts unique touches including a geese fountain from the 1800s, a tree house connected to a 75-foot rope suspension bridge, an aviary and a garage for 20 vehicles. The main 23,314-square-foot mansion comprises 10 bedrooms and 22 bathrooms on a site formerly occupied by an 8,000-square-foot home. The remaining bedrooms are spread across two guest houses. The home comes outfitted with typical high-end amenities like a gym, movie theater, outdoor kitchen and wine cellar.

The near-record-setting sale comes as San Francisco and the rest of the Bay Area notch high-flying transactions as new workers in the booming artificial intelligence sector drive up home prices and dry up mansion supply. It’s gotten so bad that experts say San Francisco is in the midst of a mansion shortage. The East Bay — particularly upscale neighborhoods in Silicon Valley and the Peninsula — is also seeing an uptick in luxury transactions.

“The overall luxury market in the East Bay is extremely strong,” Headen said, noting agents are “seeing an influx of money from San Francisco and Silicon Valley, and it has to do with AI.” The new class of buyers are largely drawn to the good schools and green scenery in the East Bay, not to mention the availability of luxury homes at a slightly lower price than in tony Peninsula towns like Atherton and Woodside, according to Headen.

— Chris Malone Méndez