MARCHELLE MCCONNELL
Staff Writer
Anela Holck/Assistant Photo Editor
Pepperdine students often take pride in the ocean vista they call home. Judging by the prices, living space and luxury features of some homes within a few miles of campus, most students will not be able to afford a Malibu lifestyle after graduation.
Malibu real estate consists of some of the most expensive homes in the country. The top 10 most expensive homes in the United States run from $46.5 million up through $75 million, according to Forbes magazine’s 2005 survey. Third on the list is a Malibu home, said to cost $65 million. The oceanfront property sits on seven acres and has a private beach road, not to mention seven bedrooms and 11 bathrooms.
It’s just one of many multimillion-dollar estates with a Malibu address and, more often than not, a famous owner.
Local realtors Jan Thompson and Matt Hansen, a Pepperdine alumnus, have long lists of notable clients, as well as a few interesting celebrity stories.
Thompson, a real estate agent since 1992, works at Coldwell Banker in Malibu.
“The least amount of money a person can pay to purchase a beachfront home is $2 million,” she said.
General repairs over the life of the home can add significantly to these prices. Thompson said such fees would eventually double the cost of a $2 million home.
Coldwell Bankers holds more than 45 percent of the property share in Malibu. Clients include families wealthy enough to have middlemen serve as liaisons between the real-estate agents and themselves.
Thompson described one instance where a family with time limitations elected to have an interior decorator make the decisions for them.
Wealthy families are not the only ones who have intermediaries. Many prominent film, music and television celebrities have Malibu addresses, and most of them have their own liaisons.
“It is common that celebrities have managers who speak for them,” Thompson said. “I do not always work with the client directly.”
Others — including paparazzi — often try to find celebrity locations through her. Keeping locations confidential becomes part of her daily life, even as questioners alter their tactics, Thompson said.
She related one instance when several individuals called and pretended to be interested clients. They asked Thompson questions about Britney Spears’ home, which Thompson knew but would not reveal. Eventually, she gave them a false location.
Protecting celebrity homes is not Thompson’s only job. She also interacts confidentially with home buyers, managers and agents.
Celebrities in particular are known to use fake names.
“The main reason (celebrities give fake names) is for safety, privacy and exclusion,” Thompson said.
Coldwell Banker is not the only real estate company servicing Malibu celebrities. One competitor is owned in part by a Pepperdine alumnus.
Matt Hansen, who graduated in 2001, is now co-owner of Buy the Beach, Inc., a Malibu real estate agency. Hansen, a realtor in Malibu for four years, has a client list containing some very prominent names.
Hansen would not specify which clients were currently in the market, but his list of previous clients included singer Janet Jackson, rapper Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson and actress Kate Hudson.
“Working with clients this famous is interesting because they are the people on television, and then they are in your office acting just like any other person,” Hansen said.
He said he found many celebrities to be very personable individuals who did not want to be treated as if they were famous.
Some celebrities use their names to promote their homes.
Singer Gordon “Sting” Sumner advertises his name to generate interest when renting his home for short periods of time. Using it as a selling point, Sumner is able to maximize income in the real estate market, according to Thompson.
Whether they desire total confidentiality or want to use their name as a selling point, movie stars and wealthy families alike must negotiate with realtors for a Malibu address.
Some might think buying and selling homes for an exclusive clientele is a difficult and demanding task, but Hansen and Thompson both said they consider the job professional, enjoyable and profitable.
11-10-2005
