TEIGE MUHLFELD
Staff Writer
Whether it’s on the beach or the bluffs behind Pacific Coast Highway, Malibu real estate is hot on the market and selling for millions. Recent issues of three real estate magazines — “Homes & Lands,” “Malibu to Beverly Hills” and “Distinctive Homes, Malibu” — peg homes with extra acreage or beachfront properties to run from $4 million up past $50 million.
Top-dollar land is changing, too, according to Christopher LaShelle, a realtor with Prudential Malibu Realty.
“It used to be that people’s attention for buying a home was mostly on Malibu Colony, but now people are buying more homes along Carbon Beach,” LaShelle said.
He said Prudential Malibu Realty promotes peace and privacy as the main draw of Malibu homes. Many homes are walled off from public viewing, let alone any extensive access.
Brett LaShelle, a construction developer with Los Angeles-based Hilton Development Group, facilitated for the Graphic an exclusive tour of one such residence.
It’s called the Crown Jewel Country Estate, and it is nestled in the hills overlooking Malibu. The home is located close to other multimillion-dollar estates, including the residence of Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger.
The $29-million home has a total of 20,000 square feet. It sits 1,000 feet above sea level but still overlooks the ocean, according to LaShelle.
“(It’s) nice because you get away from the busy traffic on Pacific Coast Highway, but you can still see the ocean,” he said.
The new estate, being sold by Sotheby’s International Reality, is nearly complete after two years of construction. It contains five bedrooms in the main structure (plus additional bedrooms in a pool house), 10 bathrooms and various additional multipurpose rooms.
An iron and wood gate guards the property’s entrance. Inside the gate, a large fountain surrounded by white flowers and hedges is the centerpiece to a circular driveway paved in stone. The stones are intentionally rough around the edges from being hand-laid. The driveway continues past the main entrance of the house and ends at a two-building, six-car garage. Although the house is new, builders have planted ivy around the exterior so that it grows up the walls.
The home is surrounded by Cyprus and palm trees and plenty of flowers. Freshly-cut green laws encompass the surrounding property to give it an open, crisp look.
“We spent $1 million on landscaping alone, and each tree on this property costs from $10,000 to $12,000,” LaShelle said.
Corinthian columns mark the entrance to the house, and iron gates cover the doors. To obtain entrance, three levels of security must be passed: first, the guard gate at the road entry, then the house’s personal gate and stucco wall, and finally the gated front door.
Upon finally entering the home, a courtyard immediately meets the eye. It contains a fireplace, hanging lanterns, palm trees and flowers. This enclosed area can be seen from all the main bedrooms and corridors of the house.
Two grand staircases silhouette a long hall away from the courtyard, leading toward the downstairs area. The staircases, meanwhile, lead to the upper level, which includes guest rooms, a family room, a home theater, a gym and a master bedroom.
The master bedroom opens with two mahogany doors that, along with every window in the home, were imported from Germany, LaShelle said.
Inside, the bedroom has two separate bathrooms and closets. The women’s closet and bathroom are more lavishly decorated with a fireplace and two powder rooms, while the rest of the bedroom overlooks the ocean. The entire room, including both bathrooms, also has one deck and two balconies.
Down the hall from the master bedroom is a movie theater. It features a projection room and viewing screen large enough for three rows of seats.
Nearby the theater is the home’s personal gym. It comes with a massage room, steam room and balcony that overlooks a vineyard outside.
Owners will have the privilege of having a personal vineyard as well as a 2,000-bottle wine cellar inside the house. This wine cellar, made from imported wood, is in close proximity to the house’s two wet bars — one near the dining room, the other between the library and the study — and kitchen.
The library is connected to the study by a sliding door. Both rooms have a large collection of bookshelves and give a darker atmosphere from the rest of the house. The kitchen and two maids’ quarters are across a hallway from both rooms.
Both quarters are situated near the laundry room, with two washers and two dryers, and the back entrance to the kitchen.
At the other end of the kitchen, the main entrance to the dining room and breakfast room is hidden by two large sliding doors. The kitchen itself contains two islands, two refrigerators and freezers, plus a pantry, stoves and numerous wine holders. The kitchen’s back wall is designed with mosaic tiles with the same theme as some of the mosaic elsewhere in the home.
Another mosaic display sits outside the entrance to the pool house. All the mosaic in the house — half a million dollars worth, according to LaShelle — is hand-laid.
The pool house is adjacent to a tennis court and an outdoor barbeque area. It has two bedrooms that each contain their own bars and refrigerators and share a fireplace. The bedrooms also overlook an 80-foot pool that contains different levels of stone shelves and a waterfall overflowing into the pool from a Jacuzzi.
The pool area allows an overall view of the main house. Eight chimneys are visible, for the eight fireplaces inside the home. The living room fireplace is modeled after one in Louis XIV’s palace, and the fireplace in the study is constructed out of materials imported from Cyprus. There are also two outdoor fireplaces, one in the courtyard and one in the backyard.
Most of the accessories to this house are unique and classy. Wood-paneled ceilings feature beams that once belonged to miner’s shakes. There are also rusted knockers on each door and antique-looking lanterns for exterior lighting.
With European-imported materials and five-figure trees, this house will cost nearly $30 million upon completion. It’s filled with extravagances most Pepperdine students won’t see any time soon, but as far as Malibu’s ultra-rich estates are concerned, it’s an average 90265 residence.
11-10-2005