Wednesday, July 9, 2008

Peter Morton Flipping Out in Beverly Hills

SELLER: Peter Morton
LOCATION: Angelo Drive, Beverly Hills, CA
PRICE: $22,500,000
SIZE: 8,110 (as per assessor), 7 bedrooms, 8 bathrooms
DESCRIPTION: The single best view lot in prime location. Sold as land value, no inspection on home. View is from downtown to ocean and trees of Beverly Hills & Holmby Hills. This is an extraordinary view property on 4 acres. Will be shown only on a clear day.

YOUR MAMAS NOTES: According to listing information, only on a clear day, and only on a clear day children, will well heeled house hunters will be allowed to have a peak at and a prowl around the big Bev Hills mansion that billionaire biznessman Peter Morton just flipped onto the market with an asking price of $22,500,000. Not only will interested parties be free to see the place on a cloudy day, listing information makes it crystal clear they will also not be allowed to have inspections on the property which is being offered at land value only. Land value?

For all the children not familiar with its ownership history, let Your Mama provide a wee bit of background information on this prime piece Beverly Hills dirt. Back in the early 1980s (or maybe the late 1970s, Your Mama ain't quite sure), man luvin' mega mogul David Geffen scooped up the Angelo Drive estate from That Girl super star Marlo Thomas. However, Mister Geffen, a man with a passion and a properly plump pocketbook for high profile properties, didn't stay long before he packed up his porn and moved to the legendary and even more impressive Jack Warner estate which is also located on Angelo Drive and across the street the (in)famous Saperstein pile. Records show Mister Geffen sold the stately estate to radio tycoon Norm Pattiz and his wifey Mary. The Pattiz pair owned the house until September of 2006 when prop records reveal they sold it to Mister Peter Morton for $18,500,000.

Property records also show that just a few months later, in December of 2006 to be exact, Mister and Missus Pattiz pocketed another $3,500,000 for an adjacent parcel which included a tennis court and 2,080 square foot guest house/tennis house/screening room/recreation pavilion. This part of the great estate was accessed from the main house by funicular...yes children, that's right, fuh-nik-u-ler, a fun little folly only affordable by the very rich.

Current listing information for the 7 bedroom and 8 bathroom house is on the slim side, but thanks to Our Fairy Godmother in Beverly Hills Your Mama was able to view older listing information which indicates that the main house includes at least five bedrooms including a master suite with fireplace, sitting room and dual bathrooms with an additional bedroom is located in a pool house. Your Mama also understands that at the time Mister Morton purchased the property other rooms and amenities included living and dining rooms, a gor-may kitchen, media room, office, library/study, a family room, gym, sauna and, natch, a heavy doody security system.

Your Mama hears from a well connected source whom we'll call Posh Pete that Mister Morton had grand plans for the property. However, according to Posh Pete, Mister Morton has simply changed his fickle real estate mind. You can do that even in a sagging market when you have a billion dollars, right? If Your Mama has said it once, we have said it until we're black and blue in the face, who are we to make sense of the property peregrinations of the rich and famous?

Records show that in addition to owning several spectacular properties sprinkled along Malee-boo's Carbon Beach, Mister Morton also owns a 13,423 square foot manse on N. Carolwood Drive in a prime part of the Holmby Hills as well as a much more modest 5,533 square foot house on Woodruff Avenue in the nearby Little Holmby neighborhood.

45 comments:

Anonymous said...

Land value? No inspection? Now I'm dying to see what the house looks like on the inside! Mind, not 22.5 curious.

Madam Pince said...

So what's wrong with the house? It's not my style, but it doesn't look to be in tear-down condition.

ms_wonderland said...

It's going to be demolished and replaced with 8 mini-mansions? Sad. But who gets to have the funicular? That must be so cool!

Anonymous said...

So he's actually just breaking even, at best - invested 18.5 plus 3.5, now asking 22. Even the rich overpay at times.

StPaulSnowman said...

I love the way the listing states that the property will only be shown on a clear day........only in California would the twenty two million dollar view depend upon how much grime is in the air.........well, maybe in Phoenix as well.

Anonymous said...

Well, the house was built in the 1940's and I can't really find any records of any huge improvements to the house over the years. The house sits on a little over 4 acres.
The little finicular (which oddly scares the shit out of me) goes down to another lot at a much lower level with a huge ass tennis court on it.

Not my cup of tea.

lil' gay boy said...

Faux.

Not to heat up the debate about whether certain architectural styles are appropriate or not for CA; personally, with the wide variety of flora and topography in CA, any style, provided it is well executed, will find a home in the sunny hills.

However…

…this ain't one of 'em. It may have been built in the 40s, but it is still a poor example of "Tudorbeathan" - or whatever they were going for. The half-timbering is sparse and underscaled, the chimney poorly clad, the windows ungenerous, and the shed dormers out of period, even if you're not a purist (and I'm not). But 4 acres is 4 acres, and as Babs sang, "on a clear day…" it's got one helluva view.

Pretty pricey for a tear down, but it ain't my money now, is it?

;-)

Anonymous said...

Okay to all of you doubting thomas's out there this just in

Malibu 50% discount

we still have another 40% to go but we are getting there.

"Malibu: Michael Gardner's real estate blog reports that a home in Malibu Cove Colony just sold for a huge discount. The home, he reports, was listed in late 2007 for $6 million, and just sold for $3.5 million. Gardner: "The home needed some work but has great views of Point Dume, is in the Paradise Cove Bay where it lies protected from the afternoon northwesterlies, and is in a neighborhood of $5-6 mil. homes that rent for $40-60k per month in the summer."

Manhattan Beach: Price cuts are old news but this one is big -- a million bucks. Manhattan Beach Confidential reports that a home listed at $8 million in February has just been reduced to $7 million. MB Confidential reports the original asking price was "fairly astonishing"

oh and on the beck HP blog or the Laurie blog, I have not commented on there for a while, it looks like others think that HP is in dire need of security and there are some crazies on the Laurie blog.

and YES this is the real average joe, coming to you via satellite internet from Ibiza, this place is like heaven on earth.


Okay see ya all real soon

ciao bello !!!!!!!! :) :)

Anonymous said...

Stpaulsnowman,

It isn't so much grime in the air they are talking about. We have something called "June Gloom" which is common in June but can happen anytime from May to late August. It is a heavy marine layer that comes in off the Pacific too low to be swept over the mountains and out of the LA basin.

Of course the smart thing to have done would have been to put the house on the market after Labor Day when they wouldn't have to call attention to the fact that the view is sometime obscured by fog/smog.

Anonymous said...

^

You're description is regarding 1 town on the island - San Antonio ... The rest of the island is $10M villas & $100M yachts & stunningly beautiful & is a mixture of the really bohemian & jetset or jetset bohemians ... you can't stereotype a complete island just because of 1 town on it ...

But of course, I'm just surprised that they allowed Average Joe on the island - in fact, I'm surprised that he was even allowed a passport to get out of the US.

Anonymous said...

Then Average Joe would fit right in. He is full of TOTAL CRAP. Except he didn't go anywhere. The whole Ibiza lie is to deflect from people asking him to prove his lies in another topic (Beck).

Lets be realistic, who is going to travel 6000 miles on vacation then get on the internet to visit this blog and make off topic posts?

Check this out (and these are only the posts under his "average joe" name) -

July 8, 2008 7:13am (Beck comments)

For what it is worth I am on my way to Ibiza
I will not be on the internet for some time.
I will be back in Sept


July 8, 2008 7:51pm (Laurie comments)

average joe here still in NY waiting for my flight to Ibiza
for the record, while I will be gone until September


July 8, 2008 8:02PM (Laurie comments)

BTW, did everyone see the LA Times story about big cuts in Malibu and Manhattan Beach? Just remember I told you so!

Anonymous said...

IM NOT ON VACATION ASSHOLE! I AM AT A CONVENTION OF MILLIONARES LIKE ME. I WILL MAKE MORE MONEY ON THIS TRIP THAT YOU WILL IN A LIFETIME.

DONT COME CRYING WHEN YOUR HOUSE VALUE DROPS TO 1980 VALUE BECAUSE YOU DIDNT BELIEVE ME.

Anonymous said...

I'm with you LGB. I generally like genuine 'antique' classic architecture regardless of style, but this place is a highly unattractive dud.

StPaulSnowman said...

anonymous 5:19..........thanks for the education. I learn alot here. I wrongly assumed that they were talking about smog.

Anonymous said...

I just found this new blog solely about Victorian houses. It's not exactly like Real Estalker but the author does like to quote Your Mama since it's seems Real Estalker inspired this blog. Take a look... http://victorianhousetour.blogspot.com/

pch said...

I'm kinda surprised this house dates from 1940. Looks much more 1920s to me. Even Edwardian. I think with the right tweaks you could get all Edwin Lutyens on this joint and come out with something fairly interesting.

A nice piece of land, too bad about the subdivision of the tennis court's parcel, but the big drawback is being smack in the middle of Angelo's midcentury subdivision. All those 10,000-square-foot lots as far as the eye can see. A little further up the hill and it would be in better company.

Anonymous said...

Can anybody tell us who's building on that massive outcropping not far above this property on Angelo Drive?

Anonymous said...

Yeah anonymous, you just "found" that site about victorian homes. Just say you are the author. However, whoever's site that is stop trying to tip your hat to mama with the comments--you just copied/hacked her sh*t. Take down all references immediately, get your own creativity and do your own thing. Siblings, don't post any comments there until that site gets an identity of it's own.
Mama, you can spank me later.

Mama's black sheep in Weho, the gloves are off for now.

Anonymous said...

Oh, about the house. Maybe a few mil and a good architec could authenticate it a bit more. 22 mil is a bit steep for a lot and the agent is really just trying to drum up interest like the house is free--that's all--Deal of the Century, better come now "checkbook in hand" and all that fake bullsh*t. Also, regarding the clear day only policy. So you live there 6 months in a 5 million dollar pile, but when it's clear you feel like 22 mil. Then on your invites, you put down the wedding will be on a clear day only! That's like saying only showing the house by lax on days without planes flying over. Plus, your blatantly exposing the flaw and being tacky with prospective buyers, like your trying to dupe them. Let's see mama, when it sells, who got "tricked".

Mama's black sheep in WEHO

Anonymous said...

Agreed Black Sheep. Completely ripping off Our Mama, but without the wit and class.

Anonymous said...

Can anybody tell us who's building on that massive outcropping not far above this property on Angelo Drive?


I think you are referring to the private school

Mike Cook said...

Not sure what they're called, but I really like the boxy windows that seem to hang off the house. The conservatory is also nice, although odd that it's at the front of the house.

The front door looks very puny.

Wouldn't everyone in LA realize that the view just might be obstructed by smog at times? Bow and arrow, very weird.

Anonymous said...

The house sucks. The value is in the land... no trick of saying a free house... anyone who buys this property would level it in an instant.

Anonymous said...

The site is actually rubbish. The driveway entrance is very dark because of the 100 year old trees.

Look out your window and you see the old Sharon Tate site.

You could only build about 3 Mc Mansions on the site therefore land value to any developer is about $12m.

Anonymous said...

actually a nice mansion on viewmont drive was listed for 4MM and now they are asking 2.3 MM

I think it was sold for 3.5 MM a year ago

I think avg joe and others may be right about the market diving down by 50% or more now

link

http://guests.themls.com/profile_page.cfm?mls=08-289019&tab=search

I am also coming to the conclusion that those that trash avg joe and others for speaking out are real esate agents or brokers that are lashing out because they are seeing their industry crumbling very quickly

I wonder how long it will be before we see a huge amount of agents brokers getting sued for heavy losses in the millions if not billions.

Anonymous said...

also this is land for sale at 22MM the home is a bonus

read the fine print

Anonymous said...

would this blog be a better place without the average joe in it?

Anonymous said...

here we go again another 6 percenter ramin noodle eating RE agent protesting

go away you flea bag !!!!!!

Alessandra said...

Oh, sweet good freaking gracious.

Guess what? RE prices are falling. Guess what else? In about ten years, whatever price someone paid today in SoCal, that house will be worth close to double.

What goes up, comes back down and goes back up again. And some homes are still commanding top dollar and getting multiple offers over asking, believe it or not. It's just instead of it being 80-90% of the market, the way it was three years ago, it's now about 1-5% of the market.

And it's Ms. Flea Bag to you, debbie downer. Don't forget that.

Oh, and this property? A tad overpriced, even on a clear day minus any June Gloom.

Anonymous said...

Average Joe,

The children aren't stupid.

We all know you post as "debby downer" when you get spanked. And we all know you are posting from your hovel somewhere in the bowels of the earth, not any international destination.

No, not all that speak out against Average Joe and his aliases are real estate agents.

And yes, we all agree that Mama's blog would be a better place without you and your off topic posts.

Yours must be a sad life if all the attention you can get is by getting people to tell you what an ass you are.

Parker said...

Well put, Alessandra, thank you.

Anonymous said...

Can't Mama make us all have a log in so she can monitor stupid crappy posts?

Anonymous said...

Debby, I just read the fine print. It says you are a beotch trannie by the name of Average Joe.

Anonymous said...

see another disgruntled RE agent

go away no one believes your lies anymore.

Anonymous said...

11:13 = Average Joe

LOL!

Anonymous said...

Suggestion, sell the house to Roman Abramovich. He will then tear it down, build a 50,000 square foot home for 100 million. He will then decide it's too small, and sell for $30 million.

Anonymous said...

I offered 2.25MM cash and they hung up on me. They will come crawling to me.

so_chic_darling said...

I am so sick of average joe and his bipolar postings.

Mike Cook said...

Alessandra,

Thank you for adding reason to this mess.

Just don't read him, dudes, 'cause anyone who states, in a blog, that he's better than you because he's upper class, isn't really someone you want to give the time of day to, is it?

Alessandra said...

If only Mama would give me custody of the wooden spoon...

Anonymous said...

Your morning foreclosure news: California foreclosures dropped 5 percent from May; closer to home, "one in 263 households in Los Angeles County and one in 234 in Ventura County were notified of foreclosure activity, according to RealtyTrac, which monitors default notices, auction sale notices and bank repossessions."

ALL LIES.

lil' gay boy said...

Alessandra,

I gift this to you.

so_chic_darling said...

My friends from London just met average joe at a club in Ibiza, they said he was really high on meth and dressed in drag as a character he referred to as Debbie Downer. He just kept going on and on about how some villa on the other side of the island that sold for 10 million Euros two years ago was being offered to him for 50 grand. Poor thing.

Alessandra said...

It's perfect!

Thank you, LGB!

Anonymous said...

Debbie Downer aka Avg Joe:

Your use of homes here and there to describe the entire market = poor display and desperate attempts..

The home on Viewmont is owned by a guy that's trashed the place and had one too many parties... he is now fire selling it and has over 15 offers last I heard...

again.. do yourself a favor and even if you believe in the bottom of your heart that prices will go back to the year 1929 prices, please don't mention it in every post... we all get it.. move on!