Friday, May 22, 2009

A Big Buy on the Beach in La Jolla

BUYER: Gary Barber
LOCATION: Camino de la Costa, La Jolla, CA
PRICE: $17,350,613
SIZE: 9,800 square feet (approx.), 7 bedrooms, 11 bathrooms (approx.)
DESCRIPTION: A truly rare offering...a stunning oceanfront compound with direct access to a secluded sandy beach. Impossible to duplicate today, this magnificent 6BR/9BA gated residence was recently remodeled to perfection. Your buyer will think he is visiting a Four Seasons Resort with all the finest finishes and amenities.

YOUR MAMAS NOTES: While many of Wall Street's formerly rich financiers get increasingly eager (and desperate) to unload their lavish, high maintenance homes, a few entertainment tycoons are shopping up a storm. Thanks to Beachfront Billy Your Mama was directed to a recent article in the La Jolla Light with a headline that screams, "Celebrity Pays $17M for LJ Home." Some people brake for deer, dogs and old ladees; Your Mama comes to a screeching halt for headlines like that.

The article did not identify the buyer who paid a not very recession-like $17,350,613 for the recently rehabbed oceanfront mansion on swank Camino de la Costa, but public property records clearly show the new owner isn't so much a "celebrity" as a super producer named Gary Barber who along with Roger Birnbaum, his bizness partner at Spyglass Entertainment, have produced cinematic cash cows including (but far from limited to) The Love Guru, 27 Dresses, Evan Almighty, Seabiscuit, and the Ace Ventura film franchise.

On a side note, Mister Birnbaum's beatific Beverly Hills house–which Your Mama discussed in mid-April of 2009–is currently on the market with an asking price of $16,000,000.

Mister Barber's new beach house, according to listing information we were able to scare up off the interweb, shows the dignified Spanish Colonial style casa built in the 1920s wraps around an interior courtyard where a gurgling fountain hints at the sound of the crashing waves at the back of the property. The multi-winged manse measures approximately 9,800 square feet.

There seems to be some discrepancy regarding the number of bedrooms and bathrooms. The news reports all say there are 7 bedrooms and 11 bathrooms, while listing information indicates there are 6 bedrooms and 10 bathrooms. Some other thingymabab we pulled up showed 9 furll and 2 half bathroms. Whatever the case, there are enough sleeping chambers and poop rooms to keep at least one house gurl making hospital corners and scrubbing terlits several hours a day. Your Mama surmises the difference may have something to do with the bit of square footage atop the garage that overlooks the swimming pool which may (or may not) be guest quarters that would account for the extra bedroom and terlit shown in the press reports.

Anyhoo, a little more poking around on the internets turned up some photographs which clearly show Mister Barber's new beach house is far from a cozy little surf shack. The front door opens to a rotunda-like entrance hall with a curving staircase, swooping wrought iron details and an over the top glittering golden chandelier. The impress the guests foyer as well as the formal living and dining rooms have what appears to be inlaid marble floors, fancy mill work lining the archways in between the rooms and floor to ceiling windows that frame views of the Pacific Ocean. A den or media room has carved paneling, built in shelves for pricey and fussy gewgaws and a trio of arched windows looking out over, you guessed it, the Pacific Ocean. The master suite has another fireplace, access to an oceanfront balcony, a bathroom Marie Antoinette could love and custom fitted closets and dressing rooms.

A small but adequately sized swimming pool is tucked into an ell formed by two wings of the house. a wide terrace runs the full width of the property and a sunbathing terrace with a stone balustrade hangs over the ocean below. The property offers private access to a sandy beach, a surprising rarity on all theses insanely expensive La Jolla houses that do not have direct beach access because they sit high atop vertical cliffs that drop down to the craggy coastline.

While every Mercedes driving real estate agent in La Jolla would probably like to think this high-priced property transaction means the worst of the economic troubles are over. Your Mama would not hold our breath or bet our long bodied bitches Linda and Beverly that is the case because it just might get worse before it gets better, particularly in California where a behemoth budget crisis threatens to bankrupt the state, a situation that surely makes all you California haters salivate with real estate righteousness.

On a lighter note, records would indicate that Mister Barber also owns a 4,270 square foot penthouse apartment with 4 bedrooms and 5 bathrooms in a posh high-rise on Wilshire Boo-lay-vard which he and the wifey picked up in December of 2003 for an undisclosed amount of money.

34 comments:

Anonymous said...

first

Anonymous said...

A bit fussy. And pink. Orange County version of what a French provencial Spanish Colonial Baronial English estate should be. At the beach. blech.

Stpaulsnowman said...

Sorry but it just isn't good looking at all. Millions of dollars for something that looks , once again, like a Ramada.

Angelle Haney Gullett said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Angelle Haney Gullett said...

Am I the only one who finds the long table in the kitchen versus the more intimate round table in the FDR a strange arrangement?

Anonymous said...

"Orange County version"

La Jolla is San Diego.

Anonymous said...

I don't understand why these idiots pay all this money for mediocre homes on mediocre beaches. I can see if this was a grand home on a great beach like the Hawaiian, Cayman Islands or Bahamas, but these are crappy barely swimable beaches.
Makes no sense.

Jimmy said...

I wouldn't want to bet where that house is going to end up if the LA area gets hit with anything over a 6.5 earthquake.

Anonymous said...

It will probably end up in Cabo San Lucas.

Anonymous said...

No dispute that the house is ugly. But Anon 5:29, "mediocre beach," are you kidding? Have you ever been to La Jolla?

Anonymous said...

Honestly, all you people who complain about earthquakes are wearing funnel glasses. Did you ever stop to consider that devastating natural disasters happen in other parts of the country far more frequently than major earthquakes occur in CA?

For example the gulf states have something called hurricane season EVERY YEAR which nearly every year wreaks terrible havoc and damage. And what about all those tornadoes that rip through Kansas and Neb. year after year after year leveling entire neighborhoods and small town? And look how many times the Mississippi has flooded in the last few years and wiped out vast stretches of property in the midwest.

So please, spare us all the, "Oh the earthquakes! This house will end up in Mexico" crap because it's just so myopic and silly.

La Jolla is gorgeous. This house? Not so much for me...too fancy inside for my taste.

Anonymous said...

La Jolla WAS gorgeous before the greedy developers built on every available parcel. Now it is sadly overdeveloped........illustrated beautifully by this house and the background of the photograph.

Anonymous said...

I guess the house is OK but damn if the furniture doesn't look like it came from Levitz. Are those brown Barcaloungers?

Anonymous said...

What a stupid argument. My disaster theory is better than your disaster scenario, and others have to deal with it yearly!
All disasters are tragic and it doesn't matter a bit if it happens twice a year or twice a decade.
I will say the upper balcony of this home would be a delightful place to sip a 1964 laphraoig while commenting "I dare say Chalz, is that a tsunami headed our way?" Pity those poor souls who have to deal with common earthquakes.

Anonymous said...

Dude,your theory is bunk.
San diego doesnt get hit with earthquakes like LA or Frisco.Your not from around are you?

That is one ugly beach with all those ugly hideous cement sea walls.

Anonymous said...

La Jolla is a mini Bel Air, Beverly Hills

lots of new and old money down there

Anonymous said...

Dude, you don't know much do you?
"Every year approximately 500 earthquakes occur in the state of California that are large enough to be felt. San Diego County, in comparison to other southern California areas, has sparse seismicity. However, since 1984, earthquake activity in San Diego County has doubled over that of the preceding 50 years.

Ongoing field and laboratory studies suggest the largest credible earthquake predicted for the coastal and metropolitan areas is a M7.2 on the Rose Canyon Fault and a M7.6 from either the Elsinore Fault or the San Jacinto Fault in the north and east county areas. In addition, studies suggest the following maximum likely magnitudes for local faults: La Nacion (M6.2 to 6.6), Coronado Bank (M6.0 to 7.7), San Diego Trough (M6.1 to 7.7), San Clemente (M6.6 to 7.7).

It should also be noted that some faults are hidden beneath unperturbed sediments (blind fault) and only discovered after an earthquake occurs."

County of San Diego: Earthquake Facts and Preparedness (22 May 2009)

http://www.sdcounty.ca.gov/oes/disaster_preparedness/oes_jl_earthquakes.html

http://snipurl.com/illvu

Try google earth, to see how beautiful La Jolla actually is, that is, if the real estate prices don't already make that abundantly evident.

TheFlyingDutchman said...

It's hard to believe that this ugly house was built in the 1920s. And ok, La Jolla is kinda nice, but it is stuffed with ugly homes, bad cracked roads and small nasty looking beaches.

Anonymous said...

LaJolla is really nice. I live in SD so I would know. I see this house about once a week as there is a nice beach spot by it that has huge rocks that jet out into the water, really nice for relaxing. Google map it or something. Anyways nice location, shitty roads, and shitty decor. Just my opinion.

Anonymous said...

How can you see it once a week if you live in South Dakota?

21 Billion said...

Many american peso for a beachfront location in a chapter 11state.

Anonymous said...

Can't imagine anyone paying that for a house squeezed into a space surrounded by other houses close by. For that you could get a much better property in France, Italy or Spain. I guess Americans are such homebodies they can't imagine living anywhere else, even if everything there is much superior to "home."

Anonymous said...

5:45 & 6:05. Very amusing. Made my day. Thanks.

SID DELUCA said...

I love California! All four states of it!

Anonymous said...

The "beaches" of La Jolla are mainly rocks, hardly soft white sand. And the coast is packed tight like sardines in the can. There are many places far more agreeable than La Jolla today.

EllesBlogs said...

There's really nothing quite as amazing as greeting the morning at the water's edge, whether that waterfront property is on a lake, a river, a stream, or the ocean. But this waterfront property doesn't have to be on the water, its pretty amazing in itself.

Mitt Romney's Neighbor said...

Yes, as many of you said, La Jolla is a beautiful place with great weather. I lived on this street myself and have seen better "original" homes and real architecture at a lower price. Anyone who has lived here and loves the beach would tell you they wouldn't live anywhere else in SD. It's just sad to see developers come and destroy true "jewels".

Anonymous said...

Why on GOD'S EARTH would someone spend $17M to live in.....La Jolla.

WTF?

That's a bit...that's actually FAR too much to pay to live in such a place. Ew. Anyone who thinks the beaches in La Jolla are good doesn't travel much.

What a terrible place to waste your wealth in. It's not an upper-class or "old money" place in any way, shape, or form.

Anonymous said...

I forgot to add...and this comment applies to ALL of Southern California below Los Angeles, more specifically, the Platinum Triangle.

San Diego/Orange Counties are all disgusting cultural cesspools. Fabulous people don't live in those places.

angeleyes said...

I agree wth 9:47 that the view from the beach is butt fugly with the vast expanse of unsightly concrete retaining walls smacking you in the face. The work needed to improve that eyesore could be a good bargaining chip in negotiating a more realistic price.

10:50/10:52, anything south of the Platinum Triangle is a 'disgusting cultural cesspool'? Huh? People aren't defined by nor confined to a zip code, sheesh. Most of the truly 'fabulous' who live there now became 'fabulous' far from it.

Mike Cook said...

Looks a bit seedy to me.

La Jolla Homes said...

Supplemental info included: "This property is reminiscent of an estate one would find while leafing through Architectural Digest. This is what La Jolla is all about. It is truly one of a kind.The home was extensively remodeled over the last three years by Sharratt Construction. Architecturally stunning features such as custom hand-carved Mahogany archways, moldings, and windows throughout and intricate inlaid radiant heated marble floors. Entering through the exquisite gated courtyard, you will immediately recognize the combination of a one-of-a-kind location with the utmost in quality and architecture. The home boasts two kitchens, both outfitted with the highest quality appliances such as three Dacor convection ovens, four subzero refidgerators, two Bosch dishwashers, four stainless steel sinks, two Dacor microwaves and warming drawers."
So there's one solution to cold feet... marble with inlaid radiant heat.

La Jolla Homes said...

Oh... and the four subzero "refidgerators" were also a strong selling point.

Anonymous said...

Wow there is a lot of really stupid people out there .....La Jolla is amazing ! I have traveled all over the world would take that house that street and that beach over anywhere!!! jealousy will get you no where. All you complainers enjoy your lousy life ! try practicing the secret