Friday, July 8, 2011

Friday Quickies: Klum and Seal Sell



SELLERS: Heidi Klum and Seal
BUYER: Frank Guistra
LOCATION: Beverly Hills, CA
PRICE: $7,000,000
SIZE: 6,794 square feet, 6 bedrooms, 9.5 bathrooms

YOUR MAMAS NOTES: It didn't take lucky lucky lucky Heidi Klum and Seal very long to unload their Beverly Hills, CA mansion, though they did sell it at a significant loss.

Property records show the supermodel/entertainment mogul and the soulful singer bought the privately situated 6,794 square foot house on 2.49 acres in late 2005 for $7,600,000. They listed the 6 bedroom and 10 bathroom mansion–described in listing information as a Loire Valley Chateau–in mid-May 2011 with an asking price of $6,900,000. Within two weeks, the house was in escrow and three weeks after that the deal was done for $7,000,000. Yes, puppies, that's a hundred grand more than the asking price but it's also a substantial $600,000 less they they paid for the posh property not counting carrying costs, renovations and/or the fat real estate fees.

The buyer, according to the property records Your Mama peeped, is Canadian investment banker, mining magnate, entertainment executive and left-leaning philanthropist Frank Giustra. Although he's sold much of his stake in the company, Mister Giustra is perhaps best known to Tinseltown types as the founder of the independent film production and distribution company Lions Gate Entertainment. He's also a well-known crony of former U.S. president Bill Clinton. They are, in fact, thick as thieves: Mister Giustra has on several occasions lent his private plane and accompanied President Clinton on various international trips, some of which proved extraordinarily lucrative to the Canadian.

Mister Giustra's home base is in West Vancouver (British Columbia, Canada) where he owns a deluxe waterfront estate on the Burrard Inlet.

As for Miz Klum and Mister Seal, they've decamped for an 8.5(ish) acre estate with a 12,300 square foot Mediterranean mansion in the Brentwood Country Estates, the same small and swank gated enclave tucked into the hills above Brentwood where some of the other home owners include supermodel Gisele Bündchen and pro pigskinner Tom Brady, philandering former California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, Band-Aid heiress Libet Johnson (who we hear through the real estate grapevine leases out her house), and Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim bin Jaber bin Muhammad Al Thani, the current prime minister of Qatar. Property records show they paid $14,200,000 for their new digs back in December 2010.

listing photos: Coldwell Banker Previews International / Beverly Hills South

9 comments:

midTN said...

How nice...

"Hey Heidi, throw Seal a fish"

***

angie said...

I think they were smart to accept a quick offer close to what they originally paid, even though the sale resulted in a net loss for them. A bird in the hand... (You listening Ms. Saperstein?)

I just read the following on a popular gossip site, and would appreciate a few specifics if any of your amazing sources have an inside track on them Mama:

"Maria (Shriver) is in escrow to buy a home valued at around $10 million. The house is also in Brentwood, approximately 3 miles from the family home."

Thanks as always!

The Devoted Classicist said...

How peculiar to have the pair of settees flanking the exterior main entrance! Perhaps the new owner can find a pair of interesting garden ornaments or a pair of great containers with trees to give some visual height.

Anonymous said...

This house is truly brokedown and is a Tarzana house up in the Hills of Beverly(ish)

New Money New Money New Money!

Newshen said...

That truncated stair railing would drive me crazy.

Newshen said...

That truncated stair rail would drive me crazy.
Either run it all the way up or remove the partial section.

luke220 said...

I'd like to know who this stager was. In the future, I would only suggest that they put a few clothes in the closets.

The front settees are a bit odd but it's nice to have a place to sit while waiting for the car to arrive.

For some reason, I like this house.

Anonymous said...

frank giustras house in west vancouver is soooooo nice. Its like 6 lots on radcliffe where a 45 foot lot sells for 10 million.

Anonymous said...

Love the architectural style and site but agree with previous posts regarding flanking settees. They're contrived and dull - entry needs more splash with large containers or something.

Are you sure the interior shots go with this house? Except for the dining room ceiling and what looks like a casual living space, both of which would be expected in a home of this style, the predictable and boring interior finish-out could be anywhere.