Thursday, March 17, 2011

Soap Actor Justin Torkildsen Gets a Quick Sale

SELLER: Justin Torkildsen
LOCATION: Los Angeles, CA
PRICE: $1,150,000
SIZE: 2,274 square feet, 3 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms

YOUR MAMAS NOTES: On the 10th of March (2011) actor Justin Torkildsen put his Los Angeles, CA residence in the celeb-packed Outpost Estates neighborhood on the market with an asking price of $1,150,000. Just four very short days later the updated and upgraded 1960s post and beam contemporary was in escrow and on it's way to being sold. Four days, children, four days.

Your Mama freely (and proudly) confesses that we had no idea who this Justin Torkildsen person is until we took to the internets to sort out his professional what's-what. Turns out that a teen aged Mister Torkildsen made a brief splash in the male modeling world in the mid- to late-1990s when he posed for Nautica adverts that appeared on 7-story billboards in New York City's Times Square. In 1999, at the tender and fresh-faced age of 18, Mister Torkildsen secured the role of Rick Forrester on the long-running soap story The Bold and the Beautiful, a revolving-door part that has been played over the years by no fewer than six actors. He worked alongside daytime drama stars like Tylo Hunter, Jack Wagner and Susan Flannery and in 2001 Mister Torkildsen was awarded a Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Younger Actor in a Drama Series. He was nominated for the same award the following year but, alas, did not win.

Mister Torkildsen's time on The Bold and the Beautiful came to a close in 2006 and according to his anemic resume on the Internet Movie Database he's barely worked in the entertainment industry since.

Property records show that Mister Torkildsen purchased the property for $995,000 in October of 2002. This was on the heels of his Daytime Emmy award and shortly after he married a gal named Bonnie Binion, a member to the scandal-ridden Las Vegas Binons who at one time owned Binion's Horseshoe casino. We're not sure when Mister and Missus Torkildsen's mutual adoration swirled down the Tinseltown terlit of love but they were dee-vorced in 2008.

Listing information shows the 2,274 square foot mid-century modern has a total of 3 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms, a count that includes a deluxe guest suite on the lower level with private entrance, massive brick fireplace and private pooper with steam shower.

The upper level master suite has hardwood floors, a pitched and beamed ceiling and a complete wall of jalousie windows and sliding doors. The children will forgive Your Mama for this: Despite their old-fashioned vibe, we lurv us some jalousie windows. We can't help it and we will no longer feel ashamed of that particular architectural fondness. The master bath looks well-sized for a modestly-scaled residence and includes walls of rectangular-shaped and olive-colored tiles The cabinetry–a magnificent creation in walnut–or is that teak?–that floats off the floor and has a matching walnut–or is it teak?–counter top. Normally we feel iffy about wood counter tops but in this case it's rather striking, in a good way.

Anyhoo, The main living area, wrapped in floor to ceiling sliders (and jalousies), had three distinct zones. A dining area with new-fangled picnic table style dining anchors one end of the long room and the other end functions as a casual and cozy area for things like reading, listening to music, or staring at the boob-toob. In the center a "formal" seating area is arranged around a massive freestanding brick and concrete fireplace.

The star of this show is unquestionably the spare and narrow but well-equipped u-shaped kitchen with it's custom-built walnut cabinetry that floats sexily off the hardwood floor. We're not thrilled with how blond the floor is against the walnut cabinetry but that's fixable and none-the-less we're swooning. Our adoration may or may not have something to do with the fact that Your Mama and the Dr. Cooter's kitchen has flat fronted walnut cabinetry that looks very much like that in this kitchen. We might even imagine that it's possible the same architect who did hp our kitchen did over this one too. Stranger things have happened, hunnies.

The too-slim backyard has a couple of small decks that organize the functionality of the different areas and in between a ratty-tatty patch of grass and a long smooth concrete wall where a sheet of waters slips down into a long trough. What might be great back here would be a raised plunge pool for those particularly sweltering days and and spa because although we don't find it particularly relaxing to sit in a vat of boiling water and slug back white wine we recognize that many do.

Your Mama has no clue where Mister Torkildsen plans to go once he vacates the premises but it looks like he's probably going to have to high tail it to elsewhere sooner than expected because after just four short days on the market, the house was put into escrow. That means this house was on the market less than a week. This lightening quick sale will surely spike the beaten down optimism of all those home owners and property purveyors who dearly want to believe the real estate go-go days of the mid 2000s are on their way back. Maybe they are and maybe they're not. Whatever the case, Your Mama has got to get on the road–we've got tickets to the tennis tourney out in Indian Wells, CA–so we're just going to let the children claw each others' eyes out in the comments.

One. Two. Three. Go!

listing photos: Coldwell Banker Beverly Hills North

12 comments:

lil' gay boy said...

"Despite their old-fashioned vibe, we lurv us some jalousie windows."

I still mourn the loss of our summer home, which came equipped with jalousies up & down...

I too love the tone of the wood in the kitchen cabinets (making lightening them not an option); however, darkening the floor (and possibly the ceiling beams) would be too "matchy" and would encompass most of the main floor, making it gloomy even on sunny days. Perhaps something more along the lines of pale blue-stone flooring to lend some extra definition to the room? Kids?

This is an interesting MCM overall; while the house has been meticulously kept, the grounds are somewhat seedy and in need of some serious landscaping, especially considering the dearth of dirt on this corner lot. The concrete retaining wall is, despite the "water feature", unattractive at best, so I'll even help Mama start to dig out the pool...provided she doesn't spontaneously combust in hot-as-hell Indian Wells.

Anonymous said...

The former home of Judy Garland on Stone Canyon Rd sold very quickly, too. It seems like if price a property for the reality of the times it sells - amazing.

Anonymous said...

$1.1 million seems to be the magic number in the Hollywood Hills & Los Feliz, according to my unscientific research. That is, if the house is in move-in condition, has some desirable traits & whatnot. Any asking price above $1.1 languishes. Seems like $400k is the magic number for the Hipster-attracting hoods of the east, such as Highland Park.

Anyway, no scholars for dollars going on here, just my random observations.

Lady J

Anonymous said...

Neither the house nor the owner are important enough to warrant Mama's attention. Find us more interesting stuff, Mama.

Anonymous said...

The "greater fool" days of the mid-00's are GONE FOREVER.Deal with it.Overpaying for LA property is for fleeing middle eastern despots...and lottery winners.That being said...it would appear that after brokers commission Mr.Torkildsen actually took a loss on the sale.Yeah four days is quick...but in the big picture signals nothing upbeat.

Anonymous said...

@11:26 - sheesh the reason he posted it is for the "sooner than expected" value to the local area... DUH.

How's that for a cat claw Mama? I played nice too.

Anonymous said...

While we're talking about The Bold and the Beautiful... I wonder who does that Zumirez Drive home they used recently belong to...

angie said...

A couple of years ago, I decided it was time to downsize some to a one-story, and was interested in moving to a deed restricted community where the emphasis is on preserving much of the natural surroundings. I finally found a place I wanted, and then set about researching what the appropriate price for the home I wanted to sell should realistically be given current market conditions.

After deciding on a list price, but before actually listing it, I was visiting a neighbor who asked what I was selling it for, so I told her. She immediately said "sold". It took a few minutes of convincing reassurance from her for me to believe she was really serious about buying it. Turns out she'd always had her eye on my home and property. It likewise took several minutes of reassurance from me to convince her I was really serious about selling at the fair and reasonable price I quoted her.

Moral of the story: it's basically the same market it was before people learned greed from Bush era artificial price inflation policies. Cut greed out of the equation when selling a home, and refuse to buy from or even negotiate with a greedy seller no matter how badly you want a particular property, and the market will recover for you overnight.

Anonymous said...

That dude is a horrible actor-but I love this place. It's exactly what a California Modern should be. It's bright, airy, and a little sexy. If I had the money I'd snatch is right up.

Anonymous said...

Ma I am having withdrawals. Did not get a weekend preview and still no weekend review. Give us something Ma!

Jeannified said...

Cool pad! Love it! Backyard needs help, but that can (will?) obviously be fixed.

Treece said...

$1.1 million seems to be the magic number in the Hollywood Hills & Los Feliz, according to my unscientific research. That is, if the house is in move-in condition, has some desirable traits & whatnot. Any asking price above $1.1 languishes. Seems like $400k is the magic number for the Hipster-attracting hoods of the east, such as Highland Park. Anyway, no scholars for dollars going on here, just my random observations. Lady J