Real Estate
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ByJenna Intersimone/
There are rich people, and then there are rich people. That's where billionaires come in, who most often are investors, tech moguls, media titans, and entrepreneurs who started companies that we can't imagine living a day without. But just any old mansion on the corner doesn't cut it for most billionaires. Instead, the ultra-wealthy have essentially unlimited funds to create personal compounds with multiple onsite homes, Western ranches that are far from the eyes of pesky paparazzi, or homes located in the most expensive and sought-after cities in the world.
According to Forbes, the latter is where most American billionaires choose to make their nests. The most popular state for them to live in is California, which is home to ultra-luxe cities like San Francisco and Los Angeles. Here, the combined net worth is a whopping $1 trillion. (If you have a hard time wrapping your head around a number like that, keep in mind that the United States national debt is $30 trillion, via the U.S. Treasury.) To no surprise, the second most popular state for billionaires to live is New York, where even a studio apartment is ungodly expensive. Here, the combined net worth is $673 billion. However, there are lots of other places that billionaires call home, as well. Here are where just a few of them choose to find relaxation after a long day at the office.
Elon Musk's historic $32 million San Francisco mansion he sold after vowing to 'own no house'
When you're the CEO of Tesla and founder of several other billion-dollar companies, you don't need to invest in real estate. At least that's what it seemed like when Elon Musk tweeted in mid-2020 that he "will own no house." He's held true to that promise. According to the Robb Report, the billionaire, who is worth $237 billion, offloaded his final property in late 2021. He sold his San Francisco estate for $32 million, after paying $23 million for it just five years prior. However, the mansion took some time to find a buyer, as it has been listed and re-listed for several years, but the 2021 sellers' market worked in Musk's favor.
The 16,000 square foot abode dates back more than 100 years and features both old world touches — including a ballroom, gold living room molding, and black-and-white checkerboard floors — as well as modern renovations and top-of-the-line appliances and finishes. What resulted was a seven-bedroom estate with tons of fun, charming details — there's no sterile white box here. A secret bar area is tucked behind a clandestine door made up of bookshelves, and there are rooms just for relaxing with a glass of wine or whiskey, as well as another for flower arranging.Musk's personal suite included a cozy fireplace for those chilly San Francisco nights as well as not one, but two, bathrooms — one with a funky claw-foot tub.
Warren Buffett's beloved Nebraska home that's worth 0.1% of his net worth
Believe it or not, there's a good chance that you could afford Warren Buffett's cozy home in Omaha, Nebraska. The sixth-richest person in the world has lived in the same house for more than 60 years, which he bought for what would be equivalent to about a $250,000 today. Per Velvet Ropes, the house, which is in the same town that Buffett was born in, would be worth about $650,000 if he was to put it on the market now. The 6,500 square foot abode looks much like any other house on any street with its five bedrooms, brown façade, and green lawn. The one marker that it's Buffett's? His iconic black Cadillac, which is always parked in the driveway when Buffett isn't at the office.
Inside, Buffett, who is worth $117 billion, has decorated his beloved home with lots of traditional yet lavish décor, such as marble details, oriental rugs, historic furniture, and colorful couches surrounded by seemingly endless shelves of books. However, even though Buffett has no plans to move from his primary residence, he did have other real estate more in-line with his fortune. In 2018, he offloaded a vacation pad in millionaire-hotspot Laguna Beach for a little less than $8 million. But this, too, had been a steal — Buffett paid just $150,000 for the abode and then revamped it to its current value.
Tyler Perry's Versailles-inspired Atlanta, Georgia home that broke records
It's not just CEOs and investors who are worth billions. Director, actor, and producer Tyler Perry just reached billionaire status, as he is now worth $1 billion, and his colossal Atlanta, Georgia estate certainly reflected this. Homes & Gardens reported that in early 2021, he sold the mansion, which was designed to look like Versailles, for $15 million. It was the highest price that an Atlanta home had ever sold for. However, that all came down to Perry. He bought the seven-bedroom home 15 years ago for $9 million, but spent lots of time and money revamping it to its current status.
On 17 acres, the mansion surrounds a crystal-blue infinity pool that's all haloed by towering trees as well as manicured shrubbery and lots of fountains. On the outdoor property, there is an area for playing tennis, and there is also a helipad. Inside, some of the celebrity-worthy amenities include a ballroom for private events, an indoor pool, a spa, a private screening room, and a fitness center. The décor is equally lavish, a direct contradiction to Perry's usual down-to-earth personality. That décor includes marble floors, tons of sparkling chandeliers, and floor-to-ceiling windows to check out the forest views beyond. In a nod to the traditional details, there's even a library with a secret area for drinking wine surrounded by leather walls and flanked by a brick fireplace.
Mark Zuckerberg's low-key Palo Alto home that's perfect for family life
Times have certainly changed since Mark Zuckerberg's days in a Harvard dorm. A little more than a decade ago, just a few years after the drastic growth of Facebook, he splurged $7 million on a 5,600 square foot abode in Palo Alto that's just 10 minutes away from Facebook's Menlo Park offices. Architectural Digest reported that though the white-façade home lacks major frills, there are still some cool details hidden behind this family home where he lives with his wife and two daughters. Those include a machine that ejects Facebook t-shirts, as well as a robot personal assistant that speaks with the voice of Morgan Freeman.
The house sits on about half an acre, and visitors are welcomed inside between brick pillars and lots of potted florals. It's also the oldest house in the city, according to theCity of Palo Alto Historic Resources Board, and was constructed in a colonial revival style. In addition to the saltwater pool outside, there's also lots of space for guests, as well as a firepit and barbecue pit. Inside, there are some luxe details — Zuckerberg is worth nearly $75 billion, after all — such as heated floors and a marble bathtub, perfect for winding down after those long days at Facebook headquarters. But otherwise, it's a pretty traditional pad, with wood flooring, beige furniture, big windows, and other typical family-home touches.
Bill Gates' high-tech Lake Washington estate with lots of quirky touches
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Since Bill and Melinda Gates got divorced in mid 2021, there hasn't been official word on what's to come for their gigantic 66,000 square foot estate on the banks of Lake Washington, just around the corner from Jeff Bezos. But one thing we do know — we can tell why this mega-mansion with lots of personal Gates-style touches is known as Xanadu 2.0. According to The New York Times, the place includes a 20-car garage, a 150-person ballroom, a 60-foot long pool, and a personal fitness center featuring rocks from tall Pacific Northwest mountains, just to name a few amenities. With an unsurprising amount of video walls considering its owner, the high-tech home is spread through five acres of land.
According to CNN, it seems that the place is built for entertaining, since it has seven bedrooms but 24 bathrooms. However, it does have some rustic touches, too. In true Lake Washington style, its façade is entirely constructed of an eye-popping orange-hued wood, creating a standout cabin vibe. But Melinda Gates has never seemed to be much of a fan. Before Bill and Melinda married, Bill was already in the trenches of building the home, so Melinda was half-stuck with it. Specifically, she didn't like the estate's many video screens and techie details, according to Fortune. She enlisted an interior designer to help make the home more suitable for a family, rather than just one billionaire.
Jeff Bezos' $165 million historic Beverly Hills estate that he may be growing
Money is no object when you're the world's richest person, and that seems to be what Jeff Bezos was thinking when he put a drop in the bucket to buy a historic $165 million estate in celebrity hotspot Beverly Hills. Sound like a lot? That's because it is. Fast Company said that it's the highest home price ever sold in the Golden State. The Spanish Colonial Revival that Bezos bought just weeks before the onset of the pandemic in the U.S. is known as the Warner Estate, thanks to former owner and actor Jack Warner.
The Warner Estate is spread across nine acres, which is a lot anywhere, but especially a lot in space-confined Beverly Hills. Throughout the property, amenities include a pool, tennis courts, a golf course, lots of lush gardens, a 300-foot-long driveway leading to the main 13,000 square foot house, a home for visitors, and several fountains. But all of that wasn't enough for Bezos. About one year later, he also bought the $10 million property next door, seeming to want to extend his Beverly Hills compound, saidInsider. No one can be sure exactly what Bezos plans to do with the two properties, nor will it be easy to find out. The Warner Estate is surrounded by sky-high hedges and a foreboding gate, keeping Bezos safe from passersby.
Larry Ellison's Florida mansion is one of the biggest in the county
With properties all over the world, including in Japan, California, and Hawaii, Larry Ellison is as much a tech mogul as he is a real estate mogul. In mid 2021, the Oracle co-founder who is worth $112 billion grew his real estate empire even more when he bought an $80 million estate in North Palm Beach, Florida. Per Dirt, Ellison's Florida home, located in a super-private community with constant security, includes seven bedrooms, a Mediterranean-style façade, 15,000 square feet of space, and lots of high-end touches.
But by no means is this Ellison's first foray into Florida. He has tens of other homes here, too. His property in North Palm Beach, though, might take the cake. It sits on seven acres of land and, fittingly, it's also one of the biggest houses on the beach in the entire county. The mansion has lots of lavish details paired with Florida style, like oriental rugs under exposed wood beams and wood-paneled walls, a winding wrought-iron staircase surrounded by stone walls and floors, and plenty of fireplaces beneath elegant chandeliers. Outside, it gets even better, with plenty of amenities ideal for guests. There is an area for playing tennis, a dining set next to a cozy fireplace, and even space for a helicopter landing, in case someone wants to fly in (or out) incognito.
Michael Bloomberg's historic London mansion with celebrity neighbors and a storied background
Michael Bloomberg, who is worth $82 billion, isn't just in a New York state of mind. The former mayor of the Big Apple also picked up a stunning mansion in London, England for $25 million in 2015, and this is no ordinary mansion. According toTheNew York Times, Bloomberg's home across the pond dates back 150 years and was also the former home of famous author George Eliot. It's a huge upgrade from Bloomberg's other London apartment, which is half the size, and lacks the former celebrity neighbors that this mansion enjoyed, like James Whistler, J. M. W. Turner, and Mick Jagger. It also makes sense that Bloomberg would want a solid home here. His ex-wife hails from the area, he was named an honorary English knight by the Queen herself, and he serves as chairman for a British museum.
But it didn't come cheap. It cost Bloomberg a whopping million pounds over the estate's market price, which was necessary as there were three other interested buyers who put offers in on the home. Just like Bloomberg's other pads around the world, this London mansion at 4 Cheyne Walk also has lots of classic, old-world details like parquet floors, a mural on the ceiling featuring artwork of Greek mythology, and a grand staircase, said The Guardian.
Michael Dell's New York City penthouse, one of the most expensive to ever sell in the city
It's no secret that New York City is home to some of the most expensive real estate on the planet — just take a look at shows like "Million Dollar Listing: New York." But Michael Dell, who is worth $56 billion and is the founder of Dell Technologies, took that to the next level when, in 2014, he bought the priciest pad ever sold in the Big Apple.Insider said he picked up his penthouse for $100 million, but Dell kept his purchase top-secret until the dirt was ultimately spilled in 2018.
Dell's apartment is on the very top of the ultra-plush One57 building, which measures at more than 1,000 feet tall through its 73 floors. To no surprise, the building is prime real estate near Central Park. Dell's apartment has six bedrooms through its nearly 11,000 square feet, which is a more-than-generous size for a home, let alone a New York City apartment. Although Dell's apartment lacks the private amenities that many high-end homes across the United States enjoy, it does have shared amenities like a semi-private fitness center, library, screening room, and pool that Dell shares with other One57 residents. Want to get close to Dell's apartment? You can, sort of. The first 39 floors of the building are the Park Hyatt hotel, which the public can stay at starting at $845 per night.
Rupert Murdoch's 340,000 acre ranch in Montana that he bought from the Koch family
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We're not really sure why the same man who owns NewsCorp and hundreds of news organizations around the world would need a 340,000 acre Montana ranch with 7,000 cow pairs and 25 houses. However, when you're worth $22 billion, you don't really need a reason. At least that's what Rupert Murdoch must have figured when he bought Beaverhead Ranch from fellow billionaires the Koch family. According to The Wall Street Journal, Murdoch bought the ranch, which had been in the Koch family since its founding about 70 years ago and is located near Yellowstone National Park, in late 2021. The Koch family recently unloaded other ranches that they own, too, for unknown reasons.
However, this is no ordinary ranch. It cost Murdoch about $200 million, making it the biggest ranch buy ever involved in a state transaction. Besides cows, there are also lots of other animals that call the property home, including deer, antelope, and elk, viaThe Guardian. For some relaxing Western fishing, there are even trout stocked in a stream that's more than two dozen miles long. Murdoch does plan to spend at least a bit of leisure time at the ranch, although he doesn't have any current plans to change anything about the property.
Jack Dorsey's neighboring San Francisco properties with their stunning views
Jack Dorsey is no longer the CEO of Twitter, the social media giant that he founded, but he still seems to be doing just fine, judging by his beachside San Francisco estate that's worth $32 million. The Sun reported that the property is actually made up of two homes, including one that cost him $21.5 million and another that cost him $10 million. It's also located in one of the most expensive neighborhoods in the city — Sea Cliff — and there are gorgeous sights from here of both the water as well as the Golden Gate Bridge.
Dorsey, who is worth $8 billion, bought the $21.5 million home in an off-market deal in 2019, said Dirt, making it the priciest home to ever sell in the neighborhood. The two-story house goes back 60 years and features five bedrooms, a separate garage that can house two vehicles, and lots of lush greenery as well as wildlife. Before being owned by Dorsey, the mansion was owned by a family who bought it for just $2.85 million 25 years ago. Dorsey's neighboring $10 million home, which he picked up in 2012, has a midcentury modern style and makes for the perfect addition to the next-door primary residence.
Michael Jordan's personalized Chicago estate that's been on the market for years
Not many sports stars make billionaire status, but if anyone could do it, Michael Jordan can — the basketball legend is worth $1.7 billion. However, it isn't all financial wins for Jordan. Sportscasting said that he's been stuck with an unwanted Chicago home on seven acres, as he's had it on the market for nearly 10 years. As one of the biggest homes in the city, Jordan first listed the estate for $29 million, but without any buyers, he continued to drop the price in the following years.
Perhaps the home's level of personalization is keeping the wealthy buyers at bay. Jordan's number 23 is engraved on the home's wrought iron gate, which leads to a seemingly endless driveway for optimal security and privacy. There's also a competition-sized basketball court on site, also with Jordan's name throughout. Other interesting home details include an enormous aquarium within the dining room wall and doors that were once used in the Playboy Mansion of Chicago. But don't worry, wealthy buyers, this home has lots of "normal" luxe amenities, too. Through its three floors, there are nine bedrooms, an area for playing tennis as well as golf, a resort-worthy pool, an area for storing wine, a fitness center, and even a room just for enjoying a few cigars.
Kim Kardashian's mansion that she bought for $23 million from Kanye West
You would think that a star known for fashion would have a home equally outfitted in over-the-top designers, but not Kim Kardashian. The celebrity, who is worth $1.8 billion, basically lives in a Calabasas monastery. According to the New York Post, although Kardashian previously shared the minimalist pad with ex-husband Kanye West, she now owns it outright after forking over $23 million. Kardashian and West bought the estate together eight years ago, but you would never know it was the same house by looking at then-and-now photos. It now includes very little décor and features an ultra-simple, clean beige palette.
But Kardashian said that her chosen aesthetic only applies to the common spaces of the monastery-like respite. Each of her children has a more "normal" bedroom outfitted with the colors and décor of their choice. Outside, the home is equally barren. The only amenities seem to be a basketball court, a large green lawn, and a private fitness center, ideal for Kardashian's intense exercise routine. Even Kardashian's cars have been painted gray in order to jive with the rest of the home's palette.
Rihanna's $13.8 million Beverly Hills house that was once on 'Million Dollar Listing: Los Angeles'
With a long career in the music industry, Rihanna is one of the few singers to make it to billionaire status, clocking in at a $1.7 billion net worth. Dirt said that in early 2021, she flexed that wallet with the purchase of a $13.8 million mansion in Beverly Hills, surrounded by famous neighbors like Paul McCartney, Madonna, and Mariah Carey. The mansion dates back nearly 100 years with a few other famous accolades to its name. The home used to be owned by the daughter of the creator of "I Dream of Jeanie" and it also made it to an episode of "Million Dollar Listing: Los Angeles."
The 7,600 square foot estate has lots of privacy, ideal for an A-list star like Rihanna, as well as a modern farmhouse style featuring rooms that flow into one another, white oak floors, and a black, white, and beige color palette. But there's plenty of greenery here, too, especially within one of the home's most charming features — a courtyard with a lush green lawn as well as an entertainment-friendly pool, firepit, and patio.
