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Want to live next door to Apple CEO Tim Cook?

Want to live next door to Apple CEO Tim Cook?

Google Ventures Managing Partner Bill Maris is selling his 2,065-square-foot Palo Alto condo. The home was on broker tour last week and shows very well.  It’s in a great area of Palo Alto, the home is nicely done plus, it’s directly next door to Apple CEO Tim Cook’s Palo Alto condo.
Maris originally purchased the four-bedroom, three-bathroom home for $1.98 million.   I suspect the home will get multiple offers as there are only less than 30 homes on the market in Palo Alto, so it’s going to go quickly.
If you are interested to see the home and do not have buyer representation, give me a call…but do it soon. Who knows, you might get some free Apple products down the road if you don’t make too much noise.

President Obama in Atherton

President Obama in Atherton

President Obama and the throngs of secret service will be here Thursday as the President visits our town of Atherton. He will start with a brunch at the home of Liz Simons and Mark Heising and then job on over to the home of Marcia and John Goldman for a lunch. Both stops are obviously to raise money for the democratic party so there will be Atherton’s finest paying top dollar for a meal with the leader of the free world.

Various roads will be temporarily closed around the Alameda de las Pulgas and Valparaiso areas, so I would definitely avoid those routes around Walsh Road and the Stockbridge/Selby lane areas.

The President will see some of the top real estate this country has to offer as well as lots of construction activity. There are so many homes being built, fixed and updated that driving through many streets in Atherton and Menlo Park will surely convince the President that the economy is surging and people are working. Atherton real estate as well as the area has had a surge in prices over the past year and ranks one of the highest priced areas in the country.

Steve Wozniak Home For Sale

Steve Wozniak Home For Sale

steve wozniak house 2 Steve Wozniak’s once owned home is on the market for $4.395 million dollars in Los Gatos.  The Apple co-founder owned the home several years ago and it has  undergone changes since he lived there, but for Apple followers, it’s still the home of the Woz.

The home has 7,500 sf, 6 bedrooms, 8 bathrooms and sits on 1.1 acres.  It’s wonderfully updated and shows like a home costing over 4 million dollars should. It has beautiful views, wraparound terraces, pool with waterfall, Koi Pond and much more.

Luxury real estate sales and listings are up in the SF Peninsula area and a home that has the history of being lived in by a former Apple co-founder will bring lots of interest.

If you are an un-represented buyer and need more information or would like to see the home, please give me a call.  I can be reached at 650.543.1202 or emailed at gkurtz@apr.com.  The home is listed by Art Sharif and I have spoken to him several times about the home and bringing my buyers to see it.

 

 

Atherton Real Estate owned by several of the Forbes Billionaires

Atherton Real Estate owned by several of the Forbes Billionaires

The Forbes Billionaires list shows that the richest people in the United States call Silicon Valley home and several own real estate in Atherton.

Atherton real estate is owned by Eric Schmidt of Google, whose net worth is estimated at $8.2 billion,  Charles Schwab, financial broker,  at $4.3 billion, George Roberts of KKR at $4.1 billion and Meg Whitman of HP/ebay at $1.9 billion.  Charles Schwab’s home is listed by my office at Alain Pinel and can be seen if you are an interested buyer, please give me a call.  Meg Whitman is a neighbor of mine and I know her house is not currently on the market, but we’ll see how it goes at HP this year!

Atherton real estate is obviously a good investment as the smartest and the richest have put their money down in this prime area. For the complete list of billionaires and where they live, see the link below.

Forbes US Billionaires

I work with a lot of high end clients who want their privacy respected and are interested to buy and sell real estate in Atherton via “off market” transactions as well as on market.  If you are interested in buying or selling, please don’t hesitate to contact me at 650.543.1202 or gkurtz@apr.com.

 

 

 

Atherton Estate on Market by Car Dealership Mogul

Atherton Estate on Market by Car Dealership Mogul

Local celebrity car dealership president lists his Atherton 5BD custom home for $15.8M.  The home is beautifully designed and built with lots of custom features, a guest house and pool.  It is one of the best built homes you will see as they have spared no expense in getting the home customized to their liking.  Bernard L. Magnussen and Sandra R. Magnussen are the sellers and their homes is a five-bedroom, 4.5-bath home at 390 Stevick Drive in Atherton.

The 8,111-square-foot home in West of Alameda was built in 2008. It is located in the Polhemus Manor subdivision.

Bernard Magnussen is the president of Magnussen Dealership Group, an automotive dealership in Northern California with corporate offices in Menlo Park.

If you want more information on this home, please contact me and I can set you up with the listing agent.

 

Mark Zuckerberg buys in Palo Alto!

Mark Zuckerberg's New Home

Well, it’s only fitting that Mark Zuckerberg finally buys a house in Palo Alto.  After all, he has made billions of dollars while starting his company in Palo Alto, he might as well officially call it home and buy where he works.  Soon, he will be working in Menlo Park, but Palo Alto has the claim to fame on tech exec’s homes.

The king of Facebook’s home was purchases for just around $7.0 million dollars and the Palo Alto luxury real estate market continues to improve with this sale.  The house is nice, and within close proximity to his work and in a neighborhood where he won’t be bothered as the town is full of tech kings.  Let’s see how long he lives in it or if he calls this home his main residence, after all, a guy like him might just buy the house to keep the press/news world looking in one direction while he secretly buys a much bigger house somewhere else.

Here are some pictures of Zuckerberg’s home, it is very “Palo Alto ish” and nice.  If he wants to buy in Atherton, I have the perfect $6.9 million dollar home listed that he might want to look at due to the size, privacy and great yard for parties or hanging around the pool with the Facebook family.

Call me Mark!

Real Housewives of New Jersey Home Up For Auction!

August 12, 2010 Celebrity Homes No Comments

Reality TV stars are celebrities too, and they have financial problems just like the rest of us.  And now, you might be able to get the chance to buy her home at auction.

I’ve heard there is an upcoming auction involving “Real Housewives of New Jersey” personalities Teresa and Joe Giudice: The contents of their lavish 10,000-square-foot New Jersey mansion are scheduled for auction on Aug. 22. This luxury estate could be yours, although camera crews are not included.

It was originally a local affair. Auction house A.J. Willner  says it received so many inquiries from around the world, it decided to add an online component.

Potential bidders can sign up  at Proxibid, a website that does as many as 800 auctions a month and reports bidders from 175 countries around the world. Items involving celebrities – or, in this case, reality-TV personalities – can command a premium, says Bruce Hoberman, Proxibid’s president. A $750 silk Mets jacket once owned by convicted Ponzi schemer Bernie Madoff commanded $14,500 in November.

A.J. Willner Auctions
The suit of armor is expected to be one of the more popular items.

In this case, it is unclear exactly what will be up for grabs. The Giudices, who filed for bankruptcy protection, formally objected to the auction, says Mike Sklar, a partner with A.J. Willner. A hearing is planned Aug. 16. The couple-who could not be reached because their phone is disconnected–says some of the items scheduled for auction were purchased after the bankruptcy petition, while others belong to relatives, Mr. Sklar says. Such objections are typical, he adds.

If a judge allows the auction to proceed, Mr. Sklar says he’ll rush to inventory the Towaco, N.J., mansion and what’s left of its fancy contents. Items possibly up for grabs include a grand piano–expected to be popular –a suit of armor, snow plow and foosball table.

Mr. Sklar says he hadn’t seen the “Real Housewives of New Jersey” show until recently. “I have no idea who these people are but obviously other people do,” he says. “I’m not really a reality TV person. It’s not my cup of tea.”

This shows everybody is effected, even tv stars.  I guess it actually is a reality show.  Luxury Real Estate from all areas of the country are having their ups and downs.

Joe Montana’s Calistoga Home: Buy It For Only $49 million!

Joe Montana’s Calistoga Home: Buy It For Only $49 million!

Football great Joe Montana has listed his 500-acre estate, with acreage in Sonoma County’s wine country, for $49 million.

The Calistoga property includes a 9,700-square-foot Tuscan-inspired main house, an equestrian center, two year-round creeks, a pond, a regulation-sized basketball court, a skeet shooting range, a caretaker’s residence, a guesthouse, a swimming pool with a spa, a gym, a boccie ball court and a producing olive farm.

The main house has a loggia open to the outdoors, a sitting room in an upstairs tower and a climate-controlled wine cellar and tasting room. There are three bedrooms and 3 1/2 bathrooms.

Designed for indoor-outdoor living, the home has a courtyard with hand-painted frescoes, antique statues and fountains. The Montanas often take guests up in the outdoor viewing tower, which has panoramic views of Mount Saint Helena and Knights Valley.

Montana, 53, started his NFL career with the San Francisco 49ers in 1979 and was with the team through 1992. He played two more years with the Kansas City Chiefs. The quarterback was a three-time Super Bowl MVP, among other honors, and a four-time Super Bowl champ.

Atherton real estate can be very pricey, but his estate takes the cake as the highest listing in the area.

Coldwell Banker Previews International and Pacific Union/Christie’s Great Estates have the listing at www.villamontanaestate.com.

Jerry Rice’s Atherton Estate Listed For Sale

Jerry Rice’s Atherton Estate Listed For Sale

Jerry Rice, who will be inducted into the NFL Hall of Fame in Canton, OH this August, is one of the best wide receivers of all time. He has won three Super Bowls with the San Francisco 49ers and also won an AFC Championship with the Oakland Raiders during his 20 seasons in the league. He was selected to the Pro Bowl a record 13 times, and was also named All-Pro a total of 10 times throughout his career.

Rice’s estate in Atherton, CA is also back on the market and is listed for a price of $14.75 million. His home was previously listed for $22 and $15.995 million in 2008 and 2009, respectively.

Jerry Rice’s 6 bedroom, 4 bath Atherton Luxury Estate home listed for $14,750,000
This three-story property is a massive 16,180 square feet on 1.41 acres, and was built in 2001. The home’s interior features a formal entryway, a step-down living room, and a family room complete with a full bar. Additionally, the mansion has a library, office, wine room, home theater, full gym, game room and parking for at least three vehicles. Outside, there is a pool and spa, game court, barbecue area and cabana.

I see Jerry around town and know the agent that has it listed.  Maybe I’ll do a video tour of his home on my Real Estate Insider show?  If so, it will post here first.

Ted Danson and Mary Steenburgen Buy in Brentwood

February 3, 2010 Celebrity Homes No Comments
Ted Danson and Mary Steenburgen Buy in Brentwood

Husband-and-wife actors Ted Danson and Mary Steenburgen have paid $3,110,000 to purchase a four-bedroom house in Los Angeles’ Brentwood neighborhood.

Front of Danson House

According to Big Time Listings, the couple’s recent purchase was made under the radar screen through a trust. Ted and Mary are one of Hollywood’s highest-profile acting couples (even more so now, given the split of Tim Robbins and Susan Sarandon). Recall that the Steenburgens had gone into something of a real-estate ownership vacuum (in L.A., at least) since selling their oceanfront, Cape Cod-style house at 23610 Malibu Colony Road (also known as 58 Malibu Colony Road) in the Malibu Colony in Malibu, Calif. in May 2008 for $15,500,000.  Hey, the economy is tough on all of us, even celebrities.

The couple’s purchase of their new house, which measures 4,076 square feet. Built in 1930, the house has three and a half baths, a formal dining room, a spacious kitchen, a breakfast area, and a warm living room, according to public records and listing information. Outdoor features on the 0.26-acre property include a treehouse and a detached office and studio, according to public records and listing information. The house had been listed for $2,999,000.

Danson's New Dining Room

The seller is noted screenwriter Channing Gibson, who has been a story editor and producer on TV’s “St. Elsewhere,” a writer and co-executive producer of “NYPD Blue,” and the screenwriter of several films, including “Lethal Weapon 4.”

In case you don’t follow them, Danson and Steenburgen own other properties, including in Ojai, Calif. and in Chilmark, Mass. on Martha’s Vineyard.  Ted Danson and Mary Steenburgen have both starred in many awards winning tv movies, theatrical movies, and theatre.  For most of you reading this article, Ted is most famous for his leading role in the long running tv series Cheers playing the lovable but airheaded bartender Sam Malone.

My Contact Information

Gary Kurtz
949.565.5201
gkurtz@homgroup.com
BRE# 01710776

Kathy Kurtz
714.394.2676
kathyk213@aol.com
BRE# 01876966

HOM Sotheby's International Realty
1200 Newport Center Drive, # 100
Newport Beach, CA 92660

949.565.5201 (cell)
949.478.7769 (office)
650.796.5507 (Silicon Valley #)

Contact me now with any questions:
gkurtz@homgroup.com

Kurtz Real Estate Group




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