The Red Hot Chili Peppers’ iconic Michael “Flea” Balzary has purchased a Malibu house, and these new digs are assuredly spicy. Tucked away in the guard-gated Malibu Colony enclave — arguably Malibu’s most exclusive and expensive gated community — the 1950s cottage is described as an “architectural garden home” in listing materials and ran the Australia native a hefty $7.5 million.
Mostly hidden behind a towering collection of mature foliage — huge ficus hedges, date palms, and a rhinocerous-sized bougainvillea plant — the tropically-themed hideaway spans less than 1,900 square feet of living space, with four bedrooms and three bathrooms.
Behind its green-and-white exterior and a charmingly quaint Dutch door, the structure includes unvarnished brick floors and an airy floorplan. The fireplace-equipped living room is open to the eat-in kitchen, which has a large wooden island and mismatched stainless appliances. The formal dining room is set into long windowed area with views of the jungle-like backyard, and there’s an oddball sitting room/potential media lounge with French doors that open to a brick patio.
Upstairs, the skylit master offers a vaulted ceiling and private balcony, plus an unexpectedly spacious — if decidedly dated — master bath with built-in soaking tub and walk-in closet. There are three more bedrooms, at least one outfitted with its own fireplace, all of them with plenty of well-kept wood detailing.
Out back, a small patch of grass is perfect for Fido’s romps and completely enveloped by walls of overgrown tropical plantings. Somewhere there’s a hidden koi pond; elsewhere is a jacuzzi. The property is notably not oceanfront and does not offer ocean views, but the listing confirms that the house transferred with deeded ocean rights.
Over the last two decades, Flea has owned more than a dozen luxury properties across the greater Los Angeles area. Besides his new Malibu Colony hideaway, his current portfolio includes a one-of-a-kind architectural compound in the suburban La Crescenta neighborhood, plus a lavish oceanfront compound elsewhere in Malibu.
Chad Rogers of Hilton & Hyland held the listing; Sandro Dazzan of The Agency repped Flea.