Way back in summer 2019, former Stein Mart CEO Jay Stein paid $31 million for a grand old mansion in prime Bel Air. The prolific modern art collector immediately put his other Los Angeles house — a strikingly contemporary Beverly Hills structure — up for sale, asking nearly $30 million. But despite its prime location, that home languished on the market for nearly two years, before finally selling this May for a discounted $22.3 million. (While that’s still a great deal of money, it’s also slightly less than what Stein paid for the place in 2016.)
The bargain-hunting new owners are a couple from California’s Bay Area — Neeraj Arora and his wife Sunisha Chandhok, both of them Indian immigrants and he the former global head of business at WhatsApp. Arora is widely credited with spearheading WhatsApp’s record-breaking $22 billion acquisition by Facebook back in 2014, though he unexpectedly quit the company in 2018, the same year his longtime boss Jan Koum also quit — reportedly after clashing with both Mark Zuckerberg and Sheryl Sandberg.
While Arora’s exact net worth is not publicly known, the WhatsApp-Facebook deal likely made him set for life. Nowadays, he’s busy with launching HalloApp, an ad-free social network that’s actually a close competitor to WhatsApp. But it appears he does not need the money — the 42-year-old and Chandhok paid all-cash for their new Beverly Hills digs, records reveal. The couple’s main residence remains a $10 million house in Palo Alto, near the heart of Northern California’s Silicon Valley.
Situated on one of the best streets in the 90210’s elite Trousdale Estates neighborhood pocket, the single-story mansion was built on speculation in 2016. Stein filled the place with a museum-worthy treasure trove of artworks, and the house was sold fully furnished, per the listing. There are six bedrooms and seven bathrooms in 8,400 square feet. (Maybe it’s a coincidence, but the swoopy house is also located right around the corner from Jan Koum’s own $125 million Trousdale Estates compound.)
Jade Mills of Coldwell Banker had the listing; Adam Rosenfeld at Compass repped the buyer.
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Image Credit: Realtor.com The home actually appears quite modest from the street out front, but the deceptively discreet façade masks the lavish compound behind those gates.
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Image Credit: Realtor.com There’s a generous motorcourt with parking for several vehicles. The motorcourt fronts a bridge that crosses over a shallow “moat” on its way inside the house.
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Image Credit: Realtor.com Inside, a skylit foyer will surely impress guests. Big slabs of white walls provide the perfect hanging spot for trophy art.
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Image Credit: Realtor.com The vast living room feels even bigger when its wall of glass windows are retracted, providing direct access to the pool area.
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Image Credit: Realtor.com Adjoining the living room area is a more intimate family room outfitted with floor-to-ceiling bookshelves and an exceptionally lengthy fireplace.
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Image Credit: Realtor.com The dining room is highlighted by a contemporary chandelier and a stunning wine closet with custom backlighting.
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Image Credit: Realtor.com There are two kitchens, both of them slick and ultra-chic. The larger gourmet kitchen is done up in dark gray tones, with top-of-the-line everything and bar seating. The smaller “catering” kitchen is just as expensively outfitted, except the cabinets are finished in a milky white.
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Image Credit: Realtor.com Compared to the rest of the high-style home, the primary bedroom suite is muted and relaxed, with cool shades of gray and peaceful garden views.
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Image Credit: Realtor.com Well, there’s definitely a decorative flourish in the bathroom — the all-glass shower will make quite an impression.
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Image Credit: Realtor.com As one would expect of Stein Mart’s current chairman, the dual master closets are packed with an epic haul of shirts, pans, bags, shoes and accessories.
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