As sales of contemporary L.A. mansions continue to flounder amid fears of a market oversupply, some sellers have resorted to the good ol’ pricechopper in order to consummate a deal. Witness this slick modern manse in the prime Bird Streets, long considered the ne plus ultra neighborhood pocket of the Hollywood Hills.
Completed in late 2017, the luxe house first popped up for sale in January 2018, sporting a $15.9 million ask. Nearly 1.5 years later — and following two hefty price cuts and a change of realtors — the property has finally sold for exactly $11 million, or a throat-clenching 31% discount off the tumescent original ask.
The bargain-minded buyer is weed mogul Andrew Modlin, co-founder and president of marijuana juggernaut MedMen. The upscale cannabis manufacturer — it’s often been called the Apple Store of weed — made headlines when filing for an IPO on the Canadian Securities Exchange last May, becoming the largest publicly-traded US-based cannabis company. Though the stock has taken a beating since then, igniting debate over future viability, the firm remains among the most famous and successful of its kind. And perhaps in response to the stock performance, Modlin and CEO Adam Bierman agreed to drastically revise their annual salary plans.
Modlin’s Hollywood Hills pick is a corner-lot structure that sits on a smallish (if mostly flat) .19-acre lot. Designed by KAA Design Group, the house features a two-car garage discreetly hidden from sight of the front entryway, which opens to a breezy courtyard with a mature olive tree, a cactus garden, and a fire feature. Indoors, an unexpectedly massive great room features walls of glass, a limestone floor, and cedar plank ceilings. Just beyond is a sleek eat-in kitchen with top-of-the-line stainless appliances.
Also on the main floor is the resort-like master suite, which sports dual showroom closets and disappearing walls of glass opening to the pool/spa combo and adjoining patio. As for the semi-subterranean lower level, it contains a spacious lounge, gym, wine closet, and a media room with projector. Naturally, the entire property is mostly surrounded by a tall hedge for privacy and protected with a ritzy Savant Pro home automation system.
Of course, the Hollywood Hills are renowned for their celebrity residents, and Modlin’s new pad sits right next door to the home of Rodney Dangerfield’s widow Joan. Also in the immediate neighborhood are Leo DiCaprio, Keanu Reeves, and no fewer than three different Walmart heiresses.
And in addition to his chic new Birds nest, Modlin continues to own his L.A. “starter” home, a $3.9 million contemporary villa located in nearby West Hollywood.
Kurt Rappaport of Westside Estate Agency and Michael Druker of The Agency jointly held the listing. The Agency’s Lindsay Guttman repped Modlin.
