Way back in late 2011, a 26-year-old gent named Stavros Niarchos III became a local Beverly Hills, Calif., hero of sorts when he paid $12.8 million for the run-down Kronish House by Richard Neutra, one of the city’s most architecturally significant properties. Though the previous owners had requested a demolition permit for the premises, the pretty pad was spared at the eleventh hour due to public outcry. Preservationists rejoiced after Niarchos scooped up the estate with the intent to restore the ol’ girl’s faded glory.
Today, some eight years later, the property is undeniably stunning once more — all thanks to Niarchos, naturally, who spent untold millions on a painstaking restoration spearheaded by the acclaimed architectural firm Marmol Radziner.
Anyway, the Kronish House happens to sit on a flag lot directly behind a slightly smaller estate that recently popped up for sale with a $22 million ask. After several hefty price chops and many months on the market, that house has just sold for exactly $15 million — to Niarchos, of course.
Built in 1952, the gated “French Country Manor retreat” (per the listing) is set on a 1.34-acre flat lot. Long owned by local couple Herb and Beverly Gelfand, the sprawling mansion boasts over 8,200 square feet of decidedly grand, gilt-trimmed living space. There are multiple fireplaces, parquet hardwood floors, generously proportioned public rooms and maid’s quarters downstairs. The second floor, accessible via elevator, is entirely devoted to a downright hedonistic master suite with dual baths (both equipped with built-in soaking tubs), dual walk-in closets, a sitting room and a private balcony.
The well-maintained grounds include a full-size sports court, a motorcourt capable of accommodating two dozen automobiles, an irregularly shaped swimming pool entirely surrounded by a broad red brick terrace and a croquet-ready oversized lawn.
Plans for the property’s future remain a mystery, but it’s worth noting the house does not appear to be architecturally significant, meaning a proposed teardown would likely be an easily approved affair.
Niarchos, a former professional skateboarder, is a grandson of multi-billionaire shipping tycoon Stavros Niarchos and was most recently in a high-profile relationship with prolific art collector Dasha Zhukova, ex of Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich. But besides his real estate activities, Niarchos is likely best-known to the public for dating Paris Hilton in the mid-aughts, though that fling ultimately swirled down the toilet of love.
The newly upsized $30+ million Niarchos compound, now spanning 3.3 contiguous acres of prime real estate, is situated in what is oft-considered the best neighborhood pocket of Beverly Hills, where some of his other next-door neighbors include Paradigm agency chief Sam Gores, Rockstar energy drink billionaire Russ Weiner and socialite Anna Shay. Also in the immediate vicinity are the Wonderful Company owners Stewart and Lynda Resnick and the new $42.5 million mansion of Ellen DeGeneres.
Sam Plotkin of the Passman Group and Linda May of Hilton & Hyland jointly held the listing and also repped Niarchos.