A Russian Billionaire Purchased This Silicon Valley Mansion for A Record $100 MILLION!
The Property: This French chateau-style mansion in Silicon Valley has been sold for a reported $100 million, which is the highest known price paid ever for a single-family home in the U.S. The buyer of the luxurious chateau is Yuri Milner, the billionaire founder of Moscow-based venture firm Digital Sky Technologies (DST). His investments include Facebook, Groupon and Zynga. Mr. Milner has bought the house from Fred Chan, founder of ESS Technology, and he currently has no immediate plans to move into the new home.
The Setting: The 11-acre estate on Paloma Road in Los Altos Hills, California offers magnificent panoramic views of the San Francisco Bay. The classical estate inspired by 18th-century French chateaux is organized around a central entry court. Architect William Hablinski, with his then-partner Richard Manion, has designed the lavish house that is set on a spectacular 18-acre hilltop site.
Interiors & Exteriors: The 25,500 sq. ft. home has five bedrooms and nine bathrooms. There are indoor and outdoor pools, a ballroom, a wine cellar, a tennis court a frieze around a skylight in the entryway. While the north wing of the house is designed for entertaining, the south wing features the family rooms and bedroom suites. The living areas are purposely located on the second floor to offer the breathtaking Bay views.
Past record sales in the U.S.
The $100 million sale of this Los Altos Hills home has clearly shown that some of the luxury properties are still not affected from the U.S. housing slump. In the past, a few high-end residential properties in the U.S. have gone for big bucks.
• In 2008, the Rybolovlev estate at 515 N. County Road in Palm Beach was sold by Donald Trump for $95 million to Russian fertilizer mogul Dmitri Rybolovlev.
• In 2000, former Global Crossing chairman Gary Winnick bought an estate in the Bel Air neighborhood for more than $90 million.
• In 2004-05, Dwight Schar purchased an 11-acre oceanfront compound in Palm Beach, Fla. for $85.6 million.
• In 2010, developer Mohamed Hadid sold 48,000-square-foot French chateau “Le Belvedere” to an anonymous LLC for something between $50 million and $72 million.
• In 2006, J. Christopher Flowers bought a Manhattan townhouse on East 75th Street for $53 million.
• In 2007, a 13,000-square-foot-condominium on the seventh floor of Manhattan’s Plaza Hotel went for $51.6 million. In the same year, Russian oil tycoon Len Blavatnik paid $50 million for a Manhattan townhouse on East 64th Street. (Via…)
