Key Takeaways
- • Billionaire Peter Thiel is reportedly behind a limited liability company that bought Casa Encantada, a circa-1930s Bel-Air estate, for $130 million in July through a foreclosure auction in Pomona.
- • The winning bidder's identity was kept secret for months after the auction, and the buyer's ties to Thiel were confirmed only by people familiar with the situation, according to Realtor.com.
- • Thiel views the roughly 8.5-acre, seven-bedroom, 40,000-square-foot property as an investment rather than a residence and plans to upgrade it, per a person familiar with the situation.
- • The estate previously set U.S. records for the most expensive private home sale, first at $12.4 million in 1980 and again at $94 million in 2000.
Summary
Casa Encantada, a circa-1930s estate in Bel-Air once regarded as one of Los Angeles's grandest homes, changed hands for $130 million in July. According to Realtor.com, the sale took place in an unconventional open-air foreclosure auction behind a fountain at Pomona's Civic Center Plaza, where an auctioneer conducted the proceedings in denim pedal pushers.
The winning bidder was a limited liability company with ties to technology billionaire Peter Thiel, according to people familiar with the situation. Thiel, an entrepreneur and venture capitalist who co-founded Palantir Technologies and PayPal and was the first outside investor in Facebook, had reportedly been interested in the property for months before the auction. The buyer's identity had remained tightly held in the months since the sale.
The acquisition adds to Thiel's real-estate holdings, which include homes in Washington, D.C., Miami, and Buenos Aires, as well as a compound in Hawaii. He also owns property in New Zealand, where he holds citizenship. Thiel, who was born in Germany, reportedly moved his primary residence to Miami from California late last year.
According to a person familiar with the situation, Thiel does not intend to live at Casa Encantada. He regards the estate as an investment property and plans to upgrade it.
The roughly 8.5-acre estate has seven bedrooms and spans about 40,000 square feet. It twice set the record for the most expensive private home ever sold in the U.S., first at $12.4 million in 1980 and again at $94 million in 2000. The July sale concluded a saga that drew considerable attention from Los Angeles's social elite.
The winning bidder was a limited liability company with ties to technology billionaire Peter Thiel, according to people familiar with the situation. Thiel, an entrepreneur and venture capitalist who co-founded Palantir Technologies and PayPal and was the first outside investor in Facebook, had reportedly been interested in the property for months before the auction. The buyer's identity had remained tightly held in the months since the sale.
The acquisition adds to Thiel's real-estate holdings, which include homes in Washington, D.C., Miami, and Buenos Aires, as well as a compound in Hawaii. He also owns property in New Zealand, where he holds citizenship. Thiel, who was born in Germany, reportedly moved his primary residence to Miami from California late last year.
According to a person familiar with the situation, Thiel does not intend to live at Casa Encantada. He regards the estate as an investment property and plans to upgrade it.
The roughly 8.5-acre estate has seven bedrooms and spans about 40,000 square feet. It twice set the record for the most expensive private home ever sold in the U.S., first at $12.4 million in 1980 and again at $94 million in 2000. The July sale concluded a saga that drew considerable attention from Los Angeles's social elite.
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