The reported $75 million Encinal Bluffs transaction of the famous Harrah estate was the seventh in Malibu to register at $30 million-plus. Looking back on the history, the first over $30 million was the same Encinal Bluffs estate that just set the new record, and has historically been Malibu’s most prestigious property. (That particular transaction, reported at $31 million, may have been padded with valuable personal property). The home is nearly 20,000 square feet on 7.5 acres and 300 feet of bluff top.
After that, the mansion on the knoll right above the Malibu Pier sold in 2006 for just over $30 million, the second to eclipse the threshold. The former Johnny Carson bluff estate on Point Dume took in about $35 million the next year. A Malibu Road beach estate outside the Colony gates hit $30 million exactly in 2010. And twice Carbon Beach has seen extra-wide lots on “Billionaire’s Beach,” with large beach mansions, set down in the $37 million range. The first, at $37 million, establishing a new Malibu record, was the 180-ft. frontage estate of the late Nancy Daly, in October 2010. Then, this past September, a 151-ft. frontage property closed escrow just under that amount.
The deal that quickly transpired in Paradise Cove involved a property on nearly seven acres, with beach and bluff frontage of 339 feet, first on the market in October 2010 for $55 million. It has a Mediterranean villa of over 10,000 square feet in size. There is a tennis court, theater in the house and palm tree and garden landscaping throughout.
Meanwhile, the buyer, as well as the confirmed price of the just-completed Encinal Bluffs property, are unknown. The sale price of $75 million is a rumor that has gone viral. The property was built by casino heiress Verna Harrah, and later sold to Herbalife founder Mark Hughes in 1999. The current sellers bought from the Hughes estate in 2001 for $31 million. The property was not listed before the Jan. 4 transfer.