The entertainment duo have unloaded a sumptuous Montecito, California, estate built like an island spa. The Bali-inspired home traded hands last week for $33.3 million, according to a deed recorded in Santa Barbara County on Friday.
It marks a $6 million-plus windfall for Ms. DeGeneres, 62, and Ms. de Rossi, 47, who bought the nine-plus-acre property in early 2019 for $27 million. They owned the home in a trust managed by the talk show host’s business manager, Mansion Global previously reported.
Of course their profit doesn’t include the work they put into the project. A listing for the home with Riskin Partners Group of Village Properties said the compound, which has its own security office, detached guest house and a pickleball court, was “recently renovated.”
Robert Riskin, a partner at the brokerage and listing agent on the property, declined to comment for the story.
For a trophy property, the listing sold with lightning speed, closing less than a month after it hit the market. It was originally asking nearly $40 million, listing records show.
Santa Barbara County, like many luxury second-home markets, has seen a surge in sales in the wake of the pandemic. Pending sales last month were up more than 37% over last year, while the median sale price soared 40% during the same time period, according to recent market data from Redfin.
The couple’s remodel included expanding the home’s porch, adding more outdoor square footage from which to enjoy a breathtaking view over the infinity pool and Pacific Ocean beyond, according to images of the property from before and after their ownership.
Ms. DeGeneres and Ms. de Rossi also swapped out the soaring timber ceiling in the great room, going for a warmer wood paneling over the existing darker weathered beams. They did away with the home’s more outdated elements, including a massive fish tank in that same room, added a sculpture to the lawn and strung up new contemporary light fixtures, images show.
The lavish primary bathroom also got a redesign that traded hardwood floors for stone and added a hulking soaking tub and dual sinks in the same material.
The couple also beefed up security technology following a burglary on the property in July, according to Variety, which first reported the sale.
Otherwise, much of the property’s general specs remained the same: four bedrooms, 10 bathrooms and 10,500-plus square feet.
The sprawling property, comprising an 18,000-square-foot main house and a 10,000-square-foot guest house, was built in 2009 for Robert Sarver, owner of the NBA team Phoenix Suns and the Spanish football team Real Club Deportivo Mallorca. https://t.co/vkWGUjWdBA
— Mansion Global (@MansionGlobal) November 10, 2020