Hot Property: Lenny Dykstra's Thousand Oaks estate in default

 

The estate of former New York Met and Philadelphia Phillies outfielder Lenny Dykstra has been showing up on the Multiple Listing Service's pre-foreclosure activity report for the last several weeks. The Zillow.com blog posted an item on it in mid-April.

The Richard Landry-designed home is listed for sale at $25 million, having been priced as low as $16.5 million in December. It has been on the market for about a year. Public records show the baseball player purchased it for $18.5 million in August 2007. Ouch.

The seven-acre compound in Thousand Oaks is gated and has views of the Lake Sherwood community and the country club facilities.

Hat tip: Pete in Mar Vista.

-- Lauren Beale

Thoughts? Comments? 

Photo: The main house has 12,713 square feet of living space, including a receiving parlor, a formal dining room and a state-of-the-art screening room. Credit: Sheila Cooper

 

McMahon dodges another bullet

Warning: Those who can't bear to read another word about Ed McMahon and his foreclosure woes may want to skip this.

The Beverly Hills home of celebrity sidekick and pitchman McMahon was set to be auctioned today at 10:30 a.m. Just 45 minutes before that, according to Alex Davis of Hilton & Hyland, Beverly Hills, a deal with the bank was struck and the auction postponed.

It is yet to be determined whether McMahon will be allowed to stay in the house, but for the time being, his eviction isn't imminent. Someone will be purchasing the $5.1-million note held by Countrywide Financial. Davis isn't saying who. Yet.

More details on the deal will be forthcoming, promises Davis. And if you'd prefer, you can skip those too!

-- Ann Brenoff

Photo Credit: L.A. Times

Sale of Ed McMahon's home falls through; Do you care?

News item: Jane Wells of CNBC reports that the sale of Ed McMahon's house to a mystery buyer who outbid Donald Trump has fallen through:

CNBC has learned that Ed McMahon's mansion has fallen out of escrow and is back on the market. The "Tonight Show" veteran, facing foreclosure, was trying to sell his home for $4.6 million, and two weeks ago he found an unnamed buyer.

ABCNews.com reported last week that the sale was in trouble:

An unidentified buyer outbid (Donald) Trump and was set to buy the house until Thursday night, when he "did not perform on a specific point of the contract," McMahon's Realtor, Alex Davis, told ABCNews.com today.

Reader participation: This is one of those stories that won't go away ... but you can change that. Do you want to know how this story turns out, or have you heard enough?  Let me know your thoughts in the comment section. I'll abide by your collective wishes.

--Peter Viles

Photo Credit: Everett Fenton Gidley via Los Angeles Times

Trumped -- Ed McMahon finds a buyer

This from the Associated Press: "Ed McMahon is on the move. McMahon has agreed to a deal with a private buyer for his hilltop home, said Howard Bragman, the former 'Tonight' show sidekick's spokesman."

More: "Bragman declined to name the buyer or the selling price. But he said it isn't real estate mogul Donald Trump, who recently offered to buy McMahon's home and act as a landlord."

The back story, for those of you who somehow missed it, is that McMahon had been unable to sell his Beverly Hills house at asking prices ranging from $7.7 million down to below $5 million and was at risk of losing the house to foreclosure.

Your thoughts? Comments?
-- Peter Viles
Photo: Associated Press

Donald Trump-Ed McMahon deal not a done deal

The listing agent for Ed McMahon's heading-for-foreclosure house in Beverly Hills says that the property is now in a "multiple offer situation." Last Thursday, billionaire developer Donald Trump announced that he had made the lenders an offer and expected to be able to buy the house and lease it back to McMahon. But it now appears that Trump has competition.

Alex Davis of Hilton & Hyland, Beverly Hills, now says that a second buyer who wishes to remain anonymous has entered the picture. The junior lien holders have agreed to a short sale at $4.6 million, Davis said, and "that's the number we need to get to."

He added: "This is crunch time."

-- Ann Brenoff

Photo: Getty Images

Update: Donald Trump to rescue Ed McMahon from foreclosure

An update to our earlier post about the desperate search for a buyer to save Ed McMahon from foreclosure: A buyer has been found, and it is none other than Donald Trump.

From Ann Brenoff, who writes the Times' "Hot Property" column on celebrity real estate dealings: "Mega-developer and TV personality Donald Trump has agreed to buy Ed McMahon's Beverly Hills house for an undisclosed amount and allow McMahon to continue living in it. Details of the deal are still being ironed out."

More: "I don't know the man, but I grew up watching him on TV," Trump said in an exclusive interview with The Times.

"McMahon, 85, was facing foreclosure within two weeks on his Beverly Hills home of 18 years. The aging television icon, who was Johnny Carson's sidekick for three decades, defaulted on $4.8 million in mortgage loans with Countrywide Financial Corp. He said in interviews that he was unable to work because of a neck injury that occurred about 18 months ago."

So there you have it, folks.

-- Peter Viles
Thoughts? Comments?
Photo Credit: Getty Images

Unusual appeal by Ed McMahon's agent: Please, buy Ed's house

Ed McMahon's Realtor is appealing to his realty brethren to hurry up and find a buyer for the entertainer's Beverly Hills home before it is foreclosed in the next two weeks. McMahon has already slashed the asking price on the house from $7.7 million to $4.6 million.

Update: The L.A. Times is reporting a new twist: Donald Trump has stepped forward to buy the house and will lease it to McMahon.

In an unusual open letter appearing as an ad in this week's the MLS Open House Guide, Alex Davis, of Hilton & Hyland in Beverly Hills, says that all of the junior lien holders are "miraculously" going to allow a short sale at $4.6 million.

A buyer made a low-ball offer of that amount, the letter says, but the deal fell apart. "Now we have two weeks to find a new buyer and sell the estate. We will show the property to anyone with the resources to close the deal in a timely manner," it says.

"The situation has nearly hit rock bottom," the letter reads, and "if it's not sold in the next two weeks or so (or in escrow), they will not only be foreclosed on, but lose everything in their home including all personal items," the letter reads.

Davis notes that he is "able to pay the selling broker a $115,000 commission and want you all to know that you will be the hero of a man who's been the hero of so many others if you could help bring this deal to fruition." That's a 2.5% commission.

Concluding, Davis notes: "In a business where people thrive on money and commissions, the reward is infinite, as you are truly changing someone's life."

-- Ann Brenoff
Your thoughts? Comments?

Photo credit: Associated Press

Report: Ed McMahon slashes asking price by $1.9 million

An update on the Ed McMahon situation: Dr. Housing Bubble reports that McMahon has slashed the asking price on his Beverly Hills home by $1.9 million, to $4.6 million.

Most of you will remember the hubbub in June when it was reported that McMahon faced foreclosure on the six-bedroom house (pictured), which has been on and off the market since July 2006.

The house was originally listed for $7.7 million, but has languished for some time.  Dr. Housing Bubble, quoting the Wall Street Journal, reports that McMahon borrowed a total of $5.1 million against the home -- a mortgage of $4.8 million plus a home equity line of credit of $300,000. The new, reduced price of $4.6 million would appear to be a short sale.

The listing agent for the home, Alex Davis, did not immediately respond to a phone call from L.A. Land. You can see the Redfin.com listing for the house here.

-- Peter Viles
Your thoughts? Comments? E-mail story tips to peter.viles@latimes.com.
Photo: Everett Fenton Gidley

Extreme home foreclosure: House built for ABC show in foreclosure

Here's a wild one: The mini-mansion at right, which was built by the ABC reality show "Extreme Makeover" in 2005 as a gift to an Atlanta-area family, appears headed for foreclosure. How do you lose a house that someone gave you as a gift on national television? According to the  Associated Press, the family that owns the house took a loan against its value to start a construction business.

From Access Atlanta:

"Things couldn't look better three years ago for Milton and Patricia Harper of Lake City, who giddily accepted the keys to a small castle, plus enough money to pay taxes on it for 25 years.

"Now, the Clayton County house that "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" built is a two-story, turreted example of how things can go wrong. It's in foreclosure.

The A.P.:

"After the Harper family used the two-story home as collateral for a $450,000 loan, it's set to go to auction on the steps of the Clayton County Courthouse Aug. 5. The couple did not return phone calls Monday, but told WSB-TV they received the loan for a construction business that failed.

"The house was built in January 2005, after Atlanta-based Beazer Homes USA and ABC's "Extreme Makeover" demolished their old home and its faulty septic system. Within six days, construction crews and hoards of volunteers had completed work on the largest home that the television program had yet built."

--Peter Viles
Photo Credit: A.P.
Your thoughts? Comments? E-mail story tips to peter.viles@latimes.com

Ed McMahon's lament: "Nobody has made an offer"

Those curious as to exactly how Ed McMahon found himself on the brink of foreclosure might want to watch this short sound bite from Thursday night's "Larry King Live" show on CNN.

Here's the short version: "If you spend more money than you make, you know what happens," McMahon said. "A couple of divorces thrown in, a few things like that."

I'm going to focus on something else McMahon said. Here's the full quote from the CNN transcript: "Selling the house right now is a tremendous operation to sell a house. We've had this house on the market for two years. We've shown it, I don't know how many, 50 organizations or people. Nobody has made an offer. I mean, it's just a lovely home. I hate to leave it."

That's the sound bite my favorite morning radio host, Adam Carolla, played this morning. And then Adam said words to this effect: "Hey, I'm no Realtor. But, Ed, have you thought about lowering your price?"

Point well taken. If you want to sell a house -- if you really want to sell it -- and it is not located in Hemet or Desert Hot Springs, you can sell it. It doesn't take two years. But you need to be willing to accept a market price. Ed now says the recent publicity about his plight has kindled some interest in the house.

Your thoughts? Comments? E-mail story tips to peter.viles@latimes.com.
Photo: Associated Press