For $13.5m, Serena Williams’ LA Estate Can be Yours
After a long, stressful day at work, we all need somewhere to retreat to and recharge. But what about when you’re a 23-time grand slam winner, perhaps even the most celebrated tennis star of all time? For Serena Williams, the perfect home needs to be one to return to recover after a heart-retrenching defeat or, more importantly, celebrate a huge win.
Well, those questions no longer need to remain hypothetical. The star’s former Los Angeles property has been listed with Sotheby’s, meaning any sporting fans with a spare $13.5m lying around can join the ranks of champion former owners.
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Serena Williams called 1201 Stone Canyon Road home for 13 years from 2006 to spring 2019. The gorgeous six-bedroom and six-and-a-half-bathroom property was then sold to the renowned interior designer, artist and architect Rodrigo Varga, who bought the 6,100-sq-ft house for around just under $8m in 2020.
Varga brought his experience working for leading hospitality brands, multi-family real estate projects and restaurants to this corner of Bel-Air, telling Mansion Global that he worked to bring cohesion to the Colonial-style house, which had seen its fair share of hodgepodge updates over the decades.
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While the two-story, 1930s property had undergone a few touches and tweaks over the years, its last major renovation was completed back in the 1980s, and even then had only covered the primary rooms. While Varga said there was no need for additions to the house, largely thanks to its generous footprint, the interior spaces required reworking to make the space “flow for better function”.
Verga instead focused on bringing a calm, neutral color palette, accessorized with classical and contemporary furnishings to bring out the home’s old-world charm. Lots of the property’s fixtures, such as moldings and door knobs, remain from that ‘80s renovation, along with bringing in more Mediterranean touches of luxury, with chandeliers, gallery-like entryways and manicured landscaping.
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Now the house, thanks to its abundance of indoor-outdoor spaces, naturally lends itself to large-scale entertaining, but also perfect to fit around the everyday routines of life. Ideal for adults and children alike, there’s a swimming pool and spa, media room and home theater, and library to keep all the loved ones – and sporting heroes – in your life entertained.
It might be surprising to hear that even in Serena Williams’ former home, the property is lacking tennis courts – but with almost three acres of grounds, there’s plenty of space should another would-be tennis champion pick up the keys.
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