Suzanne Somers’ Palm Springs compound going to auction and polo time in Palm Beach are featured this week at TopTenRealEstateDeals.com.
“Suzanne Somers Big Auction”
Their romantic 73-acre Palm Springs compound nestled in the rocky hills overlooking the mountains and city has been a 40-year project of love for Suzanne Somers and husband Alan Hamel. One of California’s most unique homes, almost every nook and cranny from rock-walled interiors with their crystal chandeliers to the multiple outdoor living spaces shaded by palms and blooming bougainvillea have been part of the couple’s rare celebrity romance that has thrived since 1977.
Back in 2008 and not getting any younger, Suzanne and Alan decided to come down from their mountain and build a home on flat land with faster access to necessary city amenities. Though it seemed that a buyer would have quickly grabbed the opportunity to own it, their home did not sell. Now, ten years later, the property is going to a no reserve auction via Concierge Auctions on January 31st. Previously asking $14.5 million, it was first listed in 2008 at $35 million.
The first clue that the home is unique is that access is via a private funicular, a golf cart or a hillside of stone steps with no cars needed. There are five buildings to explore with 7,281 square feet of living space in all. One houses the master suite, another the dining and living room, a separate two-room kitchen and wine cellar and an elegant stone guest house designed in the 1920s by Albert Frey. With a total of eight bedrooms and eleven baths, there is an abundance of space for family and friends. There is also an outdoor amphitheater carved into the mountain that seats 50, meditation garden, dance floor, pool, spa, hiking trails and natural waterfall that spills musically down the hillside into a pond. Much of the home’s furnishings collected by Suzanne and Alan in their world travels are included in the auction.
“Polo Time In Florida”
Donald Trump might be surprised to know that Palm Beach, Florida got its start with a Spanish ship wreck in 1878 that was hauling a load of coconuts bound for Spain. It wrecked just a few hundred feet from his Mar-a-Lago compound, dumping hundreds of coconuts that washed up on the beach. In 1878, all of the barrier island of Palm Beach was barren of vegetation with no redeeming qualities except its beaches. Those coconuts sprouted in place and were also taken by some of the few natives and planted all over the island.
Today the new rich, old money, titled and CEOs dominate the Palm Beach scene and their winter season when the local population jumps from about 10,000 to 30,000. Many enjoy the society of their peers at their favorite hangouts, some of which are as socially historical as the town’s beginnings. The Everglades Club, Breakers Hotel, Worth Avenue, International Polo Club and Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago are the hot spots for those who can afford it. For the rest of us, there are charming restaurants on the causeways and mainland, affordable luxury beachfront condos and even though you’ll never get into the Everglades Club, you can at least have a drink at The Breakers and shop at one of the town’s consignment shops where many of last season’s glamorous clothing and accessories eventually end up.
Currently revving up for one of the biggest and longest social events of the year, the International Polo Club is calling all horse and polo lovers. For twelve weeks, horses and riders will compete for over half a billion dollars. There will be more than 6,000 horses in the events and many come from stables nearby in Wellington, which has been home to many who participate. Bill Gates, Bruce Springsteen and former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg own homes in Wellington where their daughters compete in the events. Many of the world’s most skilled polo players make Palm Beach part of their circuit including polo-playing royals.
For those who take their equestrian pursuits seriously and have a lot of money, one prime polo estate is currently available, just in time for the festivities and the Palm Beach social season. Windsome Farms is an 80-acre horse training facility in Wellington with everything imaginable for serious riders and their trainers. The H-shaped, 4,624-square-foot stable facility has 52 stalls with tack room, a Grand Prix field with natural jumps and hills, three training rings, 19 paddocks, lakes, large automatic walker and manicured landscaping in the public areas. Not surprising that it is the place where many Olympians have stayed and trained. Accommodations include two one-bedroom apartments—both with a kitchen, bathroom and living room upstairs and an owner’s lounge with kitchenette and full bath as well as a riders’ lounge with kitchenette and half bath downstairs. There is also enough pristine land where one could build the estate of their dreams. Priced at $28.9 million, the listing agent is Marley Goodman Overman, Illustrated Properties, Palm Beach, Florida.
