Sometimes Yolanda hears exceedingly random things through the real estate grapevine — stuff so random we can’t even decipher what it means. Case in point: the stunning Bird Streets abode sold last year by Friends actor Matthew Perry. Records reveal Mr. Perry made bank on this transaction — he got $12,500,000 in an all-cash deal after buying the property for just $8,500,000 and making few changes during his seven years of ownership.
The home was technically acquired by a bizarrely-named corporate entity, but our longtime informant Laurel N. Hardy says she’s quite certain — she swore it on her new latex bustier, in fact — the buyer is a Mainland Chinese fella named Wei Dong.
A quick trawl through the interwebs reveals there are at least two prominent Wei Dongs in China — one a pharmaceutical tycoon, the other a senior executive at a giant government-owned food group called COFCO. Forbes pegs the former’s net worth at $1.8 billion, so he’s certainly got the money. There was also another billionaire Wei Dong, but he rather shockingly committed suicide in 2008. So we kinda doubt he’d be buying real estate in 2018.
But anyway, our mysterious Mr. Dong — whoever he is — does not actually reside in the lavish Hollywood Hills home. Rather, the property is occupied by a young woman named Connie Jiang.
Miss Jiang, so it appears, is still in her 20s. We know little else about her beyond that she holds a master’s degree from USC — exactly how she is connected to the phantom Mr. Dong remains unknown.
But this much is clear: Miss Jiang is a very lucky young lady to preside over a place like this. Had we written about this property last year, Yolanda thinks it would’ve made our 2018 list of favorite homes.
Set on a quiet cul-de-sac near the tippy-top of the Birds, the 1962-built mid-century was majorly remodeled some years ago by noted firm Whipple Russell Architects. It now spans a spacious (but certainly not huge) 3,821-square-feet of living space with 3 bedrooms and 4.5 baths. The property sits rather hard-up on the street (like many Hollywood Hills homes) but features a high-end security system with cameras galore.
Per the listing, the redone structure was intended as “a modern homage to the Case Study Houses.“
There’s a two-car garage and a wee gated courtyard just before the massive, pivoting front door. Inside is an open-concept living space with the kitchen, living and dining rooms combined into one. Glossy walnut hardwood floors guide visitors to the glide-away walls of glass.
Acid green countertops in the kitchen (seen here) are a brave decorative choice that Yolanda kinda loves, although we also might hate them in a week. But the high-end Gaggenau and SubZero appliances will please any palette for years to come.
Whatever y’all think of the house, the view here is A++ with vistas extending from the Downtown LA skyline all the way to the deep blue sea and Catalina Island (on a clear day).
Every inch of the backyard is devoted to entertaining — the terrazzo walkway past the dual fire features will wow guests, the green carpet of lawn is a nice touch, and there’s a long loggia perfect for outdoor dining. And at the very edge of the cliff, a sexy infinity pool.
Miss Jiang’s master suite has floor-to-ceiling walls of glass — the twinkling lights of the LA basin are seemingly at the tips of her fingers. She’s also got a head-on view of the pool.
And check this out: at the yard’s far corner are two “hidden” flights of stairs leading to a catwalk tucked beneath the pool’s infinity edge — a catwalk that ends at a doorway. Ooh, spooky! Where could it lead?
Lurking behind that door is the property’s most insane feature: the underground movie theater! The room’s ceiling mimics the starry sky, which is neat, but nobody will be looking at that. Miss Jiang’s guests will all be staring slack-jawed at the windows, which gaze directly into the depths of the swimming pool.
Pretty cool, huh? And the window panes are a beefy two inches thick, so it seems safe enough. Reminds us of a Bond flick — imagine Ernst Stavro Blofeld owning this house and filling the pool with man-eating sharks. He relaxes in the cinema, classical music blasting, a soft smile playing at his lips. Then an incompetent henchman is dumped into the tank, the aquamarine water turning a deep crimson as limbs are ripped apart like so much shredded chicken.
But we digress.
In case Miss Jiang needs to borrow a spare bucket of corn chowder, billionaire Peter Lowy and his girlfriend Sandra live right next door. Around the corner is Fashion Nova CEO Richard Saghian, and billionaire Walmart heiress Whitney Kroenke lives directly below Miss Jiang’s (bigger) house.
As Yolanda was wrappin’ up this story, we discovered that the Bond Villain house is not the only LA property owned by the invisible (but obviously loaded) Mr. Dong. Just two weeks before purchasing that $12.5 million Bird Streets nest, he laid out another $12,200,000 (in cash, of course) for an estate in Beverly Hills. Yes, that’s nearly $25 million in greenbacks spent within a matter of days.
Though the 90210 property has a Benedict Canyon address, it is actually located well off the main drag — secluded down a private road shared with just three other estates, all of them owned by high-profile people. #MeToo-shamed casino mogul Steve Wynn lives next door, as does also #MeToo-shamed mega-producer Brett Ratner, and Bruce Springsteen’s LA compound lies at the road’s end.
The hilltop Mediterranean-ish home was originally built in 1970 and is set on a forested lot spanning more than an acre of land. Its recently redesigned contemporary interiors feature vaulted ceilings and lots of (obviously staged) furniture.
There are six bedrooms and 7.5 bathrooms in the nearly 8,000-square-feet of living space, though marketing materials gently note that the home is a potential teardown (or at least a remodel). “Whether you redecorate, remodel or rebuild this property offers tremendous upside potential,” it says.
To be honest, kids, Yolanda has no clue who lives on the Beverly Hills estate. Could be the enigmatic Mr. Dong. Might be somebody else. Or maybe the place has already been leveled. We dunno! If you know, give us a shout. But if not, that’s okay too. Just sit back and enjoy the property photos.
Listing agents (Bird Streets): Greg Holcomb & Cassandra Petersen, Compass
Photographer (Bird Streets): Michael McNamara
Listing agent (Beverly Hills): Richard Maslan, Hilton & Hyland