LeBron James Lives Like a King in Los Angeles
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LeBron James signed a four-year, $153.3 million contract with the Los Angeles Lakers in 2018. That's a lot of cash — how does he spend it all? While the 2020 NBA champ has business ventures and stock investments off the court, another of James' big investments is residential real estate.
Over the past five years, James has spent $81 million on three houses located in the wealthiest areas of Los Angeles, California. He added the pièce de résistance of that collection in late September 2020, snapping up a $36.75 million mansion in Beverly Hills — the most expensive home King James has purchased so far.
Want to see how one of the world's greatest active NBA players lives? Come take a tour.
A Mansion for Stars
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At the end of this long, gated driveway is a 1934-built, 9,146-square-foot mansion with four bedrooms and eight bathrooms.
Listed for sale at $39 million in June 2020, James bought the property on Sept. 30 for $36.75 million.
It Used to Belong to Katharine Hepburn
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The mansion has a bit of a star-studded past. It was first owned by "Gaslight" actor Charles Boyer, then went to RKO Pictures after the studio terminated Boyer's contract and bought him out of the estate, according to Dirt.
RKO Pictures — which was owned by eccentric billionaire Howard Hughes — rented out the property to Katherine Hepburn. Hughes and Hepburn had an 18-month love affair during the late 1930s, but the two never married.
The engagement ring that Hughes bought for Hepburn in 1938 sold in 2020 for $108,000.
And a Soap Opera Legend
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In the 1980s, William J. Bell and his wife/business partner Lee Phillip Bell bought the home for just $2.9 million, according to Dirt.
The Bells were soap opera pioneers who co-created "The Young and the Restless" and "The Bold and the Beautiful."
Lee died in February 2020 at the age of 91.
Old Hollywood Designs
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The 2.5-acre property oozes old-school Hollywood. This indoor area is designed like it's supposed to be outside, with outdoor patio-like flooring, wicker furniture and a fountain.
Yes, dahling, we do outdoors indoors here.
Cathedral Ceilings
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The mansion has seven fireplaces and features vaulted, exposed-wood ceilings.
This living room opens way, way up to the backyard, while the wall-length sliding glass doors provide unobstructed views of downtown Los Angeles.
The main house has two seats and many areas for entertaining.
The Award Room
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This room is already stuffed with awards from the Bells, including multiple Daytime Emmys.
There's almost enough room to hold all of James' trophies. The four-time NBA champ and 16-time NBA All-Star is one of the game's most decorated players.
The Screening Room
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Unlike many home theaters, this one does not have tiered or built-in seating. This is a more intimate area with a projection screen, lounging chairs, a small couch and a marble fireplace.
The listing says it's a "screening room" rather than a theater.
The Backyard
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The back of the home opens up to this classic natural stone patio with a central fountain.
You can really get the sense of elevation from this Beverly Hills spot.
The Tennis Court
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The estate features a lighted tennis court with a small structure that's likely used for snacks and storage.
What do you think the chances are that this tennis court will be renovated into a basketball court? We'd say pretty high.
The Pool
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The pool oval-shaped pool area features a diving board, statues, privacy hedges and a cabana.
Despite it being 965 percent more expensive than nearby properties, according to realtor.com, the estate sold in just 106 days on the market.
The median neighborhood price in the area is $3.5 million.
A Curious Statue
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We're not entirely sure what this statue is all about, but it might be larger than 6-foot-9 and 250 pounds.
Think James will keep this one on the property?
An Aerial View
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The 2.7-acre property has a large dethatched guest house by the tennis court, as well as a garden and guard tower.
The estate is massive. At a total of 9,146 square feet, the $36.75 million price tag equates to $4,018 per square foot.
The Pool at Night
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At night, the pool area lights up in multiple areas. The pool house has two bathrooms and overlooks the Beverly Hills area.
Views of Downtown
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Beverly Hills is one of the most coveted places to live in Los Angels and in the entire United States.
The 120-year-old neighborhood has been home to a never-ending stream of movie stars and Hollywood bigwigs and is one of the most expensive ZIP codes in the country.
LeBron James' Net Worth
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James has an estimated net worth of $450 million. The superstar athlete has made an estimated $1 billion throughout his entire career, with about 65 percent of that total coming from lucrative endorsements.
Notably, in 2015 James inked a lifetime deal with Nike that is potentially worth $1 billion.
James' $23 Million Home in Brentwood
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In late 2017, James purchased this mansion in Brentwood, a neighborhood on the westside of Los Angeles, for $23 million.
Brentwood is about five miles away from Beverly Hills and is probably best known, unfortunately, for being the neighborhood of the O.J. Simpson murders.
A Designer Beauty
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James' house was built by the high-end residential home architecture firm Vertoch Design Architects.
The 2017-built house was a spec home that first appeared on the market for $30 million. James snapped it up for $23 million in November 2017, more than six months before news broke that James signed with the Lakers.
The Bar
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The house has extensive entertaining areas, with two full bars. This one is for booze and beer.
The bar is made of onyx marble and features four comfortable-looking bucket seats that may or may not be able to fit four Lakers players after a game.
There's a Cigar Bar, Too
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Beyond the glass shelving hanging by chains above the onyx bar, the cigar bar can be seen.
James has an affinity for cigars — the man celebrated with one while FaceTiming his parents after the Lakers won the 2020 NBA championship.
The Office
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When it's time to do business, James does it here, in this office.
James is an active and successful businessman off the court. Aside from those lucrative sponsorship deals, James has several other business ventures and investments. One is Ladder, a sports supplement company he co-founded with Olympic gold medalist skier Lindsay Vonn and Arnold Schwarzenegger.
He also co-owns SpringHill Entertainment, a video production company that is co-producing the upcoming "Space Jam" sequel.
The Kitchen
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Marble is the star of the show in the kitchen, which has a very large kitchen island with an extra-wide sink basin and pull-down designer faucet.
The oven looks extraordinarily expensive, too. It's not only large. It's chic as well.
Cooking With LeBron
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The kitchen island's marble countertop extends over the base and is supported by two brass legs, with shelving built into the sides.
The kitchen features two large stainless steel refrigerators (or possibly one is a freezer), oodles of drawer space and herringbone-patterned hardwood floors.
And if you want to cook a meal that the gas-burning stove can't do justice, just head outside.
Outdoor Cooking
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Right outside the kitchen is this outdoor barbecuing area, which is also decked out in marble.
It features stainless steel appliances, a bar, and one beefy-looking grill.
Indoor/Outdoor Living
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The home's main level has extensive indoor/outdoor living spaces thanks to extensive use of large glass pocket doors that open up directly to the backyard.
The Pool Room
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One of the rooms has been outfitted solely for playing pool.
The abstract art decorations are a nice touch.
The Theater
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Unlike the screening room of his newest mansion, this home theater is made for parties.
The black marble bar with black bar seats, tiered seating, couches and carpet are snazzy touches.
The Gym
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Unsurprisingly, James' house has a gym. Although it's not as big as we would expect, it has everything the man needs.
This is where he trained during lockdown.
The Master Bedroom
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James' master bedroom features a marble gas-burning fireplace, hardwood floors, built-in bookshelves, enough space for a couch, and a very large bed.
Which he has probably upgraded into an even larger bed.
The Master Bathroom
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The master bathroom is made almost entirely out of marble.
The exception seems to be the windows and the large steel soaking tub.
All-Marble Everything
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Another one of the home's eight full bathrooms is also made of marble, although the color isn't quite as dramatic as the master bathroom color.
We feel they missed out on an opportunity to include a marble toilet.
The Master Closet
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The master closet is truly luxurious. It has a built-in, glass-topped island for jewelry storage and easy viewing and more than enough space for hundreds and hundreds of sneakers.
Not too long, he went live on Instagram showing off his crazy shoe collection.
The Backyard
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James' home is, naturally, much more expensive than others in the Brentwood neighborhood.
Most homes in the area sell for $2.6 million. His mansion, which has just 0.63 acres, is $19 million more expensive than the average home sale price in Brentwood.
LeBron's Other House in Brentwood
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Located just five miles away from his other home in Brentwood is this 9,350-square-foot mansion.
James bought the home in an off-market deal in 2015, spending $21 million for the six-bedroom house that was built in 2011.
It's not entirely clear why James has three hugely expensive houses within minutes of one another, although it's possible they're for family members.
However, he also owns a huge compound in Ohio.
His Akron Compound
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When he's not in Los Angeles, James lives in this huge compound in Akron, Ohio.
He bought the property in 2003 for $2.1 million, tore down whatever house used to be there and then built a 30,000-square-foot mansion with six bedrooms and 11 bathrooms, according to realtor.com. Over the years, he purchased other neighboring and nearby properties, creating his own King James compound.
How much it's worth is anybody's guess. Hopefully, it isn't too customized, though, or else he might have the same trouble that Michael Jordan is having with his home — that is, selling a super-expensive, overly customized house. It is very difficult.