Check Out Rob Lowe’s Insanely Expensive $42.5M Mega Estate
/granite-web-prod/f6/63/f663d28771d34d628d46f972665ec167.jpeg)
Rob Lowe, star of “The West Wing,” an audience favorite co-star of “Parks and Recreation” and 55-year-old who perpetually looks 40, is looking to part ways with his mammoth mansion in the very wealthy and star-studded Santa Barbara County community of Montecito, California. The 10,000-plus-square-foot Georgian is up for sale at a staggering $42.5 million. Come take a stroll through this resplendent property inspired by Mount Vernon.
A Custom Dream
/granite-web-prod/b9/cf/b9cfab40b83e4802848e92f96bae8bb6.jpeg)
Lowe and his wife, Sheryl, had the home custom-built and designed from the foundation to the roof. The couple purchased the 3.4-acre plot in 2005 for about $7.5 million, although the house itself was completed in 2009.
“To understand the integrity of the property, we walked it for three weeks before pouring the foundation,” Sheryl told Architectural Digest in 2010.
The Living Rooms
/granite-web-prod/45/28/4528e6c08c674fc98b6bc25cc2c9cd74.jpeg)
To construct the property, the Lowes hired architect Don Nulty and interior designer David Phoenix. Nulty travelled to George Washington’s Mount Vernon for inspiration. The result was a 10,000-square-foot main house with six bedrooms and eight-and-a-half bathrooms. The Lowes christened it Oakview Estate.
It’s just a tad smaller than Washington’s house, though — Mount Vernon clocks in at 11,000 square feet.
The Living Rooms, Continued
/granite-web-prod/01/4e/014e43ad7d3a49d6bc2353ad16d5eb0c.jpeg)
The main house has a lot of rooms — 20, to be precise. Most are stuffed with couches and comfy places to sit.
The Living Rooms, Continued
/granite-web-prod/f4/6f/f46fdccc1d514b42a7e91d3b58bf1d82.jpeg)
The Lowes also employed David Cho, a feng shui expert who arranged furniture so as to get the best “energy patterns to optimize wealth, wellness and charisma,” he told Architectural Digest.
The Living Rooms, Continued
/granite-web-prod/11/03/1103f1302c7441e9b7be1d919d1c5331.jpeg)
It’s unclear how much the Lowes spent building the mansion, but it seems to be quite a lot. But the Lowes can afford it. Since 1999, Rob has had a television show on the air every season. His next series, “9-1-1: Lone Star,” an action drama about a New York fireman (played by Lowe), will net him around $200,000 per episode, according to Variety. Meanwhile, Sheryl makes high-end designer jewelry for thousands of dollars per piece.
The Living Rooms, Continued
/granite-web-prod/a0/59/a0591e70e75d412191f4c4f0fa24d2ab.jpeg)
The Lowes have two boys, Matthew and John, who are now in their twenties and are moved out, causing a bit of empty nest syndrome.
“With our boys now out of the house, we’re looking forward to our next real estate adventure,” Lowe told the Los Angeles Times.
This isn’t the first time the Lowes have put the property up for sale. They originally put the mansion up for grabs at $47 million in June of 2018, but with no buyers they have since slashed the price.
The Piano Bar
/granite-web-prod/89/8c/898ceeaed5b0442cbdc969fa9ac45af2.jpeg)
Part of one of the home’s living rooms is a piano bar.
“[My] husband's favorite things are reading, writing and music. Who else would have a piano bar?” Sheryl told AD.
Lowe doesn’t drink any longer — 2019 marked his 29th year of sobriety — so we assume the bar is for guests.
The Piano Bar, Continued
/granite-web-prod/f2/7d/f27d00d648c44b6e9fcaddbe22fe0c8d.jpeg)
The bar is stacked high with glasses and drinkware.
The Dining Room
/granite-web-prod/f1/5d/f15dd06d481a40dbb8686382c1e05a34.jpeg)
A portrait of George Washington has been placed above one of the home’s many fireplaces in the extravagant dining room.
The Kitchen
/granite-web-prod/0e/e1/0ee1cb53d8df4842b21fe2aae1aae702.jpeg)
The main house features a stunning kitchen with reclaimed French oak floors and an island topped with Calacatta marble. Including the guest house, there are four kitchens on the property.
The Catering Kitchen
/granite-web-prod/3b/4c/3b4c682d1e7948c79d35a52b07e6b4bd.jpeg)
One of those four kitchens is this one, an entirely stainless steel, strictly business corridor ending with a huge stove. A security camera watches from the ceiling.
The Breakfast Nook
/granite-web-prod/bb/89/bb89fd8220154ad0b7609d2957cd2110.jpeg)
Off the main kitchen is a breakfast nook near French doors and another fireplace.
The Foyer
/granite-web-prod/88/de/88dee6edbcf546e89a9b4543877119f1.jpeg)
The staircase is a Federal-style one, which fits the home’s Mount Vernon inspiration.
A Bathroom
/granite-web-prod/c5/b4/c5b47f97e1ba49a0b858a791bd59a550.jpeg)
We only get a peek at two of the home’s bathrooms — this one and the master bathroom — but it’s a good representation of what style the Lowes had in mind. The hardware and marble are contemporary, while the lighting and mirror are vintage pieces from what looks like the 1800s or early 1900s.
The Upstairs Landing
/granite-web-prod/79/07/7907e334fd5a4e418db722588bcdb012.jpeg)
Fittingly, the house has many built-in bookshelves and the Lowes have stacked them with stately looking encyclopedias and older folios.
The Pool Room
/granite-web-prod/af/db/afdb1da69245442dbef07ee097257189.jpeg)
A large game room with dark hardwood flooring easily fits a pool table and marble-topped card table.
The Master Bedroom
/granite-web-prod/ab/96/ab962654221f492995b4c2170b19a8df.jpeg)
Lowe has certainly come a long way from his days of method acting when he was 19 years old. For 1983’s “The Outsiders,” director Francis Ford Coppola had the cast spend time overnight with what he describes as “greaser families.”
“So it’s me and Tom Cruise in a guest bedroom in some bad area of Tulsa, Oklahoma, with people who were high school delinquents. Francis wanted to toughen us up, so he had us play tackle football on asphalt with the local gang-o-thugs,” Lowe told Vanity Fair in a video interview.
The Master Bathroom
/granite-web-prod/d1/3a/d13a0342910c4ce48f7730333041334c.jpeg)
Rob Lowe ad-libbed that “Stop…pooping” line from “Parks and Recreation.” Maybe he practiced it here? Although if you have to poop, this is the bathroom to do so.
The Master Bathroom, Continued
/granite-web-prod/b7/a1/b7a1b786bc9542d1b7325ffb97e5d78d.jpeg)
The built-in marble soaking tub overlooks the mountainside, while trees provide some privacy.
The Master Closet
/granite-web-prod/49/3e/493e9fa80fe94e179e64c862a4b1b94e.jpeg)
While it doesn’t look like it, this room may have some inspiration from Mount Vernon, which has 16 closets, including some spacious dressing rooms. Although for Oakview, it looks like they’re all compiled into one large dressing room/closet off of the master bedroom.
The Balcony
/granite-web-prod/ca/54/ca54c8e1fc3445a5a036e5499723ef4b.jpeg)
The second floor sports a huge balcony with multiple electric lanterns and a ping pong table.
The Theater
/granite-web-prod/d0/16/d016ad739de04439bc0f36237dc6c3ba.jpeg)
Rob is a self-professed cinephile, so it makes sense that his house has a decked-out home theater. We’re not sure what the “H” embroidery is about on those blankets, though.
The Wine Room
/granite-web-prod/52/46/5246a918e61f4d75888146c44a2b9736.jpeg)
Keeping booze around the house is clearly not a problem for Rob, as his wine room is stocked to the brim with expensive wine.
The Back Porch
/granite-web-prod/ef/4e/ef4e4b98aa75454d8f1d106920fdfec7.jpeg)
Out back is an expansive porch with a dozen of places to sit and fireplaces on both ends.
The Back Porch, Continued
/granite-web-prod/ec/f7/ecf7233348a44466bdeacbeca716d69b.jpeg)
The log-burning fireplaces can be fed from split logs kept in the built-in log storage nooks in the brick walls.
The Back Patio
/granite-web-prod/89/21/89219125cc244d079ba3fe449b7688f2.jpeg)
A patio area overlooks the pool.
The Back Patio
/granite-web-prod/65/fd/65fd706e0f9c4c2fac6b23f18f4434c6.jpeg)
Yet another fireplace with built-in log storage, although this part of the covered patio has a mounted flat-screen television.
The Tennis Court
/granite-web-prod/db/53/db5321bab79a465fa1b2db5765e5e69a.jpeg)
Rob Lowe clearly loves tennis. Just look at this full-sized tennis court!
The Tennis Court, Continued
/granite-web-prod/fa/74/fa74a2f450c144378bf0563ae3767b2e.jpeg)
The actor had a brief role as a former professional tennis player in “The Pro,” a 2014 comedy for NBC, although the pilot was never picked up.
The Tennis Court, Continued
/granite-web-prod/e6/df/e6dfddb318fd4fc29f46a6ce3f469439.jpeg)
The court even has seating areas for guests.
The Pool
/granite-web-prod/89/29/89295552893249f8b86087822967f866.jpeg)
The pool has water features and an elevated spa.
The Pool, Continued
/granite-web-prod/53/24/5324e7da9efd4145910c604f22fd9c6d.jpeg)
A night-time view of the pool.
The Pool, Continued
/granite-web-prod/e5/68/e56859a369d649a89ab72255aa8fd41c.jpeg)
Just across from the main house is a pool house, whose entrance is flanked by two groups of six Tuscan columns.
The Pool House
/granite-web-prod/c6/e8/c6e87895f524439dbccb66eb2f17c176.jpeg)
The pool house has been decorated with striking pictures and a Buddhist statue.
The Pool House, Continued
/granite-web-prod/ef/71/ef715b3f34d94be7a3307b76763cac47.jpeg)
The pool house is 800 square feet with one bedroom. It’s been generously decorated with all kinds of ornaments and furniture that feel beachy.
The Pool House, Continued
/granite-web-prod/d6/34/d6349b2e2dff4b4486ab926b6f1e9388.jpeg)
The pool house overlooks the championship tennis court.
The Grounds
/granite-web-prod/66/ca/66ca60c97c90404d80e6dd3072fe9400.jpeg)
With 3.4 acres, there’s more than enough room to hold an enormous outdoor party.
The Grounds, Continued
/granite-web-prod/10/70/10705f83fae149b78768e9eb3fa000de.jpeg)
An additional water feature crowns the edge of the property.
The Grounds, Continued
/granite-web-prod/5a/b5/5ab567bf90e4478f93721e699975b312.jpeg)
And like many other properties in Montecito, Rob Lowe’s house is gated. Other celebrities who live or have lived in the area include Jeff Bridges, Oprah Winfrey, Ellen DeGeneres, Drew Barrymore and Patrick Stewart.