Photo: Christie’s International Real Estate
The most recognizable foyer on television is for sale. Last week, Kris Jenner listed her six-bedroom, eight-bathroom Hidden Hills home — more or less the set for Keeping Up With the Kardashians for the better part of 15 years — for $13.5 million. (They grow up so fast!) Now that it’s been in the market for a minute, we wanted to know — what’s it like to sell the Kardashian house? I reached out to Tomer Fridman, the broker representing Jenner in the sale, to talk about fending off gawkers and showing off Kris’s frozen-yogurt machine.
This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.
Tell me a little about getting the listing.
I’ve been working with this client for quite a bit. They purchased the house about 15 years ago, in 2010. I was not involved in that transaction. Then, throughout the years, it underwent an immense evolution in the taste and style — you saw evolution when it was on air, the transformation from season to season. All the fireplaces now are from Exquisite Surfaces. I think what’s so important to understand is it really has the owner’s touch there, in terms of how they lived in the home. It’s a house that really was a home.
What’s an example of Kris’s touch?
There’s a frozen-yogurt machine in the butler’s pantry. That’s how this owner lived, it was part of their everyday living. And because the owner’s obviously high profile, there’s the amount of landscaping and privacy — the yard is so meticulous and thorough that the new homeowner is going to have this really gorgeous paradise. With so many trees and screening, you feel completely transported.
The house is obviously quite recognizable. Did anything change while getting it ready for sale?
The homeowners engaged Ryan Saghian. We wanted to just make it even more current, so it’s fresh and sparkles. He did some nice neutral paint colors and put in new light fixtures. The furniture is actually all purchased; it’s not from a staging company. He was able to do a bespoke collection for the house so it’s available to purchase with furniture.
Photo: Christie’s International Real Estate
Photo: Christie’s International Real Estate
Photo: Christie’s International Real Estate
I assume a lot of people want to see the house just because it’s so famous.
I mean people will call and ask, but you have to kind of put the kibosh on it. We’re not doing a broker’s open. Not for the public and not even for agents. When we put a property on the market, we usually do an exclusive broker’s open, but we have not at this point because activity has been brisk enough where we don’t need that exposure. We don’t want it to just be people coming in and taking photos for Instagram.
Even brokers want to see it for kicks.
Of course! I would want to see it myself.
What’s your vetting process like?
For all our properties, we have an immense vetting process. Do I know the agent who’s requesting to show it? What kind of clients do they represent? Where’s the client moving from; do they need to sell a house? We need to make sure they’re viable. That’s for every house.
And for Kris Jenner …
But this one, there’s an additional layer because there’s so much fanfare regarding this particular property. We have to go one layer deeper, like proof of funds. It’s pretty easy to ascertain who’s a legitimate buyer and who’s not. But the truth is, at this point with such an important home in pop-culture history, I think we really need to make sure that everyone who sets foot in there is really, really viable. Everyone we’ve shown the home to thus far is familiar with the house, but they’re extremely vetted.
Photo: Christie’s International Real Estate
Photo: Christie’s International Real Estate
For the buyers who do get through the vetting process, is the Kardashian element still part of the appeal?
Celebrity ownership is always an appeal, especially for this particular homeowner. But that said, for anyone who is noteworthy or if there’s a specific architect involved, it’s very appealing to a buyer because they’re buying something that’s unique. And here they’re buying a piece of TV history.
Are people surprised by anything when they see it?
First of all, the floor plan is fantastic. You have a very open floor plan, so I think they’re really pleasantly surprised. The minute people walked in they were like, “Wow, the house really is as glamorous as it looked on the show.”
Is there anything about the house that the public wouldn’t know from watching the show?
I think people are mostly pleasantly surprised by the yard. You experience the scale. It’s massive — over an acre. You can have the kids play soccer there.
From left: Photo: Christie’s International Real EstatePhoto: Christie’s International Real Estate
From top: Photo: Christie’s International Real EstatePhoto: Christie’s International Real Estate
How does the house compare to other celebrity listings?
This one is a different animal because normally for celebrity homes, the celebrity is the homeowner. But here, the house is the celebrity. It’s at least as big of a celebrity as the homeowner.
Has anyone toured the house and not recognized it?
Not one person. We were even showing it a day or two pre-launch to select clients and before I told them whose house it was, the minute they walked into the foyer they immediately recognized it.
Source link
