Lachlan Murdoch Just Paid $150 Million for the Beverly Hillbillies House
It's the second-largest residential sale in the U.S. — and the first in the sunny state of California. For a whopping $150 million price tag, conservative media mogul Lachlan Murdoch just purchased the iconic Bel-Air property known as Chartwell.
The French neoclassical-style chateau anchoring Chartwell first gained national fame in the 1960s after it was featured on the legendary CBS sitcom "The Beverly Hillbillies." While Buddy Ebsen never actually set foot as Jed Clampett inside the actual mansion, its exterior was prominently featured on the series' credits.
Built by the civil engineer Lynn Atkinson, the palatial 26-room estate totals 25,000 square feet. Everything is big, including a 75-foot swimming pool. Chartwell was formerly home to the late media mogul A. Jerrold Perenchio, who died in 2017, according to the Los Angeles Times.
Perenchio scooped up the property for just (!) $14 million in 1986. He later acquired the home of former President Ronald Reagan, which is located behind the original property, for $15 million in 2016. Murdoch purchased the combined estate.
According to The Times, the expensive home was originally "priced as high as $350 million in a pocket listing." Had it been taken off the market for that sky-high price, it would have outpaced the most expensive residential sale currently on record. The hedge fund manager Ken Griffin closed on the multi-story penthouse at 220 Central Park South in New York for an earth-shattering $238 million.
Murdoch is the eldest son and heir apparent of Rupert Murdoch, whose international media empire includes Fox News and News Corp.
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