It’s enough to make our suburbia minds drunk with envy and provide us with fodder for endless daydreams. The gorgeous, detailed, all-inclusive celebrity homes-with amenities such as wine cellars, huge swimming pools, ocean views, and even helipads-invoke enough drool factor to rival a crowded daycare center.
Last year had its fill of such mansions as celebrities tried – some successfully, some not – to unload their real estate.
1. Former Home of Ellen DeGeneres
First, there was the compound that talk show queen Ellen DeGeneres and her wife Portia de Rossi sold to American Idol host Ryan Seacrest for $37 million.
What did that buy him? According to various reports, the Coldwater Canyon compound that is the size of almost a full city block consists of a 9,200 square-foot main house, three guest houses, a swimming pool, koi ponds, a tennis court, and high-end security. Seacrest will also enjoy multiple private home offices, a meditation room, personal gym, lap pool, and enormous shoe closets.
2. The Ryan Seacrest Mansion
Seacrest had apparently outgrown his 8,100-square-foot Mediterranean-style Los Angeles home that he had bought for $11.5 million in 2006 from Kevin Costner. The mansion, featured in Architectural Digest, has a swimming pool, guest house, detached garage, tennis courts, gardens, and views of the city.
3. Brad Pitt’s Pad
And what was Ellen and Portia’s next real estate purchase? The Malibuplace Brad Pitt purchased on the heels of his divorce from Jennifer Aniston. DeGeneres purchased Pitt’s place for $12 million.
Pitt, who loves dabbling in architecture, renovated the home, which has 4,088 square feet, four bedrooms, four bathrooms, magnificent views of the coastline, dark bamboo flooring, walk-in refrigerator and freezer, and access to a sandy beach cove.
4. Jennifer Aniston’s New Estate
Meanwhile, Pitt’s ex Aniston is doing just fine for herself with the purchase of a $21 million, 8,500-square-foot Bel Air mansion behind closed gates. It is nestled in a three-acre knoll and has 300-degree views of the city and ocean. It also boasts a vineyard, high ceilings, walls of glass, and gardens peppered with walkways.
5. Mega-Home of the Late Gianni Versace
But if those homes don’t impress you, the 2012 real estate listings also featured the 19,000-square-foot Miami sprawling estate of the late Gianni Versace. It has 10 bedrooms and 11 bathrooms. And, something you don’t see every day: a 54-foot-long pool lined in 24-karat gold and front gates emblazoned with Medusa.Reports say the mansion also boasts a 6,100-square-foot south wing, a mosaic-covered courtyard, and frescoes on the walls and ceilings.
6. Celine Dion’s Mansion
Or, there’s the home of mega-singer Celine Dion. The Quebec home is dubbed the Gagnon Mansionand is built like a French Norman chateau – but a huge one at 24,000 square feet. And if you like plush, this is the home for you. It’s full of chandeliers, winding staircases, red velvet carpets, and coffered ceilings.
And when you feel like winding down, there’s the game room, vaulted wine cellar and tasting room, library, gym, pool and pool house, and … a helipad.
Dion says the mansion is “seldom used,” as she had a demanding concert schedule and she and husband/manager Rene Angelil also have a more contemporary home on Jupiter Island, Fla.
