Two weeks ago, Michael Angarano sold his attractive Silver Lake treehouse for nearly $1.5 million. The veteran actor (“This Is Us,” “The Forbidden Kingdom,” “Sun Dogs”) and his actress fiancée Maya Erskine (“PEN15,” “Man Seeking Woman”) have quickly switched neighborhood gears, upgrading to a stylish Spanish villa in Beachwood Canyon sold by another showbiz vet: “Beverly Hills, 90210” star Kathleen Robertson.
Angarano and Erskine clearly wanted the Robertson property quite badly; the $2.1 million they paid was a whopping $340,000 over the asking price. It’s not difficult to see why, the nearly century-old house was built as a model home for the 1920s Hollywoodland development — now “Upper Beachwood” to locals — and has been completely transformed by Robertson into an aggressively contemporary reinterpretation of its original state.
Though the peninsula-style lot is surrounded on three sides by a public road, the property remains notably private, with the house shielded behind a towering hedge and camera-watched gate. Beyond those fortifications is a short pathway of decomposed granite that leads to the front door, which opens directly into a living room with a vaulted, wood-beamed ceiling and easy access to the backyard pool area.
Concrete floors from the living room step down to the redone kitchen, which boasts top-of-the-line Viking appliances, quartzite countertops, and a large center island with breakfast bar. Also downstairs are an informal dining area and powder room.
A steep and notably narrow staircase leads to the upper level, where there are (what appear to be) original tile floors and two guest bedrooms, one of which is currently outfitted as a luxe home office. The other bedrooms has its own full ensuite bath, while the master retreat is secluded in its own private wing and includes a octagonal bedroom with a gothic chandelier and vaulted ceiling, a petite but deluxe bath with a steam shower, soaking tub, and high-tech toilet, a dressing room, and a private outdoor balcony.
The master suite and one of the guest rooms also share a large upper terrace, this one landscaped with a grassy lawn, mosaic tile fountain, and firepit. Downstairs, the swimming pool offers an inset spa and is nestled into its own tropical jungle, overlooked by drought-resistant cacti and a thicket of bamboo.
All the upgrades paid off for Robertson — the $2.1 million sale price nearly quintupled the $439,000 she paid for the property way back in ’98, shortly after her “90210” TV stint ended. She and her husband Chris Cowles have decamped to another Beachwood Canyon property, this one acquired two years ago for $1.8 million.
Phil Missig of Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices held the listing; Marlene Okulick and Susan Montgomery of Sotheby’s International Realty repped the buyers.