Celebrity real estate: Bieber punk'd by Kutcher

By zillow

What's new in the celebrity real estate world? Justin Bieber is fighting a low appraisal on a home he wants to buy after losing a bidding war to Ashton Kutcher, a home owned by Dennis Hopper and Craig Kilborn sells and Lost's Matthew Fox lists his Manhattan Beach abode.

Justin Bieber's real estate issues

Zillow

The home Justin Bieber reportedly wants to buy.

A few things have come easy for Justin Bieber: He became a superstar from a chance discovery via YouTube, he has a cool girlfriend in Selena Gomez, and Forbes estimates his worth to be $53 million. This however, doesn't all add up to an easy home buying process for the 18-year-old.

The latest news to come out of the the Biebs' real estate hunt is that the sprawling Calabasas, Calif., house he has his eye on has been appraised for significantly less ? $6 million less ? than the asking price, reports TMZ.

This is bad news for any buyer, Bieber included, because a home appraisal that doesn't come near the fair market value can significantly slow down a purchase.

But, perhaps in Justin's mind, he wouldn't be in this real estate mess if he actually did buy a gorgeous, modern $10.8 million home in the Hollywood Hills that he had his eyes on and was rumored to have purchased for his 18th birthday a few weeks ago. Evidently, Bieber was hot to buy the house, but there was one problem ? Ashton Kutcher was renting it out. When Kutcher realized his 3-month rental could disappear under him by none other than Justin Bieber, Kutcher reportedly bought it.

In May 2009, the Home Valuation Code of Conduct was adopted to reduce the possibility of inflated property appraisals, the kind of thing that was a little too common during the real estate boom.

The goal of the HVCC is to get a independent, unbiased appraisal of the property, which in theory is good, but it forces banks to choose an appraiser through a third-party "appraisal management company" or AMC, rather than their local, preferred appraiser.

Sometimes these third-party appraisers come up with a value that appears to be significantly off market value because they may not be familiar with the area or use appropriate comps. However, due to the HVCC, the lenders must go along with the AMC's appraisal, making it harder to buyers to sell or homeowners to refinance.

A low appraisal doesn't mean the end of the line for Bieber's dream home but it does mean a little more work on both the buyer and seller's end.

See more photos of the mansion Bieber is trying to buy.

Home to Margaret Sullavan, Dennis Hopper and Craig Kilborn sells

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The former home of Margret Sullavan, Dennis Hopper and Craig Kilborn.

1712 North Crescent Heights is more than an address of a house; it's also the title of a photography book that showcases Dennis Hopper's photography during the early 1960s.

Home to Dennis Hopper and his first wife Brooke Hayward, the home was a gathering place for many of the stars of the 1960s ? the "second generation of Hollywood" ? and also the starting point for Hopper's photography.

Hopper and Hayward moved into the 1920s Hollywood Hills home while Hopper was filming "Easy Rider." After the birth of their first daughter, Hayward gave Hopper a camera. The star soon took up photography, featuring his friends and fellow stars.

Not only was the house home to Hayward and Hopper, but reportedly the property was previously owned by Hayward's mother, silver screen actress Margaret Sullavan.

"The home has a history of celebrities," said listing agent Aileen Comora. "Ike and Tina Turner visited Dennis there and Jimmy Stewart was a frequent visitor of Margaret's. Merv Griffin played the piano in the living room and George Segal remembers the home very well."

Craig Kilborn also lived in the home over 10 years before deciding to sell recently.

"About three to four months ago, (Kilborn) decided to travel and decided it was time to move on from the house," Comora said. "So we did put it on the market and pretty much one of the first people who saw it bought it."

The Spanish-inspired home exudes its old Hollywood history with terraced gardens, a beautiful pool and a backyard so private that someone who wants to could "walk around naked" said Comora.

The 3-bedroom, 3-bath home opens up with a turret foyer opening to the living room and dining room, that also extends to the second floor and contains a sitting room attached to the master bedroom.

Listed for $3 million, the home is closing at the end of the month.

See more photos of Hopper's home on Zillow.

"Lost" actor Fox lists Manhattan Beach home

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Matthew Fox lived in this Santa Monica home prior to moving to Oahu to film "Lost."

For six years, actor Matthew Fox lived on the Hawaiian island of Oahu battling bizarre monsters and doing some medical sleuthing as Dr. Jack Shepherd on the hit TV show "Lost."

Prior to that, the actor lived with his family in a Spanish bungalow in Manhattan Beach, Calif. But with "Lost" out of the way and a new home in Bend, Ore., Fox has listed the 4-bedroom, 2-bath home on the Manhattan Beach real estate market for $1.995 million.

Fox purchased the home for $880,000 in 1999 in the midst of his role on "Party of Five." Although the show was popular, it was "Lost" that propelled Fox into stardom. Despite his star status, Fox didn't return to California after the show wrapped up filming, preferring to buy a home far from the Hollywood hubbub.

Fox's home in Manhattan Beach sits on the hill above the Pacific Ocean, complete with panoramic beach and water views from the upper floor rooms and wraparound balcony. Spanish detailing is found throughout the house from coved ceilings, colorful tiled stairs and dark wood molding. The family room is dominated by a sand stucco fireplace and cathedral-height ceilings.

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