After a whirlwind courtship—rekindled after two decades—plus two weddings and many real estate rumors, it seems celebrity couple Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez might finally have found their forever home.

According to TMZ, the duo recently landed an ultramansion in Beverly Hills. The property appears to have sold at the end of May for $60,850,000.

The price tag seems staggering—until you consider the property landed on the market in 2018 for $135 million.

So if the happy couple finally scored this place after an exhaustive search of some very high-end homes in the L.A. area, what sealed the deal?

And, more importantly, what the heck happened to the price? These two don’t shop in the bargain bin, so how did they manage to get a home for more than half off?

We spoke with some luxury-home insiders to get the scoop of this intriguing deal.

No strangers to ritzy real estate

First off, the two megastars have recently made some major real estate moves. Affleck put his Pacific Palisades bachelor pad on the market in 2022, and it quickly sold for $28.5 million.

Lopez, who initially started renovating her lavish living quarters to make room for her blended family, changed course and instead listed her palatial estate in Bel Air earlier this year for $42.5 million. It’s been a few months with no takers for the nearly 8-acre property, so the home’s price tag has been cut to just below $40 million.

The couple has been spotted house hunting in the L.A. area since 2021. As recently as March, the pair supposedly had their sights set on a $64 million Pacific Palisades pad. While busy browsing in Southern California, Lopez and Affleck have shared some deluxe love nests in swanky settings—Miami Beach, Montana, and the Hamptons.

Beverly Hills estate

So where exactly have they (likely) decided to settle down? Let’s take a look inside.

Known as the Wallingford estate, this sumptuous, 38,000-square-foot mansion is set on 5 acres. It has 12 bedrooms and 24 baths and was marketed as “one of the most iconic estates” in Beverly Hills. The celeb-ready fortress can only be accessed through two entrances from private and gated streets.

Highlights include a 5,000-square-foot, guest penthouse; a caretaker house; two-bedroom guardhouse; and parking for more than 80 cars. The grounds include an impressively large, zero-edge pool—the focal point of the landscaped surroundings. 

In 2018, the the Wall Street Journal reported the home was owned (and designed) by developer Gala Asher. Asher purchased the property for $22 million in 2016 and reimagined the mansion that was already in place. The magnificent property returned to the market just two years later for $135 million, claiming the title of most expensive home on Realtor.com® at the time.

However, the mansion had languished on the market, despite amenities such as a sports facility with a pickleball court, boxing ring, sports lounge, and bar. It had dropped in price multiple times over the past half-decade, eventually landing at $75 million in March. Lopez and Affleck seem to have made a deal for even less.

Right price?

So, is the couple getting this place for a steal?

“I think they got a good deal at $60,000,000,” says Myra Nourmand, luxury real estate agent with Nourmand & Associates. “It started for considerably more when it was first introduced to the real estate market. They got great value at this price!”

Of course pricing is all relative, especially with high-profile stars for whom cost is essentially no object (but who place privacy at a premium).

“This house is very secluded and private,” Nourmand says. “It’s ideal for high-profile individuals like Ben and J. Lo, who want to come home to a secure place that is difficult for paparazzi to take photos.”

And in the case of these two megawatt buyers, perhaps taking their time to find the right place did pay off.

“With pricing, of course, comes perception,” says Cara Ameer, bi-coastal agent with Coldwell Banker, licensed in California and Florida. “I’m sure they felt the property was an incredible value, relative to what it had been priced at in the past. Although these kinds of properties are less affected by the economy and interest rates, these home searches can be a marathon, not a sprint, as everything has to be exactly how they want it.”

The couple might have also decided to go for a totally turnkey property with “nothing to remodel, rework, or redo,” Ameer adds.

The post A Bargain for Bennifer? J. Lo and Ben Affleck Reportedly Snag $135M Beverly Hills Estate for $60.8M appeared first on Real Estate News & Insights | realtor.com®.