Cher’s Former Home Hits the Market, Asking $85M

Located in the posh Benedict Canyon neighbourhood of Beverly Hills, this luxurious, expansive home has changed considerably since Cher lived there in the 1970s and ’80s before selling to fellow celeb Eddie Murphy.

When Cher lived there, the estate only consisted of four acres. She sold it to Eddie Murphy in 1988, who then sold it in 1995. At that point, the new owners grabbed up all the surrounding land and redeveloped it with an eye to riding horses, adding stables, riding trails, guest houses and tennis court.

The 20,000-square-foot main house boasts six bedrooms and six baths, but is currently in the midst of a renovation; the home is being sold “as is.”

Realtor to the stars Aaron Kirman, who’s worked with such celebs as Nicki Minaj and Rihanna, describes the home as “a true trophy property for any buyer.”

In addition to the main house, there’s also a 7,000-square-foot guest house, decorated with Moroccan tiles, arched windows, hand-carved wooden doors, coffered ceilings.

The spectacular guest house also includes a large master bedroom (and two additional bedrooms), as well as two full kitchens, two fireplaces, a dining room, spa with Jacuzzi, sauna and its own outdoor patio.

The place looked very different when Cher lived there. According to reports in Variety, the then-10,000-square-foot mansion was decorated in what designers might call “glitzy Egyptian,” an “idiosyncratic” home that felt more like a movie set (she and her designer drew inspiration from the made-for-TV movie ‘Jesus of Nazareth’). This thing? Not quite sure what it is…

Wait, this thing lights up at night? Then there’s a chance it could be one of Cher’s old Las Vegas head-dresses from way back when. converted into a backyard objet d’art.

Eddie Murphy bought the home in 1998 for $5.9 million and did his own renovations to it. Variety reports that Murphy added a screening room, and at the time he lived there the home had six bedrooms, six bathrooms, a gym and “a cavernous atrium with an electronically retractable glass roof.”

Murphy decided to sell the place in 1990, asking $9 million. For whatever reason, the place sat unsold until early 1995, when Mexican businessman Roberto Trouyet picked it up for the bargain-basement price of $4 million.

Trouyet sold the home not long after, asking $9.9 million but selling for just under $6.4 mil to shopping-mall magnate Raul Walters in 1996, with reports indicating that by then the estate also included (in addition to the six-bedroom main house) a separate staff quarters with three bedrooms and a few koi ponds.

Once they moved in, Walters and wife Vicki scooped up four surrounding properties, vastly expanding the size of the estate to its current 16 acres.

The Walters were also responsible for installing “acres of carefully groomed, resort-style grounds” with Mrs. Walters revealing in a 2000 interview that all that landscaping required the services of eight gardeners to maintain.

Clearly the current owners are not PETA members, judging by the trophy animal heads adorning the walls.

The main house underwent extensive renos, including expanding the size of the main house, the addition of two massive houses for guests/staff, a tennis court and all the equestrian facilities, including this impressive stable.

Forget what you think a stable should look like. This main stable (there are two) – also described as a “deluxe equestrian barn” boasts a spacious stone-floored lounge with fireplace along with two bedrooms, two bathrooms, and even a safe room (that’s right, just like in the Jodie Foster movie).

No secret is made about the purpose of this luxurious stable, with saddles hanging right on the wall for easy access.

A recent post-Cher addition is this full-sized tennis court, enclosed by creeping vines growing up the fence.

Access to the tennis court is through these imposing double doors.

The equestrian-friendly 16-acre compound boasts miles of trails for horseback riding, along with five stables and two fenced-in horse rings.

…this spacious estate, which looks more like a rambling country farm, is in the middle of Bevelry Hills, minutes away from ritzy Rodeo Drive.

The archways are probably one of the few remaining elements from the home as it was when Cher lived there, although we’d have to turn back time to be sure.

The main house lit up at night, in all its $85-million glory.

You’d better believe an $85-million home has a great big gate and high walls to keep out the riff-raff.