Though its Hollywood Hills locale high above the Sunset Strip is indeed impressive, perhaps the most intriguing thing about this property is its unusual history. Formerly occupied by pop superstar Britney Spears, who rented it out during her relationship with Justin Timberlake, the place was later owned by actress Brittany Murphy, who went on to collapse on the premises and ultimately die from cardiac arrest in 2009, at 32. The Clueless star’s 40-year-old husband, Simon Monjack, passed away inside the residence just a few months later.
A developer subsequently bought the estate and gave it a multi-year, down-to-the-studs remodel; David Bernon, a partner at Burn Later Productions and the son of milk mogul Alan Bernon, most recently picked up the home in 2020, for roughly $11.6 million. Now the sprawling contemporary structure in the Bird Streets of Los Angeles has just popped up for sale again, this time asking a speck under $18 million.
Anchored by a linear fireplace, the formal living room flows to the outdoors and adjacent living areas.
Tyler Hogan
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Spanning 9,400 square feet of living space, with five bedrooms and nine baths spread across three levels, the snazzy digs cling to the side of a hill and offer sweeping city lights and mountain vistas from almost every vantage point. A lengthy gated driveway ascends to the stone-clad house, where there’s an attached four-car garage and a motor court that can accommodate several more vehicles.
A set of steps leads up to the glassy front door, which pivots into a wood-paneled entry foyer topped by skylights. From there, a formal living room boasts a striking matchbook marble fireplace and floor-to-ceiling walls of automated retractable glass doors spilling out to the 1.2-acre grounds, which host numerous terraces,…