• This $88 million LA home sits on more than one acre of land and comes complete with an NFT art gallery, infinity pool, retractable DJ deck and enormous koi pond. Courtesy Joe Bryant
    This $88 million LA home sits on more than one acre of land and comes complete with an NFT art gallery, infinity pool, retractable DJ deck and enormous koi pond. Courtesy Joe Bryant
  • The koi pond. Courtesy Joe Bryant
    The koi pond. Courtesy Joe Bryant
  • The home is nestled in greenery and was built by celebrity reconstructive surgeon Alex Khadavi. Courtesy Joe Bryant
    The home is nestled in greenery and was built by celebrity reconstructive surgeon Alex Khadavi. Courtesy Joe Bryant
  • The infinity pool looks out over Los Angeles. Courtesy Joe Bryant
    The infinity pool looks out over Los Angeles. Courtesy Joe Bryant
  • One of the property's glass walkways. Courtesy Marc Angeles
    One of the property's glass walkways. Courtesy Marc Angeles
  • The garage. Courtesy Juwan Li
    The garage. Courtesy Juwan Li
  • The private cinema. Courtesy Joe Bryant
    The private cinema. Courtesy Joe Bryant
  • The master bathroom. Courtesy Joe Bryant
    The master bathroom. Courtesy Joe Bryant
  • The property has seven bedrooms. Courtesy Joe Bryant
    The property has seven bedrooms. Courtesy Joe Bryant
  • The property has a spacious minimalist design. Courtesy Marc Angeles
    The property has a spacious minimalist design. Courtesy Marc Angeles
  • An outdoor dining area. Courtesy Joe Bryant
    An outdoor dining area. Courtesy Joe Bryant
  • The pool is flanked by a fire pit. Courtesy Joe Bryant
    The pool is flanked by a fire pit. Courtesy Joe Bryant
  • Walk-in wardrobes. Courtesy Joe Bryant
    Walk-in wardrobes. Courtesy Joe Bryant
  • The property offers expansive views of Los Angeles. Courtesy Joe Bryant
    The property offers expansive views of Los Angeles. Courtesy Joe Bryant
  • The home has seven bedrooms and 11 bathrooms. Courtesy Joe Bryant
    The home has seven bedrooms and 11 bathrooms. Courtesy Joe Bryant

Lifestyle

Luxury

An $88 million LA home with its own NFT art gallery – international property of the week

An infinity pool, retractable DJ deck and enormous koi pond are other features of this uber-contemporary home

Selina Denman
Selina Denman

August 09, 2021

  • English
  • Arabic

From a retractable DJ deck to a koi pond that’s as big as a swimming pool, this Los Angeles home is brimming with unusual features.

Also out of the ordinary is its asking price of $87,777,777.

The key details

Dubbed Palazzo di Vista, the uber-contemporary home was built by celebrity reconstructive surgeon Alex Khadavi, who worked with Ali Rad Design Group to create his dream home on a promontory in Bel Air.

Offering expansive LA views that stretch from the San Gabriel Mountains to the Channel Islands, the property is a masterclass in decadence. Even its master bathroom is described by the listing agent as “rivalling a seven-start resort”.

There’s also an infinity pool, outdoor bar, glass elevator and Disneyland-esque water features. The pool is fitted with seven-horsepower jets that can be co-ordinated with music – meaning swimmers can literally feel the beat.

The property sits on about half a hectare of land. Joe Bryant
The property sits on about half a hectare of land. Joe Bryant

What’s the story?

The property sits on a plot of about half a hectare and features seven bedrooms and 11 bathrooms, including a master wing with a wraparound deck and that aforementioned "seven-star" bathroom.

There are several dining areas, both indoors and outdoors, as well as a private cinema, various lounge areas, a stand-alone guesthouse and glass walkways. The large, minimalist kitchen opens to the elements via two glass walls.

The koi pond is as big as a swimming pool in the mansion, which is full of unusual features. Joe Bryant
The koi pond is as big as a swimming pool in the mansion, which is full of unusual features. Joe Bryant

Another standout feature is the home’s non-fungible token (NFT) art gallery, which includes seven large-screen media displays and a rotatable 2D laser projector that casts light over the pool, mimicking the Disney California Adventure Park’s World of Colour attraction.

Featured in the multisensory gallery are artworks by Ghost Girl, Andy Moses, Shane Guffogg and Jimi Gleason. The NFTs and physical pieces are not included in the listing price but are negotiable.

What the brokers say…

According to the listing on TopTenRealEstateDeals.com: “[Khadavi's] success in the cosmetic-medical field made it possible to fulfil one of his dreams: design and build, in collaboration with Ali Rad Design Group, Palazzo di Vista, a contemporary-futuristic home that includes a first-of-its-kind, multisensory art gallery.

“It is located on top of a promontory in Bel Air with some of LA’s best views.”

Kareem Shaheen on Canada
'Nope'
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Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.

Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.

“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.

“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.

Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.

From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.

Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.

BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.

Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.

Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.

“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.

“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.

“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”

The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”

Top 10 most polluted cities
  1. Bhiwadi, India
  2. Ghaziabad, India
  3. Hotan, China
  4. Delhi, India
  5. Jaunpur, India
  6. Faisalabad, Pakistan
  7. Noida, India
  8. Bahawalpur, Pakistan
  9. Peshawar, Pakistan
  10. Bagpat, India
General%20Classification
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The smuggler

Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple. 
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.

Khouli conviction

Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.

For sale

A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.

- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico

- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000

- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950

Ovo's tips to find extra heat
  • Open your curtains when it’s sunny 
  • Keep your oven open after cooking  
  • Have a cuddle with pets and loved ones to help stay cosy 
  • Eat ginger but avoid chilli as it makes you sweat 
  • Put on extra layers  
  • Do a few star jumps  
  • Avoid alcohol   
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Updated: August 09, 2021, 8:06 AM
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