This Beverly Hills mansion with a strange history had its price cut by $30 million — see inside

• A Beverly Hills mansion built in 1996 on the site of the Tate murders is seeking $55 million.
• The 21,000-square-foot home has 18 bathrooms, outdoor waterfalls, and room to park 50 cars.
• The seller, "Full House" creator Jeff Franklin, has lived in the home since 1996.

A 3.6 acre estate in Beverly Hills, California, with unobstructed views of the city skyline and Pacific Ocean, comes at a cost — a really big one.

The mansion at 10066 Cielo Drive in Beverly Hills is currently on the market for $54,995,000, but listing agent Matt Altman of Douglas Elliman said that's par for the course for a house with this many features.

"It's priced at land value," Altman told Insider. "The fact that you get this incredible home on top of it is just a bonus."

The house has been on the market for over a year and took a major price cut recently. Altman, who holds the listing with his brother, Josh, suspects that houses in this price range are seeing a slowdown all over Los Angeles due to Americans moving abroad — but he's hopeful the market will rebound this summer.

Another tidbit that may influence buyers is that this home was constructed on the site of the murder of Sharon Tate and four house guests by the Manson Family in 1969. That property, which had the address of 10050 Cielo Drive, was demolished in 1994, and the current one was built in 1996 with the new address of 10066 Cielo Drive.

Altman doesn't think that's why the 21,000-square-foot mansion has been on the market since January 2022, when it was originally listed for sale for $85 million. It has seen several price changes in the tens of millions, according to Zillow. Before that, it had been listed for rent for $285,000 in September 2021. 

Buyers are unphased by its eerie history and willing to spend serious money for a unique home, Altman said. Take a look inside.

10066 Cielo Drive in Beverly Hills is a 21,000-square-foot home with views of downtown Los Angeles.

Altman said the Andalusian-style house is a rarity in Los Angeles.

"It's not your typical brand-new modern home that you'll see many times," he said. "The two most sellable homes these days are either Cape Cod or modern."

 

According to Los Angeles news station KTLA, the house belongs to "Full House" creator Jeff Franklin.

Source: KTLA

Franklin has lived in the home since it was built in 1996 but is ready to move on, Altman said.

"I think at this point he's just ready to move on," Altman said. "In Los Angeles to keep a home for 20 years or more is almost non-existent."

Altman said he and his brother, Josh, worked with the seller on price.

"We sit and we say, 'What does the land cost? What would it cost to replicate,'" he said.

The Cielo Estate is nearly three decades old, but Altman said the seller kept the house updated to today's standards.

"Anytime a new technology comes out, he's kept it updated," Altman said. "The toilets, for example, are Toto toilets that are self-cleaning."

Besides the toilets, there are a number of features that don't often show up in homes — like a shark tank.

"The shark tank is the biggest tank in the house, but there are at least another one, two, or three other tanks that are also spectacular salt water ecosystems," Altman said.

 

The long list of unique features, like the ability to park up to 50 cars on the property, can't be achieved by today's building restrictions, Altman said.

Altman referred to a new wildlife ordinance in Los Angeles County that would limit the amount of structures a homeowner can have on their hillside property, as well as other restrictions.

"This is a house that, now with the wildlife ordinance, you're not going to be able to do a garage," Altman said. "You're not going to be able to do basements — and this basement is one of the most beautiful movie theaters I've ever seen. And it also has parking for 50 cars."

Inside, the home has a theater, spa, gym, hair salon, billiards room, and a bar, according to the listing.

The outdoor area, which includes a 75-yard pool with three waterfalls, two spas, and a 35-foot water slide, would also be hard to recreate today, due to building ordinances.

The house is an entertainer's dream, Altman said, pointing out the tall windows that all open up to give the indoor-outdoor feel.

"You walk out to that backyard and it feels like you are in Bali or somewhere other than Los Angeles," Altman said. "But yet you still can be eight minutes to Rodeo Drive."

And with nine bedrooms and 18 bathrooms, there's room to host for days at a time.

The interior features of the home are special, but the real showstopper is the lot itself.

The lot is 3.6 acres with city views and a gigantic footprint — that combination is a rarity in this part of town, Altman said.

Altman added that, partly because of the new building rules, prospective buyers have said they're not interested in making major improvements to the home.

"People love the land and love the view," he said. "Whoever buys this is totally able to live in it tomorrow, but most likely is going to be putting some money into it to make it their own."

The property is the same land where Sharon Tate, Jay Sebring Wojtek Frykowski, and Abigail Folger were murdered.

The original house was torn down in the mid-1990s, according to KTLA.

That piece of information is common knowledge for locals, and Altman believes it isn't scaring any prospective buyers — mainly because the house is on prime real estate.

"It's in one of the most exclusive areas of Beverly Hills and you're talking about land — it's not the same house or anything," he said of the Manson murders. "These are very serious buyers and very serious prices."