In early September, Jeff Bezos’s ex-wife, philanthropist Mackenzie Scott, donated her multimillion dollar Beverly Hills property to the California Community Foundation, a nonprofit philanthropic organization dedicated to the “systemic solutions addressing the most pressing issues facing Los Angeles County.” Although a formal announcement of the gift was made in August, property records certified the transaction about a month later, reported Dirt.
Two houses on the property—one, a 12,000-square-foot Hacienda-style home and the other, a 4,500-square-foot ranch-style abode—sit behind gates, surrounded by a swimming pool, tennis court, a vast lawn, and robust trees that encircle the estate. A total of thirteen bedrooms and fourteen bathrooms are found throughout.
Though the home never came to open market, it didn’t take long for the expansive property to intrigue those who could afford its multimillion dollar price tag. Now, according to Mansion Global, Mike Caren, a record producer and songwriter known for working with artists such as Beyonce, Bruno Mars, Flo Rida, and Jason Derulo, has picked up the property for $37 million. According to a press release by the CCF, 90 percent of the property’s sale will go toward the organization’s affordable housing efforts and the remaining to its immigrant integration program.
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According to Forbes.com, Scott, who was married to Bezos for 25 years, walked away from their marriage with 25% of Bezos’s stake in Amazon, the equivalent of a 4% share in the online behemoth. Full ownership of the 2.5-acre estate was granted to Scott during the divorce settlement.
The property, which comprises two combined parcels, was acquired in separate transactions, 10 years apart—one in 2007, the other in 2017. The total cost to the Bezoses was $37 million. The component that made up the earlier transaction was previously owned by Rick Guerin, an investor and former business partner to Warren Buffet. He had the home built in the ’90s before selling to the Bezoses in the mid 2000s, according to Dirt.
After her divorce, Scott signed the Giving Pledge, promising to donate at least half of her wealth over her lifetime, and has since gifted billions of her dollars to large and small organizations dedicated to social equity. Included in the list of recipients—and receiving a gift of $20 million—is Spelman College, a historically Black liberal arts college for women. As of today, Scott’s real-time net worth is $29.4 billion, making her the 45th richest person in the world. Though not exclusively a result of the donated home, these two figures have both dropped in the months since the property was first signed over to CCF. At that time, Scott’s net worth was $37.8 billion and she was the 29th richest person in the world.
