Paul Allen's Silicon Valley estate just hit the market for $41.5 million. Take a look inside the late Microsoft cofounder's 7-bedroom mansion in America's richest town.
Microsoft cofounder Paul Allen's former Silicon Valley home has hit the market for $41.48 million.
The nearly 18,000-square-foot mansion is in Atherton, an affluent California town of about 7,000 people. Among that population are several high-profile tech executives.
Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg and former Google CEO and chairman Eric Schmidt are both known to have owned homes in Atherton.
According to Zillow, the median home value in Atherton is almost $6 million.
Atherton is about four miles from Palo Alto — which is home to Stanford University and the headquarters of many tech companies, including Hewlett-Packard and previously Facebook — and roughly equidistant between San Francisco and San Jose.
"Silicon Valley is really the corridor from San Francisco down to San Jose, so this is equidistant for anyone looking to travel to a company along that corridor," Charney said.
Allen's seven-bedroom estate is the most expensive home currently listed in Atherton, according to listing agent Courtney Charney of Parc Agency.
"There's nothing else like this estate in Atherton," Charney told Business Insider.
She pointed to the lot size — 1.9 acres, which is large for Atherton, she says — and the home's amenities and built-in privacy features.
The home is built on what's called a "flag lot," which means the home sits at the end of a long driveway.
"It's set back from the street and it really offers the utmost in privacy," Charney said.
The interior of the three-level, 17,686-square-foot main home was designed with warm wood and neutral tones throughout.
"It's a large home, but when you are in the home it has this incredible ability to envelop you and make it feel warm and inviting," Charney said.
The light-filled home, designed by Olson Kundig, features high ceilings and large windows.
The living room features a limestone fireplace and built-in shelving.
The dining room, which includes an elevated limestone fireplace at eye-level, can seat at least 10 people.
In the kitchen, you'll find Carrera marble counter and white oak cabinetry, double ovens, two Miele dishwashers, and a Sub-Zero refrigerator and freezer.
There are two master bedroom suites: one on the main level of the home and one on the second floor.
Each suite comes with a marble bathroom with double vanities.
The main floor master bathroom includes a marble soaking tub with views of the backyard ...
... as well as an expansive walk-in closet.
The upstairs bathroom has its own soaking tub with garden views.
An elevator serves all three levels of the home.
The house's audio/video system, including the in-home cinema, is controlled by iPad tablets.
In addition to its five bedrooms, the Atherton home also has a home theater and snack bar, an exercise room and spa, and a wine cellar.
A detached guest house offers another two bedrooms and two bathrooms.
Outside, the house boasts two outdoor kitchens, a pizza oven, an in-ground pool and spa, and multiple dining and seating areas.
"Enough cannot be said about the grounds," Charney said. "It feels like you've checked into an uber-exclusive resort. There's a wood-fired pizza oven, outdoor BBQ, two outdoor fireplaces, multiple seating and dining areas, a pool and hot tub ..."
Landscape architect Pamela Burton created "a wild meadow on the property that has walking paths," Charney added. "If you want to go and feel peaceful, you drive through the gates and it's like you take a deep breath, you clear your calendar, and you say I'm never leaving."
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