In 2015, NBA star Chris Paul paid about $9 million for a Calabasas mansion; three years later, he sold it for $11.05 million, the city’s biggest home sale that year

There was a time when acquiring a mansion in Calabasas did not only involve making a deal for the size or location. In 2015, Chris Paul purchased a Mediterranean-style villa in Calabasas for nearly $9 million. Three years later, he sold the property for $11.05 million, making it one of the notable Calabasas home sales of 2018. The deal characterized the way the concept of luxury home ownership developed into the strategy of elite athletes whose careers develop faster than their property.

When Calabasas became Hollywood’s backyard

Calabasas was historically known for its hills, open spaces, and equestrian communities before becoming associated with celebrity residents. The area changed as Los Angeles began to expand and wealthy buyers wanted to live in the area out of sight from their enforced work and sports spots. Gated neighborhoods such as The Oaks and Hidden Hills have transformed Calabasas into one of the most sought-after celebrity addresses. Some of the many celebrity residents that have populated the neighborhood at various times include famous sportspeople, actors, musicians, and even television performers attracted by the opportunity to seek privacy within gated communities and large residential estates.


In contrast with Beverly Hills, where many highly visible luxury estates exist, Calabasas provides the invaluable advantage of privacy. This feature of Calabasas helped home prices rise steadily and allowed many buyers to go for the property as not only a place of living but also an investment.

A mansion built for life beyond basketball

The luxury nature of the Southern California property market is evident in Paul’s estate. The residence, reported at roughly 10,400 to 11,000 square feet, boasts 6 bedrooms, a grand, two-story entrance hall, a home theater, a wine cellar, and a gym, as well as a large public area. Its outdoor features include a swimming pool, a hot tub, an outdoor kitchen, and carefully designed gardens and lawns optimized for privacy. However, the luxury amenities were not the only feature of worth.

In 2015, the Southern California luxury housing sector once again began to experience rapid growth thanks to the limited supply of real estate, capital inflow from abroad, and the continued demand from wealthy buyers. Having celebrity owners makes certain properties especially attractive and culturally significant. In the case of professional athletes who calculate their future in terms of seasons and not years, real estate is becoming another asset with a potential for retention of wealth.

A move shaped by basketball and business

Paul purchased the home while leading the Los Angeles Clippers, one of the most competitive periods of his career. However, it is uncommon for professional athletes to stay in one city for some time. In 2017, Paul was traded to the Houston Rockets following one of the offseason's biggest trades, ending his six seasons in Los Angeles. Even though the trade changed his jersey almost immediately, the property stayed on the market until it got sold the next year.

The final sale price was $11,050,000, which not only meant a profit for Paul over the price he paid but also made it the most expensive home transaction in Calabasas in 2018. This sale highlighted an often-overlooked reality of professional sports that remains out of the spotlight. The players can change cities overnight, but the issues regarding buying and selling houses can take far longer.

Why celebrity homes attract so much attention

Celebrity real estate has emerged as a unique aspect of American society. For upscale real estate marketplaces like Calabasas, real estate transactions not only reveal upcoming trends in the real estate market but also affect average property prices. In these types of property transactions, the privacy, exclusivity, and luxury properties of the neighborhood attract other celebrity buyers. In Paul's situation, the sale of Paul’s California home highlighted the moment when the respectable state of the local housing market makes him sell the property for an impressive amount.

The business of buying and selling

Athletes usually have shorter careers than other high-income workers, especially in professional sports where job contracts can change, and players have been traded to different clubs several times, not to mention their drive to win championships that might change their priorities in terms of career development or income. Such a practice has changed some ways athletes perceive their properties.

Although the place where an athlete lives can technically become their primary residence and a place where their family members will live, the given property may easily be treated as a means of making profit and growing wealth, while having their real estate sold when they look for new opportunities wherever they might happen. For example, during his career, Paul sold a house in Calabasas that he bought a long time earlier. His house sale became an amazing opportunity to showcase how elite properties experience the latest ups and downs on the real estate market together with the sports one.

Chris Paul’s Calabasas property reflected the intersection of two forces: the changing nature of an NBA career and the growth of Southern California’s luxury housing market. When the home changed hands in 2018, the transaction became one of the city’s notable residential sales that year.