Oprah buys Jeff Bridges’ Montecito ranch for $6.85 million
Jeff Bridges has found a big-time buyer for his Spanish Revival-style compound in Montecito: Oprah Winfrey. The media mogul shelled out $6.85 million for the home — the exact same price Bridges and his wife, Susan Geston, paid for it five years ago, records show.
Winfrey is adding to her stock of Montecito real estate while Bridges is leaving his behind. Two years ago, the “Big Lebowski” actor sold his larger property in the area — a Tuscan-inspired vineyard estate of nearly 20 acres — for $15.925 million. He also unloaded several parcels of land in Malibu earlier this year, The Times previously reported.
The four-acre compound is a nice addition to Winfrey’s collection of homes in the celebrity-popular community. In 2001, she paid $50 million for a 42-acre estate known as “The Promised Land,” which is currently valued at roughly $90 million. Then, she picked up a nearby horse farm for $28.95 million at auction four years ago.
Her new place is anchored by a 100-year-old home built by noted architect James Osborne Craig. Surrounding that are gardens, redwoods, oak groves, orchards, a guesthouse and a pool house. Equestrian features include a carriage house and horse facility with five stalls and a tack room.
Remodeled during the Bridges’ stay, living spaces feature dramatic beamed ceilings, bay windows and French doors. Multiple corner fireplaces are spread throughout the single-story interior.
The sky-lit kitchen offers tile and quartz finishes, and an indoor-outdoor lounge sports a wall of built-ins. In the master suite, a newly added bathroom boasts heated teak floors and a sleek shower of marble and glass. In total, there are three bedrooms and three bathrooms.
Outside, landscaped entertaining areas take advantage of the secluded grounds. A tile courtyard tacks on a fountain. A brick patio on the other side of the home wraps around a swimming pool and spa.
Sally Hanseth of Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage handled both ends of the deal.
Bridges, 69, won an Academy Award in 2010 for the film “Crazy Heart.” His scores of movie credits also include “Hell or High Water” and “True Grit,” and last year he starred in “Bad Times at the El Royale.”
Winfrey, 65, hosted her syndicated talk show “The Oprah Winfrey Show” for 25 years and more than 4,500 episodes. In 2008, she launched her own cable channel, Oprah Winfrey Network. Forbes estimates her net worth at $2.7 billion.
Her country-spanning collection of homes includes properties in Chicago, Hawaii and Tennessee.
