Adam Levine and Behati Prinsloo Want $65 Million for Their Picacho Lane Mansion

Noteworthy new listings….

The grand, gracious mansion that Rob and Sheryl Lowe completed in 2009, 700 Picacho Lane ($65 million), was purchased by Jack and Julie McGinley in 2020 for $44.5 million and then by pop star Adam Levine and model Behati Prinsloo in March 2022 for $52 million. The architecture is as traditional as can be; love the juxtaposition between it and all the T-shirts and sneakers in the primary closet. At first glance, the price might take your breath away, but here’s the argument for it: this is a honkin’ trophy property—13,362 square feet, stylish, turnkey, with celebrity names attached—on 3.4 acres on one of Montecito’s best streets. P.S. Who needs a mirror on the ceiling when you have super gloss paint?

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We could use a word for a property that’s unremarkable from the front but dazzles once you step inside—like 1522 Knoll Circle Drive ($6.25 million), between Alameda Padre Serra and Sycamore Canyon Road. It’s the kind of 1950s house all over southern California, but someone—possibly the current owner, but maybe not, since the property sold off-market in 2021 for $5.5 million—went all out on the interiors, and then of course there’s the glamorous pool deck and view. The listing notes three bedrooms, but there are actually four: two guest rooms share a Jack-and-Jill bath, and a third is accessed via the primary or from outside (so it’s more likely a snore room or office/study). The location could be a snag: it’s not in a top-tier schoolshed, and with relatively modest housing stock, the neighborhood lacks the prestige of the Riviera or better parts of Eucalyptus Hill.

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On a private lane above Montecito’s Upper Village, 601 San Ysidro Road ($7.2 million) is a 1982 Spanish-ish five-bedroom with a tricky floor plan (viewable on the listing agent’s website): the primary is up those stairs that dominate the living/dining area, one of the guest rooms is off the laundry room, two of the guest rooms share a bathroom where the sinks are exposed to the hall, and the fifth bedroom is accessed via an exterior staircase. (Perfect for a teenager?) But the library is a winner, and more important, location, location, location.

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1630 N. Jameson Lane ($5.95 million) is on a big lot on the edge of the Hedgerow—the 1.6 acres includes a mammoth motor court and backyard (where you might want to build a guest house, since the current one faces the garage). The house was built in 1916, but it feels more like the 1990s inside, and while the primary bedroom is oddly proportioned, its bath is huge. Worth noting: the listing touts “a seasonal creek trail to Miramar Beach.”

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The striking 1944 Eucalyptus Hill Road ($4.395 million) was designed by J.F. Strickland and built in 1973 as a one-bedroom house with a two-bedroom guest house; in 2007, Ferguson-Ettinger combined the two structures in elegant fashion, although the house lives more like a two-bedroom with excellent office and gym. The Brutalist architecture comes off a tad dim in some of the listing photos—here’s a cheerier one I took yesterday—and while the surfaces may be period-appropriate, I suspect a new owner might want to rethink some of them (in particular, the nubby gray plaster walls and ceilings). P.S. Great view with no power lines.

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And a few others worth checking out:
••• 285 Las Alturas Road ($3.5 million): “Beautifully updated midcentury modern split-level home” with no interior photos, so take it with a grain of salt.
••• 1018 Roble Lane ($3.095 million): 1967 five-bedroom, three-bath on the Riviera.
••• 1055 Roble Lane ($2.895 million): 1963 three-bedroom, two-bath on the Riviera.
••• 15 W. Padre Street ($2.895 million): 1937 Colonial split into a duplex; no interior photos.
••• 2290 Featherhill Road ($2.895 million): One-acre lot where Featherhill Road hits Camino del Rosario.
••• 19 W. Quinto Street ($3.195 million): 1966 four-bedroom that the listing agent thinks is “spectacular.”
••• 1228 Bel Air Drive ($3.95 million): Quickie spec reno of a 1963 four-bedroom; the seller paid $2.083 million just three and a half months ago. Whenever I see open shelving in a kitchen, I assume cabinetry was too expensive (below).

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