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Bankrupt real estate mogul Mohamed Hadid has seen nearly $200 million slashed from the asking price of his most ambitious home, in a bid to pay off his creditors.
The lavish 103,000 square foot Beverly Hills home was expected to be the most expensive home ever sold in California, with an asking price of $250 million.
But the father of models Gigi and Bella Hadid watched helplessly as his crowning achievement, still half-built, hit the market for just $68 million.
“He was going in the right direction, 100 percent,” the home’s real estate agent, Gene Bush, told DailyMail.com.
“Unfortunately, that’s the way real estate is, you win some, you lose some.”
Renderings show what the mega mansion will look like when completed
An apparent outdoor seating area and gym can be seen in renderings of the property
Famous faces: Mohamed, the father of model daughters Gigi and Bella Hadid, bought the land in 2018 but work progressed slowly
Hadid, 74, purchased the 27-acre site on Cedarbrook Drive five years ago with plans for a 19-bedroom home next to a 24,300-square-foot guest house.
Each was to have its own bowling alley while the main building was to include a 36-person home theater, a Turkish bath, a wine cellar with a tasting room, a hot yoga room and a 6,000 square foot garage with two turntables for cars.
But construction closed nearby nature trails and infuriated neighbors, and the project stopped when Hadid filed for bankruptcy in June 2021.
By then, he had also been ordered to demolish a $100 million mega-mansion he was building across the Bel Air Valley, fearing it would slide on the side of the hill and crush the neighbors below.
Contractors called in to demolish it had to remove it piece by piece from its precarious hillside location because Hadid had abandoned construction plans to double its size.
Sahara Construction boss Paul Ventura told DailyMail.com that “multiple levels of security” were required to dismantle it.
“As the original builder did not build it according to plans, much of the demolition work is exploratory,” he added.
“We’re not sure what we’re going to find when, for example, we take down a wall or another part of the structure.”
A rendering shows the private road built to access the huge mansion
What Was Supposed To Be California’s Most Expensive Home Looks Like A Slum After Construction Halts
Real estate agent Gene Bush said only the foundation and part of the road have been built so far.
A view shows the sprawling Beverly Halls property before construction
Heavy machinery can be seen on the 38-acre site at 9650 Cedarbrook Drive
“We have to carefully take the walls down to the steel support beams to see what’s there.”
Nicknamed “Starship Enterprise” because of its shape, the Bel-Air giant was to feature a 70-seat IMAX theater, a sleek glass facade and a wraparound infinity pool.
Hadid was sued by neighbors Joe Horacek, 80, his wife Bibi, and John and Judith Bedrosian, with the two couples ultimately spending four years and about $9 million in legal fees fighting in court.
Their battle against the Palestinian-American tycoon came to a head in September 2021 at the end of a civil trial when a Santa Monica jury awarded the Horaceks and Bedrosians a total of $2.9 million.
“I’ve moved on in my life – it’s all behind me now,” Hadid said at the time.
“I wish the people who bought it good luck and I wish them good luck with whatever they build there in its place.”
“I have other projects I’m involved in now.”
What Could Have Been: A mock-up photograph shows what Hadid’s Bel-Air property would have looked like when completed, revealing a sleek, ultra-modern glass facade and wraparound infinity pool.
Hadid planned elaborate sculptures for the grounds of her magnificent mansion, now destroyed. The real estate mogul planned to include a 70-seat IMAX theater and a massive wine cellar that were not part of the original plans.
This was as far as his Bel-Air mansion was before he was ordered to tear it down.
Sahara Construction purchased the property for $8.5 million and agreed to pay the $5 million demolition fee, hoping to be able to recoup that money through future resale and a special tax break.
The precariously situated hillside mansion had to be carefully dismantled amid fears it would collapse on neighbors.
Mr. Bush of Coldwell Banker Realty described the Beverly Hills home as “truly once in a lifetime and one of a kind.”
“This unprecedented property is intended to be the ultimate representation of style and success,” he wrote in the sales blurb.
“This extremely private 27.5 acre resort is located on its own promontory just above Beverly Hills.
“The views are unmatched, stretching out to the Pacific Ocean and spanning majestic hills, rugged canyons and millions of lights in the city below.
A long, enclosed, elevated driveway accesses the property which, when completed, will harmonize with the natural setting and blur the lines between indoor and outdoor living spaces.
“Each floor is primed to maximize enjoyment of the view with huge floor-to-ceiling windows and countless glass doors leading to outdoor patios, decks and invisible edge pools.”
But he was reluctant to know how much a buyer would have to spend to complete the project.
“It was supposed to be (Hadid’s) crown jewel,” he explained.
“It depends on the different developers who are involved, everyone has different finishes they want to put on it.
“At the moment only the foundations and part of the road are built, so we are only at the beginning.
“But it’s got great views, a great location, it’s going to be spectacular.”