Ronald and Nancy Reagan’s Bel-Air home sells to billionaire Jerry Perenchio for $15 million
The longtime Bel-Air home of former president Ronald Reagan and his wife, Nancy, has sold for $15 million in an off-market deal. The buyer is Jerry Perenchio, the billionaire businessman and former chairman of Univision, according to records obtained by The Times.
Sited on 1.29 acres of grounds, the estate was purchased by a group of friends for the Reagans in late 1986, about two years before the end of his second term, for $2.5 million. The arrangement allowed for the couple to lease the home with an option to buy, and records show the property was eventually deeded over to a trust in the couple’s name in 1989.
Though property details are scant, tax records show the approximately 7,200-square-foot house has 17 rooms across two floors. There are three bedrooms and six bathrooms.
Lawns, mature landscaping and a swimming pool make up the hedged and gated grounds.
The area has a long had star appeal. Nearby properties were once home to comedian Joan Rivers, actress Elizabeth Taylor and record producer Burt Bacharach. Down the road is Liongate, the estate once owned by singer Kenny Rogers that was purchased last year by philanthropists James and Eleanor Randall for $46.25 million.
Perenchio owns multiple properties adjacent to the Reagan estate, including the Kirkeby mansion, known to television viewers as the home of “The Beverly Hillbillies.”
Early in his career, Perenchio, 85, was a talent agent at Music Corp. of America and represented Reagan and Marlon Brando, among others. He eventually went into filmmaking, partnering with Norman Lear and Bud Yorkin at Tandem Productions.
In the early 1990s, Perenchio and two partners bought the Spanish-language media network Univision from Hallmark for $550 million, eventually selling the conglomerate in 2007 for more than $12 billion.
He has sat on the board of trustees for the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation since 2000.
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Twitter: @NJLeitereg
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