One of the most famous properties in the world, the iconic Los Angeles mansion of Hugh Hefner, the founder of the Playboy empire, is being put up for sale for $200 million, one of the highest asking prices for a private residence in the US.
The Gothic Tudor-style mansion, which has an area of nearly 1,858 square metres and boasts 29 rooms, sits amid five acres in Beverly Hills and is known as the Playboy Mansion. A clause in the sale means Mr Hefner will continue to live there regardless of who the new owner is.
In addition to having a tennis court and a free-form swimming pool, the estate is home to the infamous Playboy grotto, which over the years served as the setting for some of Mr Hefner's most lavish, hedonistic parties.
The mansion, in which Mr Hefner still lives, also has a zoo license, Playboy Enterprises said in a statement announcing the sale.
"The Playboy Mansion has been a creative center for Hef as his residence and workplace for the past 40 years, as it will continue to be if the property is sold," the statement added.
Representatives did not specifically say why the company had decided to sell the property, which was built in 1927 and purchased by Playboy in 1971 for a reported $1.1m, a figure property agents said was the largest real estate transaction in LA history at that time.
