傳奧巴馬加州沙漠購豪宅
Fanned by the Los Angeles Times' very plugged-in Hot Property columnist and real estate reporter Lauren Beale, rumors have flared that President Obama and his family have bought a home in the California desert.
Beale's sources say Obama is in escrow on a 3-acre property in Rancho Mirage's Thunderbird Heights, an exclusive gated community once home to Frank Sinatra, Bob Hope and Bing Crosby. It has a 20-foot waterfall with a lagoon, a putting green with a sandtrap, and more recreational opportunities.
The home had been listed for as much as $12.5 million over the past few years, but most recently landed at $4.25 million, and real estate agent Marc Lange suggested back in May that the seller would be willing to take $4 million. Lange and his colleague Carl Blea hold the listing at HOM Sotheby's International Realty.
Local real estate watchers speculated last month that the Obamas might be interested in the house. The local Desert Sun newspaper reported that the Obamas might be house-hunting in the area, and even offered some advice, with the Thunderbird Heights pad its top pick. Meanwhile, Variety's Mark David, aka the Real Estalker, said that if they were house-hunting in the desert, then "surely they had a look-see at the most expensive listing currently on the open market in Thunderbird Heights, a contemporary compound on a gated, 3.29 acre valley view lot with a $4.25 million price tag."
The Sun even asked the White House last week whether President Obama bought the property. (Its reporters had asked listing agent Blea about the sale a couple of weeks earlier, Blea "told the Desert Sun that he could not talk about the buyer's identity.") "The White House would neither confirm nor deny the statement," the Sun reported.
The Times' Beale reported that the White House flatly denied "rumors regarding a home in Rancho Mirage," but that multiple real estate agents in the area told her the Obamas were the buyers. The compound is indeed in escrow, according to the listing.
The main house has 4 bedrooms, 4.5 baths and a "master retreat with gym, tanning and spa rooms" in 6,100 square feet, according to the listing. There's also a 2,000-square-foot "casita" -- perfect for the Secret Service, perhaps? -- with 3 bedrooms and 3 baths. The grounds' 3 acres also include a pool and two spas. Elevators ease travel at the compound.
Because the property is on a hilltop abutting a bighorn sheep preserve, it's exceptionally private and secure, the listing says.
The owner of the home is named William A. Robinson, property records show. Granted, that's a very common name, but we do know that reclusive millionaire William Armsted Robinson -- an early owner of DHL courier service -- has a home in Rancho Mirage. And the DHL millionaire's home certainly sounds like the one that the Obamas are reportedly buying: Court filings from a rather bizarre sexual-harassment suit against him contain details about William Armsted Robinson's Rancho Mirage home -- guest house, elevator, golf cart -- that match this Thunderbird Heights estate.
Coincidentally, the DHL millionaire was a big donor to Arnold Schwarzenegger's causes during the Republican's tenure as California governor.據外媒7月22日報道，消息靈通的洛杉磯時報“房產熱”專欄作家勞拉·比爾再曝消息，稱美國總統奧巴馬及家人在加利福尼亞州的沙漠裏購置一棟別墅。
據比爾的消息源透露，奧巴馬已將蘭拉米喬市“雷鳥山莊”上的一處房產暫交第三方保管，該房產面積達三英畝（約1.2萬平方米），位於一個獨家封閉式社區，名人弗蘭克·辛納屈，鮑比·霍普， 辛·克勞斯貝都曾在此居住。豪宅裏有一處20英尺（約6米）長的小瀑布，一座人工湖，一個配有沙坑的小型高爾夫球場以及衆多其它娛樂設施。
過去幾年中，該豪宅市場標價高達1250萬美元（約7749萬人民幣），但最近跌至425萬美元（約2635萬人民幣）。房地產商馬克·蘭格暗示，今年五月有賣家願意以400萬美元（約2480萬人民幣）成交。蘭格及同事卡爾·比利在HOM蘇富國際房產公司掌管上市待售房產清單。
當地房產商上月猜測，奧巴馬或許對這幢房子有興趣。據本地《沙漠太陽報》報道，奧巴馬或曾在這片地區尋找房子，甚至提出一些開發建議，最後“雷鳥山莊”成爲其首選。同時，Variety公司，即Real Estalker公司的馬克·大衛表示，如果他們曾在這片沙漠中物色房子，那“肯定會看一眼‘雷鳥莊園’市場上最貴的一處房產：一個現代風格的建築羣，享有3.28英畝的山谷風光，標價425萬美元。”
上週，《太陽報》向白宮詢問奧巴馬是否已購買這處房產，“白宮方面沒有承認，也沒有否定這一說法。”太陽報稱。太陽報記者曾問過房產代理商比利前幾周的銷售情況，比利只對《沙漠太陽報》表示他不方便透露買家身份。
據《泰晤士報》記者比利報道，白宮堅決否認“關於蘭卡米喬市房產的傳言”，但該市數家房地產商都表示奧巴馬一家就是房子的主人。據透露，這處房產目前的確被第三方保管。
豪宅的主建築面積爲6100平方英尺（約567平方米），有4個臥室，4個半衛浴間和一個“有健身房，日光浴房和spa室的休閒區”。還有一個2000平方英尺的祕密小屋，配有3個臥室和3個衛浴間。3英畝的空地上還有一座游泳池和兩座療養池。建築羣的電梯使來往十分方便。
據房產商介紹，因爲這處房產位於一處大角羊保護區旁小山頂上，所以特別隱蔽和安全。
房產交易記錄顯示，房子的主人名爲威廉·A·羅賓遜。儘管這個名字很常見，但我們都知道DHL郵政前董事、隱居富豪威廉·埃姆斯·羅賓遜在蘭拉米喬市有房產。而且這位富豪的房子聽起來很像是奧巴馬傳言中購買的房產。在一起奇怪的性騷擾訴訟中，法院文件的細節顯示威廉·埃姆斯·羅賓遜在蘭拉米喬市的房子也有客房，電梯，高爾夫球場，這些特徵都與“雷鳥莊園”的這處房產吻合。
巧合的是，在共和黨人阿諾·施瓦辛格擔任加利福尼亞州州長期間，這位前任DHL富豪曾提供鉅額資助。
