Billionaire Beach property for auction

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21804 Pacific Coast Highway, Malibu, CA, United States

A Malibu beachfront mansion could reportedly become the most expensive US property to be sold at auction when it goes under the hammer in September with buyers being advised it requires a $US22 million starting bid.

The 975-square-metre beachside house, which was built in 2005, originally listed in 2008 at $65 million, given its Billionaire Beach location, and for $35 million in May. It includes six bedrooms, nine bathrooms and five fireplaces.

There’s a home theatre, a 25-metre two-lane lap pool, a gym and a library with an aquarium.

The winning bidder would count on former Yahoo! CEO Terry Semel, billionaire David Geffen, action film producer Joel Silver and restaurant mogul Peter Morton as near neighbours along Carbon Beach.

"It's on a particularly wonderful spot which is very sandy," listing agent Carol Bird, of Westside Estate Agency, says.

"In Malibu, California beaches have public access by law, but it's 1,000 feet [300 metres] from any public access, so you don't have people walking in front of you."

The auction is set to be held on September 18, but Bird says the house could be sold before then if an "acceptable offer" were made. The land cost $2 million in 2002. Bird says it would set the record for an auction property in the US but did not respond to questions about this claim before deadline. 

In June 2010, the Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen spent $25,0067,500 on his Carbon Beach retreat. It is an architecturally striking gleaming glass-and-stucco residence sold by L.A.-based clothing manufacturing magnate Charles Perez, who had purchased the 1,781-square-metre block in 1998 for $3.7 million. A $36.9 million sale took place last year for an eight-bedroom, seven-bathroom house that was built in 2002 on a 1,214-square-metre block that cost $2.5 million in 1998.