Check out Flea’s New $20 Million Malibu Oceanfront Home

Two months ago, the Red Hot Chili Peppers’ bassist Michael “Flea” Balzary splashed out $7.5 million on a cottage in the very prestigious Malibu Colony gated community. If his bank balance was looking a little low after the purchase, it’s now jumped back up thanks to the massive sum he’s made from offloading his much larger Malibu property in the Encinal Bluffs region of the city. According to Dirt (www.dirt.com/entertainers/musicians/flea-house-malibu-sold-1203358604/), the gorgeously situated compound, which occupies 2.1 clifftop acres, went for a cool $20 million in an all-cash, off-market deal.

The Background

According to records, Flea bought his Malibu residence back in 2006 for $9.9. For whatever reason, he never quite fell in love with the place; within just three years, he’d put it back on the market. Apparently, no one else was feeling the love either – despite testing the water with asking prices that veered between $13.7 million and $9.5 million, it got almost zero interest. By 2011, Flea had clearly got bored with showing uninterested buyers around and withdrew the property from the market. Considering he’s now added over $10 million to his initial investment, it was probably no bad thing. Obviously, the final amount he actually makes from that $20 million will be minus realtor costs (not to mention 10 added years of maintenance fees) but all in all, he’s probably pretty grateful it failed to sell the first time around.

The Estate

Flea bought the Encinal Bluffs compound back in 2006. We can’t say for sure, but it’s fairly likely that some reno work has been done on the place in the years since. That, along with the fact that the property wasn’t publically listed this time around, means we’re a little in the dark as to what it looks like these days. What we do know is that the compound consists of a 1980’s era main house boasting around 2,700 square feet of single-story living space.

Looking back on the images provided of the property when it was still on the market in 2011, we can see it boasts an open floor plan and plenty of unobstructed views over the ocean and coastline. As the LA Times reported at the time, the main living quarters feature rough-hewn beamed ceilings and walls of glass along its front. The manicured landscaped grounds are extensive enough to include spacious outdoor living and kitchen areas. Judging from the aerial photographs taken of the property, there are also two very decently sized detached guesthouses, along with a half-court basketball court and enough parking space to accommodate a dozen or so cars. Set atop a craggy cliff overlooking the beach, the property affords gorgeous views over the ocean.

The Neighborhood

Not a lot might be known about the property itself, but the one thing we do know is who the neighbors are. This sublime little corner of California boasts some huge names. Just a short hop, skip and jump away from Flea’s old stomping ground is convicted felon Michael Milken’s two-house compound, while a few more hops will land you on Patrick Soon-Shiong’s sprawling estate. Lying on a rocky outpost just below Flea’s home is Paycom billionaire Chad Richison’s $26.5 million getaway.

The Property Portfolio

Now Flea’s offloaded his Malibu home, he’s got plenty of time on his hands to spend at one of the other properties in his small but envy-inducing property portfolio. For a start, there’s his new $7.5 million cottage in the guard-gated Malibu Colony enclave. Constructed in 1959, the tropically-themed cottage spans a little less than 1,900 square feet of living space and boasts four bedrooms and three bathrooms. Tucked away behind the slightly intimating collection of hedges, palms, and plants, the “architectural garden home (as the listing described it) features a large living room with an equally large fireplace, an eat-in kitchen with a long island, a formal dining room offering lovely views over the jungle-themed yard, and a separate sitting room with french doors leading to a brick balcony. The master bedroom comes with its own private balcony and bathroom, while the three other bedrooms are all in keeping with the wood heavy theme of the house. Outside, a koi pond and a jacuzzi compete for attention amidst the foliage. Another treasure in Flea’s portfolio is the avant-garde, one-of-a-kind architectural compound in the suburban La Crescenta neighborhood of LA. According to Variety, the secluded 5.7-acre hillside compound, which was purchased in 2018 for the handsome sum of $4.25 million, stretches to include two ‘architecturally significant’ residences along with an open-air entertainment pavilion and a stunningly designed desert garden.

The Owner

58-year-old Flea is an Australian-American musician and actor best known as a founding member and the bassist of the Red Hot Chili Peppers. As well as appearing on every Red Hot Chilli Peppers album since 1984, he’s also collaborated with artists such as What Is This?, Fear, Jane’s Addiction, Atoms for Peace, the Mars Volta, Johnny Cash, Tom Waits, Alanis Morissette, and Young MC. If that wasn’t enough, he once spent a brief period in 1993 playing the trumpet for Nirvana. His achievements have won him numerous accolades, including being voted the second-best bass player of all time by Roling Stine in 2009 and the second best bass guitarist in rock music in a poll conducted by Contact Music in 2011. Along with the rest of the Red Hot Chilli Peppers, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2012. He and the rest of the band have been nominated for 16 Grammy Awards, winning 6 in total.

In addition to his music career, Flea has developed a sideline as an actor, appearing in over 20 television shows and movies. Some of his most notable work includes both the first and second ‘Back to the Future’ movies, ‘The Big Lebowski,’ ‘Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas,’ and ‘Baby Driver.’ In 1998, Flea married Loesha Zeviar. The couple divorced two years later. In October 2019, he married again, this time to designer Melody Ehsan. The couple had announced their engagement just one month before. He’s the father of a daughter, Clara, who he shares with his first wife Loesha, and a son, Sunny Bebop, who he shares with ex-fiance Frankie Rayder. According to Celebrity Net Worth, Flea is worth the grand sum of $150 million… which may just explain how he’s managed to build up that impressive property portfolio.