Searching for a little heaven on Earth? The small northern California city of Lafayette, in the rolling hills between Berkeley and Walnut Creek in Contra Costa County, is a good place to start, given its scenic beauty and vast open spaces ideal for hiking and fishing. While its housing market is competitive, with only a couple dozen homes currently available, all of them priced over one million dollars, the family-friendly community’s most expensive home on the market is a secluded estate spread across more than 10 acres and asking for $25 million. The Rose Lane home is listed with Ann Newtown Cane and Michael Dreyfus of Golden Gate Sotheby’s International Realty.
Known as Happy Valley Heaven, its name is seemingly derived from the surrounding neighborhood, Happy Valley, which is revered for its blend of high-end residences and semirural settings just 20-some miles east of San Francisco. The gated home was completed in 2020 and custom-built by Branagh Development to match the specifications of a corporate executive and his security advisors, the listing notes.
The fireside living room sits beneath soaring 20-foot ceilings.
Fusion Media/Anthony Halawa
The five-bedroom mansion anchors manicured grounds that are surrounded by grassy hillsides and mature oaks that create a buffer of privacy between residents and prying eyes. Its traditional, two-story design is highlighted by century-old olive trees and lavender flowers at the entrance. Dark wooden floors lead the way into the home’s interior where 20-foot ceilings soar above the living room. A fireplace flanked by lighted display shelves creates an inviting environment, and a wide bank of glass doors disappears into the walls to unite the room with a spacioius covered terrace and, beyond that, the swimming pool.
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Meals can be taken in one of the multiple dining spaces dispersed throughout the house, two of wich lead out to colorful garden and patio spaces, or at the marble-topped breakfast bar in the kitchen. Arched doorways and fireplaces continue to trail the residence, leading to a family room and a stylish billiards area that adjoins a state-of-the-art golf simulator room. Elsewhere area two home offices, a wine cellar, and gym with balcony access.
Rolling hills dotted with oak trees provide a naturalistic backdrop to the manicured gardens and putting green.
Fusion Media/Anthony Halawa
Along with a large guest suite, the primary bedroom sits on the main level with a light-filled sitting area. Of the home’s nine bathrooms, the primary bath is the most captivating with decorative stone flooring and cadet grey hues that come together in a spa-like atmosphere. Three other en-suite bedrooms are located on the upper level.
Outside, multiple gathering areas span the backyard. These include a couple of loggias for shaded relaxing, one with an outdoor kitchen and a fireplace, as well as a sun-splashed poolside patio with ample space for sun loungers. A bocce court and a putting green set against the picturesque natural landscape complete the resort-style suburban idyll.
Click here for more images of the Bay Area estate.
Fusion Media/Anthony Halawa
Authors
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Demetrius Simms