Brady Bunch House Sells for $3.5 Million, Resells for $3.2 Million
The 2018 sale of the Brady Bunch house in Studio City is an interesting study in the disconnect that sometimes happens between price and value (at least value as it relates to the market). As stated so eloquently by Warren Buffet, "price is what you pay, value is what you get."
For those old enough to remember, the Brady Bunch was a popular sitcom in the early 1970's, featuring a blended family and their live-in housekeeper. The role of the Brady house was limited to exterior shots only, including the show's opening and closing scenes; most of the show was filmed on a studio set. The house was otherwise owned and occupied continuously by the same family until it sold in 2018.
The property is located in an area of Studio City variously known as Woodbridge Park or Tujunga Village; just to the west is the better-known neighborhood of Colfax Meadows. This area has a long connection to the entertainment industry, and is not infrequently used for location shoots (movies and commercials).
The home was built in 1959 with three bedrooms and three baths in about 2,500 square feet, and sits on a nice lot of 12,500 square feet. Classic split-level ranch style, well-maintained, but definitely caught in a 1970's time warp. Under ordinary circumstances, a likely candidate for remodeling or redevelopment.
When the house hit the market, it was priced in line with the neighborhood at $1,885,000. The listing referenced its provenance, but who would have known the frenzied bidding war that would ensue. There were reportedly multiple offers from corporate and entertainment industry types, including Lance Bass of NSYNC fame, who thought he had the winning bid. But no, the lucky winner was an LLC owned by HGTV, planning to restore the home "to its 1970's glory as only HGTV can."
And the price? A cool $3.5 million, nearly twice the listed price. It isn't uncommon for homes in this area to occasionally sell above list price, but not by this much. It is rumored to be the second most photographed home in the country (behind the White House), but seriously? Especially considering that the interior of the house wasn't even used as part of the show.
In any event, the price was clearly way above the market based on comparable sales. It wasn't necessarily the highest price in the area at the time, but everything over $3 million was at least twice the size, and most in that price range are much newer construction. Notoriety definitely commanded a big premium, even though a nearby home where Britney Spears got married several years ago didn't get the same kind of love.
So what is the significance of this aberrant transaction?
First, a property's history can have an effect (a huge effect in this case) on what someone is willing to pay. And that translated into a substantial premium, in contrast to much of the stuff I work on, where extrinsic and/or intangible conditions sometimes have a negative impact on price (crime scenes and haunted houses, for example). Appraisers sometimes debate the impact of a famous architect or owner on the value of property, but the old real estate cliché that "George Washington slept here" seems to apply, even though the Bradys actually never slept in (or occupied) the house.
Second, price does not necessarily equal market value, at least in the conventional sense of how we might define the "market." A variety of factors can affect price, some of which fall outside standard definitions of "value" – lack of knowledge, undue stimulus, atypical motivation, inadequate market exposure, creative financing and sales concessions, to name a few.² It would be a stretch of epic proportions to think that the price paid for the Brady Bunch property in 2018 was reflective of the market . . . unless of course the market is restricted to HGTV, whose motivation to acquire the house would probably not be considered "typical."
HGTV ultimately spent almost $2 million restoring the house to an exact replica of what appeared in the original sitcom, including an addition that doubled the size of the dwelling.³ The predictable result was a reality TV mini-series called A Very Brady Renovation (including the Property Brothers and other celebrity renovators, as well as surviving cast members of the original series). For anyone who missed it, the seven episodes that ran in 2019 are available for streaming; for a quickie architectural tour, check out the video below:
The property was listed for sale at a cool $5.5 million in May 2023, ultimately selling for $3.2 million in September. No doubt that the price paid in 2018 was way above the market, and while the real estate investment was a big money loser for HGTV, it's a safe bet that the renovation series made some serious bucks. The buyer, incidentally, was a superfan of the show and wife of a former HBO chief executive who considers the house a piece of artwork, and plans to use it primarily for fundraising and charitable events.
¹ This is an update of a blog post originally published in 2018 - read article
² These are from the standard lending definition of market value (12 CFR §34.42(g), although there are a multiplicity of market value and fair market value definitions in common use for a variety of purposes
³ Recreating rooms used on the set that were not part of the original home
