The late Betty White’s 80-year career in show business earned her eight Emmys, three Screen Actors Guild Awards, a Grammy and three American Comedy Awards. She was the first woman to write, produce and act in a sitcom, Life With Elizabeth, and earned global fame as the much-loved Rose on The Golden Girls.
And when “the Queen of TV" needed to decompress, she would retreat to her beach house in California’s Carmel-by-the-Sea, which she built with her husband, Allen Ludden, in 1978. Ludden was also a TV personality and hosted the popular game show Password, which is where the pair met. He died in 1981 and White vowed to never marry again, since, she said, she had already had the best.
Ben Mack/ Pexels | Betty White's Brentwood home, which the late actress owned for more than half a century, just surfaced for sale at $10.575 million
Together the two created this beautiful home overlooking the Pacific Ocean, Point Lobos Nature Reserve, Ribera Beach and Monastery Beach. They enlisted architect Richard Hicks to design the property on Ribera Road. Covering 3,621-square-feet, the three-storey home is open, light and airy, featuring glass walls and natural materials such as a stone for some of the walls and fireplaces, and light wood for some walls and ceilings.
Her Brentwood Park lair has listed for a princely $10.57 million sum, marking the first time the home has hit the market in more than 50 years. But instead of a new buyer calling the charming property with canary-yellow shutters their own, it’s being sold for land value, specifically, as an opportunity to build your dream home on a flat lot in a serene country setting.
Take a look inside the house
Taras Makarenko/ Pexels | White and Ludden bought the beachfront plot in 1978 and finished building the house there three years later
This is the first time the property has been on the market in 50 years. The 3,029-square-foot home, which has five bedrooms and six bathrooms, sits on almost an acre of “parklike grounds.” The property also features well-tended gardens, a pool, and views of the Getty Museum and mountains.
The primary suite also has a fireplace, while the en-suite bathroom has a vanity that was designed by White herself. A multifunctional dining room looks out over the deck and ocean, and can be used informally, while open to the kitchen or closed off for more formal occasions. A muted colour scheme and minimalist decor throughout the property allows the views to take centre stage.
The property’s garden features manicured landscaping with grass, shrubs and flower beds. Just beyond are craggy shoreline rocks, while a white-sand beach can be seen to the left, and runs the length of the property below the cliff. In addition to ocean views, there is also a forested hillside rising above the ocean.
About the town of Caramel
Max Vakhtbovych/ Pexels | Betty White spent her final years in a home she didn't really want to live in
The town of Carmel, also known as Carmel-by-the-Sea, is located about 120 miles south of San Francisco, between several other famous coastal enclaves like Monterey and Big Sur. According to the home's listing, the town was founded as an artist's colony and maintains much of that bohemian spirit, even as its become a popular tourist destination known for shopping dining and charming European-style cottages.
