1. Suzanne Somers
Along with hubbie Alan Hamel, Somers has been working on this huge, 65-acre desert compound outside Palm Springs since 1977. "Les Baux de Palm Springs" mixes the charm of the French countryside with Hollywood touches like Zebra skin rugs (lots of 'em) and massive chandeliers. Even after dropping the price by more than $22 million this property is still on the market, with the current price "available upon request". (Source)
2. Nicolas Cage
Are there any mega-celebrities out there who live in simple, tasteful homes? Certainly not Nicolas Cage, whose old-Hollywood tudor in Bel Air reminds us of the sprawling Xanadu compound from "Citizen Kane". Actually, it's not so much the house as the crap it's filled with. Anyone want a life-sized Mickey Mouse? How about a boulder-sized amethyst geode? The good news is that the property is now being offered at a 50% discount. Anyone got seventeen-and-a-half million bucks lying around? UPDATE: Is this house about to be auctioned off on the courthouse steps? Has Cage defaulted on his mortgage? (Source)
3. Eddie Murphy
Eddie Murphy's seven-bedroom Englewood, NJ mansion known as "Bubble Hill" may be only ten minutes outside of Manhattan, but that doesn't mean he's had an easy time finding a buyer. Bubble Hill has been on the market for at least 5 years. Pro: it's got a bowling alley and a recording studio. Cons: $200k a year in property taxes. UPDATE: Looks like this house keeps dropping! 12.75 million and falling fast. (Source)
4. Mel Gibson
Another celebrity gets divorced, another mega-Tudor hits the market! This Greenwich, CT mansion was designed by architect Charles Lewis Bowman and built in 1926. It's actually a very tasteful home (we're glaring at you, Nic Cage), if you can get over the fact that Mel Gibson has a reputation for being a huge prick. You know you're a jerk when you drop the price of your house by $10 million but still nobody wants to buy it. UPDATE: Looks like somebody finally bought this place, though the purchase price remains undisclosed. (Source)
5. Hugh Hefner
Why did it take nearly 6 months and a ten million dollar price drop to sell this home? Are there not enough wealthy, single men out there who would pay almost anything for a pimp shack adjacent to the Playboy Mansion? Let me repeat that: you can literally stroll over to the Playboy Mansion in your silk pj's for a round of Texas Hold 'Em with the bunnies. We truly live in strange times. (Source)
6. 50 Cent
Mike Tyson. 50 Cent. You. What, you don't think you can fill shoes that big? 50 Cent reportedly spent $10 million on renovations alone fixing up this Farmington, CT mega-mansion that he purchased from Mike Tyson's ex-wife. I guess there aren't many people looking for 52 rooms... one real estate agent went on record saying he'd be surprised if this place sells for more than $5 million. Ouch. (Source)
7. Richard Gere
It's no secret that Julian Schnabel's Palazzo Chupi units at 360 West 11th Street in Manhattan's West Village have sold poorly. (The units that have sold at all!) Only one big-name sucker took the plunge: Richard Gere. But the star of "Pretty Woman" and "Chicago" never even moved in before the apartment was re-listed at nearly $18 million. More than a year - and several price drops - later, the place finally sold for $11 million. (Source)
8. Burt Reynolds
This old stallion may not regularly trim his famously thick body hair, but he certainly knows how to trim the asking price on his Hobe Sound, FL mansion. The listing has already dropped by about 40%, but without a buyer look for it to continue heading southward. This Mediterranean-style compound borders a wildlife refuge, so watch out for alligators if you take a tour. (Source)
9. Meg Ryan
Unlike Meg Ryan's reconstructed nose, her 1931 Spanish-style estate is practically flawless. A real movie star house, with ocean views and all that good stuff. Celebrity couples David & Victoria Beckham and Ben Affleck & Jennifer Garner reportedly took tours of the house, but no one was willing to fork over nearly $20 million. For $5 million less, though, it's hard to believe that this house is going to be on the market for very long. (Source)
10. Alex Rodriguez
A-Rod had to drop the price of his Trump Park Avenue apartment by $4 million before it sold, but even a price drop of nearly $5 million on his Coral Gables home hasn't lit a fire under buyers' checkbooks. Why sell? Looks like Rodriguez is trying to focus on baseball for once, rather than his well-known extracurricular activities. Or maybe the price of a hot dog and a beer at the new Yankee Stadium is just a little too steep? (Source)
11. Dylan McDermott
By all accounts a beautiful residence, McDermott has had major trouble selling this Spanish hacienda-style home in Brentwood, even with a steep price cut. McDermott picked up the house back in 1999 from Melanie Griffith and Antonio Banderas, who bought it in 1997 from Michelle Pfeiffer and David E. Kelly (creator of "The Practice", in which McDermott had a starring role). I'm not saying I've got the cash, but I'd love to live in this house. (Source)
12. Elle Macpherson
The falling price on this seven-story Notting Hill, London residence proves that even the UK is being hit hard by the housing crisis. The Victorian property was built in the 1850s and has six bedrooms. It was first listed in the summer of 2008. (Source)
13. Curt Schilling
This house has a history of selling for less than what its sports superstar owners would like to charge. When Drew Bledsoe owned this Medfield, MA home he tried to unload it for $9 million, but eventually had to settle for $4.5 from fellow Boston-area hero Curt Schilling. Schilling had been trying to get rid of it for $8 million, then dropped the price to $5 million. Update: the price has dropped again to $4.5 million. I guess that's really what this house is worth? (Source)
14. Dan Marino
Marino never won a Super Bowl, and he isn't much of a real estate champion either. He's been trying to unload his Weston, FL compound for nearly four years, dropping the price and throwing in freebies like $1.5 million worth of designer furniture and a signed football. A signed football? Wow! That's worth, like... four hundred bucks. (Source)
15. Scarlett Johansson
Scarlett Johansson purchased her 1931 Spanish-style home in LA's Outpost Estates neighborhood in 2007 for $7 million bucks. Now it's been listed for just under $5 million... that's $2 million actual dollars that Scarlett is waving goodbye to. Ouch. (Source)
16. Kimora Lee Simmons
Kimora may be living "Life in the Fab Lane" as a reality TV star and CEO of Baby Phat, but her real estate woes are the stuff of legend. Along with ex-hubbie Russell Simmons, she's had to drop the price of her Saddle River, NJ home by $7 million. She also cut the price of her own Beverly Hills home by nearly $2 million, but the house has recently been de-listed for lack of an interested buyer. (Source)
17. Lance Armstrong
Armstrong's 447-acre ranch in Dripping Springs, TX includes Deadman's Hole, a beautiful swimming hole that has a giant waterfall. The 7-time Tour de France winner celebrated the birth of his fourth child last year, so maybe he's thinking about keeping the toddler far away from unguarded bodies of water? (Source)
18. Britney Spears
Does anyone really have the energy to listen to one more word about Britney Spears? I didn't think so. Let's just call her a (real estate) loser and be done with it. (Source)
19. J-Lo & Mark Anthony
Jennifer Lopez and Mark Anthony have sold their understated Bel Air home to a hedge fund manager for $1 million below the asking price. With as much money as they have, do you think they'll even notice? Of course, they were forced to throw in $1.3 million of furniture to close the deal, adding a bit of insult to injury. (Source)
20. Bruce Jenner & Kris Kardashian
"Keeping Up with the Kardashians" may be a hit reality TV show, but as we've seen before that hardly insulates you from falling real estate prices. This house was even featured on the first few seasons of the show, but finding a buyer required a 12% price cut. Then again, just like the power couple featured at #19, do you think anyone with the last name Kardashian is going to worry about $400,000? (Source)
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