Billionaire investor and businessman Tianqiao Chen picked up a notable Los Angeles-area property recently: the University of Southern California president’s residence.
The property hit the open market in February of this year with a $24.5 million ask. The residence, a Colonial-style of 14,000 sq. ft., is called the Seeley Mudd estate. It changed hands above ask, with Chen shelling out $25 million. It had never been offered for sale before its appearance on the open market this year.
According to listing information, the house was completed in 1934, and was the home of USC presidents and their families from 1979 onward. The sprawling house contains eight bedrooms and eleven baths, and occupies a 7.19-acre piece of San Marino.
Inside the home, the design style is thoroughly traditional despite revisions carried out over the years. There’s a huge amount of original hardwood paneling at work here, and the living room is virtually clad in wood, with dentil moldings and a carved fireplace mantel that shows a striking degree of detail; listing information indicates the paneling hails from the 17th century.
Amenities spotted across this property include an elevator — also wood-clad — as well as a sunken tennis court. The grounds are a truly park-like tour-de-force, and feature forest, English rose gardens, water features, and large swaths of lawn.
Chen is the founder, chairman, and CEO of Shanda, which started out as an online gaming company and turned into a private investment institution. Chen and his wife Chrissy Luo established the Tianqiao and Chrissy Chen Institute in 2016. According to The Los Angeles Times, they’ve dedicated $1 billion to brain research, with Caltech receiving $115 million.
Chen’s net worth is around $1.5 billion, according to Forbes.
