Usually we find the European style grand homes on the East Coast but Stonebrook Court is located in Los Altos Hills, CA. The home was built in 1914 and restored by its owner during the last seven years. This mansion is approximately 30,000 square feet and is on 7.5 acres. The English English Tudor and Jacobean revival style exterior is bisected by a porte cochere separating the living quarters and a grand ballroom. The interior is done in modernized Renaissance Italian style with 12-foot wood ceilings, a an antique carved marble fireplace, a ballroom with 16th Century gilded Venetian ceiling paintings said to be from the Palazzo Grimani. The library has mahogany bookcases and a secret room with wet bar and beer taps and the breakfast room features new Gothic arch windows. The main residences has seven bedrooms and there is also a gym, garden building, a caretaker's house, and a 3 car garage.

The home is now wired for state-of-the-art security, audio, phone, internet and all other modern features including a heating system covering 16 zones. The garden which includes follies, rolling lawns, knot garden, boxwood parterres and long perennial borders filled with roses. The pool features a stone fountain/spa surmounted by an antique bronze statue of Neptune. No wonder this has mansion has been host to many weddings.

A 2005 article in the Los Altos Crier reveals more details on this home including that it was formerly known as Morgan Manor (it was the home of Percy and Daisy Morgan) and has serves as both a popular brothel and an elite day school at different times in its past. It took a team that numbered in the thousands and a lot of money from owners Kelly and Christina Porter to restore the home back to its former glory. It is simply one of the most stunning homes available on the West Coast. It is listed at $45 million.

I wish I had more than six pictures to show you of this one. This Newport Beach beauty is on a double lot on the sand at Peninsula Point. It was deigned by Michael Collins to showcase an impressive modern art collection. The home is actually two homes, a five-bedroom house and a two-bedroom guest house. The grounds include a pool, spa, koi ponds, oceanfront terraces, a beachfront lawn, cabana, pool bar and many additional amenities. The homes have an open floor plan with large "disappearing" wood and glass doors. The guest house has a subterranean level designed for entertainment and lounging, with media capabilities, bar and a saltwater aquarium window affording dramatic underwater pool views. This home is listed at $29.5 million.

Last week our Sunday estate was the home of a former "ER" actress, this week we've got another TV actress, Mel Harris, most famous for her role as the winsome and whiny Hope on the show "thirtysomething." The LA Times Hot Property column reports that Harris has listed her Pacific Palisades property, a charming four-bedroom Country English-style home. She has owned the home for five years and it has been remodeled with a new marble-countered kitchen and bathrooms. There are older details to love such as the Batchelder tile fireplace in the living room and the beautiful beams and archways. The new master bathroom is a bit too over the top for a house of this scale and graciousness and the travertine tile in the kitchen seems like it would be a better fit for a Florida flip than for this older Californian. The home was originally listed at $4.347 million but is already down to $4.197 million which still seems like a lot of cash for 4,5000 square feet even in the pricey Palisades.

Actress Jane Sibbett often gets cast in the role of the glacial blonde but her home in the Topanga area is warm and inviting. She first put her Trust Ranch on the market last fall for $7 million. The 17-acre property in the hills is a horse ranch with a four-bedroom home that was renovated according to the mathematical proportion known as the golden ratio and features "blessings" such as fun and laughter embedded in the walls. Sibbett and her husband writer/producer Karl Fink are buying a farm in Hawaii but that sale is contingent on this one as reported in the Wall Street Journal. And so, the couple has cut the price of the ranch to $5.2 million. The pair bought the property for just $750,000 ten years ago but have made significant improvements and expansions to the home. The house will appeal to those with a love of nature. There is a vegetable garden, a six-horse barn and plenty of hilly land. It doesn't have a pool or the requisite large deck for entertaining so it won't meet the needs of many L.A. shoppers but it is great home for those who want to feel like they are away from Los Angeles.

For the next couple of weeks we will be checking out some homes in the most expensive zip codes in the United States, up today, 90049 . This zip code encompasses the Brentwood area of Los Angeles, CA. This zip code has a median price of $3,114,000 with a sky-high appreciation rate of 440% since 1990.

The ritzy area of Brentwood has been a celebrity magnet over the years from Marilyn Monroe and Judy Garland to Britney Spears and Jim Carrey. The governor of California, Arnold Schwarzenegger lives in the hills above Mandeville Canyon in Brentwood. The most infamous resident of Brentwood is perhaps O.J.Simpson who lived in the area just a few miles away from his wife at the time of her murder.

Today's home is located between San Vicente and Sunset in the heart of Brentwood. The property has around 6000 square feet under roof in two contemporary homes, each with their own personality. There are plenty of windows and bright open spaces and a breezy and spacious feel. This estate is listed at $10 million.

It's the season for worrying every last deduction you can possibly take on your taxes. As you are sweating those last minute details here's a story to make your blood boil. The San Francisco Chronicle reports that Oracle CEO Larry Ellison will get a $3 mllion tax break because his Japanese-style home in Woodside, California is "functionally obsolete."

Ellison's Octopus Holdings LP bought the 23-acre site in May 1995 for $12 million and then sent to work on a nine year project constructing his version of Xanadu, a lavish 8,000-square-foot home based on a Japanese emperor's 16th century estate. Ellison seems to have a taste for all things Japanese, he also bought a home in Atherton in 1987 and turned it into a Japanese-style palace with seven bedrooms, a traditional tea house, bath house, gardens, a koi pond and waterfalls on 2.8 acres. That home was quietly put on the market in 2005 for $25 million. The property website for that home is here.

According to the Chronicle, the assessor's office based its January 2005 valuation of Elllison's Woodside home on reproduction costs, the $166.3 million it should have cost to build the home. The construction actually cost more than $200 million. But attorney William Bennett representing Octopus Holdings argued that the property was worth only $64.7 million at that time and in the two tax years, since entitling Ellison to a $3 million rebate on taxes paid. The appeals board agreed and so the $3 million will come from San Mateo county's property taxes paid this year. Of that $3 million it is estimated that nearly $1.4 million would have gone to schools in the area .

Ellison's home decline in value is shocking in an area that boasts very expensive real estate thanks to the Googleaires, people who made their fortune at Google and invested in big homes locally. The reason for the dip in value is essentially that Ellison created a home that no one else would want to buy. The home is said to suffer from "significant functional obsolescence" because the Japanese architecture, elaborate landscaping and over improvements to the property have made it a home that is costly to maintain and has reduced value to to others.

Ellison, who has a net worth of $25 billion according to Forbes, has turned his attentions to Southern California in recent years. In 2005 he picked up five lots in Malibu's pricey Carbon Beach area for a reported $65 million and is said to be looking into buying an NFL franchise for Los Angeles.

As the Chornicle article points out, perhaps the only good news out of this may come from the fact that it draws attention to the fact that homeowners can have their property values reassessed. With the declining real estate market in many regions some people may be in a situation where their property is being over-assessed but they are not aware of it.

[Thanks to Uncle Roger and Lana for calling our attention to this one]

Being a celebrity ex-wife often nets you some lovely real estate. Research god Bob Goldsborough of Berg Properties Big Time Listings unearthed the listing for the Encino, California home of Kelly Van Halen. Kelly Van Halen is the second ex-wife of Alex Van Halen the drummer in Van Halen and Eddie Van Halen's older brother. After their divorce, Kelly Van Halen paid $1,565,000 in November 2002 for this home. The home was built in 1951 and has five bedrooms.

The property is quite nice. The home is on a little over an acre and has a wonderful pool area and a pergola with a lovely stone outdoor fireplace. There is also an outdoor kitchen with a barbecue area. The back of the house has great veranda space that looks out over the hilly property. The home has many lovely features including a formal dining room, a study and a master bedroom with a fireplace.The interior with its foofy design style reminds me of the Suzanne Somers home, all bright colors and chandeliers and zebra print rugs. The listing says that is was redesigned by Kelly Baron Design and a quick search led me to the Kelly Baron website which is under construction but features two pictures of this home. The name is curious, it makes me wonder if the ex-Mrs. Van Halen planning a career as a designer? She has listed this home for $4.495 million.

Most homes in Montecito California seem a little grown-up as if you have to be of a certain age to enjoy the storied pleasures of this seaside enclave. Today's home would be the perfect choice for someone in the enviable position of having both youth and a ton of money. Or maybe I'm just swayed by the comic panel art in one of the bedrooms. Either way, this home on Fernald Point is absolutely gorgeous. The contemporary seven-bedroom home sits right on the water and is made with many beautiful exotic woods including ipê, padauk, ebony and South American mahogany. There is an excellent chef's kitchen; and a temperature-controlled wine room and a wet bar complement the dining room. You don't get a pool with this one but you do get several decks including one right on the shore in order to enjoy the ocean. This home is listed at $29.5 million.

I don't describe too many homes as romantic but looking at the pictures for this one, that's the word that first sprung to mind. Now this could be because I have certain romantic associations with Nob Hill in San Francisco (and specifically with the Nob Hill Inn) but I think it's the house. This stately home was built in 1915 in the flourishy Beaux Arts style. It has four bedrooms and has a beautifully extravagant redesign by interior designer Paul Wiseman that relies on a palette of creams and whites with rich golden tones. The home has private offices, a wine cellar and a "pentroom" on the roof terrace that offers beautiful San Francisco views. It is listed at $7.9 million.

I spend a lot of time looking at San Francisco real estate, but sometimes I forget to check out Oakland. This seven-bedroom modern home is full of great lines and big windows. The home's light-filled kitchen has all the expected names: Poggenpohl cabinets, Miele and Gaggeneau appliances. There are limestone floors and 18 zone radiant heat. The home is 9,000 square feet and it has a five bridge view. The home also has a home theater and a fitness room. A spiral staircase links three floors. There is also a separate two-bedroom apartment with two baths and a kitchen. The only thing missing is a lavish pool.

Maybe what's most amazing about the house is that, according to Lydia over at the Women Building Wealth blog, the owners bought it in 2001 for $750,000. it is now listed at $6,388,000. I wonder how much money the owners put into this home.

Young Frankie Muniz may just be 22 but he's quite experienced in the buying and selling of homes. I've been watching Frankie's moves since 2005 when he went on an epic buying and selling spree which including selling a house on North Doheny Drive to Halle Berry. Celebrity Big Time Listings reports that Muniz paid $3,499,000 for the home at the end of 2005. We haven't heard much from him the last couple of years as he turned his attention to race car driving but now the LA Times broke the story that he's selling this home in the Sunset Strip area which is listed at $3.875 million.

The traditional-style 1941 home is all on one story and has been given a bright white renovation that makes me wonder how much of the original charm has been erased. There are five bedrooms total including a master bedroom that has skylights, walk-in closets and a bath with an infinity tub. The home is on a small plot of land but has a pool, spa, outdoor dining area and a charming outdoor fireplace. The decor isn't bad. Muniz seems to have a bit of a pop culture/pop art fetish, art featuring Mick Jagger, Bob Marley, Charlie Chaplin and other icons line the walls. The kitchen seems to have a strange layout but there are some beautiful fireplaces. I'm sure some young celeb will snap this one up in a heartbeat.

This one doesn't make me weak in the knees the way the Winston home did, but the six-bedroom Dan Residence also in Malibu is another contemporary treasure. The home was built in 1995 and was designed by architect Franklin Israel. It has a beautiful modern style with gorgeous exposed wood and plenty of glass to offer vistas out to the ocean views. The use of skylights is particularly winning. What's not to love? That stainless steel kitchen is just a bit too institutional for my taste. That can work in some homes that have a certain ruthless modernism, but this home is too warm and inviting for such a sterile kitchen. As you might expect a with a home like this, it's had its home decor magazine glamour shoots. With this home you also get a nice acre of land that includes lawns and a pool. You are a ways from the beach but it does come with membership to a beach club. It is listed at $5.995 million.

I have no idea who Stan Winston is but I think I'm in love. Celebrity Big Time Listings picked up on the Wall Street Journal's Private Properties piece (no link online yet) on Winston's Malibu beach house which is listed at $11.95 million. Turns out Winston is an esteemed makeup and special effects artist who has nabbed himself four Oscars in the course of his long career and he has created one stunning Malibu getaway. The home website calls it the Perfect Beach House. They aren't kidding although this home doesn't really have a beach house vibe. This home is drop-dead, smack-yourself-in-the-face gorgeous. The art in the place doesn't exactly give me the warm fuzzies but everything else is so spot on. I could even learn to love the rather institutional second bathroom. The home is cheek by jowl with other homes clustered on the beach and you don't get a pool, just a secluded outdoor hot tub which offers privacy but not much of a view.

This home on Lighthouse View Hill in Pescadero, California has a view of what else, a lighthouse, the Pigeon Point Lighthouse. The secluded vista is located halfway between San Francisco and Carmel on 30 acres. The estate includes two buildings, the main house and an auxiliary building of approximately 2500 square feet. The main house has redwood siding and plenty of custom woodwork. The home's large Siematic kitchen has limestone cabinets and a wood-burning fireplace. The living/dining room offers ocean views and a skylight brings in natural light. The front door is fabricated from a 2600 year old redwood felled in Kings Canyon 25 years ago. Solid bronze hardware and sidelights compliment this unique doorway. There are three bedrooms total including a master bedroom which is not renovated yet. The home comes with approved plans for adding on an additional 1500 square feet of space. Other features include garages for five cars, an old growth redwood hot tub and an emergency generator. This home is listed at $5.75 million.

I know I don't need to school you on Montecito, California, the pricey enclave near Santa Barbara which is home to so many celeb getaway homes and some of the steepest prices in the state. Today's home is a freshly renovated turn-of-the-century carriage house that was part of the Earleton Lodge estate, built in 1907. The carriage house is cottage cute with a board and batten exterior and pitched roof. Inside it has been beautifully decorated by interior designer, John Roberts. It's absolutely charming with rooms straight out of the Crate and Barrel catalog. No pool but you do get some great outdoor entertaining spaces with sun lounges and an outdoor fireplace and there are ocean views from the upper floor. But for a four-bedroom home on less than an acre, $12 million is a bit steep (Zillow's zestimate has it at $4,876,582). Bigger pics of all that fantastic interior design are in the gallery.