To call Tyra Banks a hustler is an understatement. The California native may have initially made her name as a trailblazing supermodel, but in the decades since she first broke into the scene, she has also become a television host, producer, writer, actress, and businesswoman. Add to that a rather unexpected hobby—flipping homes—and it’s fair to call Banks a true real estate maven as well. In much the same way that Banks oversaw countless makeovers on her hit series America’s Next Top Model, so, too, has she sunk tons of time, effort, and money into renovating homes for the next lucky buyer. Here, we’ve rounded up some of Banks’s most prized properties, with details of how she added her personal flair to each.
2004
One of Banks’s more long-term homes was a Spanish Colonial–style property in Beverly Hills that she purchased for $3.085 million. Originally built in the 1920s, the house measured a generous 6,000 square feet, with four bedrooms and five full and two half bathrooms. According to the Wall Street Journal, Banks spent about $2 million renovating the space, adding an outdoor living room and an outdoor kitchen, as well as remodeling the existing indoor kitchen. She also turned part of the garage into a gym. She left the original terra-cotta tiled roof and the exposed wood beams, as well as the home’s three fireplaces, pool, and four fountains. Banks very much loved the house, telling the WSJ, “The decision to move was a difficult one.” She ultimately sold the property for $6.33 million in 2016.
2009
In 2009, she dropped $10.1 million for a massive “mansion in the sky,” as the New York Times called it, a five-bedroom, 7,000-square-foot duplex located on the 22nd and 23rd floor of the Riverhouse development in NYC’s Battery Park City neighborhood, which boasts interiors designed by AD 100 architect David Rockwell. The mansion-size home, comprising four separate units, faced the Hudson River, and could be divided into multiple living, entertaining, and business spaces depending upon the occasion. Standout features included a hair salon, personal gym, and mirrored dressing room, as well as a dining alcove that Banks designed to feel like “a booth at a Michelin-starred restaurant.” The entrepreneur told the Times that she spent many more millions to personalize the pad, including exotic wood details (the countertops in the kitchen were zebrawood), textured wall coverings, and ornate light fixtures. She listed it for $17.5 million in 2017, but it is unclear whether she ever offloaded the home.
2014
This is when Banks turned her sights on the Pacific Palisades, snapping up her first of four properties there for $3.3 million. The contemporary-style home was newly constructed and turnkey at the time of her purchase, measuring 3,700 square feet and featuring four bedrooms and five bathrooms. The main floor was open plan, with a unique three-sided wood fireplace anchoring the living and dining areas. A floating staircase and sun-soaked kitchen added to the spacious feel, as did large, oversize windows, high ceilings, and hardwood floors. Banks listed the home for $4.25 million in 2018 and ultimately sold it for $4 million.
