Each Friday, Russ Anderson, the president and CEO of Briggs Freeman Sotheby’s International Realty and the president of Pacific Sotheby's International Realty writes about luxury, trends, business and more in the advertising pages of the Mansion section of The Wall Street Journal. Below is his letter of February 28, 2025.

 

FROM THE PRESIDENT'S P.O.V.

 

Coco Chanel slept in a guest suite. So did the Duke and Duchess of Windsor. The lilting sounds of Dallas’ symphony orchestra have floated across the lawn.

Since 1938 and counting, our new listing at 5619 Walnut Hill Lane in Preston Hollow has been the scene of parties, presidents and lives well lived — a setting without equal in Dallas or anywhere.

It was the late 1930s. Italian count Pio Crespi, a cotton baron transplanted to Dallas, and his wife Florence commissioned architect Maurice Fatio, of New York and Palm Beach fame, to design their dream home here. The globe-trotting Crespis spared no expense, and after a three-year build, they had their wish — a palatial, French-style chateau, a superb composition of graceful proportions and the finest materials.

Over recent decades, the main home has been renovated and expanded, most notably by New York architect Peter Marino, who has designed projects for the world’s top fashion houses. Today, at more than 27,000 square feet, it offers 10 bedrooms, 11 fireplaces, a ballroom, conservatory, Art Deco bar room, glass elevator to the lower level, sensory-deprivation float tank, gym with cryo, massage and steam rooms, multiple wine rooms and a 3,000-square-foot primary suite.

The property is nearly 16 acres and features the main home, a guesthouse and a pool house. Outdoor luxuries include a tennis court, bocce-ball court, formal gardens, walking trails and a helipad — traffic will never be an issue here.

This is, without question, the ultimate estate in Dallas — truly legendary — and we are entrusted to represent it, at $64 million. It is the symbol of an era, and the setting for a future.

Might that future be yours? Bring your helicopter and let’s find out.

 

Russ Anderson

President and CEO, Briggs Freeman Sotheby’s International Realty

President, Pacific Sotheby’s International Realty

randerson@briggsfreeman.com