The Largest Mansion in Manhattan Beach Is for Sale

The Largest Mansion in Manhattan Beach Is for Sale By , an Emmy Award–winning Curbed writer who has reported on New York City for four years The owners admired European architecture, and the roofline has the coping common to Spanish revival homes you might find in Hollywood. Photo: SERHANT The Spanish revival–style mansion a block from the Atlantic Ocean on Exeter Street is more than 11,000 square feet — plenty of room to embed a six-foot-long saltwater fish tank into a living-room wall; to seat 20 guests for a formal dinner; and to build a rec room, wet bar, home theater, massage parlor, sauna, and wine cellar in the basement. Upstairs, six bedrooms — not including a seventh for “staff” — each have access to a terrace, where heated pavers dissolve every landing snowflake. In the back, there’s a 38-foot-long heated saltwater pool and a cabana with a full kitchen. This is officially the largest single-family home in Brooklyn’s Manhattan Beach, and if it sells for the asking price of $13.5 million, it will also be the most expensive. The interiors are lavish. Rooms are walled in pure silk. Many are lit by Baccarat chandeliers — which can go for up to $250,000 each. Doors were imported from a Tuscan company, which lists its prices only “upon request,” and the kitchen is finished in yellow onyx and marble. Even the fish in that tank resell north of $600 each, says broker Alen Moshkovich, who has the listing. He added that the sellers are “open” to including them. “There’s really nothing that resembles this on the market,” he says. The grand entry has a custom iron railing and balustrade, marble floors with custom inlay, and a Baccarat chandelier similar to others that have sold for $250,000. Photo: Serhant And there may never be again. The home is so big that it caused a scandal — which is saying something for Manhattan Beach. The spit of land just east of Brighton Beach is known for the grandiose creations that compete with the Mill Basin mansions nearby. (Case in point: an eight-bedroom Beaux-Arts château built for a Brooklyn Cinderella that’s on the market for $8.5 million.) But back in 2010, the block was relatively quaint, and the lot held a two-story, 2,599-square-foot rectory for priests. When the church sold in 2010 for $1.85 million, rules written into the deed prohibited the buyer from hosting “obscene performances,” “euthanasia,” or “abortions.” But the deed didn’t stop displays of opulence, and the community board approved a 7,848-square-foot home, despite opposition from the neighbors, who argued that the second-largest home on the block — 2,000 square feet smaller — had been approved based on incorrect data from the city about the area having similarly scaled buildings. So it’s unclear if the city would allow this kind of supersize construction again. It’s also unclear how the home has grown larger in the intervening years; it now measures 11,300 square feet inside. “It’s a larger house than you see in the city record,” says Moshkovich. “A lot of houses in Manhattan Beach and other neighborhoods are bigger than they are recorded to be. It’s nothing unusual. It’s a recording thing.” (The Department of City Planning didn’t immediately respond to an inquiry asking it to clear up the discrepancy.) Details: Price: $13.5 million ($3,579 in monthly taxes) Specs: 7 bedrooms, 8 bathrooms Extras: Pool, cabana with kitchen, heated walkways and terraces, office, rec room, breakfast nook, parlor, home theater, gym, massage room, sauna, wine cellar, laundry room, storage, and 8 walk-in closets. 15-minute walking radius: Manhattan Beach Park, Rtveli Georgian Restaurant, Randazzo’s Clam Bar Listed by: Alen Moshkovich, Serhant The extra room has allowed the owners, Aleksandr and Svetlana Falikman, to host their large family, Moshkovich says. Aleksandr is listed as the CFO of a senior-care staffing agency, founded in Flatbush in 2008, which connects people with in-home caregivers. He is also a part-owner of a South Brooklyn restaurant and club with a dining room that showcases his taste for chandeliers and sparkle. Moshkovich says the Falikmans are selling because some of their children have moved away, and they no longer need the space or a home in South Brooklyn. They’re leaving behind a home built like a solid bunker. Exterior walls are double-thick and soundproof. Floors are poured concrete, and there’s radiant heating underfoot. An in-house filtration system cleans city water. Limestone walls bordering the yard keep out the riffraff. Motorized gates let in friends. And there are two generators: one that runs on natural gas and a backup that takes diesel. “It’s solid enough to go off-grid,” Moshkovich says. “If you like this kind of a look, there’s nothing you could knock.” The living room has custom moldings, marble floors, and a six-foot-long saltwater fish tank. Photo: SERHANT The dining room can seat 20 guests comfortably, according to the listing. Much of the furniture was imported from Europe, where the owners love to travel, says the broker. Photo: Serhant Kitchen cabinets with inlaid marquetry hide two refrigerators and a freezer. The stove is La Cornue. Photo: Serhant The office has a coffered ceiling, a working fireplace, and a view over the pool. Photo: SERHANT The saltwater pool is 38 feet long. The cabana has a full kitchen and a bathroom. And the entire home is surrounded by stone walls. Photo: Serhant The Largest Mansion in Manhattan Beach Is for Sale Your product is saved! You’ll receive emails when your saved products go on sale. 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