‘The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air’ Mansion: Everyone Who Has Owned the Home Over the Years
The mansion that The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air fans fell in love with in the 1990s is hitting the market for the very first time since the show made the property famous. The current property owners stand to make a pretty substantial profit from the iconic Georgian-style mansion. So, who has owned it over the years?
Who owned the iconic ‘The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air’ mansion?
The famed mansion from The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air has a pretty ordinary history, despite the sprawling estate’s pop culture significance. It didn’t pass through the hands of megastars, nor has anything strange occurred there. For most of its history, it was just a family home, despite being one of the most recognizable home exteriors on TV. The property was built in the late 1930s. According to several sources, the first family to live in the home was the Arnheims. Census data shows that the Arnheims lived in the home briefly and that family patriarch Henry was a conductor.
It was quickly sold to movie producer Howard Lang, who then sold it to the Kellems family. According to House Novel, the family patriarch, Jesse Kellems, was a minister, and his family was extremely active in the Brentwood community, where the mansion is actually located. They remained in the home from 1950 until the late 1970s. From there, the home was purchased by the Rahban family. Sasha Rahban, a real estate broker, grew up in the home. He is directly involved with the listing.
The Rahban family stands to earn a tidy profit if the home sells for what they plan to ask. According to TMZ, the Brentwood estate will hit the market later this month with an asking price of $30 million. The Rahban family paid $732,000 for the home when they purchased it in 1978, according to public records.
The interior shots were filmed elsewhere
While the iconic mansion served as the backdrop for outdoor scenes, the inside of the home was not used in production and looks markedly different from the house fans of The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air will remember. Interior shots for the series were filmed at a soundstage. Custom-built sets were used to depict the inside of the Banks’ home and other landmark locales from the series.
The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air used traditional multi-camera sitcom filming to create the series fans saw on TV. Live studio audiences were brought in to capture reactions in real-time. The live studio audience was so important to the show’s legacy that it was also invited to the 2020 HBO Max reunion special.
