8 celebrities who have owned mansions in Arizona

Arizona’s got a lot to offer, and these celebrities know it. Check out eight beloved names who have called Arizona home in stunning mansions over the years.

Celebrities: They’re just like us, and any long-time resident of the Grand Canyon State surely knows how to spot a native Arizonan through slang or quirks that even your favorite singers, actors, and athletes can’t deny. However, since you don’t see celebrities all the time, you may not realize that some are either from Arizona or have moved to our beautiful state since raking in their fame and fortune. Can you blame them for wanting to have a gorgeous home in our temperate environment to retreat to when the limelight glows a bit too harshly?

Spotting celebrity mansions isn’t hard; after all, they tend to be massive. But knowing the who’s who of celebrity mansions is a bit trickier. For instance, did you know that Olympic athlete Michael Phelps has lived in more than one Paradise Valley mansion in the last decade? Then, there’s “Girl on Fire” singer Alicia Keys, who lived in a stunning estate featuring over 7,000 square feet for years but sold it for several million in 2021 (via Mansion Global).

Phelps and Keys are just a few of the celebrities who have lived among us over the years, though. Here are eight folks who previously owned or still own mansions in Arizona.

1. Michael Phelps has owned more than one large home in Arizona

Maryland-born Michael Phelps has long called Arizona home, even making appearances at local events like the WM Phoenix Open celebrity pro-am with country performer Jelly Roll and more this February.

According to Sportskeeda, the 23-time gold medalist has been living in his current mansion since 2018, when he sold his previous large home for over $3 million. His current mansion cost him quite the pretty penny—$6.175 million, to be exact, though Zillow says it’s worth even more now.

Backing up that hefty price tag are a whopping eight bathrooms, six bedrooms, and a room that serves as a gym for the ex-Olympian. If all of those rooms weren’t enough, the house is perfectly situated to have Camelback Mountain’s natural beauty within sight, and the mansion’s exterior makes you want to be outside and basking under the Arizona sun. A wet bar, a hot tub, and a dedicated barbecue bring Phelps’ backyard to life—need we say more?

2. Alice Cooper’s mansion also enjoys serene views of Camelback Mountain

Legendary musician Alice Cooper has been releasing music since the ‘60s, with his self-titled band’s debut album being released in 1969. And while he’s still releasing music today—his most recent outing was a solo 2023 album titled “Road”—he largely spends his time in Paradise Valley, where he lives with wife Sheryl Goddard. Arizona’s dry heat is nothing new for the rocker, either, with Cooper, who was born Vincent Damon Furnier, starting his namesake band in Phoenix. Though he was born in Detroit, Mich., Arizona runs in his blood, and his home is something to truly envy. 

“We raised three kids here, and now we have three grandchildren and a fourth on the way,” Cooper told Phoenix Home & Garden of his house, which he bought for just $90,000 in 1972. “We thought about downsizing after the kids got married, but they keep coming back, and they bring babies with them. So this house still gets a lot of use.”

The beautiful estate has been expanded and renovated several times over the years, even gracing magazine covers thanks to its charm. We can gush about the mansion’s gorgeous features and its mountain views for ages, but we’d be remiss not to identify one of the home’s best traits: the local art displayed throughout. Cooper is an active member in his community, which not many celebrities can say. 

3. Charles Barkley has called his mansion home since the ‘90s

Charles Barkley is known for being an elite basketball player who lifted the Philadelphia 69ers to new heights decades ago and has continued to be a voice for sports brands like Nike since. But did you know that his mansion in Scottsdale is seriously big—and seriously gorgeous? According to Gigwise, the estate was worth $2.2 million when Barkley purchased it in 1998, but since then, its value has risen to more than $4 million, with Zillow going so far as to estimate its value at over $5 million. Yes, inflation is involved in this equation, but so is Barkley’s expansion of the property.

As his star has risen higher and higher, the former professional athlete has kept his house decked out with the finest furnishings and even added whole new rooms. The mansion’s square footage sits at over 8,000, and with two floors of Mediterranean architecture to explore, we can only imagine that one would never get bored exploring this estate. 

4. Stephenie Meyer lives in a large Arizona home despite her books’ rainy climate

If the name Stephenie Meyer rings a bell, it’s probably because you read “Twilight” once upon a time—or have at least seen the book series’ film adaptations. According to Urban Splatter, Meyer came to Arizona by way of Hartford, Conn., and she’s lived on her current Cave Creek property since 2007, just two years after the first “Twilight” book hit the market (and teen hearts everywhere).

Meyer’s home is admittedly smaller than, say, Alice Cooper’s, but it’s definitely bigger than most family homes across the U.S. In fact, photos of the property show that it has a decently sized in-ground pool and a large sports area behind the 3,316-square-foot home. What she does have, like others on this list, however, is a perfect vantage point to take in the Arizona mountains. As the perfect cherry on top, her home is said to have a grandiose kitchen, which is perfect for fueling up to write the next big YA moment.

5. Paul Goldschmidt sold his Arizona mansion and relocated to Florida

MLB All-Star Paul Goldschmidt might have been born in Wilmington, Del., but he has grown many roots in Arizona—that is, until he left for Florida, where he currently resides.

You see, Goldschmidt is a highly decorated baseball player who really propelled the Arizona Diamondbacks, and in return, his salary afforded him a home worth $2.54 million in the DC Ranch neighborhood of Scottsdale (via The Arizona Republic). Goldschmidt and his wife Amy lived in the home for several years but ultimately put it on the market in 2020, largely thanks to the baseballer being traded to the St. Louis Cardinals two years earlier, per Sportskeeda.

His former property was 5,775 square feet in size, and it boasts amenities fit for a king, including a private balcony in the master bedroom suite. Ultimately, Goldschmidt had to move for work, but we have no doubt that he misses this mansion at least a little bit.

6. Muhammad Ali owned a mansion in Arizona in addition to his Michigan home (formerly owned by Al Capone)

Muhammad Ali doesn’t need an introduction, but we’ll give you one anyway. Ali was born in humble Louisville, Ky., and he would grow up to become one of the greatest boxers the world has ever seen. As if that didn’t make him great enough, he was an avid activist, even aiding in the popularization of hip-hop and rap music on a bigger scale. A legacy like this deserves a nice home, and Ali certainly had one—er, two, if we’re counting his Michigan home formerly owned by notorious gangster Al Capone.

His home in Paradise Valley—sensing a location theme?—was smaller than others in the area, but at 6,000 square feet (via The Arizona Republic), it was still a grand place to kick your feet up at the end of the day. The property has six bedrooms and is a single story, meaning it’s spread out than other mansions on this list. Thankfully for Ali, the property also possessed a guard gate, so he could always rest easily.

7. Alicia Keys’ Arizona mansion had—you guessed it—glorious mountain views (in addition to the canyon and city)

This girl was on fire when she lived in Phoenix. That’s right: Everyone’s favorite “Empire State of Mind” singer once called Phoenix home, and she did so luxuriously. According to Mansion Global, Alicia Keys and husband Swizz Beatz’s mansion sold for $3.1 million in 2021, and with simultaneous views of the mountains, canyon, and city, as well as beautifully decked-out features, the reason why is clear. That said, Keys and Beatz’s sale price was a bit of a dive from her original purchasing price in 2008, which was $3.9 million. 

The estate’s varying views reportedly come from it sitting at a higher level of elevation, but anyone living in this house won’t want to spend all of their time outdoors staring at their surroundings. The mansion features a chef’s kitchen, a room that doubles as a theater and a game room, an expansive wine cellar, large floor-to-ceiling windows, beautiful balconies, and more. However, we wouldn’t blame you if you wanted to spend most of your time outdoors, as the property also features a nice pool and a wet bar. Finally, in true Keys fashion, the master bedroom has a proper piano situated in it—you know, for moments of impromptu creativity.

With amenities like this, you’d likely never want to leave the property—and you’d probably be surprised to hear that Keys and Beatz weren’t there that often. “They spent a lot of time there during the holidays,” explained realtor Scott Grigg after the estate sold in 2021 (via ABC15 Arizona). He added that they originally wanted more money for the property, but the timing wasn’t right: “…we raised the price due to COVID and current market conditions but still sold under that number.”

If you ask us, whoever ended up in the vast home—Grigg clarified it was a local, not a non-Arizonan celebrity—is very lucky, as Zillow estimates its worth at over $5 million at the time of writing.

8. It might be Randy Johnson’s nickname, but his Arizona mansion was actually The Big Unit

Randy “The Big Unit” Jackson is a retired baseball player from Calif. who owned one of the biggest megamansions in Arizona until early 2019. Jackson’s Paradise Valley home was worth $25 million when he put it on the market—yes, that’s the highest number on this list—but he only received a comparatively piddly $7.3 million for it at a January 2019 auction (via The Arizona Republic).

Unfortunately for the Hall-of-Famer, the mansion was just too big and immaculate; it had been sitting idle on the market for five years by the time it sold despite several price drops throughout that time. No one wanted to fork up the $14 million it had finally dropped to, but at auction, it was able to rake in half of the final asking price.

“To pay $7.3 million for a home that’s easily worth $20 million, it is probably one of the greatest values I have ever seen,” Bob Hassett, the purchaser’s agent, revealed to Mansion Global after the sale went through. As with Alicia Keys and Swizz Beatz’s home, the estate went to a local, not a celebrity looking to move into the area. Johnson’s former home was a great get, as he had it built in the mid-2000s, meaning it’s still relatively new and shouldn’t yet require any updating on a big scale.

What does it have, you ask? Oh, you know, just seven bedrooms, 12 bathrooms, five acres of land, a movie theater, a recording studio, and so much more. Essentially, you could live and work in this megamansion for the rest of your life and still find new and creative ways to have fun in it. Today, Zillow estimates that the property is worth a little over $20 million.

This article first appeared on Good Info News Wire and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.

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