Hollywood celebrities seem to swap spouses as fast as they change their clothes, and sometimes the divorce leads to a new dream house for at least one of the parties.
That seems to be the case for actress Jennifer Garner, 52, who recently allowed reporters to tour her $8 million “farm-style” house in Brentwood, California. She bought the land just after finalizing her divorce from actor Ben Affleck in 2019, and had the house built from the ground up.
The last place Garner lived was an 8,798 square-foot mansion that she shared with Affleck and the three children they have together, Violet Anne, 18; 15-year-old Fin, and 12-year-old Samuel. She decided she was going to create a new home for the family that reflected her style and personality.
Garner said she was tired of living in a huge mansion, and wanted something more down to earth to raise her kids in. But privacy is important to megacelebrities for obvious reasons, and nothing on the market fit her needs. She said the houses that had enough privacy were too much like the house she had just left; they were “more grand than I felt comfortable in.”
So she bought a plot of land and hired architect Steve Giannetti and designer Brooke Giannetti. The process was nerve-wracking, she said, and she panicked during the construction. Garner had not even given the team pictures of other houses she like, preferring to let them come up with something from their own creativity. It turned out to be the right move, as Garner said she is “really, really happy.”
Architectural Digest has a story with numerous photos of the home.
The home includes the kind of customization you would expect for Hollywood royalty. Her son has his own office done in a Harry Potter motif, there’s a “slumber party room,” and a large aquarium. Garner said her favorite spot is a reading nook upstairs where she and the children would read to each other when they were little.
The property also features a “vegetable house” where Garner grows numerous herbs and kale, which she makes into chips.
Garner’s ex-husband Affleck is not faring as well, having recently divorced singing sensation Jennifer Lopez. He’s now putting the $61 million house he and Lopez bought in 2023 on the market.
