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The Up-And-Down Real Estate Fortunes of Favorite Child Stars

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This month sees former child actor Stephen Dorff—who first appeared on the small screen in 1985 as a nine-year-old on The New Leave It to Beaver— starring in Sofia Coppola's latest atmospheric picture, Somewhere. Set largely in the palatial suites and terraces of LA's famed Chateau Marmont hotel (above), the film marks the pinnacle of Dorff's long career. But it turns out that even second-string Hollywood stars can afford some serious real estate. While filming Somewhere, Dorff put his three-bedroom beachfront Malibu house on the rental market for $50K per month. Sadly, and not surprisingly, not all child stars make out as well. After the jump, we've got the ups and downs of three more child stars, chronicled (of course) by their real estate.


? This is Dorff's rental, set on Malibu's La Costa beach and designed by '60s architects Buff & Hensman. According to The Real Estalker, in 2001, Dorff paid $2.5M to move in next door to Oscar-winner Charlize Theron. And while he doesn't spend all his time in this beachside number, he doesn't seem ready to make a clean break just yet: it was just a summer rental.

? Starting in 1977, at age 17, Scott Baio played Chachi in the wildly popular series Happy Days and Joanie Loves Chachi for five years. Though his career has taken a turn for the irrelevant in recent years—despite a rousing turn as bumbling lawyer Bob Loblaw on Arrested Development—Baio managed turn a tidy profit on this four-bedroom, 4,400-square-foot contemporary in Encino, Calif. In 1994, Baio paid $1.39M and, just last year, he sold it for $2.5. Looks like you've got a new career in real estate, Scotty!


? Well, if Scott Baio sets the standard for shrewd investing as one's career winds down, former O.C. star Mischa Barton showed the world what not to do when it's just taking off. At 13, she had a minor role in 1999's The Sixth Sense; by 18, with her television fame in full swing, Barton plunked down an astonishing $6.4M for this Beverly Hills address. Whoa, nellie! Five years later, she's looking to cut and run, both from the 7,600-square-foot property and her disastrous career choices. Though she stands to pocket a $2M profit if anyone bites on the $8.4M asking price, something tells us this is a motivated seller who might be haggled with.

? While Twilight die-hards spent the summer bickering over the superiority of vampires and werewolves, series stars Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson shacked up in this secluded Bel Air home to escape the paparazzi and adoring dangerously obsessed fans. Stewart didn't have these problems back in 2002, when, at 11, she co-starred in the thriller Panic Room. To boot, their little seclusion scheme doesn't seem to have worked very well, because after just a few months in the getaway, they've decided to move out. Now the joint is back on the market, leasing for $22.5K a month. Start queuing up now, deep-pocketed Edward acolytes.
· Summer's A Comin': Rent Stephen Dorff's Beach House [RealEstalker]
· Hot Property: Scott Baio sells longtime Encino home [LA Times]
· Mischa Barton Bails in Beverly Hills [RealEstalker]
· Rob & Kristen Move Out of Bel-Air "Hideaway" [E! Online]
· 10575 Selkirk Lane [Teles Properties]