Donald Sterling, the owner of NBA team "Los Angeles Clipper", has reportedly purchased a residence in Beverly Hills for $5.16 million.
News of the buy comes at a time when Sterling is waist-deep in a scandal. The 80-year-old millionaire faces a ban by the NBA after he was caught making racist remarks towards African-American people, especially insinuating insults to Magic Johnson, in a tape where he can be heard having an argument with his girlfriend V. Stiviano (who is also an African-Mexican).
"It bothers me a lot that you want to broadcast that you're associating with black people. Do you have to?" Sterling's voice says in the tape.
"You can sleep with [black people]. You can bring them in; you can do whatever you want. The little I ask you is not to promote it on that ... and not to bring them to my games," the voice adds at another point.
Soon after the tape was released, the NBA decided to ban Sterling from owning any team and is reportedly calling for him to sell away the Los Angeles Clippers. However, Sterling replied that NBA's attempts to oust him are "illegal" and he plans to legally fight the issue.
This is not Sterling's first racist action. Previously, he refrained from renting apartments to Latinos and Blacks and was sued by the government for doing so, reports TMZ.
Before Sterling bought the Clippers, he built his fortune on real estate. He reportedly has about 162 properties in Los Angeles alone, Curbed reports.
According to Bloomberg, Sterling and his now-separated wife Shelly purchased about 12 single-family homes in Beverly Hills from 2013 through April 2014 and the purchases total to $58.2 million.
"He told me a bank approached him with a bunch of houses," said Stephen Shapiro, chairman of Westside Estate Agency told Bloomberg. "He didn't always buy the priciest properties. He bought what made sense. He never sold anything."
And apparently, Sterling is turning all of these homes into rentals!
"I've worked with him on a number of transactions over the last two years," said Michael Libow, an agent with Coldwell Banker who represented the seller of the Beverly Hills home he just bought, told Bloomberg.
"They've all become rentals."
Sterling's latest purchase is a 5,310-square feet single-family home, which comprises of six bedrooms and five bathrooms. The double-storey house has hardwood and tiled floors, glass windows and mixed ceilings.
Outside, the home has a large backyard and ample recreation area. There is parking space too.
Check out the photos of the home here.
