What is it about real estate items and the Los Angeles Times? From Saturday's paper:
Bel-Air mansion: An article in Friday's Section A about the Bel-Air mansion that is the most expensive sold in the U.S. this year was published with a photograph of another house and some of the details related to that house. The photo of the correct house is shown here. The exterior of the mansion does not feature more than 30,000 pieces of limestone mined in France. The entry, living room, library and master bedroom are not gilded with 24-karat gold. The home doesn't have 90 sconces and 120 chandeliers made in France, and it does not have an average room size of about 1,100 square feet. In addition, the article said that Joyce Rey and Stacy Gottula of Coldwell Banker Beverly Hills shared the listing with Mauricio Umansky of Hilton & Hyland, Beverly Hills. Rey and Gottula had the listing alone.
Here's the original story — it sounds as if the only "confirmation" that this was the highest price of the year came from the seller, and he wouldn't divulge the sales price. The LAT has had some issues with these hot property claims that rely on info from agents and sellers. Sometimes, um, the house didn't even sell.