Vancouver mansion sells for more than $51M

A Vancouver mansion sold for more than $51 million last December, legal documents reveal.

The house in the prestigious Point Grey neighbourhood sits on an unusually large property for the city, at 1.09 hectares.

The legal documents show the property is actually three lots folded into one.

The 25,000-square-foot house features waterfalls, a grass tennis court, 10-car underground garage, movie theatre and a separate guest house.

It was sold by Vancouver entrepreneur Don Mattrick, CEO of social gaming company Zynga and former Electronic Arts executive.

Chinese businessman Mailin Chen bought the home, according to the documents.

"I love Vancouver. It's a very beautiful city," Chen told CBC News. "They have the best education for kids."

The listing was not widely advertised or included on the Multiple Listing Service.

Real estate agent Malcolm Hasman confirmed the property was listed on his website last year, but would not confirm any details about the sale.

In a city where 39 houses over $5 million have sold so far this year, there is concern that buyers from mainland China who can afford to pay top dollar are pushing up real estate prices. 

"For people who have homes to sell, which is their retirement fund, it is a good thing," says developer Michael Geller, "but for everybody else, I don't think it's a good thing, because the ratio between the price of housing and what people earn has got out of whack."

"We run into bidding wars in commercial real estate as they become available ... introduce the foreign element and it just swings the meter even further," says Kirk Kuester, executive managing director of Colliers's Vancouver Brokerage operations.