The House That In-N-Out Burgers Built

At age 30, owner and president of West Coast burger chain In-N-Out Lynsi Torres is the youngest female billionaire in the country, according to Bloomberg News. After an unfortunate sequence of family deaths felled Torres’s uncle, father, and grandmother, the heiress was the sole remaining candidate to take over the billion-dollar family business. Since assuming leadership and her half-share (a controlling interest that will increase to full ownership upon her 35th birthday) in the company in 2012, she has carefully maintained a veil of privacy between herself and an intrigued public. But no matter how many interviews Torres refuses, there’s no way to conceal the sprawling Southern California estate the heiress purchased for $17.4 million last year.

Real estate firm Deasy/Penner & Partners still hosts a listing for the sold property, providing a quick rundown of the amenities—a swimming pool, seven bedrooms, 16 baths, eight-car garage, and 16,600 square feet of living space on 4.16 acres of land—as well as photographic evidence of the estate’s verdant private golf course and double staircase beneath a classically opulent crystal chandelier. The photo set hints at even more gratuitously lavish facilities: tennis courts, an indoor batting cage, and a private movie theater. Not pictured are the inlaid marble floors and custom-painted ceiling, presumably made “custom” by the property’s previous owner, Texas Rangers third baseman Adrián Beltré. The change of hands landed Torres on Curbed LA’s list of Top 20 Los Angeles House Sales of 2012, beating Ellen DeGeneres and Portia de Rossi’s purchase price by a measly $11,000.

The listing abounds with the requisite hyperbole: The house is a “masterpiece” situated on “exquisitely landscaped” grounds, offering “all the fine amenities and unsurpassed quality and craftsmanship desired by the most discriminating buyer.” There’s no mention of a 20-foot wall to hide the secretive new resident from prying eyes, but Torres can rest assured that any Animal-Style fries fanatics wanting to pay homage will have to pass through the 24-hour guarded gate first.

According to In-N-Out’s website, the restaurant’s philosophy is that “quality is the most important ingredient of all.” The owner’s new digs seem a fitting tribute.