One of the houses that forms part of Bill Gates’s lakeside compound in Medina, Washington, barely had time to settle into the listings before a buyer stepped up. The four-bedroom home, priced at roughly $4.8 million, went under contract just days after it hit the market.
Quick Sale Next to Xanadu 2.0
According to Realtor.com, Gates listed the 2,780-square-foot, four-bed, 2.5-bath home on Feb. 5. By Feb. 11, property records already showed it in contract. The outlet notes it is not clear whether Gates ever actually lived in the house or if the property mainly served as a privacy buffer for his main estate. Realtor.com also reports that Kim Florence of John L. Scott Real Estate handled the listing.
What’s for Sale
Architectural Digest notes that Gates bought the cottage through an LLC in 1995 for about $1 million. The traditional 1950s house comes with deeded water access and a large deck that looks out over the lake. Listing details highlight a step-down living room, a finished basement and a primary suite with a private balcony, amenities that help explain why the place did not linger on the market.
Neighborhood and Market
Local reporting points out that Gates spent much of the 1990s piecing together parcels around Xanadu 2.0, building a ring of privately held homes that can be sold off selectively. The Spokesman-Review notes that he has sold similar nearby properties, including one that went for about $4.85 million in 2024, often with similarly quick turnarounds.
Why It Matters
National coverage casts the move as a bit of routine pruning rather than any sign that Gates is backing away from Medina. The timing, however, has drawn attention since it coincides with renewed scrutiny connected to recently released Epstein-era documents. Fortune reviewed valuation data and county records that show the main Xanadu residence still clocks in at about 66,000 square feet and that several neighboring parcels remain registered to LLCs tied to Gates.
What Comes Next
For now, the identity of the buyer and the final sale price are under wraps. Many of Gates’s Medina holdings sit in LLCs, so the details will not surface until King County finalizes and posts the transaction records. The listing language promises "sweeping 180 degree lake, city and mountain views," a selling point that likely helped the home move so quickly, per Realtor.com.
For neighbors, the deal means another piece of the quiet buffer around Xanadu 2.0 is changing hands and a new, presumably very private, owner will be moving onto the hill. County filings will ultimately show whether the house closed at or above asking price and who ends up as Gates’s latest Medina neighbor.
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