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Chelsea Handler says she did not know Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Cheryl Hines were the sellers when she bought their former Los Angeles home for a reported $5.9 million in 2021. She later alleged that the property had serious problems, including environmental concerns, foundation issues and an allegedly illegal storage structure. Those claims have not been independently established in the reporting cited here, and Hines disputes the implication that she and Kennedy knowingly sold a defective home.
What happened with Chelsea Handler’s home purchase?
Property records cited by Realtor.com list October 14, 2021, as the final sale date for the Mandeville Canyon home in Brentwood, Los Angeles, and put the reported purchase price at $5.9 million. Handler bought the property through a trust registered under her sister Simone’s name. Realtor.com reported those transaction details on March 9, 2026.
Handler has said the purchase was made anonymously and that she did not know Kennedy and Hines were the previous owners. Mediaite reported that she initially discussed the alleged problems on her podcast, Dear Chelsea. Mediaite’s March 17, 2026 report says she had not yet lived in the house when she first spoke publicly about the issues.
What problems did Handler allege?
In the account quoted by Realtor.com, Handler said inspectors told her the home had a “toxic environment” and could not be lived in for at least two years. She also alleged problems with the foundation and said an allegedly illegal storage unit had not been identified during inspection. These are Handler’s claims as reported; the articles cited here do not include an inspection report, environmental test, engineering report or code-enforcement record that verifies them.
Handler’s account of whether she had lived in the property changed over time. Realtor.com’s March 9 report quoted her saying she had not lived there. ABC’s coverage of her March 17, 2026, appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live! said she had moved into the property for the first time just before the appearance. ABC’s segment description focused on her shock at discovering she had bought Kennedy’s former home.
How did Cheryl Hines respond?
Hines confirmed that she left Handler a personal note with her phone number after the move. In an interview preview reported by Realtor.com on March 26, 2026, Hines said the note expressed hope that Handler would have a good life in the house and invited her to call if she needed anything. Hines argued that leaving her contact details did not fit the idea that she and Kennedy were trying to unload a toxic property: “if we were trying to unload a toxic house on her, I wouldn’t have left my number.”
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Hines also questioned why Handler was raising the issue years after the 2021 sale. Her response is a denial of the implication that the sellers knowingly sold a toxic home; it does not, by itself, establish the property’s condition. Realtor.com reported Hines’s response on March 26, 2026.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What is established—and what is not?
The reported sale date, price and use of a trust are attributed to property records and Realtor.com’s reporting. Handler says she did not know the prior owners’ identities when she purchased the home. She has described alleged defects, while Hines disputes the suggestion that the sellers knowingly passed on a toxic house.
The coverage cited here does not independently establish that the home was toxic, structurally unsound or illegally improved. It also does not report a lawsuit, an admission by the sellers that they knew of defects, or a court ruling about the dispute. Without inspection, environmental, engineering or code records, the allegations and Hines’s response should be understood as the parties’ accounts rather than a verified finding about the house.
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