In Southern California, a mansion is a micro-economy.
Every luxury property has a developer who envisioned it, an architect who built it, an agent who sold it, and a deep-pocketed buyer who had to have it.
To run the place — to have the guests greeted, drinks poured, floors polished, windows washed, cupboards stocked, the perimeter secured, meals cooked, children curated, lawns manicured, ponds algaecided — typically requires a staff akin to a modern-day Downton Abbey.
