HEN BEST-SELLING AUTHOR TOM CLANCY purchased six condominiums in Baltimore’s Ritz-Carlton Residences between 2009-2010, he had a highly unusual request: He wanted to convert some of the space into a gun range. An avid firearms collector who was known to include meticulously researched information on weapons in his books, Clancy had built ranges at all his other homes. According to Charlie Hatter, who sold Clancy his sprawling conglomeration of condos, Baltimore City law said, “No, thank you.”

“We ended up turning it into a spa-manicure-pedicure area,” Hatter says. He notes there was also a movie theater.

Hatter knows a little about high-end real estate. He still represents The Ritz-Carlton Residences, has been the director of sales for the Four Seasons Private Residences, and co-owns the luxury real estate firm, Monument Sotheby’s International Real Estate. He sold Kevin Spacey his double pier home at Harborview in 2017, and represented former Under Armour executive (and brother of its founder) Scott Plank when he sold his Silo Point condominium to boxer Gervonta Davis. And those are just the names he’s able to drop.

Despite the millions of dollars being transacted and the high profile of some of his clients, Hatter says famous people really are just like us. “They care about every dollar just like anyone else negotiating a transaction,” he says. “And they’re very hands-on because obviously real estate assets are very important even to the wealthiest clientele.”

Tom Clancy owned multiple units in the Ritz-Carlton Residences.

CELEBRITY BUYERS AND SELLERS may put their pants on one leg at a time like the rest of us, but that doesn’t mean they don’t pose unique challenges to their realtors.

“I would say a top concern is discretion,” says Jeremy Batoff, associate real estate broker and team lead of the Batoff Group at Compass. “But that’s not only true for this level of clientele; everyone values that.” He notes, for example, that he had a listing where the owner, not a celebrity, did not want the bedrooms photographed. Today, when everything is photographed and put online, many people want to reclaim some boundaries.

“People value their privacy because them selling their home could have implications for their work,” he continues. This is particularly true of high-profile people. If a well-known CEO has chosen to sell a home, for example, it could easily get the rumor mill grinding that the company or its leadership are in upheaval. For this reason, it’s common practice that non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) are signed fast, furiously, and frequently. And not just between the agent and who they represent but also potential buyers who often need to sign an NDA before even setting foot in a home. Batoff says most buyers sign without a fuss, though it can get complicated if it’s a family with kids. One can imagine the upset it would cause to have a teenager post a selfie in a Ravens player’s bathroom on Instagram.

Keisha McClain, realtor with the Hubble Bisbee Group of Christie’s International Real Estate, adds that it isn’t just about privacy, but safety. McClain has been in real estate since 2006, but her career took a turn when she met and wed former Ravens player and Super Bowl champion Jameel McClain. She has since represented more than 50 professional athletes, including Roquan Smith, Marlon Humphrey, and C.J. Mosely.

“While working in New York, I represented [NFL tackle] Damon Harrison in the purchase of a home,” she recalls. “Before he even had the chance to move in, the address and listing photos were leaked online. Reporters were physically staked out at the property, creating a serious safety issue. The story was ultimately covered by Page Six, which only amplified the risk.”

Michael Phelps’ previous Baltimore home in Fells Point. —Courtesy of Hubble Bisbee/Maryland Image House

McClain says she makes it her business “to protect these clients, not just help them find housing.” She often suggests that high-end clients manage their real estate transactions through a trust, which provides a level of privacy. She will only discuss a property’s celebrity connection if a client no longer lives in it and sharing the story doesn’t pose a security concern; if she currently represents them or they still reside in the house, discretion always comes first.

But certainly, having that celebrity connection must add to the allure of a house? McClain says that neither fame nor infamy (like, say, if a criminal lived in the house) will necessarily hurt or harm a deal—but it will complicate things.

When your average person is buying a bungalow in Pikesville, the team on the deal is pretty streamlined. That is not always the case when working with very high-end clients, says James Baldwin, team lead of the Baldwin Griffin Group of Compass. “I’m generally working with family offices, managers, or legal teams,” he explains. “Some clients are deeply hands-on; others delegate entirely.”

All those experts having a hand in a transaction can, Baldwin explains, make celebrity deals a longer process, especially if there are a lot of contingencies and people who need to okay the deal before anyone signs on the dotted line.

“I am on occasion dealing with the client’s architect or interior designer who has just flown in from overseas,” he says. “And with that comes risks. . . . If they don’t like the property or don’t think it meets the needs of their client, it can be a total deal-breaker.”

“The Poe House” in Owings Mills. —Courtesy of Compass Realty

In general, a little fame can help boost a home’s image when it’s going up for sale. It brings a certain novelty to a place, especially if the storytelling is crafted well.

“A great example is 967 Fell Street in Fells Point, a property that has had several notable owners over the years, including Michael Phelps, a well-known CEO, and later my client, Calais Campbell,” says McClain. “When Calais relocated to another city, selling wasn’t the right move. Instead, we repositioned the property as part of his real estate portfolio and placed it into the rental market. I currently manage the property, and its ownership history has made it more appealing not less.”

If you can trace a property’s lineage back in time, nostalgia can also be a factor. “Baltimore has a deep history many people cherish,” says Batoff. “There was a house locally that had a connection to Edgar Allan Poe descendants, and it became ‘The Poe House’ and people loved it—even though Poe himself hadn’t even lived there. That helps.”

Buyers may also assume that if a famous person is selling their home, the quality of the finishes and contracting work are likely to be very high-end. Especially if a home has been designed by a reputable local designer or architect in Baltimore where those relationships matter, says Baldwin.

But fame has its downside. It can create unrealistic expectations, for example. Once a buyer or seller knows a transaction has a celebrity presence, they may think money is no option. “That mindset is exactly why protecting a client’s assets matters so much. Fame doesn’t eliminate the need for smart financial decisions—it increases it,” says McClain.

And while “fame creates curiosity,” says Baldwin, “mishandled fame creates noise.”

It’s a reason Batoff tells all his clients—celebrity and otherwise—to depersonalize their home as much as possible before it is shown. “Especially with sports figures, they often have a lot of memorabilia. That can become a distraction because you don’t know if the buyers are focused on that or are they focused on the house?”

He adds that some buyers shy away from purchasing a celebrity’s home because they are wary of the news headline that reads: “So-and-so’s house sold for X amount.”

Even a little infamy has its benefits, so long as the home wasn’t the scene of a heinous crime. The sale of Kevin Spacey’s condominium has made every gossip page, and its failure to sell is likely more due to a weak condo market than the fact that its former owner is an alleged predator. (The home is currently off the market.) But there are limits; one area realtor shared that buyers pulled out of a transaction when they realized the previous owner was on the sex offender list. They feared the address and its notoriety could be attached to their family.

Matthew Judon’s (former) colorful kitchen. —Courtesy of Hubble Bisbee/Hometrack Real Estate Marketing

EVERYONE HAS HEARD the stories of celebrities and the outrageous riders that can be added to their contracts—Rihanna apparently asked that her dressing room on tour have a fur rug and Lady Gaga requires a police escort wherever she goes so she doesn’t get stuck in traffic. What must it be like to be inside their homes?

“Safe rooms are more common than you might imagine, as are bomb-shelter-type structures,” says Baldwin. He once found an enormous safe behind a closet door—the seller had forgotten it was even there and never disclosed it.

McClain points out that athletes come with their own unique set of challenges: Thanks to short-term contracts and trades, they don’t always know how long they’ll be sticking around. In that case, McClain tries to make the transition as smooth as possible.

Take former Raven Matthew Judon, who hired McClain to sell his property in Reisterstown when he was traded to the Patriots less than a year after moving in. She did her part, helping him recuperate some of the heavy investment he’d made into the home—including a $70,000 Aire soaking tub—before he left for New England.

And then there’s navigating some of the more, well, pushy buyer requests.

“I once had a buyer who wanted to bring her kids over to use the pool,” says Batoff. “The seller was a celebrity and was okay with it.” Another client wanted to spend the night in the house before buying it. That request was denied by its well-known owner.

Whether it’s a multi-million-dollar country estate or a city penthouse with a view, Hatter says the fun and exciting part of transacting high-end real estate is that a top-tier property will always rise above the noise.

“Even when fame goes wrong, the quality of the product is still superior. You always market from a position of strength.”