Gene Hackman’s longtime home in Santa Fe has quietly come onto the market, offering a rare look at the private world the actor built far from Hollywood.
The 13,000-square-foot compound, listed for $6.25 million with Sotheby’s International Realty, sits on a hilltop in the gated Santa Fe Summit community, surrounded by piñon trees and open sky. From the property, the views stretch across the Jemez Mountains and north toward Colorado. Hackman and his wife, Betsy Arakawa, lived there for decades, making the house their primary retreat until their deaths last year.
When Hackman purchased the property in the 1990s, it was a neglected 1950s structure in poor shape. Architect Stephen Samuelson once recalled that the house was “horrible,” though Hackman saw something worth saving. Drawn by Santa Fe’s light and isolation, he undertook an ambitious renovation alongside Samuelson and Harry Dapples of Studio Arquitectura, transforming the building into a sprawling, highly personal residence.
Hackman pushed for openness and scale. Ceilings were raised, walls removed, and rooms allowed to flow into one another. He wanted a great hall as the heart of the house, with smaller spaces branching off rather than being boxed in. To avoid anything feeling too slick or new, he specified plaster finishes with layered patinas that suggested age. A painter himself, Hackman mixed colors by hand to get them exactly right.
Those choices still define the house today. A flagstone path leads to the main residence, where floor-to-ceiling windows frame the landscape and heavy stone walls give the interiors a grounded, tactile feel. Inside are large living and dining areas, a generous kitchen, a library and office, and a primary suite with its own sitting area and workspaces. A lower level includes a gym, game room, and media room.
The compound also includes a three-bedroom guesthouse with its own kitchen and living areas, along with a separate studio where Hackman pursued his painting practice. The grounds feature an outdoor pool and a putting green, reinforcing the sense that the property was designed to be lived in fully, not simply admired.
The listing follows last year’s three-part auction of Hackman’s personal collection, which brought in roughly $3 million. Highlights included a Milton Avery painting that sold for more than $500,000, Hackman’s Golden Globe for The Royal Tenenbaums, and several of his own paintings, which drew steady interest from collectors.
Hackman and Arakawa were found dead at the Santa Fe home on February 26, 2025. He was 95 and had been living with Alzheimer’s disease; she was 65 and died from hantavirus pulmonary syndrome. Before the home was staged for sale, their personal belongings were removed.
The brokers handling the listing have acknowledged that the property’s recent history may give some buyers pause. There is no added “celebrity premium” built into the asking price, and prospective buyers must show proof of funds before scheduling a visit. As one broker put it to The Wall Street Journal, the house is being sold on its architecture, setting, and craftsmanship, not on the fame of the person who once lived there.
