Clay Matthews lists Los Angeles ‘forever home’ for $29.995 million

Former Green Bay Packers linebacker Clay Matthews and his wife Casey Matthews are listing their newly completed French Provincial estate in Los Angeles for $29.995 million.

Mr. Matthews purchased the land for the property for $2.6 million way back in 2013, when he and Ms. Matthews were dating. They started construction on the home after they were married in 2015, they said.

The couple completed construction last year and had originally planned that it would be their "forever home," they said. Mr. Matthews, brother of former NFL linebacker Casey Matthews and son of former NFL linebacker Clay Matthews Jr., played for roughly a decade for the Green Bay Packers before a stint with the Los Angeles Rams but was released last year. He is currently a free agent.

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Now that Mr. Matthews, 35, isn’t tied to California for work, the couple started thinking about relocating closer to where his brother lives in the Nashville, Tenn., area. "We want the kids to grow up with their cousins," Ms. Matthews said.

The 1.65-acre estate is in a gated community called the Oaks of Calabasas, which has also drawn celebrities like the Kardashians, and has views of the Santa Monica Mountains.

The main house is about 14,000 square feet and has a dramatic white wood-paneled entry hall with double height ceilings and a large living room with antique wood beam ceilings repurposed from an old barn in Wisconsin, the Matthewses said. Large glass doors open to the pool.

In the walnut-paneled library and office is one of Mr. Matthews’s favorite features of the house: an over 800-gallon saltwater aquarium. Mr. Matthews, 35, said he’s had an aquarium since he was 8 years old and took the opportunity to incorporate one into the house (he scaled back his original plan for it to span an entire wall, at his wife’s request).

He said he brought in fish from Australia, Indonesia and Hawaii. His collection includes clownfish, triggerfish and eels. "I’ve probably spent more money than I would like to admit on some of these rare guys," he said. The couple would consider parting with the fish along with the property, according to a spokesman for the listing agents.

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A hidden doorway behind a bookcase leads to a secret room, which the couple used as a safe. The challenge has been keeping their three young children, who are all 6 or under, from discovering it, said Ms. Matthews, 43.

A teal wood-paneled game room with a billiards table currently houses Mr. Matthews’s Sports Illustrated covers and his football memorabilia. Other amenities include a 15-seat theater and a wine cellar. The garage can accommodate about nine cars.

Outside, the property includes a large pool, a sports court, a goldfish pond, a rose garden, an orchard, a fire pit and a pergola.

The Matthewses said they didn’t want a flashy party house like so many of the pricey homes they had seen in Los Angeles. "We wanted it to be approachable and comfortable and not feel too austere or like you couldn’t just kick your feet up," said Ms. Matthews, who formerly worked for HGTV.

They have already purchased a roughly 200-acre piece of land in the Nashville area and plan to build a new home there, they said. "Everyone’s laughing at us that we’re going to build again," she laughed.

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As for whether he will continue to play professional football, Mr. Matthews said it is still up in the air. "There’s just a lot of exciting things other than football in my life," he said. "So, right now, I guess I am a free agent. I am available for the right price."

Branden and Rayni Williams and Shana Tavangarian of The Beverly Hills Estates share the listing with Nima Fathi of HBC Realty.