Carbon Beach, Malibu, is the Billionaires' New Playground

A sandy stretch of Californian beach has been dubbed "the world's most expensive sandbox".

The American dream real estate on Carbon Beach, Malibu, attracts some of the richest homebuyers in the world, according to Forbes magazine.

Owners of multi-million dollar properties include Paul Allen, the co-founder of Microsoft, Larry Ellison, chief executive of software giant Oracle, and David Geffen, the co-founder of the Dreamworks film studios.

Ellison, Oracle chief and America's third richest man, owns over ten estates on Malibu's Carbon Beach. He reportedly spent $65 million (£43m) on five beachfront properties here in 2003.

The most expensive pad to date is a $75 million (£50m) property sold by Howard Marks, a billionaire money manager. The property was snapped up by a Russian billionaire couple who paid in cash. Their identities remain anonymous.

The Pacific Coast Highway estate has over 300 feet of ocean frontage and includes a 20,000-square-foot Mediterranean-style villa with eight bedrooms. There are 14 bathrooms, two guesthouses, a gym, tennis courts and an ocean-facing swimming pool.

One of the cheapest houses here is owned by Peter Morton, co-founder of the Hard Rock Café chain of restaurants. His property is worth a mere $3.4 million (£2.2 m).

The latest house up for sale in this exclusive area is listed for $22.5 million (£14.8m) and has 70 feet of beach frontage. Built in 1976, the oceanfront property has four bedrooms, six baths, a home theatre, an oceanfront pool with spa and a Zen garden. There's also covered parking for up to eight cars.

Carbon Beach is the domain of tech, business and film bosses rather than celebrities. The last glamorous couple who lived here were Courtney Cox and David Arquette, who sold their property for $27.3 million (£17.8m) in 2007. The stars tend to congregate further down the strip in the Malibu Colony.