Michael Jackson’s Neverland Ranch is up for sale for an astonishing $100m.
The rides are gone, the elephants are gone and Bubbles is certainly gone, but the history – both bad and good – remains and it can be yours if you have a spare $100 million.
The very very rich will finally have their chance to buy an iconic piece of pop’s past with Michael Jackson’s famed Neverland Ranch hitting the market for the first time since the late singer’s death.
The Wall Street Journal reports the firm who bought the singer’s debt and then restored the property have finally put the sprawling ranch located just outside of Santa Barbara, California, on the market.
Listed by Sotheby’s and Hilton & Hyland, most of the telltale signs if its former famous owner have been erased turning the 2700-acre property from a fun park into a grand compound.
Even the name has changed with Neverland now known as Sycamore Valley Ranch – which was its name prior to the star buying in in the Eighties.
Realtor Suzanne Perkins told the Wall Street Journal that the amusement park the late King Of Pop constructed and his beloved exotic animals have long been removed.
In their place it seems are rolling hills, man-made water features and lakes complete with swans and even a llama or two.
Perkins promises however, if a Michael fan does buy the property there are still a few small signs that it was the Neverland Ranch with its train and clock made from flowers that spells out ‘Neverland’ retained and restored.
The agents have stressed however, this is not fans’ chance to see their idol’s home as they will require ‘extensive prequalification’ of potential buyers as ‘we’re not going to be giving tours’.
So what does a $100 million buy you?
According to the listing agent, the new buyer will own 22 structures on including a giant Normandy-style main house.
WSJ reports the home, which is located between the property’s two lakes, is an impressive 12,000-square-feet, with six bedrooms and an attached staff quarters.
Of course, if the new owner wants to entertain there is two guest houses – one four-bedroom and one two-bedroom.
While the amusement park has now been removed, there are still plenty of things to do with the property featuring a swimming pool with a cabana, basketball court, tennis court and BBQ area.
What also remains is a 50-seat movie theatre with a ‘private viewing balcony’ as well as a stage that ‘includes trap doors for magic shows’.
For some time there have been reports that the home was about to go on the market – it was even claimed the new musical royalty Beyonce and Jay Z wanted to buy it.
The value of the home has been subject to speculation over the years with people suggesting figures as low as $35 million.
Michael bought the ranch in 1987 for $19.5 million but then used it as collateral for a $24.5 million loan – which he defaulted on.
Investment firm Colony Capital bought a significant portion of the debt in 2008 – a year before his death – to save the home for foreclosing and were working with the star to restore it with the hopes of selling the property.
While its historical significance to music and pop culture cannot be understated, the ranch’s history is not all good.
It is where Elizabeth Taylor married Larry Fortensky in a lavish 1991 ceremony; where Oprah Winfrey famously interviewed Jackson live in front of 90 million viewers in 1993; and it was also where he was accused of molesting young boys.
