The long-vacant buildings that sit at 5225 Figueroa Mountain Road—formerly known as Neverland Ranch but renamed Sycamore Valley Ranch—may soon get a new resident now that the property has hit the market.
The property has sat virtually unoccupied since 2003, when it was searched by at least 70 police officers from the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office following accusations that mega pop singer Michael Jackson had molested children there.
The search was pursuant to an upcoming trial against Jackson in which he was eventually acquitted. Jackson bought the property in 1988 and lived there until 2003. But after the raid, Jackson left and never returned. According to news reports, Jackson said it no longer felt like a home.
Fast-forward more than 12 years later and still nobody lives there. Named after Peter Pan’s lost fantasy island, the property went on the market in May for $100 million.
In late October, the ranch was listed with an opening bid of 500 million yuan ($78.6 million) on Taobao Pamei, the Chinese version of eBay that’s owned by the Alibaba Group. That particular listing wasn’t supposed to happen, according to Suzanne Perkins with Sotheby’s International Realty, the company listed as the broker for the property. Perkins wasn’t sure how the property ended up on an online Chinese auction.
“With the Internet these days, who knows?” Perkins said. “Whoever it is, they don’t have authorization to have it listed.”
She wouldn’t say if she’s received any offers from China, however one potential buyer signed up for the one-day auction but never made a bid, according to realtor.com.
Perkins said she’s received other, legitimate, offers, although she wouldn’t give details.
A year before Jackson died in 2009, Los Angeles investment firm Colony Capital picked up the property’s defaulted loan.
Speaking on behalf of Colony Capital, Caroline Luz wouldn’t elaborate on the offers they’ve received. She also declined to provide any details on the property, including whether or not it’s currently livable or how much work needs to be done, although she did say that it’s being maintained.
Before it was placed on the market, there were several ideas considered about what to do with Jackson’s old home, including turning it into a theme park. Michael Jackson’s estate, which includes his kids, holds a majority stake in the property.
What does one get for $100 million? They definitely won’t get the amusement park rides, which were auctioned off piece by piece to various state and county fairs across California, and even to New York’s Coney Island, the Los Angeles Times reported.
According to the International Business Times, the dozens of statues of children that adorned parts of the property remain.
Any potential sale will include the 12,000-square-foot French Normandy-style main house, a couple of guest houses, a movie theater, a tennis court, an abandoned zoo, and other amenities.
They’ll also get the almost 2,700 acres of sprawling land in the dry outback of Santa Barbara County, but it requires lots of maintenance, said Michelle Oliver, an agent who specializes in upscale properties with Douglas Elliman Real Estate in Beverly Hills.
The acreage alone would be enough to hinder a foreign buyer, Oliver said, adding that in order for the ranch to be appealing, the property would need to be updated and “turnkey,” real estate speak for a property that’s ready for immediate use.
Whoever considers the purchase would also have to pay hundreds of thousands of dollars in property taxes each year. According to the Santa Barbara County Assessor website the owners of Neverland Ranch owe the county about $326,000, which is due by April 2016.
“I think if they repurpose it into a vineyard, a motel, something, it would be exciting,” Oliver said.
She said that compared to a foreign buyer, a regional buyer would probably find easier access to renovators but that they may not want to take on the cost.
In her experience, Oliver doesn’t necessarily think Neverland Ranch’s asking price is too much and she even suggested that it’s a trophy price that sellers are hoping to get in this day and age.
“Listen, all you need is just one buyer,” Oliver said optimistically, “it doesn’t matter where they’re from.”
Staff Writer David Minsky can be reached at dminsky@santamariasun.com.
This article appears in Nov 19-26, 2015.
