Kanye West has reportedly sold off his second Wyoming ranch, back to the original owners for $US14 million ($A21 million) amid rumours of money troubles.
The rapper, who goes by Ye, returned Bighorn Mountain Ranch to the Flitner family, who first sold the Gold Digger hit maker the land in 2019, after he neglected the ranch, Realtor reports.
The 48-year-old Grammy winner’s purchase of the ranch back in 2019 marked his second Wyoming ranch.
The controversial musician snapped up the property in an effort to curb homelessness.
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West has reportedly sold off his second Wyoming ranch back to the original owners. Picture: Realtor
The rapper with his Aussie wife Bianca Censori. Picture: Arnold Jerocki/Getty Images
According to Cowboy State Daily, the sale was notarised by Ye’s wife, Bianca Censori, on September 17.
And while the family is thankful they have the property back in their hands, they noted it is nothing like what it once was.
“Unlike Monster Ranch, he did not knock down any of the buildings. I think his original intent for the Mountain Ranch might have been somewhere that his family could go and be away from the rest of the world,” Pam Flitner told the outlet.
West’s purchase of the ranch back in 2019 marked his second Wyoming ranch. Picture: Realtor
The ranch has been listed and delisted from the market for the past six years; and according to the Flitners, they have repeatedly tried to contact Ye’s team about the property but had been unsuccessful.
“A lot of people have said that he was a really, really good guy and that he was really on task a lot of the time,” Greg Flitner said.
“So, none of us can fault him at all for buying it and trying to get something accomplished for himself.”
The rapper bought the ranch from Greg’s father and his wife, David and Paula Flitner.
Greg noted at the time, the sale was “one of those things” that needed to happen.
“We went ahead and got ahold of the realtor, and it was kind of a rush thing, because it sounded like the people who they were flying in to look at it, a lot of them were speculators.” Pam Flitner told the outlet.
“A big chunk of the ranch sold when the mountain sold. We had to do some real adjustments, and we just weren’t able, at the time, to buy it back, even if we would have wanted to.
“So, luckily, by the grace of God, you know, six years later we are in a different position.”
According to Cowboy State Daily, the sale was notarised by West’s wife, Bianca Censori, on September 17. Picture: Instagram/Kanye West
The ranch, which was founded in 1906, is covered by National Forest lands, and features lush greenery, cattle operations, wildlife, and several cabins and lodges.
It comes complete with a five-bedroom, four-bathroom cabin with a enough space for several people.
Ye reportedly picked up the ranch with the intention of holding his Sunday Services there.
It reportedly includes heated helicopter pads and walk-in saunas.
It has been known as his “therapy ranch,” because it is where he sought comfort during his divorce to Kim Kardashian, and where he crafted his album, Donda.
The news of the sale is causing many to assume that Ye may be in suffering from financial troubles as this is just the latest home of his to reach the market.
Days after one of Ye’s most infamous properties — his gutted beach house in Malibu — was relisted for $US34.9 million ($A53.5 million), his Hollywood Hills home was put up for sale, with both dwellings listed by the same agent: celebrity real estate broker Jason Oppenheim and his eponymous Oppenheim Group.
The Flitner family is thankful they have the property back but noted that it is nothing like what it once was. Picture: Realtor
Owned by the rapper from 2003 until 2017, when he sold it for $US2.95 million ($A4.5 million), the property was the site of a much talked-about Sistine Chapel-style mural that Ye had painted of himself on the dining room ceiling.
Dubbed “A Life Restored,” the mural by Ernie Barnes depicts a lifeless body being carried by an angel, with a winged and shirtless likeness of Ye hovering above. Angels and regular folks surround them, giving praise.
It’s reported that the painting celebrated Ye’s “miraculous recovery” from a near-fatal car crash in 2002.
Oppenheim recalls being a guest in the four-bedroom, four-bathroom Hollywood Hills home while Ye was in residence, and remembers the remarkable — and sometimes bizarre — stamps that Ye put on the home to make it his own — including the mural, which has since been removed.
The news of the sale is causing many to assume that Ye may be suffering from financial troubles.
Realtor records indicate he paid $US1.75 million ($A2.6 million) for it in 2003, renovated it to his exacting tastes, then sold it in 2017, after he’d been married to Kim Kardashian for three years.
The current owners purchased it in 2022 for $US3.36 million ($A5.1 million) and added some chic luxury amenities, including an outdoor kitchen with a barbecue, an in-ground spa, a sauna, an outdoor shower, and a dramatic fire pit on the terrace, all surrounded by comfortable built-in seating that takes full advantage of those glorious views.
As for Ye’s former abode in Malibu, the celebrity broker previously revealed to Realtor that the dwelling will likely have undergone a dramatic transformation by the time a new buyer emerges — explaining that the restoration of the property, which was put on pause when the dwelling went into escrow earlier this year, will be ramping back up again.
The last of Ye’s former homes that are currently on the market is located in Hidden Hills; however, all that remains of the rapper’s legacy there is the land.
West also put his Hollywood Hills home up for sale. Picture: Realtor
West’s former abode in Malibu. Picture: Realtor
In August, it was revealed the musician’s dwelling had been torn down to make way for a new mega-mansion that is now on the market for a staggering $US17 million ($A26 million).
It stands in stark contrast to the somewhat run-down property that previously occupied the one-acre plot, which was sold by Ye for $US4.3 million ($A6.6 nillion) in 2023, just a few months after he married his second wife, Bianca Censori.
The six-bedroom home is described in its listing as an “architectural reverie” that draws “respectful inspiration from the Chumash people,” a Native American tribe that once occupied the land.
“The residence is a spiritual and architectural homage to [the Chumash people’s] cosmology — three interconnected worlds: the sky, the earth, and the underworld,” the listing notes.
“Unlike Western belief systems, the Chumash held that humans could, with great effort, traverse these realms.”
Parts of this story first appeared in Realtor and was republished with permission.
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