The rise and fall of the Kanye West real estate empire

Earlier last week, entertainer and designer Kanye West listed his Malibu estate for $53 million, about  $4 million less than its purchase price two years ago, the Daily Mail reported.

But the Malibu estate is just one of several of West’s real estate ventures that have apparently fallen into disrepair. 

Another West property, a Wyoming ranch, appears to have been abandoned, and his Hidden Hills, California estate also looks as though it needs extensive work.

West’s ambitious real estate goals, including futuristic dome developments and affordable housing experiments, seem to have crumbled. His Wyoming ranch, once bustling with development activity, is now deserted, with structures abandoned under a blanket of snow, the outlet reported.

In Los Angeles, a plot of land intended for West’s Donda Academy has been left deserted.

Additionally, his Calabasas ranch, featuring a failed dome project, displays scattered trash and a stranded dune buggy. West’s Hidden Hills homes, including the one across the street from ex-wife Kim Kardashian, also appear abandoned and untouched.

The decline in West’s real estate ventures parallels the challenges he has faced in his career and public image, with controversies and personal issues — including frequent anti-Semitic statements — affecting his billion-dollar status as a fashion and music mogul.

It’s a far cry from West’s plans from 2019, when the celebrity publicly declared his intentions to build a real estate empire and delve into urban design — an announcement that proved divisive. 

During an interview with television and radio personality Charlemagne Tha God, West said he wanted to be “one of the biggest real estate developers of all time, what Howard Hughes was to aircrafts and Henry Ford was to cars…We’re going to develop cities.”

Later that month, he announced a plan to launch an architectural practice called “Yeezy home” with an aim to “make the world better.” West envisioned the design as having potential for affordable housing, but since that announcement, little has panned out. Meanwhile, West’s multiple properties fall into further disrepair. 

So long for being “one of the biggest real estate developers of all time.”

— Ted Glanzer