Michael Jackson’s Neverland Ranch – and 6 other luxury homes no one wants to buy

Some multimillion-dollar homes sell in only a few days, but there are others that sit on the market for years.

Many of these unwanted properties that have been offered at big price reductions to try to tempt buyers over the years once belonged to celebrities.

Others are abandoned historic mansions, which are now listed for a mere fraction of their original value, although some such as Lynnewood Hall in Pennsylvania, the largest home for sale in America, are still worth millions – even when in disrepair.

Homes on the “unwanted” list range from the late American pop star Michael Jackson's vacated Neverland Ranch to a decaying mansion on New York’s Carleton Island, which will cost the new owner millions to renovate.

Retired American basketball star Michael Jordan, who won six NBA championships with the Chicago Bulls, has not lived in his Chicago mansion for years, but the empty property has struggled to find a new owner after six years, even though his staff continue to maintain the grounds for potential buyers.

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Homes that have been highly customised, such as those owned by Jordan and Jackson, are often hard to sell. Both of their estates include features such as personalised entry gates, which make them undesirable to some potential wealthy buyers, who have their own ideas about a luxury home.

Other unsold homes on the list include a Versailles-inspired Manhattan town house, which has been on and off the market for 16 years, along with a massive Bel Air house nicknamed “Billionaire” – one of many mega-mansions for sale in Los Angeles – which is being offered at a US$100 million discount.

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Michael Jackson’s Neverland Ranch

Jackson died aged 50 in June 2009 and his former home, Neverland Ranch, in Los Olivos, Santa Barbara County, California, which he bought in 1987, first appeared for sale in 2015.

Now listed for US$31 million, the property which stands on a 2,698-acre (1,090-hectare) site that includes a four-acre lake with a waterfall, has undergone extensive changes since he stopped living there in 2006 and has been renamed Sycamore Valley Ranch.

Originally listed for US$100 million, the price was reduced to US$65 million in 2017. Its most recent price cut in February reflects a 70 per cent reduction on its initial asking price.

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Despite the removal of Jacksons petting zoo and amusement park, the estate still features its recognisable railway station and the original mansion.

Jackson’s former home, a six-room, seven-bathroom luxury Normandy-style property, includes a swimming pool, a 50-seat cinema and a guest house. A total of 22 structures are scattered across the massive property.

Sources said recently revisited allegations of sexual assault against Jackson, which followed the four-hour HBO documentary Leaving Neverland broadcast in March, have reduced the value of the property.

According to British newspaper The Guardian, “Jackson distanced himself from the ranch after his 2005 acquittal on charges that he molested children at the property. The singer opted to live elsewhere in the world until his death.”

In 2006, staff at the property were told to stop working by California authorities and Jackson eventually defaulted on a loan because of financial difficulties.

The future of the property remained unclear after his death until it was put up for sale.

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The property remains uninhabited, although the grounds are maintained for potential buyers.

Michael Jordan’s former home

Jordan’s former home in the city of Highland Park, north of central Chicago, in Illinois – like Jackson’s estate – has had its price reduced considerably since it was put up for sale, yet is still unsold.

The property was first listed for US$29 million six years ago, but is now available for US$14.9 million.

Jordan, 56, who retired as a player in 2003, is believed to have lived in the property for 19 years. Although he no longer calls the mansion “home”, he reportedly still pays more than US$100,000 in annual property taxes.

Among the custom-designed rooms, the home features a personalised basketball court.

Lynnewood Hall

The historic Lynnewood Hall is currently on the market for US$11 million. It is currently the largest home for sale in the United States.

The 70,000 square-foot Neoclassical Gilded Age palace has 110 rooms, including 55 bedrooms and 20 bathrooms.

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The property, which was designed by Horace Trumbauer for American industrialist Peter A. B. Widener and built between 1897 and 1900, has been empty for over a decade.

Widener’s eldest son, George, and grandson, Harry, both died when the Titanic sank in 1912. The businessman, who housed his private art collection of European masterpieces in the property, died in 1915.

The cost to build the property when first constructed has been estimated to be the equivalent of US$200 million today.

According to the estate’s listing on Zillow, the online property database: “Lynnewood Hall is one of the largest surviving Gilded Age mansions in the Philadelphia area”.

Potential uses for the mansion include a boutique hotel with five-star restaurants, an art museum, a music venue or a refurbished private estate.

In addition to the hefty price, renovation work will cost millions of dollars. Listing agent Frank Johnson said the renovations could cost “as little as US$3 million to US$7 million”. But one historian has estimated that the work would cost US$50 million.

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Stone Mansion

Stone Mansion in Alpine, New Jersey, was put up for sale before its owners even moved in.

Richard Kurtz, CEO of developer Kamson Corporation, bought the former estate of Henry Clay Frick II, which he later subdivided into separate luxury lots.

After commissioning the 42-room Stone Mansion on six acres of property – intended as a personal residence – Kurtz and his wife abandoned the project as they separated before its completion.

The property has been empty for more than eight years, but staff have maintained the property to keep it ready for a potential sale.

However, the home is being used as an event space while property agents continue to search for a new owner.

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The 12-bedroom, 15-bathroom home, which also features a ballroom, is only eight miles (12km) from Manhattan and is currently listed for US$36 million with Sotheby's International Realty.

The home also features a pool house with its own kitchen, along with a heated driveway and a tennis court.

Carleton Island Villa

The dilapidated waterfront mansion, which still sits on Carleton Island in Cape Vincent, New York state, has been uninhabited for about 70 years.

The 15,000-square-foot home with 11 bedrooms was built in about 1894 for William O. Wyckoff, who made his fortune from the Remington firearm and typewriter company.

He reportedly died in his sleep of a heart attack during his first night in his lavish, newly completed home in 1895.

During the second world war, the owners at the time sent in contractors, who gutted the building – removing all of the valuable interior fittings, including flooring, walls, doors and windows.

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Although it is listed for only US$495,000, renovation work is estimated to cost anywhere between US$11 million and US$12 million.

While the stone foundations remains somewhat intact, the roof has collapsed in many places and the wood-frame upper floors have deteriorated.

The new owner of the 6.9-acre property would have access to three waterfronts on the property. The island, located on the St Lawrence River, is only accessible only by boat.

‘Versailles in Manhattan’

The New York luxury town house, dubbed “Versailles in Manhattan”, has been on and off the market for 16 years.

Now listed for US$19.75 million, the home once had an asking price of US$35 million in 2007 – representing a US$15.25 million price drop over the course of 12 years.

The home features architecture inspired by the Palace of Versailles, the former royal residence in Versailles, France, but has been deemed “unsellable”.

A report by Business Insider suggested that while the 15-room property has been praised as an “architectural masterpiece”, its “museum-like grandeur” is one of the contributing factors that has made it hard to sell.

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In addition to its five bedroom suites and eight marble bathrooms, the town house includes an English pine library, with books dating back to 1872, a grand dining room, temperature-controlled wine cellar, bar area and a rooftop terrace for outdoor entertaining.

‘Billionaire’

The luxury home nicknamed “Billionaire” in Los Angeles' Bel Air neighbourhood, still remains for sale despite several significant price reductions in the past few years.

When it first went on the market in January 2017, the asking price was US$250 million. Then 15 months later – in April last year – it went back on the market after a US$62 million price reduction for US$188 million.

Now the asking price is down to US$150 million.

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The 38,000-square-foot home, which was built over four levels, has 12-bedrooms and 21-bathrooms, includes two master suites and 10 VIP guest suites.

Its personalised features include a rooftop helipad, indoor four-lane bowling alley, 40-seat cinema, five bars and two wine cellars.

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In addition to the spacious indoor areas, the home boasts 17,000 square feet of outdoor entertaining decks.

Downstairs, the home features a luxury car gallery complete with classic motor vehicles worth a total of US$30 million.

It outdoor spaces also include an 85-foot-long infinity pool.

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This article originally appeared on Business Insider.