Neverland_Ranch

Neverland Ranch

Neverland Ranch
Location:	5225 Figueroa Mountain Rd, Los Olivos, CA 93441
Coordinates:
Size:	Appromixately
Employees:	Approximately 70
Acquisition date:	1988

Neverland Valley Ranch is a developed property in Santa Barbara County, California, most famous for its association with American pop musician Michael Jackson.

The ranch is located at 5225 Figueroa Mountain Rd, Los Olivos, CA 93441, about 5 miles (8 km) north of unincorporated Los Olivos (about eight miles (13 km) north of the town of Santa Ynez), in the Santa Ynez Valley. The property covers an area of over 2,800 acres (11 km²). The area surrounding Neverland previously consisted of working ranches; today, the area is made up of vineyards. The property was purchased from golf course entrepreneur William Bone.

The ranch operated as Jackson's private amusement park and home when the facility opened in 1988, but is no longer in operation. It contains, among other things, a zoo and a theme park, with a Ferris wheel, merry-go-round, zipper, spider, sea dragon, wave swinger, super slide, dragon wagon kiddie roller coaster, and bumper cars. It is named after Neverland, the fantasy island in the story of Peter Pan, where children never grow up.

Value

In early 2004, news program Entertainment Tonight estimated Neverland Ranch to be valued at approximately $120 million. The Santa Barbara County assessor's office has assessed its value at $96 million, but only for tax purposes. Forbes estimates the ranch may be worth significantly more than that. While sorting through boxes of Jackson family memorabilia up for auction in Las Vegas, Nevada, auction staff members found a 1987 contract detailing his $30 million (or $17 million in 1987) purchase of the land that became the Neverland Ranch.

Foreclosure proceedings

Foreclosure proceedings commenced against Neverland Ranch on October 22, 2007. However, a spokeswoman for Jackson says the loan is merely being refinanced.

On February 25, 2008, Jackson received word from Financial Title Company, the trustee, that unless he paid off $24,525,906.61 by March 19, a public auction will go forward in Santa Barbara, California, in front of the county courthouse. Along with the land and buildings, other things on the property would also be up for auction, such as the rides, trains, art, and curtains. On March 13, 2008, Londell McMillan, Jackson's lawyer, announced that a private agreement had been reached with the private investment group, Fortress Investment, to save Jackson's ownership of the ranch. Before the agreement, Jackson owed three months' arrears on the property. McMillan did not reveal the details of the deal. As of March 13, it has been confirmed Mr. Jackson still owns Neverland.

On May 12, 2008, a foreclosure auction for Michael Jackson's Neverland Ranch was canceled after an investment company, Colony Capital LLC, purchased the loan. Jackson was in default on the $24.5 million owed on the 2,500-acre property. In a press release, Jackson stated, "I am pleased with recent developments involving Neverland Ranch and I am in discussions with Colony and Tom Barrack with regard to the Ranch and other matters that would allow me to focus on the future.