The tony Malibu home that gained notoriety when Kanye West gutted it before selling it at a multimillion-dollar loss is once again for sale.
The property, listed at $39 million, is in the midst of renovation as its new owner undoes Ye’s head-scratching remodeling choices. The home, completed in 2013, was designed by Pritzker Prize-winning Japanese architect Tadao Ando. Owner Bo Belmont says it needs millions of dollars more to restore it to its former glory.
The remaining work and the fact that the home is part of a community devastated by the Palisades fire might seem like two strikes against it. But Belmont doesn’t see it that way. The owner of Belwood Investments believes Malibu’s cachet has survived the fire just as this home survived Ye.
Work is underway on the master bedroom and deck of the home that was designed by Tadao Ando.
(Myung J. Chun / Los Angeles Times)
Belmont said he and his team had completed about $2 million worth of renovations on the concrete house to return it to its state before it was bought by Ye, who removed the windows, doors, electricity and plumbing and broke down walls. The house still needs an additional $6.5 million of work, Belmont estimated.
But Belmont said he’s happy to part with the property now for the right price.
“We did the math. We could sell right now, exit and let somebody add whatever finishes they want. … Really it’s the same return on investment for us if we exit right now or if we exit after completion,” Belmont said.
Ron Radziner, who runs Marmol Radziner, a design-build company, worked on the initial construction of the house and now is working to restore the home to its original look. That means repouring concrete walls that were demolished by Ye, replacing the removed cabinetry and reordering doors that were taken out.
“It’s obviously disappointing that as much of the home was removed and demolished as it was,” Radziner said. “But I think we all feel on our team really fortunate that we’ve been asked to come back and put it back together.”
Only about 20% of reconstruction has been completed so far, Radziner said. He has a team of about 40 people at the property daily. He said the most disturbing action by Ye was the removal of concrete walls.
“It’s hard to understand what would compel those pieces to come out,” he said.
Project manager Katerina Salonikidi, left, and foreman Sergio Marin of design firm Marmol Radziner on site.
(Myung J. Chun / Los Angeles Times)
Despite the renovation still being in its initial phase, offers for the property have begun to come in, Belmont said, but so far for below the $39-million asking price. Belmont believes there is renewed interest in Malibu properties that survived the Palisades fire.
“It’s made of concrete. It’s on a stretch of Malibu Road that wasn’t impacted. So now there’s a bit of exclusivity that Malibu kind of lost for a while,” Belmont said. “The reason people go to Malibu is to get away from paparazzi and the hustle and bustle of L.A.
“Now it seems like Malibu is gaining back that exclusivity,” he said. “I think that is a big reason why we were getting verbal offers.”
Belmont owns a company that allows people to “micro-invest” in properties as if they were stocks. When the properties sell, Belmont pays out the many investors who held a stake in them. For that reason, Belmont said, he would rather sell the house sooner than later. Belmont told The Times there are 500 investors in the Malibu Road house who invested between $1,000 and $1 million.
Stairs lead to the beach at the home that sits on a stretch of Malibu Road that was unaffected by the Palisades fire.
(Myung J. Chun / Los Angeles Times)
The four-bedroom beachside estate reportedly was built for former money manager Richard Sachs but was purchased by Ye in 2021 for $57 million.
Belmont bought the house from Ye for $21 million, and called some of his decisions on the property “dumb” in an interview with The Times in September.
Belmont is an entrepreneur with a complicated history. He spent three years in prison after being charged with attempted murder for a pitchfork attack in Napa County.
(“I shouldn’t have brought a pitchfork to a fistfight,” Belmont told The Times.)
Now, Belmont says the fires that devastated Los Angeles are helping the homes he is trying to sell, none of which burned, he said.
“The fires really bolstered our value and increased attraction across the board for our properties,” he said.
