Kanye West left this architectural masterpiece in a shocking state, but wants $39 million for the Malibu mansion

By Claudine Zap

'It will take several million dollars for the house to be finished.'

Kanye West's Malibu mansion, at one time an architectural marvel, now sits as a stripped-down fixer-upper with a hefty $39 million price tag.

While it's a staggering sum, it actually represents a $14 million drop from the initial price tag. Even with the 26% price reduction, the listing entered the market some 169 days ago, with no buyer in sight-so far.

"It's been stripped apart-doors, windows removed, HVAC removed, [and] open to all the elements, which is pretty devastating."Sandro Dazzan, managing partner of The Agency, Malibu, Calif.

And there's a reason for this languishing listing-a turnkey property it is not. The rapper and entrepreneur gutted the place and walked away from the unfinished project, deciding instead to put the Tadao Ando-designed residence back on the market.

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Minimalist in Malibu

Built in 2013, the structure is only one of a handful of private homes in the U.S. designed by the Pritzker Prize-winning Japanese architect.

Just steps from the Pacific Ocean, the 4,000-square-foot home sits on a relatively compact 5,674-square-foot lot. It's made of approximately 1,200 tons of concrete, 200 tons of steel reinforcement, and 12 massive supporting pylons driven more than 60 feet into the sand.

Ando worked with L.A.-based architecture firm Marmol Radziner, which acted as "executive architect and general contractor" for the building. Inside, "smooth-as-silk" concrete abounds, along with natural light-another signature feature of Ando's designs.

Very few of the architect's designs exists in the U.S., but one of them is right down the road from West's property-another concrete monolith owned by Beyonce and Jay-Z, who paid a reported $200 million for the place in 2023.

West, who now goes by the moniker Ye, paid $57.25 million for his minimalist beach house in 2021. At the time, the spread was a sleek and masterfully designed space built to the exacting specifications of the previous owner.

Photos taken prior to Ye's gutting reveal the home's sublime design.

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Left to the elements

A recent profile of West's property in The New Yorker describes the once-sleek space in a shocking state. Ye reportedly didn't like any of the home's interior finishes and eliminated nearly all of them. His plan, according to the profile: "This is going to be my bomb shelter. This is going to be my Batcave."

But that vision was never realized. Instead, a demolition project commenced, involving the removal of bathrooms, kitchen cabinets, plumbing, electricity, and windows.

It's no secret that the concrete shell will require extensive labor to be livable. The listing itself notes: "Currently all interior finishes have been removed from the property, and work is needed to either restore or reimagine the interiors."

The property's listing agent, Jason Oppenheim, of the Oppenheim Group and a star of the reality real estate show "Selling Sunset," told the Wall Street Journal in December, "It will take several million dollars for the house to be finished."

A lot of unknowns

But will a buyer be able to see past the chaos and appreciate an architecturally significant property that's been demolished inside?

"It's pretty sad," says Sandro Dazzan, managing partner of The Agency, Malibu, who has walked the property and shown it to clients. "Because it was obviously an architectural masterpiece when it was completed."

He adds: "It's been stripped apart-doors, windows removed, HVAC removed, [and] open to all the elements, which is pretty devastating."

When Dazzan visited the home in the winter, there was "water throughout the whole house, puddles, it was really sad."

Despite its current state, the rare Ando home is still alluring.

"The biggest value factor, it's Tadao Ando, one of the most highly acclaimed architects in history," Dazzan says.

But even with the home's architectural cachet, its price tag still might be steep.

Dazzan points to other nearby sales that were in the "20 million-ish" range for houses with similar lot sizes-albeit without the Ando prestige.

West's home is asking twice that price, and a buyer would have to be prepared for extensive renovation.

"Any buyer taking this on has a lot of unknowns that they'll have to address," Dazzan says, estimating expenses ranging from $5 million to $6 million for the work involved.

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Too much to take on?

It's the amount of work coupled with the price tag that could make it hard to close the deal at the current ask.

"I think it is too much work for $39 million," says Myra Nourmand, principal of Nourmand & Associates. "The home is overbuilt for the land size, and it still needs to be finished. Getting the permits from the Coastal Commission is challenging and very time-consuming in today's world. The profile of someone who is willing to pay that kind of money is very, very limited. It will probably eventually be reduced in price to reflect what is being offered."

Cara Ameer, an agent with Coldwell Banker in California, says the "market is speaking" and "not responding with much excitement" for the listing.

"For this price, you can find properties that are complete and more turnkey," she notes. "Although they weren't designed by Tadao Ando and not necessarily concrete fortresses like this one is, the significance of this kind of loses its meaning given that the property's systems have been removed."

Regardless, West seems in no particular rush to sell, which could indicate a disinterest in negotiating, Ameer adds.

"This can be a difficult sell, as ultimately it is going to be the price that overcomes all else," she says. "There is always a number that the market is willing to pay. The question is, is that number something that Ye will agree to?"

This story originally ran on Realtor.com.

-Claudine Zap

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