Kanye West’s amazing homes: from his Wyoming ranches to a $57m concrete bunker

With acres of real estate spanning California, Wyoming and beyond, Ye’s property portfolio was once the stuff of dreams and the star had expressed his goal of becoming the ‘world’s biggest real estate investor’. But since his much-publicised divorce from Kim Kardashian and subsequent loss of lucrative business deals following his controversial outbursts and anti-semitism, there are signs that Kanye’s investments are turning into a no-man’s land of nightmares. Click or scroll to find out more…

Recent photos show his estates covered in rubble and deserted building materials, as reported by the Daily Mail, where Ye’s sprawling ranches in Wyoming and LA appear to have been left abandoned. The ‘Monster Lake’ ranch in Wyoming and his impressive California estate seem to have fallen into shocking disrepair, with discarded waste surrounded by dust, overgrown greenery and a “disused four-wheel dune buggy”. So what happened? Thanks to bouts of hate speech and controversial PR stunts, West lost valuable deals with high-profile brands – such as Adidas, GAP and Balenciaga – making a huge dent in his notoriety and assets claiming his net worth plummeted from $2 billion (£1.6bn) to less than $4 million (£3.3m).

Could this financial disaster now be impacting the upkeep of his properties? This Calabasas ranch was once the site of Kanye’s world-renowned ‘Sunday Service’ and his somewhat secretive ‘Donda Academy’ school, which saw parents of its students sign non-disclosure agreements. Boarded up in September 2020, now all that is left of the mysterious campus are some discarded props, such as drums and trikes, and certainly no sign of student life according to The Mail Online.  

West’s Calabasas ranch was also set to host an ambitious new ‘city’ of affordable dome houses, based on the fictitious planet of Tatooine from Star Wars. Referred to as his ‘Yecosystem’, Kanye had been busy building the dome-topped structures from 2019 onwards to be launched via the architectural branch of Yeezy, Yeezy Home. However, the Yecosystem dream soon collapsed, as its shaky foundations were unearthed in 2019. Seen here via KCAL News, the ambitious dome homes are filmed being torn down before the grand plans could take flight.

Having reportedly failed to apply for a building permit and telling inspectors the structures were temporary (though laid over concrete), Ye was forced to demolish the 50-foot dome developments in September 2019. By the following July, Ye had started works again on a different iteration of the dome network, described as YZY shelters. Captured under construction here in 2020, the unfinished structures featured curved floor plans and domed metalwork. However the ambitious dome ‘city’ never reached completion, with structures currently left abandoned and the concrete foundations are all that appears to be left today.

Kanye has always courted controversy but his growing extremism – including promoting clothing with the much-criticised slogan ‘White Lives Matter’ –  has damaged not only his reputation but his business ventures and personal fortune. In late 2022, he found himself suspended from Twitter for a second time for inciting violence, according to the BBC. In March 2023, after being banned from Instagram for antisemitic content the previous December, Ye resurfaced on the social media site to declare that he “like(d) Jewish people again” continuing, “no one should take anger against one or two individuals and transform that into hatred towards millions of innocent people.”

Kanye is known to have been a big supporter of Trump in the past – he’s seen here at the White House in 2018 but he hit headlines again late last year when he announced that he intends to run in the 2024 presidential election. He even paid a visit to Mar-a-Lago in November 2022, with white nationalist Nick Fuentes in tow, to ask the former president to be his running mate, a request which did not go down well. Kanye said that Trump screamed at him, a claim the former president denied. Posting on his Truth Social account, Trump dismissed Ye as “a seriously troubled man” and advised him not to run for office.

Ye may now do well to focus on his business interests. After big corporations cut ties with the rapper, he announced plans to sell repurposed and rebranded Balenciaga, Adidas, and Gap hoodies for $20 (£16) direct to his fans. Meanwhile, he is facing claims of bullying from employees, who accuse him of creating a “toxic and chaotic environment” at work, according to a Rolling Stone report. It’s a major derailment in what has been a stratospheric rise to the top.

So, where is Kanye living now? After rumours that he was ‘missing’, Kanye appeared with a new wife in January 2023. According to The Sun Kanye and new ‘wife’ Bianca Censori are staying at the luxurious Nobu Ryokan in Malibu while work is carried out on Kanye’s $57.3 million (£46.5m) Malibu home (pictured). Nightly rates at the five-star hotel begin at $2,000 (£1.6k). “They hang out, work together, and play board games,” according to The Sun. The report says that Bianca “handles Ye’s daily logistics from Yeezy clothing management to construction of the new Yeezy headquarters/ Donda Academy.” Could things be on the up for the star and his empire?

With a stellar career as a successful musician, fashion designer and businessman, it’s no surprise that he has some impressive real estate under his belt. Having split from Kim Kardashian in January 2021, Ye went on a bit of a property spree the following year, purchasing a new Brutalist-inspired home in Malibu in September 2021 and a Hidden Hills home across the street from his ex-wife in December of the same year, as well as reportedly snapping up a home in Antwerp Belgium. However, he hasn’t always had so many palatial properties to choose from…

Kanye Omari West was born in Atlanta, Georgia on 8 June 1977. When his parents, Donda and Ray, divorced when he was just three, the young star and his mother moved to Chicago, Illinois. At the age of 10, Kanye moved to China (pictured) for a year with Donda, where she taught at Nanjing University as part of an exchange programme.

After returning to the US, Kanye and Donda moved back to Chicago and the pair lived in this modest timber home in the middle-class South Shore neighbourhood of the Windy City. Recently, the rapper recreated his childhood home inside Chicago’s Soldier Field Stadium for the third and final listening event of his latest album, Donda. His mother, who was an English professor at Chicago State University and also the star’s manager, sadly passed away in November 2007.

Spread over 1,673 square feet, the latest listing pictures show that the once-loved home has been empty for some time and is in a state of disrepair. Inside, the family home features a living room, dining space, kitchen, four bedrooms and one bathroom.

Built in 1900, the home sits on a 7,000-square-foot plot and is awash with period features that are in dire need of renovation. From the vaulted ceilings to the hardwood floors and carved wooden doors, the forlorn structure could easily become a beautiful home again once the old house is restored to its former glory.

After moving back to Chicago, Kanye become interested in the music scene and eventually managed to gain a mentor in DJ and producer No I.D. West graduated from Polaris High School and won a scholarship to study at the American Academy of Art in Chicago in 1997, before transferring to Chicago State University to study English. However, he soon dropped out of college to pursue his music career.

His childhood home was sold in 2003, but the property has been on and off the market several times over the years at varying price tags. Then in January 2019, Kanye bought the home back for $225,000 (£183k) under a limited liability company he set up under his mother’s name, Donda Services. According to the New York Post, it’s thought that he’s now renovating the house.

After working with local artists in Chicago, Kanye upped sticks to New York in 2001 and got his big break working on the production of the hit track ‘This Can’t Be Life’ by Jay-Z, as well as the star’s later album Blueprint. Determined to pursue his own music career, Kanye signed with Roc-A-Fella Records, but shortly after, he shattered his jaw in a car crash. Not one to pass up on an opportunity, he decided to record a song about the experience—’Through The Wire’, which he rapped with his jaw still wired closed. West’s first album was released in February 2004 and sold 2.6 million copies, finally making West a star in his own right.

In 2003, just as West emerged as a solo rap artist and producer, collaborating with Jamie Foxx on the single ‘Slow Jamz’, his very first chart-topping single, he took his first steps on the property ladder and splashed out on this minimalist home in the Hollywood Hills for just shy of $1.8 million (£1.5m). The sleek home was just the start of Kanye’s property journey, but it set the scene for the minimalist and sophisticated interior style that he has since become known for.

Inside, the 4,200-square-foot home boasts hardwood floors, stunning high ceilings and sliding glass doors that bring in an abundance of light. Built in 2002, Kanye was the first owner of the lavish house, and with a spacious open floor plan and balcony, it would have been the perfect space for him to pen his first album.

The ideal place for candlelit dinners, the dining room features picture windows that look out over the Los Angeles skyline. The pad would have been perfect for Kanye’s bachelor lifestyle before he began dating former friend Kim Kardashian in 2011.

Spread over three storeys, the home also offers luxury amenities such as a media room and a bar space, making it excellent for entertaining. Sitting behind private gates in the Nichols Canyon area of Los Angeles, the home was an obvious choice for the privacy-loving rapper.

Elsewhere there are three bedrooms, including the master suite which boasts an ensuite bathroom complete with a bath that sits next to the picture window. After 15 years, Kanye sold the home for just shy of $3 million (£2.4m) in 2017.

As his debut album hit the airwaves in 2004, Kanye decided to purchase an apartment on the fourth floor of this apartment block in the trendy Soho area of New York. In 2004 he reportedly bought a 1,500-square-foot unit for just shy of $1.9 million (£1.5m), and in 2006 went on to buy the apartment next door for just under $1.3 million (£1m).

The rapper then hired Italian architect Claudio Silvestrin to combine and transform the spaces to suit the minimalist aesthetic that West has become known for. Transformed into a stunning 2,400-square-foot home, the apartment and its décor were also said to have inspired West’s Yeezy Season 2 clothing collection.

Streamlined and neutral, the apartment boasts a window-lined living room and dining room in one corner, while the other is home to a small, compact kitchen with high-end appliances, pearwood cabinets and a stone centre island. The sophisticated space would’ve been the perfect base for Kanye to enjoy life in the Big Apple.

With two bedrooms and one-and-a-half bathrooms, the city pad squeezes lots of luxury finishes into its compact floor plan. The spacious master suite has a hallway lined with full-height wardrobes, a bathroom with heated flooring and a stone island that includes a bath and a sink. In 2011, having been friends since the late 2000s, Kanye started dating reality star Kim Kardashian and the two went on to spend plenty of time together in the Soho loft.

Kanye also had access to two private storage units, laundry facilities, a home automation system and custom lighting and audio technology. The star eventually sold on the apartment for a reported $3 million (£2.4m) in May 2018 in an off-market deal.

In January 2013, not long after Kanye announced that Kim was pregnant with their first child during a New Year’s Eve performance in Atlantic City, the couple purchased their first piece of real estate together. They chose to spend their money on this Bel Air mansion, which cost them $9 million (£7.3m). The celebrity couple renovated the property to match their minimalist style and then went on to sell it at a much higher price in 2017 for $17.8 million (£14.5m).

Hidden away in the guard-gated community of Bel Air Crest, the home was the perfect retreat for Kim and Kanye to start their family. The spacious living room features a concrete fireplace and a wall of glass that looks out over the stunning Los Angeles skyline.

The kitchen is just as minimal in its style with sleek stainless steel appliances and a long slim centre island. Perfect for their growing brood, elsewhere there are six bedrooms and eight bathrooms spread over 9,000 square feet of space.

With a luxurious swimming pool, a sheltered patio and an outside dining table, the grounds easily compete with other billionaire backyards in the notoriously high-end area. It’s definitely an alfresco spread worthy of a Kardashian dinner party!

After marrying Kim in an extravagant ceremony in Italy in 2014, the newlyweds snapped up their Hidden Hills mansion. The pair splashed out $20 million (£16.2m) on the home, plus an additional $20 million (£16.2m) on extensive renovations to meet Kanye’s minimal aesthetic. The renovations took a whopping three years, so Kim and Kanye set up home at Kris Jenner’s mansion across the street until they could move in.

While Kanye imposed a filming ban in the mansion during the production of Keeping Up With The Kardashians, the pair gave us glimpses inside the home through their social media channels. Described as a ‘futuristic monastery’, Kanye spent time working with Belgian architect Axel Vervoordt on the new design. The living room, which features a plush cream carpet, minimalist fireplace and soft white sofas, was said to be one of Kim’s favourite rooms.

With not one, but two kitchens, there was plenty of space for mealtimes with their four children; North, Chicago, Pslam and Saint. Fitted out with a walk-in pantry complete with a frozen yoghurt machine, we’re sure that the home is a big hit with the kids. Spotted on Kim’s Instagram, this picture shows the family having breakfast – shortly after it was posted, the power couple announced that they would be going their separate ways.

Whilst their divorce played out, Kim stayed in the mansion with the children and has since bought Kanye out for a reported $23 million (£18.7m), to make her the sole owner of the family home valued at around $60 million (£48.7m).

After news of his divorce broke in February 2021, Kanye fled to his private Wyoming ranch to escape the spotlight. Following in the footsteps of a number of celebrities who own farms and ranches, he snapped up the rural retreat back in September 2019. Known as Monster Lake Ranch, the property was said to be a peaceful place for the rapper to unwind away from the bright lights of LA.

Kanye listed the sprawling property for $11 million (£8.9m) with DBW Realty in October 2021, two years after purchasing it. He then removed it from the market in September 2022, due to insufficient offers – though some say the move was in response to Kim’s split from comedian Pete Davidson, which occurred around the same time. Kanye had hoped that Kim would move to the 3,888-acre ranch full-time during their marriage, so maybe he held out hopes of getting back together.

The ranch, which is also known as ‘Yeezy Campus’, is flanked by the dramatic Absaroka Range mountains and tranquil shorelines, making it the ultimate escape from the world’s media. Before their split, it was reported that Kanye and Kim planned to build a brand new 52,000-square-foot home and two underground garages on the land. Sadly, the project never came to be and the land has now fallen into disuse.

It’s not hard to see why Kanye was originally enchanted by this blissful rural oasis in the remote northwest town of Cody. The ranch itself contains two large fully stocked freshwater lakes, ideal for trophy trout fishing. With plenty of development potential, the lot could make an ideal holiday destination for city dwellers longing for a slice of the good life, or perhaps the land could be farmed commercially once more.

The ranch was originally on the market for $14 million (£11m), and it is thought the superstar paid $8 million (£6.5m) for the property. However, with several cabins and outbuildings, a restaurant with a commercial kitchen, a ranch-style venue, a maintenance shop and equestrian facilities, it wouldn’t have come cheap.