Rapper 50 Cent’s massive mansion just sold for a fraction of its price after being on the market for over a decade.
The Farmington mansion, in Connecticut, sold for $2.9 million—about 84 percent less than its 2007 listing price, according to The Wall Street Journal, which first reported the news.
Born as Curtis James Jackson III, 50 Cent bought the mansion for $4.1 million from former boxer Mike Tyson in 2003. That was the same year the rapper’s hit debut album was released, “Get Rich or Die Tryin’,” according to WSJ.
Rapper 50 Cent unloads Farmington mansion but no where near his original asking price https://t.co/YwK07Z7lV0 pic.twitter.com/3RXhWKJoZr
— Hartford Courant (@hartfordcourant) April 2, 2019
He then reportedly spent millions on renovations, and put the mansion up for sale in 2007 with a listing price of $18.5 million. The price then dropped several times, with the most recent listing at $4.95 million, according to the listing on Zillow. It was also listed for rent at $100,000 per month for a while.
Built in 1985, the mansion is set on 17 acres. The estate spans approximately 50,000 square feet, has 21 bedrooms, 25 bathrooms, swimming pools, a home theater, a recording studio, a full gym, and a conference room, according to the real estate listing. The listing also includes aerial shots of the sprawling mansion as well as photos of a night club decorated with murals of the rapper.
After 12 years of trying, rapper 50 Cent finally unloaded his 52-room Connecticut mansion https://t.co/AoGKEbTcgf pic.twitter.com/vAKkCZ8Ta6
— The Wall Street Journal (@WSJ) April 2, 2019
In 2015, the rapper filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, revealing the staggering cost of $70,000 in monthly fees just to maintain the place while vacant, according to court documents obtained by WSJ.
Why Was the Mansion So Hard to Sell?
Rob Giuffria, a broker at Tea Leaf Realty in West Harford, Connecticut, predicted back in 2007 when the mansion first went up for sale, that it would never sell for more than $5 million, according to the Hartford Courant.
“The hardest part of getting the house sold is ‘How do [you] utilize a house that large?'” he told the Courant. “It’s a showy house. Someone who buys it wants to impress with its size.”
He said that the mansion would have been better suited for a place such as Los Angeles, Miami, or New York City, where celebrities might want to impress friends with the sheer size and opulence of their homes.
https://t.co/IvTuRELqRR Sell Low Or Die Tryin’ – 50 Cent “Massacred” With 84% Price Cut On Connecticut Mansion https://t.co/X7dQCaLDKJ pic.twitter.com/YKxypuh7jA
— SecretVision (@TradingProdigy) April 3, 2019
Another reason it was so hard to sell could be because of the history of the place. Built in the 1980s by real-estate fraudster Benjamin Sisti, the mansion was a monument to the wealth of his company, Colonial Realty Co. That was until the operation went bankrupt in the 1990s, reported the Courant. Even then, the mansion was known as “the most notorious house in Connecticut”—and was almost five times as large as the houses surrounding it.
Giuffria said another daunting factor for buyers was the hefty property tax of $120,000 per year.
Who Bought the Mansion?
The Farmington mansion is now owned by Casey Askar and the Askar Group of Naples, Fla.
The Askar Group announced the purchase in a release, adding that future plans for the mansion include complete renovation of the interior and grounds. The Askar Brands operates a range of restaurants, including Papa Romano’s, Papa’s Pizza, Breadeaux Pizza, Blackjack Pizza, Mr. Pita, Stucchi’s and C.J.’s Brewing Co, according to their website.
A Naples, Fla. businessman named Casey Askar confirmed he has taken ownership of the Farmington mansion sold for $2.9 million by rapper #50Centhttps://t.co/3A34RQ7uCS
— Connecticut Post (@connpost) April 3, 2019
Jennifer Leahy, the real estate agent at Douglas Elliman who handled the sale of the Farmington estate, confirmed the sale on Facebook.
Closed! I’m proud to announce the sale of one of the most iconic homes in Connecticut. I was relentless and never…
Posted by Jennifer Kinberg Leahy on Monday, April 1, 2019
The proceeds of the sale will be donated to the G-Unity Foundation Inc., 50 Cent’s nonprofit.
.@50Cent plans to donate his money to the G-Unity Foundation. https://t.co/vbaO18uktb
— Globalnews.ca (@globalnews) April 3, 2019