Who owns the Neverland Ranch now? Michael Jackson: The Verdict sparks renewed interest

The release of Michael Jackson: The Verdict, Netflix's latest three-part docuseries, has reignited public curiosity about the late King of Pop’s life, legacy, and the fate of the properties he once owned. Among them, Neverland Ranch remains one of the most iconic and talked-about estates in celebrity history.

Michael Jackson: The Verdict has brought renewed attention to the controversies and legal battles that have shaped the 2700-acre property located in California's Santa Barbara County.

Following Michael Jackson's 2005 trial, the property was reverted to its original name of Sycamore Valley Ranch in 2017. Currently, the Ranch is owned by Jackson's financial advisor, investment billionaire Ron Burkle, who bought it in 2020 for $22 million.

More on this in our story.

Michael Jackson: The Verdict- What is the Neverland Ranch?

Netflix's Michael Jackson: The Verdict features archival footage related to the investigation at Neverland Ranch, which has renewed fan interest in the infamous property.

For the uninitiated, Michael Jackson's Neverland Ranch is a 2,700-acre property located in Los Olivos, California, where the late pop singer resided for about 17 years, from 1988 to 2005. According to Jackson's sister La Toya Jackson's 2011 book Starting Over, the ranch was specially transformed to recapture the singer's childhood and allow him to live that golden period of his life, which he never experienced.

The Neverland Ranch, as featured in Michael Jackson: The Verdict, had many whimsical features such as a 13,000-square-foot French country home, a petting zoo with llamas & chimps, a 50-seat movie theatre, and a large Ferris wheel. Named after Peter Pan's fictional land, Jackson's sister revealed that the Neverland Ranch was envisioned as a living fairytale, and the singer would often invite children to play on the property.

While Michael Jackson spent some of the most beautiful years of his life at the Ranch, things took a turn when the police raided the property in 2003, following allegations of s*xual m*lestation, also featured in Netflix's Michael Jackson: The Verdict.

Michael Jackson: The Verdict- Why did the police raid Neverland Ranch?

The late singer's life took a drastic turn when he was pictured holding hands with a 13-year-old boy, Gavin Arvizo (who was recovering from cancer at the time), in the 2003 documentary Living with Michael Jackson. The film sparked speculation about Jackson's relationship with Arvizo and other children on the property, leading to a police raid (with more than 40 officers) in November 2003.

While the singer was acquitted of all charges in 2005, Wade Robson and James Safechuck's allegations of s*xual m*lestation, in the 2019 documentary Leaving Neverland, claimed that Michael Jackson's Neverland Ranch was equipped with secret spaces and hidden rooms, where he allegedly m*lested young children.

As shown in the archival footage in Michael Jackson: The Verdict, the pop singer was indicted on 10 criminal charges, including child m*lestation and abduction, but was acquitted in 2005.

However, according to La Toya's book, Michael vowed never to return to the Neverland Ranch following this incident:

“I hate this place. I can't stand it. I never want to see it again. Never. I'll never come back here.”

The singer held to his words as he took his final breaths at the age of 50, on June 25, 2009, without ever returning to his former fairytale land.

Following the 2005 trial, the price of Michael Jackson's Neverland Ranch fell drastically, from its initial listing price of $100 million in 2015 to $67 million in 2017, to just $31 million in 2019. Burkle bought the property in 2020, after he saw it as a “land banking opportunity.'' While there were talks of transforming the estate into a tourist attraction, Burkle decided to keep it as a private residence, just as the late singer intended.

You can stream Michael Jackson: The Verdict on Netflix.

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