Did Kim and Kanye Botch the Sale of Their Bel Air Home? Maybe—Here’s Why

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Kim Kardashian West and Kanye West have just sold their home in Los Angeles’ swanky neighborhood of Bel Air for $17.8 million—and given that they bought the six-bedroom, eight-bath mansion in 2013 for $9 million, you’d think this power couple were due serious props for doubling their money in a mere four years.

We hate to break it to you, but this home sale might not be the raging success it appears to be at first glance. Allow us to explain.

They could have made a ton more money

“I’d call this only a moderately successful sale,” says real estate agent Dolly Lenz, who has worked with Kardashian West. Although the couple likely didn’t lose money, they might have left a couple of million on the negotiation table.

“It is unlikely that the Wests made a huge profit from this deal,” adds Shane Lee, a statistical data analyst at RentHop.

So why the lukewarm accolades? For one, as these experts point out, Bel Air is already a white-hot market.

“The Bel Air–Beverly Hills triangle market is on fire. It is the destination,” Lenz says. Case in point: In April, JAY Z and Beyoncé reportedly bought a different Bel Air compound for $88 million (it was initially listed for $135 million).

Granted, Bey and Jay’s home might be a whole lot swankier than Kimye’s, but $88 million sure is a whole lot more than $17.8 million. It makes you wonder whether the Wests might have lost out,

Let’s put some numbers to this.

“They bought the Bel Air mansion for $11 million and sold it for $17.8 million, so the value grew by 62%,” says Lee. “Which is not bad compared to the median home value change in Los Angeles during the same period: From 2013 to 2017, the median home value went up around 55% in L.A.”

However, “buying and selling properties involves additional fees such as broker’s commissions,” Lee continues. “If we take those things into account, the Wests probably didn’t make much from this deal.”

“I would have listed the home at a higher price and saw what happened,” says Lenz. After all, “no one can get more attention than this couple. I would have started higher to see if I could shake another couple million out of a buyer at least.”

They spent oodles on renovations

The profits from this sale lose even more luster once you consider how much money Kardashian West and West poured into renovating the house. Reports from 2013 suggest that the couple spent $2 million on renovations to turn the place into a Versailles-like paradise—ripping off the roof, installing a gym and indoor pool, and even blowing $750,000 on four gold-plated toilets.

And if they’ve spent more since then, this starts to pare down their profits considerably.

“Luxury renovations cost around $1,000 per square foot, and you’re talking about a big house,” Lenz says. (The Wests’ place clocks in at 16,000 square feet.) Which raises the question: Why undergo such extensive renovations when you’re going to just up and sell the place anyway?

“I’ve met Kim Kardashian, and I think she has a good eye; maybe she just enjoys renovating,” says Lenz. “Certain people just love the process. I often sell my clients homes that are already in perfect condition. And guess what? They go and gut renovate it. It’s a creative process.”

Hey, everyone needs a hobby—and it’s a good thing Kardashian West can afford such an expensive one.

They may have ‘settled’ on their buyer

So who’s the lucky buyer of this home? Marina Acton, a Silicon Valley entrepreneur and philanthropist. According to the home’s listing agent, Josh Alton (who stars on “Million Dollar Listing Los Angeles“), Acton loved the home and its “energy.”

“Marina was looking for a creative and inspiring space, a place where she can be in her zone and work on her music,” Alton told People.

And maybe Acton also loved the house because it was a screaming bargain with no other prospective buyers in sight—a problem that could have been solved by canvassing a wider swath of buyers.

As Lenz says, “I would have probably reached out to a broad audience, like people in Seattle or Hong Kong.”

Timing a sale is always tricky

So should the Wests have held onto the property instead?

“Home prices have been on the rise, so one can argue that the Wests should have held onto the property longer,” says Lee. “But think about this: It is often not easy to find a buyer for a luxury mansion like this one, and so when a suitable buyer shows up with a good deal, a smart seller will most likely sell it.”

Plus, “the current housing market in L.A. is obviously hot, and potentially will pass the threshold and become overheated in the near future,” Lee says. “Once the market reaches that point, it is unlikely that one can make a profit out of any home sale. Also, housing demand will most likely go down if the proposed GOP [tax plan] is passed. Considering all of the uncertainties mentioned above, I’d say maybe the Wests made the right move.”

In other words, maybe this Kimye home sale wasn’t a raging success or an abysmal failure, but a mixed bag, much like the real estate deals of mere mortals like us.

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