The Bald Truth Scoop: MJ’s Neverland Blue$
Art Breaks Bald Truth Exclusive–Michael Jackson’s $350 Million Refi–on Fox BIZ Channel
By Art Harris, (c)www.artharris.com, all rights reserved
With what could go down in history as Michael Jackson’s least thrilling day looming March 19– the Neverland foreclosure auction on the courthouse steps if he doesn’t cough up $24 million and change to pay off the delinquent mortgage, sources close the family tell The Bald Truth friends are rallying to help raise the cash to save his sprawling 2,800 acre ranch.
“If nothing else, it shows a few good people care,” a family insider tells me.
A sale for less than what he owes the lender, if accepted by the trustees, would mean that any portion of his debt leftover would be erased. But some speculate he might be socked with hefty taxes from capital gains if Neverland sells for that amount or more because he only paid $14 million for the ponderosa in the mountains above Santa Barbara.
But a capital gains tax is unlikely, sources tell The Bald Truth because Jackson has sunk more than $30 million into the estate in assorted improvements, from ferris wheels, a petting zoo and railroad for the throng of kids who once visited the now abandoned spread, improvements to the main house and guest houses.
Those outlays, one insider tells me, would wipe out any capital gain and actually give the pop star a loss carry-forward that could reduce anything he may owe the IRS down the road. So Neverland could give one of his Stones’ favorites, Gimme Shelter, new meaning for Jackson.
As we reported yesterday in an exclusive account, Jackson netted $35 million in December after a $350 million refinance of earlier debt by a group of international banks, which accepted his Beatles catalogue asset as collateral.
That he would still be too cash poor two months later to pay his mortgage screams loud and clear how tough it is to reign in the King of Pop, and his undisciplined money ways, his high overhead and the toll impulse shopping, Jackson style, can takel
On Thursday, I laid out some inside scoop on his recent finances and prospects on the new FOX Business Channel, with Peter Barnes, hosting, and guests that included a memorabilia collector and a Santa Barbara real estate expert who dissed others who told me his ranch might be worth upwards of $50 million. She said the real estate market in the area was not as strong as Santa Barbara, where Oprah paid that much for only 40 acres and a house in Montecito.
Check out the complete show segment below from Fox Business Channel interview Feb. 28, and let us know what you think of MJ’s prospects, and what he needs to do now that the Thriller re release was a flop.
February 29th, 2008 at 10:34 am
[...] unknown wrote an interesting post today onHere’s a quick excerptWith what could go down in history as Michael Jackson’s least thrilling day looming March 19– the Neverland foreclosure auction on the courthouse steps if he doesn’t cough up $24 million and change to pay off the delinquent mortgage, … [...]
March 1st, 2008 at 2:29 am
I have a “Google Alert” on MJ daily….over the past YEARS he has NOT BEEN RESPONSIBLE!
We keep being told that he can make money from his THRILLER album….I PERSONALLY WOULD LIKE TO KNOW ABOUT HOW HE “MOLESTED” YOUNG BOYS!!!
M.J. should loose Neverland…GO INTO RETIREMENT GRACEFULLY…and thank HIS LUCKY STARS that he CURRENTLY is not being charged with CHILD MOLESTATION {of which he certainly is guilty…but of course “clever” lawyering protects him!
M.J. IS A “HASBEEN”!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
March 2nd, 2008 at 12:52 am
Dear Art,
That sounds like a nice song title…maybe you could profit from a ‘Royalty’ if it were ever produced.
“The Neverland Blues”
title by Art Harris
March 2nd, 2008 at 3:37 pm
I met Red Skelton, too!!!
March 3rd, 2008 at 1:27 am
Now, I’m thinking maybe it was Red that lost his son and had is artwork on display…it was a long, long time ago.
Well, they were both brilliant, anyway.
Seems I’ve gone off on a another tangent, I think it’s stress…
Trying to figure out Michael Jackson’s mess, LOL.
I don’t know if he’s a child molester, but one thing’s far darn sure…he’s weird.
March 4th, 2008 at 7:00 am
I’m thrilled he’s losing the place! He used in to assist in molesting young boys. It’s the most common ploy. They take the kids to fun places or to do fun things. The have all the latest video games, etc. They’ll go at this for months, sometimes longer! Oh well, I don’t need to lay out the whole scene. I hope he rots. He’s a guilty as sin…or he never would have settled out of court!
March 4th, 2008 at 8:26 am
I just wish I could have learned the moonwalk,for some reason I really like it but could not get the hank of it not matter how many people tried to show me.To bad he couldn’t save it and than give it to the state as a park or something.Sounds nice but is it feasable?
March 4th, 2008 at 7:21 pm
Obviously, there are a great many in society who enjoy elevating a person to great heights, and those who enjoy taking people down, many times without without personal KNOWLEDGE, other than what they have seen on TV or read in the print media.
The only thing I KNOW is that he has had a brilliant career in the past, and I have enjoyed his music and his ability as to showmanship. It SEEMS that once the bad publicity started depicting him as a weirdo freak, and a POSSIBLE child molester, it was a downhill slide. One thing for sure, as we have seen many times over, the public are too quick to condemn a person, based solely on gossip and hearsay.
Just maybe, his first biggest mistake was to settle with those accusers, rather than take it all through the court system. The settlements and the lawyers have profited a lot, and his reputation is still shot.
I have a lot of sympathy for Michael, and for his children, who will have to live under the clouded reputation of their father.
It could be that the one person who could save him from all this financial ruin would be Paul McCartney.
March 7th, 2008 at 1:44 am
LaVone:
I would think that Paul McCartney is too busy protecting his money due to having been a despicable husband to Heather Mills.