The U.S. Sun - Kardashian Family Has Borrowed $132 million in Home Loans to Fund Their Property Empire Despite Being Billionaires
Perez Hilton and others cite the Kardashian’s borrowing habits as financial troubles but we know it’s just another real life example of Buy, Borrow, Die.
By: Katy Forrester and Chris White
The Kardashian family may be one of the richest in the world, but the reality stars have taken out massive home loans on their mega-mansions, which run to $132 million combined.
Despite Kim and co being worth more than a billion dollars, they’ve stacked their luxury properties with huge amounts of borrowing, The U.S. Sun has exclusively learned.
Last month, we revealed Kim had taken out a $48 million mortgage on the $70 million Malibu property she bought in September, which is undergoing a big renovation.
But this is just the tip of the iceberg, as sisters Kourtney, Kylie, and Kendall Jenner have also laden their luxury homes with vast debt, as has mom Kris.
In total, the family quintet has borrowed $132 million, according to property records seen by The U.S. Sun.
While filings show that Kris paid for her most recent $20 million home in Hidden Hills outright, the same can't be said for the house she bought in 2010 for $4 million which was her long-term place for years, and featured heavily on Keeping Up With The Kardashians.
She borrowed $2.4 million in October 2015 and $2.11 million in March 2018, but just a few months later Kris went big on the borrowing.
The famous momager first of all took out a loan for $7.25 million in August 2018.
But, the following month, that was superseded by a new agreement for a whopping $40 million loan through the financial company Crosswind Venture Fund, which is ten times more than what she paid for the house.
Then, in January 2019, she borrowed $5.2 million, and $5.25 million in June of that year, according to property records.
This took Kris' borrowing up to $62.21 million, which was secured by the property and her other assets.
The borrowing was done through trust deeds, which is similar to a mortgage but involves a third party, a trustee, holding the legal title for the property.
As most celebrities want to keep their identity secret, their business manager is usually the trustee.
In this case, it's Lester Knispel, who for years has been the Kardashians' "money man".
It's worth noting that property records don't show whether a "deed of trust" has been paid back, so Kris may have repaid some of the loans by March 2023.
LA realtor Tony Mariotti, CEO of RubyHome Luxury Real Estate, explained why celebrities such as the Kardashians take on, what appear to be, huge financial risks - but he says could lead to bigger returns on their investments.
He told The U.S. Sun: "Taking on debt always carries risk. Even riskier is when the loan amount exceeds the value of the home. Kris is levering up more than other family members, and leverage needs to be managed well, or it can blow up in your face. You have to admire Kris' tolerance for risk, though. No one gets ahead without making a few business bets. I think, for entrepreneurs, the cost of doing nothing is more painful than pushing your chips into the middle of the table and seeing if you've got the winning hand."
BIG BORROWING
Kris' case is the most complicated out of the Kardashians, whereas records show that daughter Kylie Jenner borrowed $7.5 million in April 2020 when she paid $36.5 million for a stunning six-bedroom mansion in Holmby Hills.
The deal went through controversial business manager Lou Taylor, who has negotiated some of the family's recent property transactions despite her connection to Britney Spears.
In November 2021, Taylor's company Tri Star Sports and Entertainment Group said they had nothing to do with the pop star being monitored or controlled through her medication during the 13-year-long conservatorship under dad Jamie, with Taylor being involved for 11 of those years.
Britney's lawyers are still investigating claims that her finances, worth $60million, were mishandled by Taylor and her father - which is a key part of her "conservatorship abuse" legal case against Jamie, which she has denied.
Meanwhile, Kourtney Kardashian has been at her six-bedroom, nine-bathroom Calabasas place for eight years paying $7.45 million in February 2014.
In January the following year, she took out a deed of trust for $5.2 million and another one in February 2017 for $5.19 million - totaling $10.39 million - both arranged through financial guru Lester Knispel.
The final member of the family to have taken out a home loan is model Kendall Jenner.
She bought her five-bed, six-bath Beverly Hills place for $8.55 million in August 2017 and saddled it with $4.625 million worth of borrowing, also arranged through Knispel.