Kenny Rogers, who passed away on March 20, 2020, excelled in everything he undertook. He was a singer who sold over 100 million records, an actor, a songwriter, a restaurateur (Kenny Rogers Roasters), a businessman, an author, a philanthropist (Kenny Rogers Children’s Center), a photographer, and an athlete. He famously outmaneuvered and then scored on Michael Jordan in a charity basketball game in 1988. Kenny found early success in the music industry as a teen star from Houston, performing his song “That Crazy Feeling” on Dick Clark’s American Bandstand. He later joined the New Christy Minstrels and then the First Edition before embarking on a solo career. With giant hits such as “The Gambler,” “Lady,” and “Islands in the Stream” with Dolly Parton, Kenny’s career soared, making him one of the world’s favorite country-pop singers.
In addition to his contributions in music, acting, and business, Kenny Rogers was notably adept in real estate. Before the era of celebrity home flippers like Ellen DeGeneres, Meg Ryan, and Diane Keaton, there was Kenny Rogers. Known for his boundless energy on stage, Kenny transitioned into purchasing, renovating, and selling substantial homes with strong potential in upscale neighborhoods for a significant profit. In the early 1980s, he sold his first flip in 1984 in Beverly Hills for $20 million—a record price for Los Angeles at the time. Since then, most of his real estate projects have been in the Atlanta area, where he also launched an interior design business that served some of Atlanta’s wealthiest homeowners.
Following his successful Beverly Hills venture, Kenny Rogers acquired a bank-owned, 27,000-square-foot home in Atlanta in 2002. Despite its initial market listing of $12 million, he purchased it for just $2.75 million and sold it in 2006 for $8.5 million. Additionally, just outside Athens, Georgia, Rogers developed the nearly 1,000-acre Beaver Dam Farm, which he later sold in 2011 for $10.5 million. In 2009, Rogers invested $2.8 million in a property in Atlanta’s prestigious Tuxedo Park, initially listed at almost $8 million. Despite a challenging market, he sold this elegantly furnished home in 2011 for $3.725 million.
Most recently, Kenny Rogers purchased and then invested over $3 million to redesign and decorate a 7,000-square-foot suburban Atlanta family home. This decision came when his twin sons were just four years old and required ample space for play. Kenny, who was married five times, has been married to his current wife, Wanda, since 1997.
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