1990s one-hit wonder rapper Vanilla Ice may have fallen out of the limelight, but he's quietly become a real estate prodigy with multiple hits to his name.
After his rap career ended, the performer, whose real name is Robert Matthew Van Winkle, started buying, renovating and reselling real estate.
It wouldn't have been a shock if the former rapper who found early success had flopped career-wise after his music career ended, but he changed his tune.
According to Van Winkle, it all started in 1992 when Hurricane Andrew destroyed his Florida home. He decided to fix it up and sell it himself. He hatched a new money-making scheme and even went to design school to hone his skills.
Steve-O interviewed Vanilla Ice on his podcast, “Steve-O's Wild Ride.”
(YouTube)
He told Steve-O on his podcast “Steve-O's Wild Ride” that he “started buying houses all over the country,” and while he never lived in any of them, he “made millions of dollars” when he decided to sell them.
“I bought a bunch of stuff and I never used it,” Van Winkle revealed to Steve-O. “I figured I'd spend it while I was there. I don't want to stay in a hotel because it'll be crazy. So I bought all these houses and then I was like, 'Fuck it.' Three years went by and I never looked at them. I thought I'd lost money. I was like, 'Damn, I wasted a ton of money,' and I was like, 'Let's sell it. Let's sell everything.' So I sold everything.”
In the end, the house sold quickly, and Van Winkle “made millions of dollars without doing anything,” he told Steve-O. “They didn't change the carpet, it might have had cobwebs in it. Nobody rented it out. It just sat there, and I thought, 'Oh my God, I'm gonna buy more.' I was buying houses all over the place, and I'm still buying.”
The 56-year-old's talents as a real estate investor and contractor were showcased on the reality TV show “The Vanilla Ice Project,” which ran for 180 episodes and 13 seasons.
He explained to Steve-O that he buys “distressed homes” that are off the market for “pennies on the dollar.”
Van Winkle's house-flipping business must be paying off: Celebrity Net Worth estimates he's worth about $20 million.
Here are some of the properties of vanilla ice cream:
St. Augustine, Florida
Van Winkle owns two homes on Rattlesnake Island, and he reportedly plans to keep one and sell the other.
Built in 1990, the 1,763 square foot home has three bedrooms and two bathrooms. This home sold in 2023 for $620,000. The beach pad is “just steps away” from Mantanzas Beach and offers views from all three porches. The home is advertised as a property in need of repair, with the ad calling it a chance to “unleash your creativity and transform this gem into the beach retreat of your dreams.”
This beachfront home awaits the buyer's creative touch.
(Realtor.com)
Right next door is our second purchase, a slightly larger 3 bedroom, 3 bathroom, 2,000+ square foot property in a beautiful mint green setting with “views and a pool.” This nautical-themed residence features a gourmet kitchen, a loft reading nook, and endless ocean views from the patio and porch. This home sold in 2023 for $840,000.
The neighboring mint-green residence has water views.
(Realtor.com)
Lake Worth, FL
Lake Worth, a coastal town in Palm Beach County, Florida, is one area where Van Winkle has worked and where he owns three adjacent homes.
In 2011, the rapper-turned-real-estate investor purchased the five-bedroom Mediterranean-style home for $460,000. The spacious 5,000-square-foot home features “volume ceilings and plenty of upgrades,” tile floors, a fireplace, and a gourmet kitchen with granite countertops and stainless steel appliances. It also has a “huge” owner's suite with a sitting area.
In 2016, Van Winkle quickly purchased the property next door, a four-bedroom, 4,300-square-foot home on more than an acre of land. He paid $593,000 for it.
One of three adjacent homes owned by Vanilla Ice in Lake Worth, Florida.
(Realtor.com)
In 2023, Ice purchased his third and latest property in Lake Worth for $750,000. The three-bedroom, 3,100-square-foot home sits on an acre of land.
Loxahatchee, Florida
In nearby Palm Beach County, a three-bedroom, two-bathroom, 1,700-square-foot home sold for $206,200 in 2014. The home was described as having an “appealing exterior,” “excellent” landscaping, and was “move-in ready.” The home sits on an acre of land, which may have made it especially attractive to the buyer.
The Palm Beach County home has an “appealing exterior,” the listing states.
(Realtor.com)
Northport, Florida
This small town on Florida's southwest coast, about 40 minutes from Sarasota, caught Ice's eye.
He owns three houses in the area.
Spring, Texas
The Texas-born buyer purchased one property in the state: a brick home that sold in 2021 for an undisclosed price but was originally listed for $310,000. Built in 2007, the home has three bedrooms, two bathrooms, and is 2,226 square feet.
The soundproofed, secured, single-story home with a three-car garage is located in the “popular” Auburn Lakes neighborhood.
Key features include a private study, formal dining room, granite island in the kitchen, living room, fireplace and spacious master bedroom. The master-planned community includes a recreation center, pool, clubhouse, trails and golf course.
The single story Texas home is located within a planned community.
(Realtor.com)
Rent Vanilla Ice's former home
If you want to live like Vanilla Ice (at least, the way he used to live), consider this luxury mansion in Wellington, Florida. The rapper's former home is available to rent for $6,000 per month. With high ceilings and an open living space layout, it spans 4,163 square feet, five bedrooms, and six bathrooms. Key features include a study/office, family room, exercise room, and bar. It also comes with a pool, cabana bath, and three-car garage.
Vanilla Ice's former home is available for rent.
(Realtor.com)
Randy White contributed research to this report.