Elon Musk lent nearly $7 million to a couple to buy a house: months later, they became his squatters

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Back in 2013, billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk purchased a prestigious mansion in Los Angeles with deep personal significance. Not only was the property located in the upscale Bel Air neighborhood, but it had also once belonged to one of Musk’s favorite actors: Gene Wilder, best known for his roles as Willy Wonka and Dr. Frankenstein. Wilder lived in the home until 2007, and when he moved out, he left behind many of his personal belongings.

Rather than buying the property as a real estate investment, Musk acquired the house for $6.7 million (about $7.2 million today) with the idea of turning it into a museum to honor Wilder’s legacy — ensuring no one would disrespect the memory of the actor. However, Musk’s plan didn’t quite work out as intended.

The house in honor of Gene Wilder

In 2020, seven years after the purchase and with no intention of ever living in the house, Musk decided to put the mansion on the market during a personal minimalist streak that saw him selling off several of his possessions. Still, he wanted to preserve Wilder’s legacy, so he listed the home for $9.5 million and made one strict condition: no renovations were allowed, and none of the original items or character-defining features of the house could be altered or removed.

Finding a buyer under such specific terms seemed like a challenge. But shortly after listing it, a couple expressed serious interest — and they had a key connection: the husband was Gene Wilder’s nephew. This seemed to align perfectly with Musk’s vision of honoring Wilder’s memory.

However, there was a problem: the asking price was too steep for the couple. Wanting to make the sale happen, Musk made a surprising move — he agreed to lower the price to $7 million and even offered to personally finance part of the amount, allowing the couple to repay him gradually.

Elon Musk’s worst deal?

At first, Musk was enthusiastic about the idea of keeping the house in Wilder’s family. But after the COVID-19 pandemic hit, the couple’s financial situation deteriorated, leading to delays in their repayments. Eventually, Musk issued them an ultimatum.

In July 2024, the couple listed the house for $12.5 million, but after failing to attract buyers, they dropped the price back to $9.5 million. The property still hasn’t sold, the couple remains in the home, and Musk has yet to recoup his money.

But things got worse: six months into the foreclosure process, the house was pulled from the market. To make matters even more complicated, Gene Wilder’s nephew signed an agreement with Los Angeles County to officially declare the home a “historic landmark,” prohibiting any interior or exterior renovations.

As it stands, this entire ordeal may go down as the worst business deal of Elon Musk’s career.