Barter�s Role For Entrepreneur Building World�s Most Expensive Home
Timothy
Blixseth, 55, is a most interesting guy. Recently he and his wife
split, doing so by sitting down over a glass of wine and dividing up
their assets. What a novel idea for a couple with over a billion
dollars to share.
He�s also the
founder of Yellowstone Club in Big Sky (MT), it�s the only private
resort community in the U.S. with its own ski mountain and
world-class golf course. Mostly wilderness, it�s a haven for the
super rich who pay an initiation fee of $250,000 and are required to
purchase property of $1 million to $10 million, plus pay annual dues
of $16,000.
The
Yellowstone Club has 200 members, and exists because of two barter
deals that Blixseth executed in the 1990s, when he and his
timber-business partner made a trade with federal officials. They
provided 164,000 acres adjacent to Yellowstone National Park in
exchange receiving 100,000 acres in the Bozeman/Big Sky area.
Of the 100,000
acres the partner took the timberland, leaving Blixseth and his wife
with a stretch of undeveloped land they originally intended to turn
into a family compound. After the newly built cabins and chalets
became wildly popular with their friends, they decided to create a
country club for millionaires looking for an alternative to pricey,
pretentious, and over-crowded destinations such as Aspen.
Thus, the
development of Yellowstone Club occupying 22 square miles. With an
eye toward natural beauty, only 20% of its acreage is slated for
development...and the rest remains untouched.
Blixseth�s
latest announcement is his plan to build and sell a home there for
$155 million. The 53,000-square-foot stone and wood mansion will
have 10 bedrooms and sit on 160 acres. A private gondola-like
chairlift will carry residents to Yellowstone Club�s private ski
slopes. Fully furnished, it will have an indoor/outdoor swimming
pool and a home movie theater.
The timber and
real estate baron is confident it will sell, suggesting that price
is not an issue with the world�s richest who insist on having the
best.