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UPDATE: Evander Holyfield claimed to VladTV in December 2023 that the reason behind this mansion debacle was his sister illegally taking out a second mortgage on it.
Evander Holyfield amassed more than $230 million in career earnings. Unfortunately, one purchase played a role in him losing all of that money in 10 years.
Holyfield was one of the best fighters in his generation. He fought for 27 years and won 44 of his 57 total matches as per BoxRec, and in the peak of his career earned more than $30 million a fight in the 90s. When you're the best athlete in your sport it can make you feel invincible, especially on your bank account. Holyfield was no different. Despite paying child support for 11 kids, spending thousands a week in casinos in Las Vegas and Atlantic City, the biggest reason for Holyfield's downfall was his $20 million mansion in Georgia he bought back in 1998.
Evander Holyfield's downfall
Athletes spending $20 million on a property isn't really news anymore. After all, LeBron James has spent $62 million on three mansions in LA and Michael Jordan once spent $80 million on a yacht. You might even consider Holyfield's mansion a steal when you find out what came with it. For starters, it had 109 rooms and had an area of 54,000 square feet. Just to put that into context real quick, his home was bigger than 11 basketball courts, named the largest single-family home in Georgia, and was nearly as big as a standard football field!
The amenities inside the home weren't too shabby either. It had everything from a bowling alley, indoor and outdoor pools, a boxing gym, and even a baseball field. As Winston Churchill once said: “With great power comes great responsibility.”
In this case, the power is the home, and the responsibility was the maintenance. The home was said to cost $1 million a year in maintenance and taxes alone. By the time he was evicted from his home, Evander Holyfield owed the bank $14 million in mortgage payments, per newsone.com. Holyfield did try to gain some of his money back by investing in a record label and restaurant, but that only increased his debt by another $10 million.
Luckily, Holyfield managed to turn his life around. His home was eventually bought by Rick Ross for $5.8 million and now lives in a 2-bedroom apartment. It may not be anywhere close to the home he used to have, but at least he's found a way to make up for a bad situation.
