Prince secretly bought the "Purple Rain" house months before his death
Maybe he was just sentimental.
Months before his death, music icon Prince quietly snatched up the house that served as a home base for his "Purple Rain" character in the 1984 film, Minnesota's Star Tribune reported Wednesday.
The house, a white three-bedroom single-family building at 3420 Snelling Av. in Minneapolis' Longfellow neighborhood, was sold sight unseen for $117,000 cash last August, though the asking price as just $110,000.
Despite the purchase, Prince -- who died eight months later and who never began repairs needed -- never lived in the house. It's unclear if he even stepped foot in it after purchasing it.
"I don't think he had a plan. I think he just wanted it," the selling agent, Deborah Larson, said, adding that the whole transaction was handled by phone and took barely a few hours to complete. It wasn't until paperwork with the name NPG Music Publishing came through that she realized Prince was involved.
The home is now part of the estate -- estimated to be valued at more than $250 million -- being overseen by the Bremer Trust bank.