Nevada’s Dennis Hof looks to sell a brothel in Crystal, purchase Chicken Ranch in Pahrump area

The Chicken Ranch being listed for sale in September could lead to another notable chapter in the brothel industry in Nye County.

Dennis Hof, owner of two brothels in Crystal, which sits over 20 miles north of Pahrump, has put both his holdings in that area up for sale, though he only plans to sell one of them. Hof is also hoping to make a move on the Chicken Ranch at Silver Street and Homestead Road, outside of Pahrump, which went up for sale last month.

“We have numerous offers already,” Hof said.

Hof said he’s received interest from in-state and out-of-state buyers.

Hof’s Love Ranch South property at 300 Appaloosa Way in Crystal, just west of Highway 160, off Crystal Ranch Road, has an offer of $2.25 million, though nothing is signed yet. Dennis Hof’s Cat House in Crystal, which is not currently in operation, has had an offer of $1 million from investors.

“I’m really rather pleasantly surprised at the response because we’ve got three or four people now that are bidding to try to buy these places,” he said.

What’s involved

Hof is hoping to purchase the Chicken Ranch, which was listed for sale in mid-September for $4.5 million. He is looking at creating a co-ownership situation with multiple active prostitutes, who would hold a 50 percent stake in total, in his potential bid to purchase the ranch.

Interested buyers can also purchase half of the property for $2.25 million, which is held by current owner Ken Green, who has owned the brothel since the early 1980s, Hof said.

The Chicken Ranch also has three other partners in addition to Green.

At this point, there’s been a few bites but no deal has been inked on the Chicken Ranch property.

“We’ve had interest from several people,” said Trudy, who identified herself as the general manager of the Chicken Ranch, in a phone interview on Oct. 20. “Nobody has a concrete bid or no bids are pending, or in action, right at this moment.”

The brothel sits on 40 acres and contains a living room, kitchen and bedrooms for the girls, along with an attached bar. All the furniture, furnishings, equipment and inventory will be included in the sale price, according to a news release.

Also on the property are guest bungalows, offices, pool and spa, workout rooms and storage.

The buyers of the property will also obtain other revenue generators—the Chicken Ranch trade name, trademarks and copyrights and websites.

“This is an excellent business and investment opportunity,” Green said in a news release.

The Chicken Ranch’s origins trace back to La Grange, Texas, with some reports stating the establishment got its start as early as 1844. According to information on the La Grange Visitor Bureau’s website, the Chicken Ranch got its start in 1915, shutting down in 1973.

After that, the Chicken Ranch was relocated to Nye County, which has legal brothels.

Hof’s plan

Hof, who owns a total of seven brothels across Northern and Southern Nevada, is hoping to purchase the Chicken Ranch with several active prostitutes, which Hof said could turn into a positive situation.

“If the working girls own half of that place, they’re going to treat it like they own it,” Hof said. “They’ll be more responsible … They’ll look at the big picture rather than their individual sales.”

If the system were to be successful at the Chicken Ranch, Hof said he would implement it at his other holdings in the state.

Hof said he’d like to offer the Chicken Ranch to active prostitutes that have been working alongside him for several years — some as many as 15 years. Hof said those women wouldn’t have to come up with the money at once.

They could pay it over 24 months, he said.

Hof said he would also have offerings of ownership for the active prostitutes currently with the Chicken Ranch, if he’s successful in purchasing the brothel.

For the prostitutes that were interested in purchasing, Hof said they would have to go through the vetting process, as do other owners of brothels in Nye County and the state.

The vetting process through Nye County also includes fingerprinting, a lot of disclosures and other things of that nature, Hof said.

Arnold Knightly, a spokesman for Nye County, said costs can be high for that process.

A background check runs $500 through the county.

Other expenses include an FBI check and a financial background check that has to be done by an accountant. Since those items fall out of the purview of the county, Knightly was unsure of the exact costs associated with that.

Hof estimated that costs can run as high as $7,000.

It’s not immediately clear, through the information provided through the county and Hof, what the exact fees would equate to for an active prostitute to buy into a portion of the Chicken Ranch.

The Pahrump Valley Times is still working with all parties to obtain a clearer picture.

Contact reporter Jeffrey Meehan at jmeehan@pvtimes.com. On Twitter: @pvtimes