The "Thriller" singer – who died of a suspected cardiac arrest, believed to have been caused by prescription drugs, last month – was desperate to purchase the 10-acre estate in Las Vegas, which he named Wonderland, and had put away $5.5 million for the property.
Jackson planned to raise the rest of the cash needed from his 50-night "This Is It" residency at London's O2 arena.
The property, which was valued at $25 million, boasted 10 bedrooms and Jackson wanted to turn it into the new Neverland, the ranch he left in 2005.
Estate agent Zar Zanganeh, who showed the father-of-three around the house in 2007, said: "He loved it. He said he could do anything he wanted there, like in Neverland. It was top of his list. He had every intention of purchasing the property."
"His children were his number one priority, his biggest fear was they would be kidnapped and held for ransom, and he loved that it had panic rooms and a secret tunnel with exits. It was privately gated so Michael could use his own security."
One of Jackson's advisers had been looking after the pop legend's secret cash so he would have some money available to purchase the property, which has both an indoor and outdoor pool and a 1,000 sq ft play area.
Aide Dr. Tohme Tohme said: "It was a secret between Michael and me. He said, ‘Don't tell anyone about this money.'"
After Jackson's death, Tohme handed the money over to the executors of the 50-year-old star's will, who had no idea the cash existed.
