Sommer Ray Drops Massive Sum on New House

Instagram star Sommer Ray has turned her popularity on the social media platform into a thriving business, and she’s ready to upgrade her digs. She started the new year off by buying a new home in the San Fernando Valley for over $1.4 million. The 25-year-old Ray has over 26.8 million followers on Instagram and recently partnered with Imarais Beauty.

Ray bought a five-bedroom, three-bathroom home in Los Angeles for $1.45 million, TMZ reported Sunday. The home has several features that will soon become supporting players in her Instagram photos, including a gourmet kitchen, a pool, a pool house, and a giant backyard. SGS Estates’ Stephen Sweeney represented Ray in the sale.

Ray is also a fitness model who has tried to break free from the stereotypes of Instagram models who became famous just for their looks. She began posting photos when she was 15 and quickly racked up 40,000 followers. Ray grew up in Colorado, but she moved to Los Angeles to pursue new opportunities.

“I grew up on a ranch in Colorado, in the middle of nowhere,” Ray told Forbes in 2018. “I raised chickens in 4-H. I was really good at it! I have all blue ribbons. I was a rodeo princess. I’m a country girl, not a fake one. When I go to Country Jam, and I’m in cowboy boots, people always say, ‘She’s fake.’ I’m like, ‘No. I was in 4H!’”

Ray’s goal in 2018 was to build a bigger female fanbase and promote a healthy lifestyle. She rejected plastic surgery and, as a former bodybuilder, wants to improve her body naturally. “I just want to promote a healthy, natural lifestyle,” she told Forbes. “I’m really against plastic surgery and all that stuff. I’m also trying to grow my business. I’m trying to become a businesswoman.”

Her businesses include her Sommer Ray Shop website and Imarais Beauty, a brand of plant-based skincare gummies. In 2020, she joined Imarais after co-founder Felicia Hershenhorn reached out. “I approached Sommer at the start of the pandemic to be the CIO because of her track record of innovating in the wellness space,” Hershenhorn told Forbes in June 2021.

“I don’t think social media is going anywhere,” Ray also told Forbes. “There’s kind of no escaping it. I want to have both. Obviously, Instagram is where my business lives and where my fans are, but also I want to get to people outside of that and not just live and die by my Instagram.”

Ray is also famous for briefly dating rapper Machine Gun Kelly before he began dating Megan Fox. During a March 2021 appearance on Logan Paul’s podcast, Ray appeared to insinuate that Kelly cheated on her with Fox. When they split in April 2020, Kelly publicly accused Ray of breaking up with him on his birthday. After that, Ray said she was the target of death threats from Kelly’s fans.