Oprah Winfrey to Enter Vacation Rental Business  3/28/05

Talk show host Oprah Winfrey has sparked speculation she's entering the Hawaiian real estate market, after obtaining a five-year permit to rent out a villa in Kula.

The Maui County Council has given preliminary approval to a bill granting OW Ranch, LLC a five-year conditional permit to operate a 12-bedroom vacation rental.

Gideon Kaufman, a Colorado-based legal representative for Winfrey and an officer of OW Ranch, says, "I'll let the initials stand for themselves."

The 51-year-old billionaire and her personal trainer, Bob Green, purchased land off Maui's coast in 2002.